I am so pleased to have the opportunity to talk to you about the excitement the 8 Series launch has created here at our BERNINA consumer event. It was such a proud moment when after six years of development, we were finally able to reveal this incredible machine and share its features with the world. The engineers and developers in the BERNINA factory in Steckborn Switzerland have worked countess hours to create a big, beautiful BERNINA - spacious and comfortable, speedy and full of benefits that will make the creative sewers world more enjoyable and more efficient… that nothing compares to the feeling of its debut.

And now, you too can experience all the precision and exclusive features the 830 has to offer here on bernina8series.com. This enlightening and interactive website provides everything you will want to know about the 8 Series, including videos that illustrate its outstanding space, unsurpassed speed and ergonomic genius.

So go ahead and check out the machine that has changed the history of sewing. We hope it inspires you as much as it has everyone here at BERNINA.

Talk to you soon! And remember to keep checking back for more entries and details on the magnificent 8 Series.

Gauze can be tricky to stitch, as it tends to stretch out of shape. This top is basically a "bishop" style, with sleeves, front, and back stitched together on the diagonal. By setting the differential feed at about 1.5, the fabric was fed under the presser foot faster than it was pulled out the back, which prevented the gauze from stretching. Bonus: all those ravelly edges were overcast, too!

It's hard to see in the photo, but there are two tiers of ruffles along the lower edge...so not only is the hem stretchy, hard-to-handle gauze, but cut partly on the bias and partly on grain. A serged rolled edge was simple; I don't even want to think how tedious a regular hem would have been!

The skirt was quick and simple. After printing the Gored Skirt pattern I drew points at the lower edge of each segment to create a shaped hem. I roll hemmed the points, then flatlocked all the sections together with the "squiggles" side showing on the outside. Then I stitched the waistband to the top with a 4-thread overlock stitch, inserted the elastic, and it was done!

Why the neatly labeled swatches? One of the classes I'm teaching at Bernina University is on sergers. Erika & I are both traveling to Kansas City tomorrow; we start teaching on Wednesday. I'm not sure we'll have time to blog while we're gone, but we'll have lots of things to share when we get back!

These are some small scraps of Benartex Woodstock fabric, and I followed Diana's instructions in the book to put these together.

These pincusions I made by making the pattern from Diana's book a little bigger, and then boxing out the corners. This is a bit of vintage barkcloth with a vintage button.

Here's another one made from a scrap of faux-fur, a scrap of ribbon, and a vintage button.

And, here is a pincushion made from a scrap of luscious silk & brocade fabric imported from India.

Now I hope you are inspired to take a look at some pincushion patterns or make up some of your own to make a dent in your scrap-stash!

This is a cool project - a notebook or sketchbook cover with a pocket. I added the monogrammed patch to the pocket before attaching it per the directions, I think it adds a nice touch! The pocket is big enough to hold an eraser and small pens and pencils, a bookmark, or even some post it notes. I used one of Alexander Henry's Tatsu fat quarters for this project with a coordinating solid cotton color for the lining.

This project is called a Jewelry Pouch, but it can be used as a clutch or a carry-all for an I-pod (and all the cords, cases, and extra junk that comes with it). I used one fat quarter of Alexander Henry's Tattoo Too fabric, and added an extra layer of plain red cotton for contrast on the inside of the project. If you want to use the pouch as a clutch, I suggest also adding a layer of interfacing to give some extra support.

The project has three zipper pouches, which was a great way for me to use up some of those extra zippers in my stash.

You can see the red fabric I layered with the main fabric as a contrast when a pouch is open.

And, for the finishing touches, I added the ribbon closure and button before I completed the project, to make the clutch easier to carry.

These are both fun and simple projects to whip up - great for gifts - and a SUPERB way to use up some of those extra fat quarters!

These are two of my favorite Amy Butler patterns, the Swing Bag and the Drawstring Purse from the In Town Bags.

This is the Drawstring purse, and was made from four coordinating fat quarters of Benartex Woodstock fabrics plus a scrap of repurposed ribbon for trim. You can actually get enough fabric for TWO of these bags if you add another fat quarter for the lining of the second project! Super cute, and very suitable for summer.

I just love this project, the Swing Bag. I used different coordinating Benartex City Girl fat quarters for each side of the exterior, the interior, and the ouside and lining of the handles for a total of 6 fat quarters. This is actually a fun way to construct the bag, because you can make two coordinating but different sides to the bag, and just flip it over for a different look.

The Swing Bag is the perfect size for holding all your goodies at the farmer's market, the craft store, a day trip to the beach, or any other summer outing that requires a few extra props.

I hope this gives you a few ideas of other quick and easy things to do with those fat quarters. I have a few other fav's for using up those stocks of fat quarters that I'll post about soon!

Here's the finished outfit - dog not included (she decided she needed to be in the picture...or that she needed to sit on my foot, one or the other). I like using the tunic as a t-shirt pattern, as the darts give it a better fit. I have a whole collection of tops based on the My Label Tunic pattern - woven, knit, with the default settings, with altered Style Properties, I've even switched sleeves between the Tailored Shirt and Tunic. The next variation will probably be similar to this paisley top, but in a woven fabric instead of a knit, and a faced neckline instead of ribbing.

Edgestitch Foot #10 (left) is also great for attaching hook-and-loop tape; just align the edge of the tape with the guide and move the needle position a few steps to the left.

I also like Piping Foot #38 (the same one I used for the mini-piping in the first Midanda post), especially for thick loop tape; there's lots of room for the bulky tape to move under the foot.

After stitching the lining to the covers, it's starting to look like a bag! To finish the faux-binding at the top edge (actually the lining peeking out over the top) I pulled out Edgestitch Foot #10 again, placing the guide in the well of the seam and sewing with the needle in the center position.

Have you noticed that Edgestitch Foot #10 and Piping Foot #38 are two of my favorites?

Only the handles and tab left to go!

The front of the bib overalls became this apron, and I used Benartex City Girl fabric for the ties and extras. The embroidery design on the pocket is an OESD design from the Go Retro! collection. I love all the pockets on this apron, small scissors, seam rippers, and seam guages fit perfectly in the nooks and crannies of the top pockets - all the tools I could ever need while working on a project!

The back of the bib overalls made this apron, and I used an Alexander Henry's Tatsu fabric for the ties, the trim, and the dragon applique.

I used a piece of plain red fabric underneath the dragon applique, and used the Bernina Stitch Regulator to stitch all around the shape. Then, I cut away more of the dragon fabric to leave some of the red to show all the way around, and left the edges raw. I used the Button Sew On Stitch on my artista 730 to attach the decorative buttons at the top of the apron and pockets.

These projects were a lot of fun to finish, especially since I salvaged the bib overalls from going into the trash!

The bag I'm making - the Miranda Day Bag from Lazy Girl Designs - is about 10" x 12" x 6", with lots of pockets for keeping me organized. If you've never used Lazy Girl patterns, give them a try. The instructions are great! Each step has illustrations AND well-written text instructions - perfect for those of us who are visual learners. Of course, I never make anything exactly according to the instructions...

Assembling Materials: When I finally located the perfect batiks in my stash I found that I didn't have enough of my favorite - the little triangles - for the cover. A trip to my local quilt yielded a few more coordinating pieces - including Benartex Triple Dye Bali batiks - and their monthly Stitch & B**** night was the perfect time to cut out all the pieces.

Machine Quilting: I found the perfect embellishing thread - Oliver Twists hand-dyed thread in the same colors as my triangle batik - which I used for machine quilting using the BERNINA Stitch Regulator.

Seam Cover Pieces Together: I wanted to bring more of the triangle colors out, so I added teeny tiny mini piping between the panels - a red clay batik on the vertical seams, blue/green on the horizontal seams. It's easy to make - cut fabric strips the twice the width of the seam allowance and place a strand of gimp or other fine cord in the center. Sew right next to the cord. I stitched mine using Piping Foot #38; Clear Applique Foot #23 also works well. When stitching to the second hald of the cover, follow the previous stitching line on the wrong side. For the topstitching I used the Oliver Twists again.

Finished Cover Pieces: More on my progress in a few days!

Placement lines are used with the un-hooped method of hooping, and create guide lines to help you in placing your project down in the hoop. I used this method to make this embroidered bookmark.

Here's an example of how it works. First, only the stabilizer is hooped and set on the machine. The placement line stitches out first, in this case I am embroidering a design on a piece of ribbon, and the lines show me where to line up the ribbon.

Once the placement line has been stitched, I remove the hoop and can easily lay down my project, lining it up exactly with the lines, using either temporary spray adhesive to hold the project down, or OESD's Stabil Stick stabilizer.

The hoop, project and all, goes back into the machine to finish stitching.

And look - it stitched PERFECTLY! Now how cool is that?

Not only does this method work for embroidery on ribbon, but it really helps with things like collars, cuffs, corners, pockets, and anything else that needs perfect placement.

Okay, so you're probably wondering how those placement lines got there, right? It's easier than you might think, and my next blog will have a quick description of making placement lines using the drawing tools in the Designer Plus V5 software.

I created with page with scraps of fabric, buttons, and clear vinyl, couched metallic cords, and a rotary cutter with a wavy blade. Stitched on my faithful BERNINA sewing machine, of course. Click here for instructions for the techniques I used to create this page.

I had no idea how to put in a zipper, or work with a fabric with a nap like corduroy, or even how to make gathers. My teacher was absolutely the best, and took time to work with me on all the details, even sewing in the zipper. I worked so hard on that skirt, and remember ripping out the gathered seams again and again until they were just right. I was so proud when I finished it, with a zipper and everything! I haven't seen that skirt since High School, and although I looked high and low, I couldn't even find a picture of myself in the skirt. But, let me assure you, it isn't forgotten! And neither is my teacher, who through her patience and kindness, helped me to learn to love to sew.

"I was thinking about my first project and how far I've come with my sewing. I was 19 years old when I took my first sewing class at Jacksonville State University. Sewing was not remotely related to my major, but I had an internal desire to create and signed up for a basic clothing construction class. I had wanted to sew since I was a little girl and was elated at the prospect of unleashing my creativity.

"Many of us call college the "lean" years. I seldom had extra money for a potato, much less fabric. I remember getting just enough fabric for the project and praying it wouldn't go over budget. The project was a classic button down shirt, topstitched with precision on a Bernina 830 (a machine in the school's sewing lab). Every seam was carefully constructed and finished with an overlock stitch on the serger. An edgestitch foot was used to topstitch around the edges. Wearing the shirt was a huge highlight, especially when someone found out that I made it (what a self-esteem booster!). I keep the shirt in my closet and occasionally slip it on to remember the excitement of my first class and what I learned from a basic shirt. I'm so thankful that my school had Bernina machines because I know the superior machine contributed to my success and promoted my love of sewing."

"This wasn't my first sewing project, but it was one that I was proud of. My first sewing projects were clothes for my Barbie dolls - that's when I decided I wanted to be a fashion designer. I would hand sew all sorts of trim and color the trim with a marker if it wasn't the right color. I had an old straight stitch, forward only, Singer machine. I would sew the doll clothes together on the machine and then decorate them by hand. I didn't like to put the snaps on and many of my Barbie clothes went without snaps. To this day I don't like finishing by hand that is sometimes necessary for garments.

The picture is my second year 4-H project and I was so very proud of it for two reasons. First of all, it wasn't the elastic-banded, gathered skirt that we made for our first project. This was a for-real sewn on waistband and the skirt had a zipper. I felt so accomplished when I successfully sewed the zipper into the skirt! I then completed a shell and a matching sash and entered the garments in the county fair. The second reason this project brings back fond memories is that at the fair I was chosen to go to the Illinois State Fair to model my garment!"