Monday, September 28, 2015

American Sewing Expo 2015 recap

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In the Haberman booth at the expo. I'm wearing a yet-to-be-blogged dress....

This was my sixth year attending the American Sewing Expo in Novi, MI so I feel like a conference veteran.  I could write a whole novel about this weekend, but I will try to spare you (and me) and just give the highlights.

The high level summary is that the very best part of the weekend was when Anne and I visited Lynn at You Sew Girl Headquarters and descended on her closet like locusts, the second best part was taking Jennifer Stern's professional jeans construction class so that I could re-learn how to make the fly front zipper, and the third best part is something I will share with you in a week or so; I won't reveal it just now....

Thursday
  • Flew to Detroit from the Trenton-Mercer Airport, a small regional airport I had never flown from before.  Yelp reviews revealed that this is a place you either love or hate and I am firmly on the side of deep love.  
  • Drove to Haberman Fabrics in Royal Oak.   
  • Met up with Anne of Sewing to Soothe My Soul and had dinner

Friday
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  • Had breakfast and lunch with Kristine of Just Keep Sewing and Anne
  • chatted with Kathy from McCalls, Deborah from Simplicity, and Rhonda from Schmetz needles.
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  • Simplicity Fashion Show--that's the Mimi G coat--in denim!  
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  • Jennifer Stern's Jean Construction class, where you make a sample with front pockets and a fly front zipper--Jennifer is a fabulous instructor:  enthusiastic, upbeat, entertaining, wants everyone to leave happy and to not feel stressed during the class.  Yes, I took her class in 2012 but I have not put a fly front zipper in since 2013 and wanted a refresher.  She also streamlined her fly-front zipper instructions.    Thank you Jennifer for a great class!!
  • Dinner with Lynn and Anne
Saturday

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  • shopping at the Soutache (ribbon and buttons--love her button display!!) and Haberman's booths
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  • Simplicity Fashion Show again--this model looks great in everything!  This is a denim shirt dress.
  • Picked up my free pattern for wearing a garment made from a Simplicity or New Look pattern--thanks Simplicity!!!
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  • Completed the scavenger hunt and got a pack of 3 Schmetz needles and a Grabbit magnet--thank you Schmetz!  I was going to buy another Grabbit and now I don't have to!!
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  • The big visit to You Sew Girl HQ
  • Anne and I raided her closet like a swarm of locusts and we tried on almost everything! Lynn has the neatest closet I've ever seen (in both senses of the word: interesting and tidy). Lynn also remembers pattern numbers quite easily so she rattled them off for us. Now I have several more patterns I'm interested in!  (I'm trying on one of her denim jackets above)
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  • Her linoleum floor was excited to see us!  It's the floor from her pix!
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  • Lynn explaining the cataloging system for her amazing fabric stash; I don't know why she's embarrassed!  You can see some of the Rubbermaid bins in this photo which hold her fabric stash. 
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    A card for each piece of fabric, with a swatch, then bound by a ring by type
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    The mirror where she takes her selfies!
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    Her sewing machine
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    Selfies in her sewing room
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  • Impromptu teaching 
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  • I showed Lynn and Anne how  to box out a bag, how to install zipper pockets in bags (I use this tutorial with one tweak), and also how to install piping  (I use this tutorial) and have it overlap on a side seam. 
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    Posing with this cute bag Anne gave both of us.  It looks like a sewing machine from all sides!  Thanks Anne!
  • Passion for Fashion show

Sunday
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  • Anne and Lynn did the scavenger hunt
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  • shopping at Vogue Fabrics and Soutache (again)

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    Tried on this coat at the McCalls booth
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    It has a very high twirl factor.
  • How to Read the Wrinkles (Jennifer's jean fitting class)
  • Then the third best thing of the weekend happened (to be blogged later)
  • Flew home

As a conference veteran I now know:
  • Foregoing the 3" heels and wearing cushy flats not only makes my feet happy (the expo floor is concrete) but also frees up space in my luggage!
  • Taking the day off from work after returning home is a great thing I can do for myself.
So thank you Lynn for letting us visit your house and thank you Anne for driving me all over yonder.  It was a great trip!

Be well!





14 comments:

  1. What a great time you all had! It was great fun to read all about it.

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  2. After such a great weekend, it was difficult to go back to work! Thanks for the fun.

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  3. Wow looks like you had a wonderful time. Thanks for the tour of Lynn's sewing room.

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  4. Fabric and friends are the best combination! I am "expo-envious"!

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  5. Is it just me? Or an optical illusion on the zipper construction. It appears to have zipper tape on only one side! That's seamless sewing!

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    1. The pocket fabric doesn't really lie flat, so on the top of the zipper I understitched, and at Lynn's request, left the bottom zipper not understitched, to see the difference. By not understitching, the lining kind of creates a border around the zipper.

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  6. I hate I missed the expo but allergies and a "touch of pneumonia" caused me to stay home. September doesn't seem to be a good time for me as I remember missed expos because of illness. Maybe next year?

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    1. Awww, so sorry to hear that!! There's always next year!

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  7. LOL I'm embarrassed because the stash is out of control! I agree with Pencil Girl: fabric and friends is a great combination! I'm happy to have had both you and Anne over for a visit. You're welcome anytime. =)

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    Replies
    1. Your stash may be plentiful, but I'd say you have very good control of it with your storage and catalog system!

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