Welcome to Lumpy's House of Throw Pillows

A couple of people suggested that I should start a blog for my sewing stories. Here it is. This is not a "sewing blog." I have no particular expertise to share, so I would not presume to start "a sewing blog." I'm not here to show you how it's done because I don't have a clue. No, this is just a blog where I'll chronicle my attempt to learn how to sew, the projects I'm working on, the machines I use (and some that I just buy because I'm afraid they'll be turned into tractor decorations if I don't. .  .), and why I don't use the term "stitcher." I'll share what I learn along the way, but unless you're a total newbie to sewing, you probably already know a whole lot more about sewing than I do. In that case, hopefully you'll just enjoy reading about my misadventures. Anyway, welcome to Lumpy's House of Throw Pillows.

Lumpy

Who is Lumpy? Not me. Lumpy actually is a throw pillow. In fact, he was my very first ever sewing project. I made Lumpy in my very first ever sewing class at [a major sewing supply retailer near you] in the Fall of 2018. He was a simple throw pillow which didn't turn out exactly as one might have hoped. I figured I'd get "creative" right out of the chute and do a two-color pillow using two of my favorite colors: orange on one side and yellow on the other. Found myself a pack of fat squares that included those colors and, to cut to the chase, the fabric I chose was a little too thin to make a good throw pillow. When I stuffed the pillow, it was a tad. . . lumpy. Lesson 1: Pick fabric suitable for the item you're making. At least pick cloth that will disguise the fact that you have no idea what you're doing. I gave Lumpy to my daughter who loved it. Or said she did. I don't recall seeing it anywhere in her apartment the last time I was over there.

Anyway, when that first class was over and I had hand-sewn Lumpy closed, I joked that I was ready to go into business and I would open my own sewing shop called Lumpy's House of Throw Pillows. Since my sewing goals are more oriented toward making boat covers and doing upholstery, I probably wouldn't call my shop "Lumpy's House of Throw Pillows," but it seems like the perfect name for this blog.

Very quick background: I have been fascinated by the idea of sewing for as long as I can remember. My grandma was a wizard at it and could make just about anything you could imagine with some cloth and a needle and thread. I will always regret that I didn't spend more time hanging out with her learning the craft. But, I do remember going to town with her to buy patterns and notions and I still think those little envelopes of folded tissue paper are like books of magic potions.

I did mess around with a needle and thread a little bit as a kid. At the time, embroidered jean jackets and chambray shirts were "the thing," and I wanted to put some embroidery on my jean jacket. I suppose it wasn't too bad. Nothing compared to the Mickey Mouse shirt my grandma embroidered for me, though. I think I might have done a little hand-sewing to repair a shaving bag at some point, but I never really knew how to sew. I took all my uniforms in the military to sewing shops to get patches and name tapes put on. But, sewing just kept popping up on my radar over the years.

I had a very good friend overseas who sewed. I still remember watching her make a whole shirt one evening while we were hanging out talking. That blew my mind. Several years later, when I was working as a skydiving pilot, I met a parachute rigger who did some amazing repair work on my  favorite pair of jeans. One day sewing intersected with my love of shopping in thrift stores. I found a near-mint condition, 1970s vintage Sears Kenmore portable in its original cardboard box at a thrift store for $24.98. It spoke to me, so I bought it. I do not generally buy everything which speaks to me, but right around that same time I also found a 70s vintage Elna Carina SU which also spoke to me and I bought it, too. Might have been the Swiss accent that turned my head on that one. Both machines sat around in a closet for years. I had no idea how to thread them or how to wind a bobbin. I'm not sure I even knew what a bobbin was. But, in 2018 when I finally decided it was time to learn how to sew, I had a couple of very nice machines to learn on. Dumb luck or fate, I guess. Finally, in 2018, my wife and I decided that our outdoor furniture cushions were getting shabby and needed to be re-covered. I decided that making new covers myself was the only way that was going to happen. I signed up for a "learn to sew" class because I knew that was about the only way I was going to get anywhere, and here we are.

Pillow Project II - Side 1

Pillow II - Apparently I Really Like Two-Sided Pillows

After the original "Lumpy," I didn't do much sewing for about a year. Got busy lifeguarding and teaching swim lessons, something else I do. I took a refresher pillow class which worked out a bit better. Only nine more like that one to finish.

My First Zipper and First Pattern Project

Way Over My Head! 

Then I decided to just buy a pattern to make some random little bags and give that a shot. All things considered, that didn't go too badly but I found a few things that I felt like I could improve on with a little professional guidance. So, I signed up for "the sewing workshop" - a four-session class that met on Saturday mornings and included yet a third pillow project, a bag, and a "simple" top which I'm still working on, two weeks after the class ended.

That pretty much gets us up to date and gives you a pretty good idea of how this is going to go. I hope this lives up to what you were hoping for.