I bought a new beginners sewing machine a few months ago. I haven’t really sewed since college, and sewing isn’t a good craft for this crapswoman.  It requires too much precision for my style and generally frustrates me beyond measure.  But having arms and legs the length of most eight year olds, I have often regretted not having a machine to easily shorten hems.  And when I saw this Singer machine on Amazon for less than $60, I pulled the trigger.  When it arrived, I unpacked it, set it up on the desk in the grandkids’ bedroom, and let it sit gathering dust until yesterday.

I learned how to fill a bobbin and thread the machine. (It amazed me how much I remembered from so long ago.)  I organized my notions drawer and experimented with the different stitches available.  Fortunately and unfortunately, the machine doesn’t slide much.  That’s a good thing if you want it to stay in one place; it’s a bad thing if it’s hard to move when you want it to slide a few inches.  So the first order of business was to make a mat that the machine could sit on.

With one fat quarter (a new term for me), I ironed, folded in half, stitched two sides, turned the material, pressed seams, and then zigzagged around the whole piece for a decorative edge. Though it was a project for a newbie and probably the easiest job in the history of sewing, I’m ridiculously pleased with how it turned out!