Sewing

I've long dreamt of being able to stitch my own outfits. When I was pregnant with R, I really wanted to learn how to sew so that I could make cute outfits for her. However, it was all too overwhelming the first time around - pregnancy, labor, delivery, the newborn jaundice phase, issues with R's weight gain, getting a handle on nursing, and then trying to find a work-life balance.

The second time around - even though I am busier than before, I am much more relaxed. That helps in finding time to do creative things. Growing up in India, I've always enjoyed shopping fabric for outfits, sarees, home furnishings - and providing input to the tailor on the design/pattern, and seeing what you visualized come to life. When I go back home now, I don't have time to do this leisurely....there is always a rush, and I miss those days when I could take my own sweet time to browse and pick up stuff.

Earlier this week, Mom-Dad and I spent an afternoon at Joann's, browsing and shopping for fabric. We felt like little kids in the store, exploring every section with so much curiosity. We bought a few items, and came back home. I got online, and to my delight, I found a local sewing studio which was offering an introductory sewing class that same evening. I was sooper excited, I called them right away and signed up for the class!

I got there on time, not knowing how my evening would go, whether I would enjoy this experience or not, what would the instructor think of me, etc etc. The instructor - Marj - is a 70+ year old lady, who has taught sewing for years. She instantly reminded me of my grandma, who taught me how to knit and do embroidery while growing up. She was very patient, and had a calming presence. I liked her right away. She helped me pick the fabric for my first two projects, and we got started (I used a loaner sewing machine as suggested by her. I will try out a couple before deciding which one to buy).

My first project was a fancy pillow-case. We picked three different fabrics - one for the body, one for the border on the top, and another small piece of lining separating the two. It sounds like an easy project, but for a first-timer, it's a perfect one to pick. It pretty much took me the entire class duration to learn how to use the machine and get the pillow cover done. I made some mistakes, which Marj showed me how to fix. I completed the whole thing myself, and was quite proud of it in the end!

When I showed it off at home, mom-dad-hubby were impressed too :)!

For my second project, we picked a lovely blue+pink flowery print fabric for a wrap-around dress for R. I have studied the pattern, but I ran out of time to start cutting. I hope to finish it during the next class.....whenever that happens!

I have a few projects on my mind already: dresses for R, onesie/bib for baby, Hawaiian shirt for dad and hubby (we bought the fabric already), a skirt for my sister, an apron for mom, etc.

I'm excited to get my sewing journey started!!!!