Bernina Webinar for Corel Draw Essentials

Join us Monday, December 7th at 10am in Strawberry Patches as we host the hour long webinar for you. Bernina staff will be on the webinar to show how easy it is to turn artwork into embroidery, plus other creative designing tips! The session runs from 10am until 11am.
Call the store today to have a spot reserved in your name for this webinar.
Corel Draw Essentials is new in version 6 of the Bernina Embroidery software. If you are thinking of updating but haven't done it yet this webinar is for you. If you have updated this webinar is for you! Hope to see you then.

Mystery Quilt New Years Day 2010

I enjoyed constructing this one myself 3 years ago so know you'll love this as well. Don't limit yourself by thinking the background has to be your standard "background" choices. I took a chance when I selected my fabrics and I really liked how it turned out. This one I didn't do the embroidery before constructing the quilt because this was a mystery to me as well. But I liked it when done, and most importantly my Herbie did too because it was made for him. That's all the hints I can give you without giving any more away. So Margo, you won't have to stay up the night before doing your embroidery before class.=) The other thing you can be mulling over is the size you want to construct. I did the lap size (almost said laptop size), but will have info available if someone wants to do a larger size all the way to King.
Ok, here's the yardage for the lap size. If you want to do a larger size of this let me know and I will send you the yardage.

Background 3 2/3 yards
Dark 1 1/4 yard
Medium 1 3/4 yard

I will have the cutting instructions available at Strawberry Patches so that after you pay for the class you will be given the list of strips to cut from each fabric and the supply list of things to bring to class.

We start class at 9am to allow plenty of time to enjoy the project and the day with our friends. Should be a lot of enjoyable time for us all and I look forward to spending the day with you all!

Gobble Gobble

Enjoy your Thanksgiving Holidays with your families! We all have something to be thankful for at this point in time.

I have decided on the mystery project on New Year's Day 2010. I'll have the fabric requirements posted tomorrow.

This design is available through www.holleyberry.com.

Lily Is At It Again

Lily has really taken to machine embroidery. She started with the 180 and then made the leap to the 730 and has not looked back since. Lily has also tackeled the Bernina embroidery software and is using her BSR to quilt her projects. I've posted several of her projects in the Braggin' Corner of our embroidery blog and told her tonight at Bernina Club that I think she has the most pictures posted on the blog. Lily is a joy to have in class and enjoys learning something new at every class!

Ever wonder what is going on behind the quilts? I captured it tonight just for us -
Sorry gals, caught you!!

Looking forward to 2010 we're working to schedule some new classes. Bernina has a Software Sampler that we'll most likely be hosting which will be a webinar type short program followed by a project of some sort. Then also a monthly block program that will feature new techniques and feet for use in creating that block with the final block pulling in an embroidery design. Embroidery club may be on a quarterly basis - we'll see. But watch for more info within the next week on our New Year's Day mystery. Call the shop and have your name placed on the list for the class - limited enrollment so don't wait and miss out.

November Embroidery Club

This will be fun - you pick what you want to stitch these cute birdhouse designs on. The designs will fit in your large oval hoop or the mega hoop if you want to sew a whole neighborhood! I'll provide the designs.
Years ago I stitched these around the bottom of a jumper and wore the darn thing out because it was cute!! My Mom still wears the shirt she stitched these on - time for an updated shirt Mom!

Supply List:

1. stabilizer - med weight
2. hoop templates
3. embroidery needles
4. variety of thread colors for your designs - throw in black or a very dark brown
5. 505 spray for an option

Don't forget - this is the last embroidery club for 2009!!

Thank you to all our USA Veterans

Hug a veteran today! Thank them for their active service because we wouldn't be here without them!

Sewing Sunday with Bernina

Today was Sewing Sunday. We had a little refresher on the workings of the 200 and the 730 at my Mom's house today. See the 200 that my Mom was using has a new owner, my sister-in-law Marsha. She had the 180 prior to this. So for both of them we had a refresher on the differences between the 180, 200 and the 730 today. Starting with sewing, through the BSR and finishing with embroidery! Refresher, crash course - pretty much the same thing; a lot to take in a short period of time. Neither had any mastery classes since the 180 was purchased so that has been a few years ago. So they passed with flying colors. In fact, I think Marsha may have bonded with the BSR. Remember the first few times you sewed with the BSR? That's an amazing little attachment, for sure!

Susan Stewart

Susan Stewart is the 2009 1st place winner in the computer-aided machine embroidery

category at Houston Quilt Festival for the above quilt. The size is 73" x 73". The designs are from Zundt. After reading about this I wrote to Susan and asked if she had instructions available for creating this masterpiece. Can you believe her response was " Never even thought about doing that"!! Look at the detail shot below. Read her comments here on her web site. She is quite an accomplished artist in the sewing world and I'd never heard of her until I saw the blip about her win.

Now the above shot is a closeup of this masterpiece. The dimensional flowers and all - no wonder she put nearly 7,000,000 stitches on her machines to complete this project! Stunning, just stunning is all I can come up with.

This is Susan and her Mother. Her Mother pieced the background and Susan did the embroidery.
What a treasured project they have completed together for generations to come to enjoy. I'll stay in touch so when her instructions become available we can obtain copies.

Good Bye My Friend!!

My trusty 730 has provided me with several years of perfect service for both sewing and embroidery. She now is providing this for my Mom for more years to come. I will truly miss her and her ease of use and reliability. When I went from the 200 to the 730 I just really wasn't sure that I wouldn't miss my 200 as it was a terrific machine. After the 180 using the 200 showed Bernina was advancing technologically. Then using the 730 was even better. The 730 is strong, sure of itself and sewed everything I ever tested it with. All the embroidery I did on her and never a problem. But, can't keep every machine so had to find her a new home since the 830 was arriving and that guy is so much - there really isn't room in my town for the both of them together!So, in with the newest offering from Bernina for sewing and embroidery. Let me tell you that this machine is like no other. It has power and it is in control! It's a thoroughbred for sure! I sewed out several of the many stitches and they are beautiful - new stitches not seen before on the Bernina machines. Tried the BSR - that too seems to be more sure footed than in the past. Now that I've also done some embroidery on the guy I'm in love!! This machine can sew so fast it is just like watching a commerical machine. And the sound - quiet but still the sound of the embroidery at full speed sounds like a commerical machine. I'm loving some of the new features - like being able to reorder the colors so you no longer have to rethread your machine so often. Prior to this machine this was only available through the software! That's a time saver for sure.

Using the absolute check feature allows you to touch the screen to easily check the exact placement of your design. Oh, and to use the mega hoop without the need to adjust for each hoop section was surreal!! I haven't received my jumbo hoop yet so definitely looking forward to that.
For as big and strong as this 830 is - it is much like using the 730, only better! I'm looking forward to doing a new embroidery project with it. It's my new BFF!!





THANKS BERNINA!!

Sweater + Silk + Buttons = Lovely!

Cuff

Neckline

While wondering down one of the isles at Quilt Market I found this sweater displayed on the side of a booth. Of course the color got my attention. The fabric used in the ruffle is silk duponi. The strips were torn so the edges were raw. Take the gathering foot and sew down the lenth of the strips to slightly gather them. Then buttons were added for the final touch. The edges of the sleevers were done as well. The bottom edge was not embellished. I wonder how hard the creater had to look to get such a perfect match of fabric to the sweater! I think it's gorgeous so enjoy!

Other than the shots I took of the carpeting in the hotel these were the only pictures I took at Quilt Market. I left that to Suzanne!

New Carpet?

New carpet? No. Just a shot of one the spots in the carpeting from the hotel in Houston over to Quilt Market! Thought it was a neat pattern and inspiration for an embroidery design or even a quilt block. Won't you agree? I have more to share at a later time.