Exploring Decorative Stitches

Whenever we get a new machine, it is super important to learn all about it and explore what she has to offer.

So, I thought it would be fun to take the day and unpack Grace, the newest member of The Sewing Loft team.  Actually, I wanted to introduce her to the girls.  I thought it would be nice for them to get some hands on time practicing all her fun decorative stitches.

The unpacking process went super fast.  They were somewhat interested in the parts but really just wanted to get to stitching.

One of the 1st things I recommend with any new machine is to “get friendly with your manual”! This booklet should be your BFF, especially during any late at night stitching session. You know what I talking about- the ones when you’re under the gun to wrap up little Missy S’s custom for Halloween and something goes wacky with the thread.  (Trust me, I have been there!)

Exploring Decorative Stitches

 

So, after Missy S picked out some neon orange thread from my messy box, we went straight to work. I started with a quick lesson on ‘how to’ thread Grace, pulled out some scrap fabric and put the girls to work!  I need to clarify the lesson part.  Missy S was really walking me through the steps.  She was following the numbers on the machine and made it seem like she had been sewing for ages!  The Baby Lock Grace is so intuitive with threading that even my 9-year-old understood how to do it without looking at the manual! Now that is a complete home run in my book.

She was a Rock Star! She understood how to change each stitch and had fun calling them out as she stitched the afternoon away.  I can not wait to see what she is inspired to create with this new machine.

So, what about you? Have you ever created a sampler with all of your machines fancy stitches?  Or are you looking for an interesting way to use those decorative stitches? Well how about creating a few Crazy Quilt Blocks with your scraps and using them to add more detail.