confessions of an untidy seamstress

So, i have always said that my motto is "a clean sewing room is an inefficient sewing room." well, i am not disappointing myself one bit this week. in fact, if my motto holds true...i should be pumping out these 200 orders with no problem. starting with...

yikes. look at what louise, my serger just threw up upon opening.

no wonder she was giving me a fit. for those that may not know, sergers are known for their temperaments. you have to speak to them sweetly, hold your mouth just right while using and prepare for the worst...and oh yeah, watch that blade with an unblinking eye before it chomps even the most precious of pieces of fabric. it likes to do that. however, my louise is sweet. she is a work-horse and shame on my for letting her get this dirty.

i will have you know, i got out my handy pressurized air-blower thingy to help the situation out...and i will be finding pieces of dust, fabric and thread in my house for ages.

oh, and as for thelma...you know it is bad when your tension starts acting all screwy and you have to go in with the hemostats. yes, thankfully i had a prior career in health care. these tools are quite possibly the most handy-dandy things to add to your sewing bins. i am glad i left the hospital on numerous occasions and found them in my scrubs later.

yikes...was this really in my sewing machine? yes it was, for a second there i thought it might be a long-lost family pet. phew. bad part is...this was just part of it. goodness.

oh, and although i JUST cleaned up my collection of coffee cups (this tailor enjoys her java) i knew it was bad when i couldn't find the spool of thread i knew i just bought because it was hiding behind a mug. oh, and just ignore those girl scout cookies over there, okay? and if you see jillian michaels...don't tell her you saw those. she has already kicked my booty once bad today, and i will be okay if i don't give her more reason to be brutal.

oh...and why is there no counter-top space on my 8 foot long sewing table?? wait, where IS my 8 foot long sewing table? oh, there it is...under piles of hoop-la.

why do i always seem to have a box of blanks sitting on my floor waiting to be sorted and put away? i mean, i feel as though i do this weekly. maybe my supplier has it out for me, hmmm.... Also, don't be thinking I am crazy with the dog food bags, as I have said before...I am green, I recycle and those become my trash bags. :)

okay, if i was sitting at my machines and turned to look behind me, this is the disaster i see. naked baby doll, some of louisa's sandals, a bean bag, a vacuum that needs to get to work, some girl scout cookies...darn, forget you saw those too, an alligator xylophone, i mean REALLY??

and for the most important part, work-room safety. let us not forget safety, right? well, from day one the fear of God was put into my about gingher shears.

my mother told me they would cut my finger off. i was not allowed to use them or even look at them the wrong way. they would grow legs, come over and cut off my finger. well, i was so afraid of the scissors, i almost created an aversion to them. they scared the mess out of me. but, i was lucky to inherit my grandmother's pair...and i finally used them for the first time the other day (well, it was a few weeks ago, but who is counting) and you know what, they REALLY did almost cut my finger off! i mean, blood all over the cork floor...i had to go in for the steri-strips. goodness. so, they are back in their place on my peg boards where i will continue to only give them the most pleasant of looks to avoid the sprouting of the legs.

speaking of fears of sewing equipment, i cringe each and every time i use my rotary cutter. absolutely cringe. thanks again mom. the fear of God i tell you, one would think i was into her sewing room all the time when i was young. hmmm. i cannot even use a pizza cutter without the thought that it is going to instantaneously cut through my finger. i am about to pass out right now just writing about it. well, today, my rotary almost took off my toe. before you try and figure out what in the heck i mean and how that was possible, let me just show you.

yes, see how deep that blade is in the cork? this was millimeters from my pinkie toe. ouch. the blasted cutter just rolled straight off my table (that i am still trying to locate) and tried to amputate little pinkie. not cool. way uncool.

and for the last of it. after i almost had my pinkie toe removed, i slipped and busted my booty. on what did i slip? oh, just one of the bazillion pieces of scrap stabilizer, thread or numerous serger tails that are lying around on the floor. seriously mr. vacuum that is in the corner of the room, get to work!!

that is all for now. thought i would share some humor. my creative bug just bit me again (yes, it is midnight...why it cannot bit in the daytime is beyond me) and i need to get out my drafting paper and hopefully get all the fun new patterns that have been haunting my brain as of late out of my head and onto paper so hopefully some of my cutie-pie customers can own them this fall. get excited!!

oh, and pps - let me just tell you...i have gotten some emails from tailors, and you girls are in for a treat. these mamas are talented and have some cute as mud stuff. hopefully i wont go putting myself out of business. you know, murphy's law. :)