Merry Christmas!

A Christmas with no snow can still be beautiful!

Merry Christmas friends! We just wanted to pop in and let you know how much your business means to us. We feel so blessed that so many people support this little local shop. It makes what we do even more fulfilling when we get to see your smiling faces.

We'll be closing at noon on Christmas eve, and will reopen Monday the 28th.

If your looking for something new to start off the New Year with Nancy Johnson is teaching a Wool Envelope Class. This tri-fold sewing envelope will teach you to work with a variety of materials and several techniques including appliqué, zipper insertion and different creative stitches. The class will be meeting the 2nd Thursday of the Month starting in January.

We hope that you all have a special Christmas and safe and merry New Years.

Thanks again for a great year.
Love,
The entire Sew Unique Crew!

SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY

Happy Thanksgiving sewing friends. I imagine that by now your refrigerators are filled with turkey, and side dishes waiting to be prepped for the big day. I picture your ironing board piled high with cloth napkins and table clothes and little headbands with feathers super glued into them for the little ones.

I also imagine that in the backs of your minds are Christmas lists taking shape. Holiday projects waiting to be started and all kinds of glittery imaginings.

We can help you with the Christmas lists and sewing. Saturday November 28th is Small Business Saturday. If crowded shops and box stores aren't your speed come support your local shops, of which we are one. We'll be offering lots of great specials including 20% off all precuts. A make your own sale where you can get any one item or cut for 25% off, plus our clearance table will be piled high with lots of extra savings and sales.

We'll be closing at noon on November 25. The shop will be waiting to greet you on the 28th with festive fabric draped arms! I hope to see you there.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Love,
   Sue

Holiday Sewing.

Tis the season, and I thought it might be nice if I highlight some of our holiday offerings.
We have plenty of festive fabrics. This is just a taste and right now it's on sale.

This is just some of what we have in stores. 

Maybe you want to come in and get something for the non-sewing person in your life as well as the sewists? We have that too. Coloring is so therapeutic and can be an art form in itself, the new Tula Pink coloring book joins the adult coloring craze with some of their most beloved patterns. We also have lots of lovely jewelry designs from Siesta Silver Jewelry. I received one of these rings last year and I love it! We also carry a wide range of Swan Creek Candles and Lavishea lotion bars (the winter berry is especially nice).

New in the shop is more from quilting Treasures. Sweetie Loralie is funky and humorous while the letter and timeless have a classic feel. Click HERE to view online.

 

If your in the market for a new stocking we have a FREE PATTERN and tutorial on our blog. Click HERE. Let me just say that this pattern and instructions are our original design but we are not professional pattern writers. If you have any questions or run into problems feel free to contact us. 

We've also collected lots of great holiday inspiration and freebies from around the internet at our Pinterest board click HERE.

Don't forget about our Thanksgiving hours. We'll be closing at noon on November 25, we'll reopen on Saturday the 28th for Small Business Saturday.

I hope your holidays are shaping up to be very Merry.
Love,
Jessie and Sue.

Stocking Stuffers

It's officially the first week of the Holidays (though, I for one have been thinking about it for a while now) and that means it's time to think about stocking stuffers. Growing up stockings were always my favorite part of Christmas morning because it's a little treasure hunt of goodies. And, if I were being honest, I'd say stockings are still at least in my top three of Christmas morning traditions (following the joy of the kids and homemade sticky buns... it might even outrank sticky buns). What I'm trying to say is your NEVER too old for a stocking. 

If your husband or other loved one is stuffing one for you and maybe they need a little help, send them our way. We've got loads of great little treasures. The perfect stocking stuffer is a combination of something that is a little practical but still a splurge or something you wouldn't necessarily buy yourself and, of course, it has to be small. Sewing notions are the perfect thing. We have high quality needles, threads, buttons and all kinds of cool little sewing doodads that make sewing easier and more luxurious. We even have wonderful hand lotion and beautiful jewelry! And we're more then happy to help your Santa pick out some great things for your stocking.

These are some of the wonderful products from Sewline we
carry which can be found HERE or in the shop. Their products
make sewing so much blissful.

Fun and sassy thread snips are always a hit.

We have a beautiful array of buttons.

Threads galore, in beautiful colors. 

A precut bundle in the toe of my stocking? Yes please!

 I also wanted to highlight the latest fabrics that have arrived in the store. New Kaffe Fassette and new Tula Pink. I think it's all fantastic. Every time we get new Kaffe I'm amazed at the color.

Find our new Kaffe's HERE.

My favorite new fabric, though, is this Forest Frivolity from Tula pink. some day I will have a glamper and spend days secluded in the forest writing, and this fabric pulls on that heartstring. It's so whimsical and I love the color palette....I can't wait to figure out what I'll do with this one.

Find this and all our Tula Pink fabric HERE.

Also we've updated our class schedule. Click HERE to see all we offer and to try something new this coming year!

I hope your Holiday planning and sewing is filling you with joy.
And as always
Happy Sewing
Love,
Jessie and Sue.

Free Stocking Pattern and Tutorial.

I'm one day off my normal Thursday post but I hope you'll think it was worth the wait. Make sure to scroll to the bottom of this post for an EXCITING GIVEAWAY! Our Holiday gift to you is a free stocking pattern and tutorial. I am very pleased with how this project turned out and I hope you'll enjoy it. To access the pattern click HERE and print. There are four pages tape them together so that the doted lines are over each other, lining up the same lettered sides (You should be able to see the shape) then cut the pattern out.

This is a pretty easy project. I whipped five of these up in a few days. Even if your a beginner this project is very much within your reach.
What You'll Need:
1/2-3/4 yards of stocking fabric I found 1/2 to be a scosh too small while 3/4 was PLENTY. If your 1/2 yd is a bit small after pre washing just take make the stocking a little shorter no big deal. 
1/2-3/4 yards of lining fabric 
Interfacing Any kind is fine. I literally used up all my small pieces and scraps. Some of the stockings had medium weight, feather weight, and the really tough stuff. As long as your consistent on each stocking it won't matter. We just want to give it a little extra oomph for holding goodies.
Coordinating Thread
Double Fold Bias Tape I made my own out of the lining fabric and Loved the look but you could also use store bought.

Step 1:
Trace and cut 2 stocking pieces, 2 lining pieces and 2 interfacing pieces

Step2:
Attach the interfacing to the wrong side of the stocking pieces according to the manufacturers directions

Step 3:
Pin the stocking pieces right sides together and sew a 1/4 inch seam leaving the top open. Trim seam clip inner curves (ankle place) and notch outer curves (heel and toe). Turn right side out and press.

Step 4:
Pin lining together right sides together and sew a 1/4 inch seam leaving the top opening. Trim the seam and leave the lining wrong side out.

Step 5:
Insert the lining into the stocking, matching the seams and having the top edges even. Baste around the top.

Step 6:
To make the stocking loop hanger thing, cut a six inch strip of bias tape. Sew a scant 1/8 in seam down both long sides.

Step 7:
Fold the hanger in half and pin it to the outside of the side seam (the heel side) with the raw edges of the hanger even with the raw edges of the top of the stocking.

Step 8:
  A.  With the right side of the bias tape facing the right side of the fabric, match the raw edge of the unfolded tape to the raw edge of the fabric and pin along the fold line. Stitch along the fold line.

  B.  Turn the binding to the wrong side of the fabric, enclosing the raw edge. Hand-sew the folded edge down with a slip stitch.

If your interested in making your own bias tape click HERE for a great tutorial from another awesome sewing blog. No sense in my reinventing the wheel. The only thing I would add is that after I'm done running it through the bias tape maker I fold it in half and iron it again so that it looks like the store bought stuff. 

My familys' stocking.

Vintage fabric everywhere! The beauty of making your own stockings
is they can have any look you want.

Voila you have your very own, hand crafted stocking. I think this size is great, big enough for a lot of treasures but not so big that it looks ridiculous. I made four out of vintage inspired fabric for my family and I made one from the Ghastlies for the shop.  If you would like a Ghastlie stocking of your own click HERE or come into the store for the fabric (and keep reading).

"Why did you make a shop stocking?" you ask. It's only the best reason ever! Saturday November 30th is Small Business Saturday, and SewUnique Threads is celebrating by having treats, giving away a free gift with every $20 purchase and the chance to enter and win our GRAND PRIZE! The Grand Prize is this stocking filled with all things sewing. I am very excited to be part of this by creating the stocking pattern and and stocking.

We love you dear readers and I hope you'll enjoy this free pattern as our gift to you. I do hope we'll see those of you who are local on November 30th. Finally if you have any questions, problems with the pattern, anything please leave a message in the comments and I will get back to you asap.

Happy Holidays sweet readers, and
Happy Sewing,
Love Jessie

Hello and Happy Thursday fellow sewists! I made it home from my trip in one delightfully tanned, rested piece. I'll be honest I'm having a hard time getting back into the sewing of things. Or really the anything of things. "You want me to cook dinner? You need, clean socks." real life can be sort of hard to get back to.

To help there are some new classes starting up in November. Our one saturday class starts this saturday! Check out our website for more info. Hippy Hippy Shake this saturday. Twisty Twirly Scarf Nov 13. Spice Market Tote Nov 14. Modern Holiday club Nov 20. I hope you'll join us for one of these neat projects.

I received the moda sewing Box charm pack as a gift and I can't decide what to do with it. Usually I have a project in mind, I save my pennies and then buy what I need (though I still have quite the stash). This is so exciting, starting with a clean slate, and I love the fabric so much. Should I make a lap quilt for my sewing room, a patchwork sewing machine cover, or a patchwork purse, or even a patchwork skirt of some kind? Blurg, I can't decide! Help! Seriously I would love your feedback, not that I should be worrying about sewing for myself because it is November already!

The hardest thing about coming from FL back to MI is realizing that it's time to start Christmas! I'm just having a difficult time wrapping my mind around Christmas! I'm listening to Christmas music in the hopes that it helps. This year I'm going to decorate my sewing room for the first time. I bought a small fake tree after the holidays last year (on the cheap) and want to decorate it with all sewing themed things! I'm looking for ideas so if you have any let me know in the comments (along with your ideas for the charm pack).

If your a homemade Christmas kind of gal or guy, then I know your already well into creating. Here's an early play list to get you started (I'll try not to inundate you with too much Christmas until after Thanksgiving, this is just a taste):
I can't wait to hear all your thoughts! Let us know what your sewing up for the Holidays.
Happy Sewing
Love Jessie