All posts by Salinda

Hey Y'all! I'm Salinda. Welcome to my little piece of the South. I'm a sewing instructor and the seamstress behind PersonaliTy Children's Clothes. I'm crazy in love with my hubby and Momma to 2 spunky swimmers! I'm addicted to Sonic Cokes, my New Orleans Saints, and Jesus!

Being Creative, Everything Else

Needles, Threads, and Woolly What?

May 7, 2013 Salinda 2 Comments

This is my second installment in my serger series. Today, it’s all about thread and needles! (You can find information about threading your serger here.)

Let’s talk needles first. Your serger manual will list the type of needles required for your machine. My simple Janome Juno 3434d requires just basic sewing needles. Others need a “serger” needle or a particular style. Whatever brand or model you need, you’ll want to choose the appropriate size needle. For a “regular” weight cotton like a gingham or those cute calicos from HL, you’ll need an 11. For heavier work, like cord or denim or fleece, you’ll want a 14. Basically, you choose the size of your needle based on your fabric choice.

Now for threads. Your serger will need 4 spools of thread. That’s a lot, but there is good new. In most pieces, you’ll only see the left needle thread. That means that the other three threads don’t have to match, only blend. I have found that I really only need a few colors for all my projects: dark grey, red, royal blue, white, and khaki.

I will sometimes use Woolly Nylon in my looper threads (those two spools on the right). Woolly Nylon is a name brand, so you might see it as Bulky Nylon. I find that this thread is a little more difficult to thread through a needle, but I love the finish it gives my garments.

Load up your machine with some thread and give it a go. Which do you prefer? Serger thread on all or the Woolly Nylon? If you’re having trouble making an even, balanced stitch, no worries! We’ll talk tension next week.

Everything Else, Southern Hospitality

Entertaining Jesus

May 6, 2013 Salinda Leave a comment

This plaque is hanging in my grandmother-in-law’s home. When you spend time there, you realize this is exactly how she lives each day.

When my home is open to others, I hope they feel my hospitality. But does my family? If we truly lived as if entertaining Jesus at every meal and in every conversation, how much different would our homes look?

Everything Else

Swim Mom Survival Guide

May 3, 2013 Salinda Leave a comment

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It’s that time of year again—Summer Swim League! Woo Hoo!

Summer swim is a fun break for my kids because they swim year round. For us, the shorter practices are fun and the meets are time spent with friends. The only downfall—Louisiana in June!

Here are a few things we must have for those 5 hours we are at summer league meets:

1. Sunscreen. Sunscreen for them. Sunscreen for me. Sunscreen for my face. And don’t forget to reapply.

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2. Water. Again, for them and for me. Lots and Lots of it.

3. A picnic quilt.

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4. A pop-up shade. Our swim club has two covered areas. One is reserved for visiting teams. The other fills up quickly.

5. Lawn chairs. At least one for me. My rule is: If you want a chair, carry it yourself.

6. Food. Swimming makes you hungry. Waiting for a race makes you hungry. Just being 8-years-old can make you hungry. We pack grapes, cherry tomatoes, peanut butter sandwiches, yogurts, chex mix, and rice crispy treats.

7. Some cash. You’ll need to purchase a heat sheet. At summer league meets, these are usually only a few dollars, but they are always cash only.

8. A highlighter and a sharpie. Highlight your kids in the heat sheet and then write their race, heat, and lane on an arm or a leg. They sooner they can get to their own races, the better!

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9. DSs, iPads, phones, playing cards, books, crosswords, sudukos, and lots more fun stuff to do.

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10. Patience. Lots and lots and lots of patience. Also, a willing attitude. Summer meets couldn’t run without parent involvement. Timing is easy (and you get splashed so it’s quite refreshing). Or, trade off with another parent and watch her kids so she can time. Trust me. You’ll coaches will love the help to make the meet run smoothly.

If you’re in the Shreveport area, Summer League is sponsored by COSST. You can swim with any team. Town South, the Swim School, East Ridge, the Elks, Pierremont Oaks, Stonebridge, and Southside are just a few.

Everything Else, Gardens

My Accidental Herb Garden

May 1, 2013 Salinda 2 Comments

I decided I wanted an herb garden.

So…I started one. In pots.

Sad, isn’t it?

Then I looked out over my big garden this week and saw this:

How’s that for an herb garden?

That’s last year’s oregano, mystery mint (not sure when I planted it!), last year’s parsley, the rosemary that won’t die, and cilantro that seeded itself.

A bountiful herb garden without work?

es, please.

Being Creative, Everything Else

Loopers? Flatlocking? What?

April 30, 2013 Salinda Leave a comment

A serger is a wonderfully helpful, time-saving machine—if you aren’t afraid to use it! Over the next few Tuesdays, I hope to share a few serger tidbits that can take the intimidation out of this sewing room essential.

So who needs a serger? We’ll anyone who sews on a regular basis. I’m not talking about your friend who only uses her sewing machine every other Spring to hem pants. I’m talking about you—the hobby seamstress who loves making pillows and napkins and curtains and clothes. I’m talking about the hobby seamstress who wants to take her hand-made gifts to the next level.

Why do you need a serger? Well, for starters, a serger allows you to complete your sewn pieces with a professional finish. A 4-thread serger can also stitch and overlock the edges at the same time, saving you some time. A serger stitches so much more quickly than your sewing machine.

So…you already have a serger? Great. Go get it out of the box and set it up. Does it look kinda like this?

My machine is a Janome Juno 3434d. It’s on the less expensive end of the serger spectrum. It doesn’t chainstitch or coverstitch. It also doesn’t have the air-threading that the Babylocks have. It does have all metal parts and can gather, blind hem, flatlock, and, of course, do a fabulous overcast. This little machine, in my opinion, is perfect for the home seamstress.

There are a few parts you need to know on your machine. I’ve labeled them below.

To use a serger, you just place your fabric under your presser foot and sew:

One major difference is that the knife trims off excess seam allowance before the stitches are made. You’ll want to avoid using pins for this very reason.

There are two ways to thread a serger, if you don’t have one of the fancy air-threading machines: from scratch or tying off.

To thread from scratch, follow the instructions in your manual. The diagrams are probably also on your machine. You MUST start by threading the upper looper and then the lower looper. Then you can thread the right needle and then the left needle. I’m not going to lie. This method can be a bit more tedious, but it is possible. A pair of tweezers will make the job easier.

If your machine is already threaded, tying off is the easiest way to go. To tie off:

1. Clip the needle threads just above the eye of the needle.

2. Hold the existing chain and sew until the chain consists of only 2 threads. (These are remaining threads your looper threads.)

3. Cut the looper threads near the thread spools. Replace the spools with your new threads. Tie threads from your new spools to the existing threads with overhand knots.

4. Turn your looper threads tension dials to 0. (Write down the original setting so you can go back to it.)

5. Gently pull the upper looper thread behind and to the left of the needle until the knot is behind the needle. Repeat for the lower looper thread.

6. Replace the two thread spools for the needle threads and rethread the needles.

7. Return your tension dials to the original settings. Hold all the threads together behind the machine and sew pulling the thread chain.

Well, how’d you do? Is your machine threaded? Great. Next week, I’ll talk about threads and needles and such.