Sewing 101

My mother-in-law gave me a beautiful sewing machine for Christmas. I eyed it for about a month before I got up the nerve to take it out of the box. This past weekend, I cleared the kitchen table and placed the gleaming white machine in the middle of it. "I have big plans for you Mr. Singer."

I am a fairly crafty person; however the last thing I sewed was a washcloth that my mother gave me to practice on when I was five and even that was not without supervision.

The first project was a success. I altered my shower curtain by adding 8" of maroon material to the bottom in effect creating the world's best shower curtain if such things were based on their length and ability to match my bathroom tile. Straightness of stitches was not included in judging categories.

Well, the first success made me a little over confident and over zealous. "I will now hem dress slacks," I announced while holding my right index finger in the air.

Ha. Easier said than done. Not only is it very difficult to figure out whether or not you folded the legs the same amount (Note: ruler), everything else about the project is difficult as well. The truth is I sewed one leg closed three times before I was finished - fuckaduck (my mother's favorite swear).