Will I see you at Original Sewing & Quilt Expo in Pittsburgh?

I'm so excited about going to Pittsburgh in a few weeks.. It's going to be the first time going to the Original Sewing & Quilt Expo. Is anyone going there too? Has anyone been there before? What did you like about it? Did you like the classes?

I've signed up for some awesome hands-on classes. There are sooooo many classes that it was hard to narrow down.. And it was hard having to chose between two classes that was offered at the same time :-(
But I've finally got my list of classes picked out and registered for them.. Thank goodness the ones I wanted wasn't full yet.. Don't wait too much longer to sign up if you're still thinking of going.. Classes or not, I think it's going to be an awesome time.
So after long hours of debating, here is my class schedule.

Thursday Aug 2: 

1. Cosmetic Serger-y Workshop with Gail Yellen
   I'm excited with this class because I'll be able to practice using a serger.  I'm trying to decide if I need a serger or not.  I know it's used for finishing edges but there has to be more uses for a serger. So with this hands-on class, it will be a treat to actually use a server and play with it.. How often do use your serger?
2.  Mini Messenger Tote with Kathy Stachowicz
   Another serger class.. :-)  Notice the theme for Thursday classes..  This class will include zippers and cover stitches..  So with a little research, I found that there are two types of sergers.  One can do an overlock stitch and another to do cover stitch..  Most sergers only can do one or the other, but Babylock has one that can do both. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   The Bablylock Evolution can do both overlocking and cover stitch on the same serger.. How cool is that. 
   On top of that, this serger auto tension and the air threading system that looks sooo easy to do.. 
   Hopefully that's the serger I will get to use in this class,
   I can't wait to try it. 
 

Friday Aug 3: 

1. Mitered Corners and Setting Triangles with Nelly Vileikis
   Mitered corners is a technique I'm dying to learn.. I've watch tons of youtube videos but it's not the same as learning it first hand in a class.. I've been dreading to do blankets because I don't know how to put the finishing touch on.. Wish me luck in this class, hopefully I will come out feeling confident to make a mitered corner on my own.
   

Saturday Aug 4: 

1. Quilted Cosmetic Bag with Chris Dolinar
   I'm not too sure what to expect from this class but the description talks about "texture and dimension are the current buzzwords in all kinds of sewing projects. Learn just how easy it is to add texture in your embroidery."  I'm up for texture and dimension in my projects..
   
   
2. Gifts in Minutes: Pretty, Practical Projects with Hope Yoder
   This class is all about binding.. Binding is also another technique which I desperately need help in.  I've tried different binding methods but just can't get a consistent way to get the binding to look straight... is it just me?  Binding can't be that hard to do,  right?  So binding, here I come.. 

5 classes in three days...I'll definitely be super busy during the expo.  But I'm so glad the expo provides the sewing machines for the class, instead of me lugging my machine for a 6 hour drive.. One less thing to worry about and pack..

There is so much more to do in the expo other than the classes, I don't know if I will have time to do everything.  I have squeeze in some time to go to the Make-It Center and meet Beth Bradley from Sew It All and Sew News.. And of course, must make time to walk the aisle of vendors to do some SHOPPING!!!

9 more days to go, I have to start packing...
Is anyone else going to Pittsburgh Sewing & Quilt Expo??    Hope to meeting you all there..

~~Words of Encouragement~~

This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalm 118:24 (NLT)

Current Passion.. Machine Embroidery

About 7 years ago, I was at the stage in my life where I was getting married and so were all my friends.  For a period of 3-4 years, I had average of 10 friends getting married per year.  This meant gifts for the wedding, bridal shower and baby showers came right after for those who had kids right away... So what is a girl to do??  Buy an embroidery machine :-)

I decided to buy a sewing and embroidery combo machine so I can personalize their gifts myself. It took me a bit to figure out what to buy.  Originally I was going to go with a computerized sewing machine that had more stitches to embellish my gifts but when I went to a Sew & Vac store, I discovered about embroidery machines. 
(^-^) and (♥~♥)

If you never gone to a Sew and Vac store, you're in for a treat.   There were two I visited and each had similar offers but the second one allowed me to bring it home with no cost to try for a week free.  No commitment to buy.. How great is that!! I couldn't resist.. so I tried a computerized sewing machine for a week and went right back to try something else.  I would have been bored quickly with just the computerized one since it's mainly for regular sewing with fancier stitch options.. the guy at the store showed me a combo with embroidery.  The combo is a computerized sewing machine and embroidery machine in one.  It was the best of both worlds.  So I took home a Janome Memory Craft 9500 for a week and fell in love with it..


For those who never tried machine embroidery, go to your local Sew and Vac store and give it a try.  It's so much fun being able to embroidery already made items or sew your own things and add a personal touch.

To start doing machine embroidery there was a slight learning curve.  It's slightly different than regular sewing.  Sewing you just have to worry about the needle and the thread tension.  With machine embroidery, you have to learn about stabilizers and which one to use for the various types of fabrics.  Stabilizers will make or break the outcome of your embroidery because it's primary purpose is to support the fabric and create a well formed stitch.

There are various types of stabilizers to be used to support embroidery design on your fabric.   Most common stabilizers are used as a backing to your fabric to prevent puckering or slipping.   The stabilizers used on top (called topper) of your fabric is used to prevent stitch from sinking into the fabric (like fleece or towels).   Stabilizers come in many different weights and properties.  The most common ones are tearaways, cutaways, washaway, peel and stick.  As you can see the names represent the properties of the stabilizers.  They each have different uses depending on your project.  I prefer the tearaway and the washaway since they come out easily; no trimming needed.
There is so much information out there about stabilizers, I won't go into the same details. Check out the links I've included within this post.

So are you curious on what gifts I started to make with my new embroidery sewing machine???
Well, the weddings was definitely first priority...
I decided to make a wedding frames with the bride and groom's names and wedding date.
 

	1st Frame Thisturned out pretty good for my first attempt. Lots of puckering but not too bad.
	2nd Frame This turned one was too complicated. It looked better in my mind. I was trying to make a Winnie the Pooh wedding party. Way too much puckering.
	3rd Frame I fell in love with the heart frame style. This is one of many using the heart frame. Still haven't learned how to deal with the puckering. :-(
	4th Frame I wanted to try sliver metallic thread but it wasn't a good contrast with the light blue fabric. Puckering is better since i switched to heavier fabric.
	5th Frame I'm getting the hang of this. What do you think? I tried to make each frame slightly different. Look, minimal puckering.. FINALLY.
	6th Frame Last one in the series that I took picture of. No Puckering (^_^)

So hope you'll get inspired to try machine embroidery.. I had lots of fun creating these wedding frames for my friends.

Question of the Day: What wedding gifts have you created?

~~Words of Encouragement~~

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.  Deuteronomy 31:6 (NIV)

Blogger's Block....so early

Ohhhh WOW, has it been over a month already since I started this blog??  It's harder than I thought to come up with new postings..  I was debating on which craft to write about next.. But when I tried to look for my photos related to the craft, I couldn't find any.. :-(
I was going to share about my adventures of learning to make gifts from the following crafts below, but for now, I'll just list them with links to others who have done a great job in putting up tutorials and videos...

Plastic Canvas	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Cross stitch	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Macrame (friendship bracelets)	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Rug Latch Hooking	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Knitting	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Loom Knitting	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Origami	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Paper Quilling	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns
Straw Stars	Basic Tutorial Video Tutorial	Patterns

That's just at the top of my head..
I probably tried so many more types of crafts but just can't remember them at the moment..
Maybe one of these days, if I find the pictures of some of these, I'll post some up.. But for the moment, I have decided to just skip the old crafts I used to do and just skip to the present crafts..
so stay tuned for more to come... :D

Question of the Day: What types of crafts have you tried in the past???

~~Words of Encouragement~~

May the Lord bless you and protect you.

May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.

May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace. Numbers 6:24-26 (NLT)

Early Beginnings.....Crochet

Like I mentioned, I started out with granny squares with regular crocheting yarn. I made things with my grandmother, depending on what she was making. She was able to recreate things by just looking at it; no pattern needed.. I'm not that good. My talents seem to be slightly different.  I can't start with a blank slate when coming up with crafts to make.  I'm better at manipulating or reconfiguring things once I see it.  I have to see something already completed to get my inspiration.  I can copy or improve it as long as I see it or have something already in place to make changes. But if you give me a blank page, it will stay blank.  I would rather start with a pattern or something already done and work to add my personal touches to the pattern.

So getting back to crocheting..
There are so many tutorials out there with videos to help you get started if you want to learn to crochet.  I wish I had these available to me when I was young.  I learned it the old fashion way from crochet books with just pictures.  Here is a tutorial I used in the past from Lion Brand.  Once you learn the basics, the possibilities are endless.  You can make anything from blankets, clothes, doilies to wall hangings (see below).

I started to discover different types of yarn and I eventually fell in love with the thinner yarn to create things like doilies via Filet Crochet.  Hass Designs is my all time favorite place to go to get Filet Crochet patterns.  The best part is the Crochet-Along-Classes.  So you purchase the pattern and sign up for a class.  It gives you step-by-step instructions and you get to work on the same project as fellow crocheters from around-the-world. Or you can work self-paced throughout the year.

I loved Filet Crochet because it was more fun and I can create things that can be personalized. This was the beginning of my journey in creating personalized gifts.
Here are two of my greatest achievements using Filet Crochet.  I created these two wall hangings as wedding gifts. 

Question of the Day:
So if you love Crocheting as much as I do,
what item(s) are you most proud to have created? 

~~Words of Encouragement~~

 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

The beginning of something new....

Hi :D
I'm so excited to be starting a blog.. I like to read other people's blogs and never thought I would start my own.. but it's the year of new beginnings so here goes nothing.. 

I'm a Project Manager by day and a Craft Enthusiast\wife by night.   If I could, I would retire now and just do crafts all day long.. My first exposure to crafts was at the age of 8 when my grandmother taught me how to crochet granny squares.. I seem to be the only grandchild that follows my grandmother's creativity and love for crafts. 

But I wanted to share my crafting journey, my creations over the years to give you inspirations and lead you to where I am today with the beginnings of KadoHearts (Gift from the Heart).

So sit back, grab some coffee or tea and start crafting with me.... 

~~Words of Encouragement~~
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)