The New Year brings so much EXCITEMENT!

Well, after 2 months I am back. I haven't done much crafting in the last two months. I did make an adorable bag for my 4 year old niece. It turned out just how I pictured in my head (which is rare for me). Unfortunately, I had to get it in the mail and did not get a picture of it.

My family and I went to Florida for 2 weeks before Christmas. It was a long flight from Alaska. We went to Disney World the first week and then met my husbands family the second week. We had a GREAT time! We have not had a vacation as a family in quite a few years.

Since returning we have had some very lazy days after Christmas. It has been very rejuvenating. I am now ready to get sewing again. I am not much for making resolutions. I never seem to follow through. This year I just want to sew more than last year. That shouldn't be too hard. The first thing that I did to help this desire to come to fruition is make a duct tape dress form. Sorry I do not have a picture yet. I have so many plans for items to sew for myself but the fitting always is difficult and keeps me from sewing more. I made a dressform (with my wonderful husbands help) so that I could make this problem a little easier. It will be fabulous to have something my size to hold up patterns and compare and my creations as I am working on them. I am very excited to use this.

I got some money for Christmas and have been trying to figure out what to do with it. I have been throwing around so many ideas. For the last two years my Mom and I went to Seattle for the Sewing Expo there. I was planning on putting my money toward this but my Mom does not think she can go this year. Now what?

So then I was thinking of purchasing an industrial machine for sewing heavy fabrics. I went to my LSS and tested one. I do not sew heavy fabrics a lot but would like a machine that will do them well when I do. I would like a machine that will do both heavy and medium weight fabrics to be a bit more versatile. The machine at my local store will only do heavy fabrics and it is more than I have to spend. I do not think that I would be happy with this machine in the end. I do not think that it is what I am looking for.

As I was looking around the store I saw a BabyLock Coverstitch machine. Now I already have a serger that has a coverstitch function but I never use it because it is too much trouble to change over. I would love to do coverstitch so this machine looks really neat. I did not get a chance to try out the machine because my children were not making this possible. So I headed home and to the Internet. I love the Internet. I researched the Janome, the Brother, and the Babylock. I have read the reviews on Pattern Review. I have called sewing stores in the Anchorage, Dallas, and Omaha areas (my parents are going to Dallas and Omaha in a week and could pick up a machine for me). I learned so much. This has been quite a ride. First I was thinking the Babylock. It had everything that I wanted but it would probably be to expensive. My next thought was the Brother. I tried calling around and had a hard time finding people who carry that machine. All anyone had was the Janome. After talking to some stores I thought that I would like the Janome Cover Pro 1000. I could get it for about $499. The price was good and the store reviews were good. On to pattern review to see what actual owners felt. The review was very mixed. Some loved it and some would have smashed it in the street. Hmmmm. Maybe I do not want such a finicky machine. The Brother had the same reviews which left me with the Baby Lock. Everyone who reviewed it LOVED it. I am pretty sure now that this is the machine I want! PROBLEM: I do not have enough money!! I called around and the cheapest that I can get one is $899 from my local store. This is a great price I am finding out and am super excited. I just need to figure out how to get a bit more money. My brain gears are turning. I will figure this out!!!

Until next time....