A Great Sew&Bond!

June 29, 2025 Bianca Silva

Hello, hello!

Yesterday was our June Sew&Bond and what a great day we all had!

It never fails to amaze me how people from all walks of life who share one common interest can spend a day sewing and chatting to each other! 🤩

I trialled a new seating arrangement this time to be able to add 2 more seats every month and, according to everybody there, it worked well.

So I am pleased to say that I have added 2 seats to all the Sew&Bond’s until the end of the year.

Yesterday’s selection of projects were mainly garments. One person cut out fabric for a dress and top which was something she hadn’t done in about 20 years!

There is always so much inspiration and so much to learn from each other!

Stitches of the Week

Paphos Pouch

I am so excited that the Paphos Pouch tester file is now with the testers and I can’t wait to see what everyone comes up with! 😀

This week I have worked on the larger size to match my smaller one and I just love the quilted look of the exterior panels!

I am very inclined to make these as teacher gifts this year, but I don’t have a lot of time left to do so, especially with how slowly I have been working on my sewing projects recently.

I am going to keep this thought on standby for now, and then probably stress myself out to complete a few when the time gets closer. 😂

But I am going to have a virtual session with the testers, so I might be able to get something done then. 🤷🏼♀️

Rita Made This - Ellie Sweater (hack)

The only attention this sweater got this week was when I took my daughter to her Karate lesson.

I finished the sleeve there and knit most of the neckband too.

I also embroidered 2 daisies onto the sweater, one double stranded and the other single stranded, and it was hard to decide which one I liked best.

So I posted a story on Instagram and the majority preferred the double stranded daisy, including my partner.

It looks like I am going to go with double stranded ones and I have left the side seams open to make it easier to embroider the sleeves.

I have chosen my colours now for the daisies, pink, orange, yellow and green, and I am excited to see what they all look like together! 🤩

Yarn: So Crafty Aran Yarn (Cobalt) 8575M

Size: S, but I have hacked the pattern to accommodate for a different yarn thickness, so it may not come out the intended size it was designed for.

Skill Builder of the Week

Straight Stitch

Did you know there is so much you can do with a straight stitch?

A straight stitch is not only used for constructing projects, it has many other uses simply by reducing or lengthening the stitch length.

Basting - this is a temporary stitch used to hold fabric layers together before making the final stitches. This is normally done with a longer stitch length so it’s easier to remove once they are no longer needed.
Gathering - this is when you bunch up fabric to create ruffles, often found on puff sleeves and skirts. The stitch length needs to be at its longest to enable you to pull the fabric along the length of the thread to bunch it up. Sewing two parallel rows of stitches is best for gathering because there is less chance that both threads will break when you pull on the fabric and it will give you more even gathers.
Topstitching - this is both a functional and a decorative stitch. For example, this can be used to attach patch pockets or zippers to your projects. Since you will be stitching through multiple layers of fabric, you want to lengthen the stitch length to about a 3.0 - 3.5 for the topstitching to have more space and in turn, the stitches will look neater.