Sewing 101: Master Your Sewing Machine!

118 Shelby Street,Kingsport TN 37660

29 July, 2022

Description

If you have a sewing machine at home but don't feel confident with it yet, this class is for you! We'll wind, thread, and adjust together. Learn all about your personal sewing machine! Bring your home sewing machine to The Inventor Center for in person instruction on how to function your machine so you can confidently jump into sewing. In this class we will learn how to make and load a bobbin for both top and front loading machines, how to thread the machine, how to refine tension and stitch length, how to care for your machine, practice sewing with our machine, and so much more! Please Bring: Your sewing machine and manual, and a spool of cotton thread. No prior sewing experience required. Age 16+ (under 18 must be accompanied by an adult) Shannon Kelly is a bookbinder and embroidery artist who lives and works in Kingsport Tennessee. She focuses on medieval bookbinding and uses traditional methods that were employed up until the mid-eighteenth century. She focuses on making books that are pleasant to hold, delightful to look at, and easy to write in. She also sews all of her own clothes! After graduating from the University of South Florida in 2020, Shannon started The Lectory, an Etsy shop where she sells her hand-bound and hand-embroidered journals. She shares her bookbinding and embroidery journey on her TikTok Channel. 1. We will start the class with an open discussion about general questions we have about sewing machines and specific struggles students have had. If there is something everyone is struggling with we will focus longer on that step. First we will learn the names of all the sewing machine parts and what they do. We will line up everyone's machines and identify the major parts and functions on each different type of machine. 2. Second we will identify the difference between a front loading machine and a tip loading machine. 3. Next we will make a bobbin. This can be different from machine to machine, so we will do a demonstration on a few and then everyone will try with me going around to help. 4. Then we will load the bobbin and thread the machine. 5. Finally, once everything is set up we will practice stitching on the muslin provided. We will adjust our stitch length and tension, address any issues people are having, and test out different stitch types.