Tutorial ~ Plump Yarn Tassel

I have been cleaning and organizing my studio over the last few weeks. It was a long haul to say the least, but I found many things that I had forgotten about or some projects that I meant to start and never did. "Out of sight out of mind" is so true. One of the projects I wanted to do is to make tassels. I bet many of you have some ball of left over yarn somewhere in your house perfect for this project. I know there are different ways to make tassel, but I am sharing the way that works for me the best.

1. I made a 3" board from cardboard and wrapped medium size yarn 120 times. This is just a random number. If you want your tassel to be fuller, you can always do more.

2. Cut long yarn(mine is 12" long) and put it through yarn needle. Put the needle through in the middle of one side of the card board and tie it in the middle.

3. Flip the cardboard over and cut the middle.

4. Set the cardboard on the side and fold the yarn in half. Pull the yarn tied on top away from the rest. Take long yarn (12" to 15") and wrap it around the folded yarn about 3/4" from the top.

5.Thread the yarn ends from step 4 to yarn needle and stab it behind where you tied a knot and pull it through towards the middle and the bottom to hide the knot.

6. Trim the yarn.

7. I put a wooden bead through the top and made the knot so it will stay in place. You can skip this step, it is just an option.

I haven't decided what I am going to use this for, but I added them to my chair in the studio for now. LOVE THEM!

Are you going to give it a try?

baby lock Sewing Machine "Aria" is in the House!

A while ago, I was contacted by baby lock and had a brief interview... long story short, I was given the opportunity to work with their company and their fabulous sewing machine as one of their influencers. This is like a dream come true for me and I am still pinching myself!

Many many years ago in our humble beginning, my husband bought me a simple Singer sewing machine and that served me well for a while. When the time came to shop for a new sewing machine, I did all the research that I could and decided to go with Baby Lock. I REALLY LOVE my Espire; it is durable, dependable, has many nice features and I never had any issues with it. When people asked my advice about sewing machines, without skipping a beat I always recommended baby lock. When I had an interview over the phone with someone from baby lock, she asked me what kind of sewing I do. I told her I do both, I mean sewing garments and making quilts. Reading the instruction booklet and other's reviews, seems like Aria is a perfect machine for both worlds.

I finally cleaned up my studio and my Aria is sitting pretty on my table. I just started playing with it, I only did a couple miner bit of sewing so far. I added ruffles to my daughter"s dress that is getting a little short.

Since I have been using my Espire many things are similar, but I know I have a lot to learn to take advantage of this amazing machine to take my sewing adventures to the next level. There are a few things I will share with you.

Color LED touch screen is super nice! When I first started using the machine, I set the clock and language. I am capable of many things, BUT anything to do with technology flies over my head, but it was simple enough that I was able to figure things out quickly. I was amazed at how many thing are designed so user friendly and among many languages, it had Japanese!

I am so thrilled about 11.25" throat space as well. I can't wait to machine quilt my next quilt.

As I was organizing and cleaning my studio, I found lots of clothing patterns and fabrics I bought with the intention of making them. I am looking forward to learning different features on Aria while I sew a lot more this year!