Jeans can easily break the bank and the kids want or need new jeans every year but that doesn't mean that last years jeans are ready for the landfill! Last years, jeans may be beyond being worn this year but they can be transformed... even if we argue about the length of the finished skirt, the old jeans aren't going in the landfill. You may even find yourself scouring the thrift stores for used jeans since there is SO much you can make using old jeans!

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When my local Wal Mart discontinued selling fabric, it changed my work habits. Running 62 miles for a zipper forces me to plan... well most of the time. When I see a new project or get an idea in my head, I will travel to get the supplies I need.  The extra miles, usually mean I don't buy "just" what I need either.

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I have a vegetable garden that is growing faster than we can consume all the goodies. I found a zucchini that was the size of a baseball bat... and it was still growing.  I love zucchini bread but no matter how much freezer space I squeezed out, I couldn't fit zucchini bread from 8 cups of grated zucchini in the freezer so I decided to share the goodies with some friends. Two of them stopped by while the bread was still hot so I couldn't wrap it but I didn't want to send it out to the car without some kind of wrapping.  I had a couple of the drawstring gift bags packed away in the dinning room hutch and discovered that the shoe box size drawstring gift bag was the perfect size for a loaf of bread. Now I need to make a few more but this time I think I will make them in some harvest type print fabric...it looks like the garden is going to keep me giving away goodies for a while! I'll use the scraps to make canning jar lid covers... the amount of cucumbers I'm seeing, means lots of pickles!

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I'm about to be a nag but it really is for your own good. This nag is going to save you money if you just take a few minutes to listen and remedy the situation.  I know many of you do not go near your sewing machine in the summer... or at the least you don't sew as much as you do in the other seasons.... So here's the nag part ... are you covering your machine? Even if you throw a towel over it, you're protecting your investment by keeping the dust and dirt out of the machine.  Many of the new machines are designed so it looks like everything is enclosed and protected but the openings that you guide the thread through are also allowing dust into the machine... so protect your investment!

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I saw a piece on the news the other day about how Facebook is the most visited website and it's having an impact on our lives. Suppliers and purchasers are watching Facebook to plan their store stock and more. I have many people requesting to be my Facebook friend but I look for "sewing" somewhere in their profile before I will approve them as a friend. I've discovered many people do not list sewing even though they love sewing. Given the impact Wal Mart had by discontinuing fabric, I think it's important to list sewing as a hobby, interest, lifestyle... some where on Facebook so that we let the world suppliers know we have the numbers that are needed to carry the supplies we need... how about you?

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I really don't need a reason to save fabric scraps... every little piece of fabric seems to talk to me and convince me that it shouldn't be thrown away... it must be big enough for something. If you're an American Sewing Guild member, you've probably seen the great cover article in their Notions Magazine about making fabric beads and jewelry. One of my treasures from sewing shows is the fabric and sewing oriented jewelry I come home with. I have a favorite pair of fabric earrings... that no one realizes is fabric , a collection of charms on a broach, and sewing machine earrings.

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I love going to the county fairs and other recreation parks. The water parks have lockers but most of the fun places don't have that luxury... leaving good old mom carrying what seems like everything. When we are leaving the house, it seems no one thinks they will need their back pack or, "it's too bulky" so they leave without anything to carry things... leaving me carrying all the prizes, souvenirs and just plain "stuff".  I've developed a new strategy though... I have made everyone their own drawstring back pack. I keep them folded in my bag until they try to hand me something to "put in my bag"... instead I hand them their own bag.

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There is a saying that you can't please all the people all time... and I can testify that it's true. I hear from viewers all the time who want more pictures or less pictures, who want a pdf file, who want a just text version... unfortunately if I tried to create every version that everyone wants, I'd never have time to put up anything new. The problem is that there are many different levels of sewing skills. Some require more information, some require less and get upset at having to print everything. Some miss the "print" link in the upper right hand side of the pages. Any way... I have some solutions. My method of choice that I use on many Internet free sewing patterns is to Copy and Paste what I want to print into a word processor document. Another option that avoids printing ads and page packaging is to use print selection from your printer menu.

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I hate being the bearer of this news but school will be starting before we know it. The start of the school year means a new wardrobe and new school supplies... all budget breaking supplies. Using the summer to start sewing supplies for the school year can take the edge off of the blow to the budget... leaving more budget for summer fun.

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When I set up the page on fitting and alterations I received many emails from people who appreciated having all the information in one place and that they added the page to their favorites or bookmarks.

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