Putting the Pieces Together

This Week

This week in my sewing project, I started to sew the different rows of blocks together to make two big panels for each side of the bag. First, I made sure to press open my seams, per the advice of my aunt and also the internet. Pressing open seams means taking the seams of the two fabrics and ironing them out to either side. I learned that this does a few things. First, it makes it so there are less layers to sew through at one time. It also makes it so that there are not really bulky parts of your work right along all of the seams, because this gets them to lay flatter. After a lot of ironing, I was ready to pin, and then sew.

Lots of pinning to make sure the rows stayed together and (mostly) even.

The seams that have been pressed are shown on the bottom.

Once I got all of my strips sewn together into the panels I wanted, (and then ironed again)! it was time for a step called basting, also known as tacking. I had to learn what this meant, but it is basically a technique which involves temporarily or loosely holding fabric layers together. For the pattern I am doing, it calls for a layer of batting, which is kind of like a soft layer of puffy fibers, sort of like “insulation” for the quilted item, and then another layer of just fabric to back the thing you have been piecing together, such as the squares I have been working on. You are supposed to baste or secure these together, and then you can begin quilting. While you can handstitch long straight stitches to baste, my grandma suggested to me “spray basting” which is essentially a temporary adhesive to hold the layers together. I picked some up from the store and used it to secure my layers together. 

Basting spray plus all of my layers!

I started to quilt lines on the front of my panel, just sewing straight lines along my seams to make it easy. Luckily just as I was doing this, I realized why the bobbin has been causing me so many problems as I mentioned last week. I looked at the manual for the 1000th time, and wasn't able to figure it out, but finally decided to turn to Google, despite this machine being older and not thinking I would find anything. What I did find on Google was that this machine is supposed to take size 15J bobbins. I think that the bobbins that were with it when it came from the shop my aunt sent it to to get serviced are size 15 bobbins. I do not know what the difference is, or more specifically why it is causing the problems I was having, but I have had very few issues since then so I believe that was the solution! More on quilting the piece next week because I did not get very far. 

The new 15J bobbin on the left vs. the old 15 bobbin on the right.

Identity and Occupation

Pursuing this new occupation has already been a very fun process. Reflecting on it each week and how it has already impacted me has been very interesting. In the past, I have not considered myself to be a “creative” person, because I did not identify with aspects of creativity such as art like drawing or painting or being an incredibly imaginative person. However, as I have gotten more into adulthood, I have realized the further definition of creativity, and how much I enjoy engaging in creative processes. I love cooking and baking, making crafts, listening to music, crocheting, and more. While I often utilize instructions, I do not think that lessens my identity as a creative person. I feel that I am discovering that even further through enjoying this process of learning the new occupation of sewing and quilting, which I have been able to appreciate both through being creative and through learning new skills.

I have found that as I continue to form my identity and occupational identity, I am finding more links to other aspects of my life. The intrinsic factors that motivate me and drive me towards an occupation such as sewing, are also the ones that drive me towards similar occupations that I already pursue, like crocheting.

I have also been reflecting on the fact that my identity is always being formed and shaped by my social relationships and past experiences. This has been especially prominent in the occupation of sewing and quilting, because of my family members (such as my aunt and grandmothers). More specifically, how their pursuit of this occupation and love for it has influenced me throughout my life, which I wrote more about in my blog post last week. They have played a big role in creating my story or “occupational biography” surrounding this occupation, because it has been something that I have been around consistently throughout my life. It has been their way of showing love, giving gifts, spending time, helping others, and for my aunt, it is even her career now, working for a quilt shop. This occupation felt like something attainable, and honestly, I feel it is something that was honestly already a part of my identity and story because of the connections I had to it through the important people in my life. 

My mom and aunt holding up a quilt my aunt gifted me for my wedding/bridal shower.