TANYA OWENS DESIGNS

Welcome back to Technique Tuesday! Today, we're exploring the captivating world of circular stitching using your sewing machine's decorative stitches. I've always been fascinated by the beautiful effects you can achieve with this technique, as I discussed in two previous blog posts: Having Fun Sewing Decorative Stitches in a Circle Technique Tuesday: Stacking Stitches I'm excited to share my DIY approach, especially since my specific sewing machine didn't have a readily available accessory for this. Practice Pillow with Decorative Circular Stitches Why Circular Stitching? Circular stitching opens up a world of creative possibilities. It's perfect for adding unique embellishments to garments, creating stunning quilt designs, and enhancing fabric art projects. Imagine the intricate circular designs you can create using your machine's built-in decorative stitches! My Sewing Machine Challenge (and Solution!): I own the Singer Legacy 340, a fantastic machine w...

Hi Everybody, recently I learned that you can do yarn couching using the Rolled Hem foot. So, no need to purchase a Couching foot. It also means that the Rolled Hem foot has multiple uses, which is great. When couching yarn you can use thread the color of the yarn so that the yarn stands out or choose to use a contrasting color on the yarn so the stitches stand out too. And lastly you can use nylon microfilament thread so that the stitches disappear and the yarn seems to float on the garment.  I did a test sew using my old standard, an old bedsheet. In the image above I used  medium weight size 4 worsted acrylic yarn, a wide ribbon, and sari yarn that I purchased to felt with. The three white cords are craft yarn that I corded, something I will discuss in a future blog.  I purchased monofilament thread  Sew-ology1001 Transparent Nylon Thread from Hobby Lobby on sale for .99.  I also purchased a larger set of 6 additional Rolled Hem feet to create hems in the fo...

Hello everyone, this Technique Tuesday we are focusing on decorative stitches that come with sewing machines. Specifically  sewing two decorative stitches in different colors on top of each other: stacking stitches. This summer I finally created a stitch chart of all of the stitches that came with my sewing machine. My machine comes with 250 stitches, so I repurposed items I had in my house to create a functional, nothing fancy stitch book.   I used an old 3-ring binder, an old bed sheet that I cut up, 40wt and 60wt thread and stitched out all of my stitches. Experts, that is seasoned sewists, recommend that you create a stitch chart or guide because the stitches on your machine or in your machine's guide will stitch out differently on fabric. My guide isn't fancy like some you will see on blogs, PBS or YouTube channels. My guide is practical. I can flip through it, see the stitches I want to sew and stitch them out. I also included quick reference guides with tips ...