I have actually been doing things this past week, just not very exciting things that I want to blog about. I've painted the kitchen ceiling and it's now a bit whiter than it was (doesn't make for an interesting photo) and I've taped up the windows ready to start on them. They've been sitting in this state for almost a year! It's kind of pretty-looking
I've also been getting ready to make Hazel a Lilla Handlebar basket out of oilcloth. I haven't actually tried sewing the oilcloth yet, I'm hoping my machine will cope with it if I have the walking foot on so I don't have to sew over tissue paper because that will just make it more fiddly than seems it should be. She wants it to be exactly like the one on the pattern, although she decided this morning she'd like the cherry fabric lining because it would be "delicious". She tends to get kissed after saying things like that :)
And lastly, I've been turning out some really appalling FMQ.
This troubles me no end to be honest. I HATE not being good at things, in fact I avoid things I'm not good at. I keep thinking I'm getting better at it but I'm not entirely sure, I might just be delusional. I'm also not sure how much of the appallingness is down to me and my inexperience, and how much of it is down to my machine. I can't stop with the needle down which is a problem, but the main issue is that the fabric doesn't feed evenly so while I'm trying to get into a rhythm and move with the needle, I get spots where the fabric won't move and the stitches are tiny, and then all of a sudden it surges forward and I get a few long ones that may be heading out in the wrong direction. Is that me? Will it get better? The tension also seems off - I can't get it to behave the same as it does with a regular foot so I have the different colours showing through top and bottom at times (I know, different colours isn't ideal for a beginner!) I'd love to blame my machine for all of this but that's pointless. However, I would like to know if some of it IS down to the machine so I'm not unnecessarily hard on myself :) I think upon reflection I need to rip out this section and do it again for my own peace of mind!