| Do you have you loads of simply beautiful material | | | | tissue paper will collect any excess oil. |
| folded neatly away in the cupboard, unused? | | | | · Dream up and draw your next sweatshirt |
| Would your wardrobe increase if a few missing | | | | design on paper while having a cup of tea. |
| buttons were stitched back on and some drooping | | | | · Pin the paper pattern on to the fabric, |
| hems or the like were stitched up? | | | | carefully checking the grain lines are correct, roll up (not |
| Do you want to learn to sew and use that material | | | | fold) and put away carefully. |
| and recharge that wardrobe? | | | | · On your next 14 minute sewing session |
| I often hear my friends moan about a few little | | | | appointment with yourself you can cut out the fabric. |
| mending jobs they would like to do but haven't quite | | | | · Be a little creative in one of your sessions. |
| got the skills. | | | | Practise using the fancy stitches on your sewing |
| The other reason given is 'I don't seem to have the | | | | machine. If you do not have the sewing machine |
| time to do these things!' | | | | manual, write down in a notebook the best width and |
| The 'time' aspect of it is easily fixed. Try this:- | | | | length to use, cut out a stitched sample and staple or |
| Make a one-hour sewing session appointment with | | | | glue in to the book for future reference. This will save |
| yourself in your diary, just like you make an | | | | you heaps of time at a later date when you want to |
| appointment for the dentist or the hair stylist. . | | | | use the stitches. |
| If you feel one hour is too long to take at this time, set | | | | · Pin and stitch darts and press. Waist line |
| one for 14 minutes. | | | | darts are pressed to the centre of the garment and |
| Check out what you can do in 14 minutes. Did you | | | | bust and elbow darts pressed downwards. |
| know that in 14 minutes you could: - | | | | · Stitch in a zip. |
| · Sew on three missing buttons and iron that | | | | · Stitch a test buttonhole first then stitch all the |
| shirt. | | | | buttonholes onto your outfit. |
| · Pin up a drooping hem, restitch that small | | | | · Tidy up your pattern box. |
| length and press ready to wear. | | | | · Choose your next outfit to stitch and put the |
| · Dust off and clean your sewing machine | | | | pattern in your bag so it is available next time you shop |
| using a soft cloth. Dust and check out the bobbin case | | | | for fabric. |
| area. | | | | Now I have started the list you can add to it. We can |
| · Check the sewing machine needle and | | | | sit down and sew when we know that all those little |
| replace if bent and old. | | | | mending jobs are completed and our sewing machine |
| · Oil your sewing machine if it is an older type. | | | | is clean and ready to go. |
| · Leave it un-threaded and with no bobbin and | | | | Still think you don't have enough time? Did you know |
| run the machine, stitching on some tissue paper, just to | | | | that if we have 8 hours sleep in one day, we still have |
| get the feel and motivation to sew and to get the | | | | over 68 x 14 minutes sessions left and, even once we |
| machine moving again. | | | | have been to work and taken care of business or |
| · If using oil, leave the tissue paper under the | | | | domestic tasks, we still have quite a few of these for |
| lowered presser foot until you are ready to sew. The | | | | our 'sewing session' appointments. |