Blog
Welcome to the DravonWorks sewing blog! Here you’ll find lots of sewing information. I’m one of the “technical” people, who likes to know the why’s of things. In my mind, once a Why is understood then the information can be applied in a myriad of different ways! You won’t find a whole lot of “make this item” tutorials, but you will find answers to questions like “why should I thread my machine like that versus like this?” or “do I REALLY have to do it this way?” Most of these posts are coming from questions asked by students in my classes, but if YOU have a question you’d like answered then please feel free to comment.
I know that understanding the technical stuff behind what is going on doesn’t work for everyone, but that’s why there are so many great sewing blogs out there! Find the teacher that speaks to you, and I’d love to be one of them. If you do like what you read here, be sure to share, subscribe and visit back often! Tell your friends about this sewing blog! Ask questions, share your projects or stories. Sewing is most fun when it’s a community of people sharing what inspires them. I really want to hear from you!
Embroidery Color Blending Oopsie
It’s always fun to take classes, especially from teachers who explain things clearly!! This past weekend I took a workshop taught by the owner of Balboa Threadworks on blending colors within embroidery digitizing. In that class, I had an A-HA! moment. Last month I was working with a coral fabric, trying to put a red name on it hoping for the name to pop. Alas, no popping. In fact, the name practically vanished! I was puzzled as to why. I could see that it DID, but didn’t know WHY. I found out why in this class. Red blend with red....
read moreJoining Binding Tapes – Sew on the angle or Sew it straight?
When strips of binding tape are joined together, there are two ways it can be done: 1) Sewn at an angle 2) Sewn straight Which way is the one that will work best? You should be used to this answer by now so say it with me: That depends on what you need. Sewing strips directly together with no fancy angle work is perfectly fine … unless you plan to start folding these strips over themselves. Examples: making binding tapes and also straps for things. The moment you know that you’ll be folding these strips in half or in quarters is...
read moreReady for the New Year??
I hope that everyone out there had a tremendously successful 2014 with a fun and meaningful Holiday Season to cap things off! As for me… My goodness was 2014 a busy year! Here’s a bit of Cute first. My trusty sidekick the Sewing Room Helper Wedge was, on Christmas Day, the official box weight. His hard work ensured that no boxes were lost after they were unwrapped. Thanks for the help, Wedge! Now on to the New Year! I just started a new job as a Graphic Artist at a local sign company. This not only pulls on many more capabilities...
read moreOn Twin Needles – Utilitarian Uses In Sewing
I’ve talked about the machine conderations when sewing with twin needles, and I’ve gone through a detailed lesson on how to thread most sewing machines to use the twin needle. Now that all of that has been covered, what the heck can twin needles be used for? Well, as with most sewing there are two main uses: functional or utilitarian, and decorative. I’ll leave the decorative stuff for later though. While I’m sure there are more (leave a comment if you know of one!), the most ways that I’ve used twin needles...
read moreHalloween is coming! Time to break out those quilted placemats…
I must admit, I sometimes entrap myself with my own way of thinking. In this case, I was stuck in the mode that I HAD to make my next post be the follow-up for the twin needle work posts. Namely, the utilitarian uses of the twin needle or no post at all. Wow. The name says it all. I was so uninspired by this that I just kept putting it off … and off … and off .. and … oh look! It’s been HOW many months since my last post?!? Still stuck in that mindset, I’ve been doing a lot of behind the scenes stuff like adding...
read moreAmazon and Etsy Storefronts
Goodness it’s been far too long since my last post! I’ve been working really hard to get the classes filled up at The Sewing Café (see the Calendar page for a full listing), sewing a full set of 1520s German garb for my hubby, getting my daughter all prepped and moved for her FIRST YEAR AT BERKELEY! (*brag*brag*brag*) as well as doing a lot of behind-the-scenes things for DravonWorks. For example, this site has gotten an overall facelift but it still needs some nips and tucks. Mainly, I have to get the non-blog pages fleshed out...
read moreOn Twin Needles – Threading the Machine
In the last post, I talked about the fact that pretty much every machine can use twin needles. In this post, I’m going to talk about how to thread the machine with 2 different threads. The first thing you need to look for on your machine is the second spool pin. What’s the spool pin? It’s the thing that you put your spool of thread on when you’re sewing like normal. For this second spool pin, there are 2 main types. One type is the “add-on” spool pin. When you look at your machine, you’ll see some...
read moreOn Twin Needles – Machine Considerations
I was teaching a class the other day and mentioned twin needles. One of the students made a comment that her machine could only handle one needle. We launched into a fun discussion on exactly what twin needles were, how the use them safely, and how they could be used in our sewing. That discussion and the sample board additions which followed it are the inspiration for this post. Twin needles can be used on pretty much every single home sewing machine. Why? Because while there are two individual needle points and eyes, there is only one...
read moreMachine Woes
Last December, my HV Diamond Deluxe did what could be dubbed “threw a belt”. In cars, this means when you hit the gas nothing much happens but the engine does rev. The same thing happens with a sewing machine – hit the gas, the engine spins but the needle doesn’t go anywhere. The “drive belt” that connects the motor to the needle arm slipped out of place. Took it in for repair then and it’s worked fine since then. This past weekend, it did the same thing again. GRRRR! Since I was on a deadline, I...
read moreBlog Moved! And Other Things
I haven’t been posting too much because I’ve been putting my time and attention into other things. My apologies for that! As penance, here’s a picture of Wedge sleeping on the embroidery unit storage bag which I left on the cutting table for a nanosecond, during which time he made himself all comfy to oversee my progress. You may have noticed that this blog has been moved from its original BlogSpot.com address and brought onto my domain name. I’m thrilled with that move but it also necessitates a web site overhaul...
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