A day of sewing failures!! :(

[slamb13]

Today has NOT been my best sewing day. I bought zippers for the 2 tote bags I'm working on and totally botched them both. I ended up just cutting off the top of the bags because they were such a mess. Then I tried to make a little coffee sleeve for my travel coffee cups.... well I made it and it's finished but it looks a mess. SIGH.

I guess I need to give up for today and hope for better sewing karma tomorrow.

Susan

[Sharyn J]

What happened with your zippers Sue? Maybe we can help you. I'm not having such a great day sewing day myself. It's taken me hours to cut & piece the backing for a quilt. I have such limited room and my dog thinks it's play time when I lay fabric on the floor to measure. Every time I measured, I got paranoid to cut!

Some days it just pays to stay in bed!

[pcbatiks]

Susan.......when you are that frustrated it definitely is better to walk away for awhile........possible have some chocolate!

Try looking up some zipper tutorials...........I haven't sewn a zipper in so long.......I don't know if I remember how.

[bkthomas]

Sorry you are having a bad sewing day - take a deep breath - hope tomorrow is better.

[lhayes1976]

I hate days like that. I make so many goofy mistakes now--I think it's a by-product of menopause. I just quit for the day and start anew the next day.

[Terri]

I refer to it as "mental-pause", because that's what I feel like. Someone/something hit's the pause button on my brain & I just can't think straight or make sense of the simplest things! Then the clouds part, the sun shines & my mind is clear again!! Or my brain will just go on vacation for a while. Ain't getting older just grand??? NOT....

I hate days like that. I make so many goofy mistakes now--I think it's a by-product of menopause. I just quit for the day and start anew the next day.

[slamb13]

I haven't done zippers before but I watched several tutorials and thought I understood.. but obviously I didn't! On one of them I got the first side of the zipper installed beautifully, but when I installed the 2nd side somehow I had trimmed the zipper too long.,.. even though the first side fit right, I ended up with a fat wad of excess zipper at end. Not the zipper pull end, the other end of the zipper. AND then I thought I could salvage it by putting my binding on the top of the bag and hiding all the ugly fudging, but I accidentally sewed over the zipper teeth and broke some, so then the zipper didn't even zip anymore. That's when I cut it off and threw it away!

On the other one I tried the method where you add a little flap of fabric to each side of the zipper and just sew that flap to the bag, rather than sewing the zipper itself to the bag. Again my length was totally wrong somehow, so the side flaps were sewn in right but the little tabs on the end were way too long, tried chopping them down and again just made a total mess of it!

I am lucky that I don't have a dog to cause more havoc, but I do have a 4 year old home with me! LOL

[Iris Girl]

I hate days like that. We all have them, mine was yesterday I was making half square triangles and every time I sewed one then cut them apart and went to press one was wrong side up. I must have ripped 10 out. Think I would look before I cut them...NOPE not me sew, cut press, rip repeat

[Terri]

Susan, I am sorry that you had such a challenging day. But at least you did some sewing. I have been in a "funk" lately and have gotten a whole lot of NOTHING done. Each night when I go to bed, I am determined that the next day is going to be a productive day of sewing, cutting etc....but when morning comes, I just get the old "I don't feel like it" feeling and end up doing nothing. I am a fairly new quilter (how long can I call myself "new"?? ) I think part of my problem is actually getting started....I am so afraid of making mistakes, making wonky cuts, not having a good 1/4 seam, not pressing correctly etc etc....that I just don't do anything. I think I need a good kick in the pants!!

[Sew Perfect]

Susan, I am sorry that you had such a challenging day. But at least you did some sewing. I have been in a "funk" lately and have gotten a whole lot of NOTHING done. Each night when I go to bed, I am determined that the next day is going to be a productive day of sewing, cutting etc....but when morning comes, I just get the old "I don't feel like it" feeling and end up doing nothing. I am a fairly new quilter (how long can I call myself "new"?? ) I think part of my problem is actually getting started....I am so afraid of making mistakes, making wonky cuts, not having a good 1/4 seam, not pressing correctly etc etc....that I just don't do anything. I think I need a good kick in the pants!!

Terri...yes you do need a kick in the pants! LoL...sometimes, I'm the same way. With some of my fabric, I'm afraid to cut it because it is just so beautiful! But, as the Nike commercial says, "just do it!".