Sewing Machine

As Andy and I have been slowly (and I do mean s-l-o-w-l-y) settling into our new home, I had this random thought that I wanted to learn to sew.  It really was only a thought until I opened my big mouth.  It wasn't even a serious thought.  You know how you see those really cool things people pin on Pinterest and you pin it too knowing full well that you will never even begin to tackle that project?  Well, that was my thought about sewing and buying a sewing machine.  But then Andy started doing research on how much a sewing machine would cost.  Then I started doing research on sewing machines.  Then I asked Andy's mom about her sewing machine, and that folks is when my thought became a reality.  Yep, I am now the owner of a Singer Confidence Stylist sewing machine.  Apparently, I can make button holes, zippers, and 70 different types of stitches.  Here she is...

She doesn't have a name yet...

I have never touched a sewing machine before.  Ever.  My babysitter when I was growing up sewed.  My Granny sews, like makes clothes and stuff.  I have seen the basic, very basic, operation of a sewing machine before, but I didn't even know what a bobbin was until I started researching sewing machines.  I ordered my machine off of Amazon because it was the lowest price by $20.  We had some problems with the UPS delivery, but they eventually found our house.  I read tons of reviews and most everyone said it was extremely easy to use.  They weren't kidding.  The instructional DVD it came with was super helpful.  I will probably have to watch it a few more times before I can "thread" my machine on my own, but that's okay.  Andy's mom had given me some scrap fabric and black thread.  I have now sewn a line eight different times.  I'm pretty good with the straight stitch, but the zig-zag needs some work.  I know I will get better at it with practice.

First to last goes left to right.  I did get a little better in the end!

Making clothes with my machine is not a priority for me.  I would really like to make things like curtains, small decorative things around the house, maybe small gifts for friends, and anything Andy needs.  Andy already has a list going for me, or so he claims.  He has been asking me to make him a fishing bag without a zipper because they one he has now has a zipper and it's rusted due to the salt water.  That will probably be my first project to tackle.  I want to make some doilies for my coffee table and lamp table in the living room.  I have read about several scrapbookers who use their sewing machine for their scrapbook pages.  Now that would be really neat instead of sewing by hand.  My machine will actually sew a button onto something, so I'm pretty excited to use that.  But for now, I shall stick to straight stitches and easy projects.