I have a serger.

And it's cold as fuck.

That's about it.

I've yet to take a good photo of the serger. But I will at some point, because I can't help myself.

It's a Bernette 344D.

Here's a great video of it by Create Indie.



I found it on Craigslist. A woman in Helena listed it, and through a bit of luck her husband came to Billings for work and delivered it. The machine belonged to the seller's mother, who was a profession seamstress here. So kind of an awesome back story.

It also came with about $100 of thread -- for free. HOL-E-BALLS.

I got the machine on a Thursday and took it to my local Bernina shop to get some help threading it.

I can't say enough about this shop and the service department there. They've serviced my regular machine several times and always take good care of it, plus they care this super-hip line of Danish fabric now.

The service guy spent about 40 minutes showing me how to thread the machine and make sure it ran smoothly -- all for free. Just dropped everything he was doing in the middle of the day to walk me through it all.

After that, I went home and messed around for a bit before working up the balls to re-thread it with a new color so I could start a real project. I tied the new threads onto the old ones and just pulled it through. I didn't pull the knots through the tension discs because I saw huge warnings about this when I searched the Internets for tips.

This was my first project -- another Bimaa sweater.



It was a good pattern to start with because I've made it before with a regular machine so a) it wasn't that hard (it's like the easiest pattern in the world anyway) and b) I could see where the serger really made a difference.

The fabric is a super-stretchy knit from Jo-Ann. I guess it'd be classified as a mid-weight? And the hood lining is fleece.

Like omg look at those seams.





The serger totally kicked ass. For this kind of sewing, it's so much better than with my normal machine.

I had zero problems, partly because I think I approached it with the mindset that shit could get brutal, as per the general reputation sergers have. But this was problem-free ... I didn't even have to change the tension when I was sewing through two layers of fleece with another layer of the knit.

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Last night I started sewing an Oliver+S Jump Rope dress. For some reason, through no fault of the pattern, I completely fucked up the collar. But I don't feel that awful about starting over since I also maybe had the iron a bit too hot and maybe sort of burned the fabric on the inside of the placket.

That wasn't bad enough to justify tearing the whole thing apart, plus I schemeing some sort of fix involving the delicate wielding of a toothbrush and the deft deployment of bleach.



So far it seems to be another great Oliver+S pattern, if you follow the directions and whatnot.

The fabric is a chambray by Lisette that's at my JoAnn right now.

I had my first serger hiccup last night when I tried to change the needles. I broke one trying to sew through too many layers.

It was a bitch do to. Look at this screw. It's TINY.



I spent 90 minutes of my post-Super Bowl Sunday trying to stick that thing in the hole (TWSS! TWSS!) and screw it in (TWSS!!!). About 25 of those minutes were spent trying to figure out where the screw fell after each of the 21 times I dropped it.

After I tamed the beast and got the needles in and threaded, my stitches were crap. I was super-duper proud when I figured out how to adjust the tension to make them better. Go me.

I think tonight I can re-cut out the parts of the dress I effed up and start again ... here's hoping I can make the placket look as neat. I often nail a difficult sewing technique on the first run and then screw it up the next six times I try. Beginner's luck? Who knows.

:::

The other project I'm actively picking away at is this flying geese quilt.

It's more of that Danish fabirc (the linen solids) and blues and yellows from my stash.



I bought a Quilt in a Day ruler to make the geese, and it turns it into quick work.



No real deadline or intent on this guy ... it's just for fun.

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As for the cold, holyfuckingshit it's been cold. And snowy. I love it. So do these guys.







And this, because who doesn't love an inexpensive, cool old chair? Chowder is clearly smitten.

Bimaa sweater

I've been dancing around the Bimaa sweater pattern for a few months.

I saw it on Pinterest first, and the observed how crazy-popular it was on the Internets.

So when this fabric was finally on sale at JoAnn, plus a 25 percent off coupon, I pulled the trigger.

I was glad to have the necessary supplies when some friends decided to make a trip to visit on short notice with their two adorable little boys. I had intended to make two sweaters (a 12-month-sized one and a 4T), but my twin needle bent at the end of the first one and ... since it was midnight ... I couldn't start the second one.

Anyway.

The pattern was really, really, really easy.

I honestly think it took longer to tape together and trace the pattern than it did to sew.



I made the hooded version and lined it with fleece. The rest of the pattern isn't lined, but since it's made using a knit, you don't have to worry much about finishing seams.

You sew together the shoulder seams first and then the side seams and sleeves together, if that makes sense (there's no setting of sleeves). And there's no hemming since the sleeves have cuffs and there's a waistband.



The knit pattern hung around JoAnn forever, and I could't figure out why since it was pretty cute. But once I tried to cut it out, I understood why others may have avoided it. The print isn't in line with the grain. It's a four-way knit and super stretchy anyway, but the pattern being off a bit made it much more difficult to work with.

Since this was a small project and for a kid who will outgrow it in months, I didn't care too much. But if the fabric was intended for an adult garment, I would have been pissed that I didn't look closer before buying it.

You can sort of see how off the print is in the waistband here. The grain is straight, but the pattern is askew.



But still cute as hell.



There's a stitch on my machine that looks similar to an overlock stitch, and I used it on a few of the seams -- shoulders, side seams and the neckline where the hood attaches. But this knit showed not even the tiniest bit of fraying, so I didn't use the zig-zag stitch on the wrists or waistband, where I though the bulk of the extra stitching might bug a little guy.





This is the 12-months size, and fits a 9-month-old pretty closely. I think he's a bit big for his age, but the patternmaker isn't joking about the slim fit. I traced a 4T size for the second little dude, who is solidly a 3T, and I'm glad I went up a size.

But the slim fit is adorbs, so it's just fine.

I use a twin needle to sew knits, and it works well. It gives me enough stretch that my stitches don't tear. For some reason I can't get other stitches with a single needle -- like zig-zags of any width, longer or shorter stitches, whatever -- to not break on knits.

:::

I lost custody of my old, massive sewing table the week after Christmas. Huge bummer. I found this new guy on Craigslist, and it'll be just fine. But I sure miss having a 6x6 foot solid oak top over two separate desk units. I know I was totally spoiled, but still. And I keep reaching to where the center drawer used to be, where I kept all my needles, feet and bobbins. Weird how muscle memory is so hard to break.

But the new table holds whiskey well. So it's got that going for it.



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There are an assload of geese at the sugar beet factory right by my house, and it torments Tom to no end. They couldn't care less about him, and he is beyond obsessed.



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This about sums up my Christmas. Totally success, I'd say.



Oh, and there were hella-good cinnamon rolls.



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Also, my house has been taken over by yarn scraps. Just FYI.