Blog
Welcome to the DravonWorks sewing blog! Here you’ll find lots of sewing information. I’m one of the “technical” people, who likes to know the why’s of things. In my mind, once a Why is understood then the information can be applied in a myriad of different ways! You won’t find a whole lot of “make this item” tutorials, but you will find answers to questions like “why should I thread my machine like that versus like this?” or “do I REALLY have to do it this way?” Most of these posts are coming from questions asked by students in my classes, but if YOU have a question you’d like answered then please feel free to comment.
I know that understanding the technical stuff behind what is going on doesn’t work for everyone, but that’s why there are so many great sewing blogs out there! Find the teacher that speaks to you, and I’d love to be one of them. If you do like what you read here, be sure to share, subscribe and visit back often! Tell your friends about this sewing blog! Ask questions, share your projects or stories. Sewing is most fun when it’s a community of people sharing what inspires them. I really want to hear from you!
Decorative Stitches: Playing with Waves
Didn’t have a whole lot of time today, but I did sit down at my machine and put into thread some of the ideas I had for that wave stitch which was in yesterday’s picture. The first thing I tried was a simple stitch-mirror_stitch where I left everything at default and started at the same place. Turned out pretty cool! Huh. That makes a pretty good frame. I wonder what something would like if I picked a motif or two from other decorative stitches and put them into the open spaces there. Let’s try it! *cackles with glee* Yes, I...
read moreDecorative Stitch Cataloging Begins
While at work today, I did my best to sit in on a class taught by Jane Connor. The class was part one of two and was entitled “Stitch Exploration.” You should see what this woman can do with regular decorative stitches! Most folks I’ve seen, including myself, use lines of decorative stitches and then stack them up to make them look like fabric fill. Or use a decorative stitch instead of a straight stitch for stitch-in-the-ditch. Not Jane. She’s got “The Eye” … you know, the Artist’s Eye....
read moreSewFest 2014 in San Diego
Back from San Diego’s Husqvarna Viking mini-convention called Sew Fest. Got to play with the latest 6D Embroidery Software update still in Beta, as well as got a chance to work on the 2 new machines set to be unveiled soon. I took some video which I now get to figure out how to edit and I’ll post that this weekend. Until then, happy sewing! – Dravon
read moreProduct Comparison: 2 Types of Covered Buttons by Dritz
In the last post, I was less than pleased that every single covered button fell apart within moments of finishing the white wool vest. To be utterly fair, that was the result of operator error pure and simple. Why? Because I made the button holes the same size as the buttons. I am supposed to add 2 mm to the button measurement to allow for the height of the button. This is where having a sewing machine which does a lot of this for me makes me forgetful of such details when I switch to a machine which does not think of this for me. *sigh*...
read moreButtonhole Headaches on the White Wool Vest
I have never, ever had this much trouble trying to put buttonholes onto a garment. I think in the last post I mentioned that I was putting the keyhole buttonholes onto the vest but the keyhole looked smeared rather than round. Jane suggested I try embroidering them. Worth a go! After much forgetting, I finally had all the materials in the same place at the same time, and gave the embroidered buttonhole a try. Since I work at a sewing machine dealer, I have to use a variety of machines in order to learn them all. In this case, I was using the...
read moreWhite Vest & Art Quilt
It’s no fun when plans fall through – especially when they fall through due to random seeming stuff. I got the white vest all finished with the exception of the buttonholes and buttons. Huzzah! It looks great!!!! … for the most part. More on that in the Post Mortem when it’s all finished. Now the last vest that I did, I screwed up on the button hole placement and didn’t notice until it was finished. Instead of being 1/2″ from the edge, they were 1″ and it was really obvious to me. *facepalm*...
read moreTone-on-tone doublet tests; Wool Vest Series final vest
I’ve got a few projects in the works. Figured it would be a good idea for me to do status reports as I go. It’s easier for me to remember the details doing this rather than try to remember everything at the very end. First up, I did some test stitch-outs for a tone-on-tone embroidered doublet project that I wanted to undertake. I picked some of the low-grade black wool that I have and then chose black cotton thread for the embroidery. I chose that thread because it’s a matte finish, so the embroidery will remain subtle....
read moreGift Art Quilt In Progress
I have a number of projects currently in the pipeline. The single biggest project is the close to a dozen Renaissance garments by October. We’re in the planning stages of exactly what needs to be made, but first that means breaking out what we’ve already got and assessing it. Not doing real well making the time for that… There is one remaining white cashmere vest to be made for the hubby. My personal goal is to get this finished by the end of February. Once that one is done, I’ll do a post-mortem of all 5. I’ve...
read moreVelvet Mantel Scarf for Christmas 2013
One of my co-workers at the Sewing Cafe is a major machine embroidery fan. She doesn’t really sew, but she loves to embellish or make simple projects which feature the embroidery. In late November she brought in the Dec issue of Designs in Machine Embroidery magazine. There was a project featured that was a very nice mantel scarf which spelled out stuff like “NOEL” or “JOY” or whatever you wanted. She made one and it was so cool I decided that would be the main Christmas gift project for the year. Alas, I never...
read moreDetails and Technical Stuff
In this blog, I’ll be taking lots of pictures, posting videos and talking about tons of sewing machines. I expect at some point someone will inquire for details. Here they are, upfront. I work in a sewing machine retail store which currently has 4 different brands of machines: Husqvarna Viking, Baby Lock, Pfaff and Bernina. Because I have to make samples for the store as well as match up my customer’s sewing needs and basic personality type with the brand and model which I hope will make them even more ecstatic about the creative...
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