Making Vests

I made 3 vests today to wear when it gets cold this winter. They came together rather well, which made sewing a joy. My mother, who is an excellent seamstress, always said that when you are sewing, your iron is your best friend. I completely agree but have discovered two more “best friends” - my serger and single fold bias tape.

I bought my serger quite a few years ago because two friends who were avid sewers kept singing the praises of them. For a while I didn’t quite know what to do with it but decided to apply myself diligently to learn how to use it. Now, I don’t know what I did without it! It finishes edges beautifully and quickly and saves me loads of time. I got a White, which is very easy to thread.

I have only recently discovered single fold bias tape. A friend told me that it is wonderful to use to finish armhole edges. I found an online tutorial - See this link - and off I went. What a truly useful product! It is so much fun to use that I actually look forward to doing the armholes! It is easy to use and makes the finished product look professional.

I discovered another trick this time around. My back starts hurting when I sew for a long time but today I tried sitting in my recliner whenever I had to pin and that did the trick! By getting up and moving to a comfortable position, my back lasted several hours longer than usual which enabled me to finish the vest.