Blind Leading the Blind!

A few months ago my sister asked me to give her lessons on how to use her sewing machine. Even with my own lesson a few weeks ago I wasn't entirely confident teaching someone else. I am just a beginner too but decided what they hey, I'll give it a go. I gave her the choice of learning to make a simple pin cushion or the Japanese folded bag. She of course chose the most difficult of the two. It is actually simple to make but keep in mind I have had one lesson and made one myself. Thankfully I needn't have worried. Lorraine isn't just arty she is also crafty herself and so picked it up despite my poor teaching ability. You can see her finished bag above. She has since made several and has embellished a few with buttons. I promise to take photo's of them when I see them.

In terms of the sewing machine itself I was actually able to give her some handy hints. Not bad considering!

This is the one I made when teaching my sister. It's significantly bigger than the last one I made although still not big enough to hold socks (which is my goal). Back to the drawing board on that one. Yes, most of my fabric involves black, red and white.

Lorraine isn't actually a stranger to sewing. She has made me many lovely things all hand stitched. Generally I am the guinea pig for these projects which she uses in work. Just now she has been hand stitching birds and promised to make me one. I even got to chose the fabric. This little bird is called Brigitta.