Honest review of the Hot Steam Gravity Feed Steam Electric Iron SGB-600/SGB-900

I bought this iron back in 2015; although, I didn't get around to hanging it until late last year.  When I did finally unbox it, it didn't work.  I called customer service and they walked me through some diagnostics and when that failed, they shipped a new iron.  How's that for great customer service??

The iron presses very well, much better than my Rowenta.  It gets very, very hot and has a tremendous amount of steam.  However, it is like any other iron in that when I use it for extended periods of time, it will cool down and start spitting.  I was pressing large amounts of linen fabric when it started spitting and left a brown stain on my white linen.  Then I noticed the light had come on indicating that it was not at the correct temperature.


This is my setup.  Excuse my really stained press top.  It gets a lot of use!

If you plan on buying any type of gravity feed iron, I have a few tips:

First, see how the water tube and the electric cord are bound together with clips?  Those clips are supposed to keep them from getting tangled up.

That doesn't always work.  Why?

The water tube is hanging from the water reservoir from the ceiling.

While the cord is plugged in below. It's the gold outlet at the bottom of the picture.  I had my electrician install it before I put in the hard wood.  Sure wish I had taken a little closer shot.  But you get the idea.

If I could do this over again, I would have put my outlet in the ceiling next to where the reservoir hangs so they'd both be in the same place, and the cord is plenty long enough to do that.  They would still tangle a bit but not nearly as much. It is also easier to determine placement.  I laid out my room with tape before I laid the hardwood and got all the furniture placed.  That's hard to do when there is nothing else in the room.  If it were in the ceiling, it would make moving around my work table much easier.

Second, be absolutely certain you place the iron completely on the rubber mat.  If you don't, it will scorch the surface beneath.  I've made that mistake twice.

Third, this iron does not have an automatic shutoff and the light goes off when it's hot, not the other way around.  I like the no shutoff feature, so I don't have to wait for it to heat up again in between pressings.  Get in the habit of turning it off as soon as you know you won't need it anymore.  You can also put a note on your light switch or your door reminding you to turn it off when you leave the room.  Better yet, have your outlet connected to the switch, so you only have to turn the switch off to turn everything off.

Fourth, I do not like having to climb up on top of my table to turn the knob on my water reservoir when I need steam.  The instructions say to always turn the valve off when not in use.  So I climb up to turn it on and again when I turn it off.  It has to be 3 feet above the table, so I can't lower it.  I need some sort of pulley that I can lower it more easily.

All in all, this is a fantastic iron if you pay attention to the heat while using it.  It eliminates the need to have a boiler sitting on your table and getting in the way of your pressing.

Hope this helps if you are looking to buy a gravity feed iron.

Happy Tuesday!

Angela

Simple Tote

I made this tote bag for my MIL for Christmas. When I started on this post, I realized, I made her one in 2014. Oh joy! You can't have too many totes can you? I think not. But I do wish the time frame had been a bit longer. Oh well.

This is the same tote bag from "Home Stuff" by Linda Lum DeBono.  I made this one and this one. As you can see, I love this pattern.

I chose not to quilt this one and instead used a heavy stabilizer on the focus fabric to keep it standing up.  The fabrics are quilting cottons that I found at Quarterdeck Quilts in Springfield.

The inside is so roomy.

My Christmas sewing is almost complete.  I have two shirts left to do for my son, and then I can work on my bedroom window treatments that have been on hold for a year.  I'll be glad to get those completed.

Thanks for stopping by.  And Happy Wednesday!

Angela

Iron Caddy

I found this tutorial for this iron tote and thought it would be great to take my iron to and from my Threads of Love meetings.

I could not get mine to wrap to the front like she did.  So I folded it a bit differently and managed to get the folds and buttons on the ends.

I also round my corners rather than cutting them at an angle.  It made it easier to apply the bias and I just liked it that way.  My Rowenta fits quite nicely inside, and I have enough room to put my water cup in there too.

When it's opened, it makes a great press mat.  It isn't large, but it's great for the little TOL dresses.

And the other side.

And when I'm not using it, it folds up into this little ball for easy storage.

I love my little iron caddy.  I will get to use it for the first time this evening.

Thanks for stopping by.

Angela

DIY Fabric Boxes

I needed some fabric boxes for a client, so I went searching on my favorite spot ever:  Pinterest. Does anyone not like Pinterest?!?  Anyway, I found this awesome tutorial on fabric boxes and thought I'd try it.  And I love the result.

This is a fairly big box.  If memory serves, it wound up being 12" tall and roughly 10" square.  My client did not want the grommets, so I made handles instead.

If I make these again, I will omit the step of cutting out the corners.  It is just easier to me to stitch that with the corner in tact.  I've done it both ways, and that's just my preference.  You can control the width of the box a little better as well.

Hope your Thursday is fabulous!
Angela
"O Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me." Psalm 30:2

Baby Gift Ideas

One of my dearest friends had her first grandchild last week.  Needless to say, she is beyond elated!  I wanted to make a few things for baby Gray.

I have made this changing pad before, but I'm a bit partial to this one.  I chose to use chenille fabric this go around, and it is so incredibly soft.  I don't like the closure though.  The instructions call for placing that elastic on the outside of the bias binding.  I think next time, I'll put it underneath.  I thought of making a button hole, but if you put wipes and diapers in the little pouch, that wouldn't leave extra room.

I had a scrap of fabric left over from the fabric boxes I made.  I'll have to get pictures and post those later.

I also made burp cloths.  I found the tutorial here.  I've used it before, and moms always love them.  I have not washed these yet, so they are as frilly as they should be.

I found this nursery print at Joann's and loved it.  I made both sides out of flannel.

I also found this beautiful cotton nursery print the same day and thought it would make a great blanket.

I wasn't sure whether I wanted to use blanket binding or wrap the dot around to the front for a contrast band.  I've done it both ways.  I chose the binding, so the blanket would be larger.  I would lose some size with the contrast band, since the dot was not as wide at the focus fabric.

I think these will make a nice gift for a new baby.  I hope mom and dad love them.

Thanks for stopping by.

Angela

UGA Apron

This is another fun apron from Sew4Home.  My friend, Sandy Martin, at Quarterdeck Quilts in Springfield, GA helped coordinate the fabrics.  She really has a knack for that.  Something I lack. :)

I didn't have the right size ric rac on hand, so I used 1 1/4" at the bodice top and along the bottom.  The pockets are trimmed with 1/2".  I could not get that jumbo stuff around those curves. 

Speaking of the pockets, I love these.  They have an inverted pleat right down the center.

And I love the added ric rac between the upper and lower bodice.  I am in love with the UGA colors in this chevron.  I've used it on a few other projects too.

Here is the back.

I lengthened the waist ties by 5".  I don't think these can ever be too long, and I certainly don't like them too short.  I did not like the way they attached the bottom skirt to the waist ties.  They have you stitch around the whole tie section leaving an opening at the top for the bodice and an opening at the bottom for the skirt.  You turn it right side out and slide those pieces into the opening.  The bodice was no problem, because it's small.  But it was quite the challenge to get the band lined up perfectly on the skirt then stitch through and catch both sides.

I chose to make my opening larger on the bottom and treat it like bias tape.  I stitched one side (right sides together) then flipped it and stitched in the ditch to close the back.  That method worked much better for me.

As for the size, it's generous.  My waist is 27" on that form, and the skirt measures 30" wide.  There are also darts in the lower bodice for room for the "girls".  And it covers generously as well.

This is the last of teacher gifts.  Again, I'm not certain she wears aprons, but it would be fun to pull out on game days.  She is a huge UGA fan.  She is also a science teacher, so what fun to use it in class! 

I don't think she reads my blog; otherwise, I just let the proverbial cat out of the bag!

Thanks for stopping by my little world.  Feel free to ask questions.

Angela

Fun Apron

This is another gift for one of Robbie's very special teachers.  I don't think she reads my blog, so it won't ruin the surprise. ;)  This came from Sew4Home.  There is a matching girl's apron too.

This picture doesn't do this apron justice.  It is much cuter in person.  It has 4 layers of tulle underneath.  I didn't have a model, except Robbie, and it looked like a dress on him.  So I had to put it on my unfinished dress form.  She is leaning to the left. :(

I just adore this little pocket.  Robbie's teacher is a huge USC fan, and I found this fabric earlier this year knowing I would use it, just not sure for what.  I'm not sure she even uses aprons, but won't it be fun to pull it out on game days?

And this is the back.

The tutorial called for a 15" waistband, but I increased that by 3".  I think some of these aprons can be too small.  I would rather it come too far to the back than to not cover enough.

I hope she likes her new Carolina apron.  My daughter has now requested one in UGA fabric for her grandmother.  So I have something special in mind for that one.  Stay tuned.

And a special shout out to all of our men and women in our armed forces.  Please say a prayer for them all as we recognize their service and remember those who died for their country.  Please also remember both our police force and fire department.

Thank you for stopping by.
Angela

UGA Makeup Pouch (pleated)

 

School will be out in just a 2 weeks!  My, the time has flown this year.  I think it gets worse as we get older.  But I digress.....

We always like to send gifts to Robbie's teachers at the end of the year.  This one is for his math teacher.  She is, like us, a big UGA fan.  Robbie struggled in math this year, and Mrs. Parr helped him so much.  This is just a small token of our sincere appreciation. 

This pouch is pleated to allow for expansion when filled.  It is lined, and the seams inside are bound with bias tape.  You could serge them, but the bound seams just look nicer to me.

The tutorial for this pouch can be found at Sew4Home.  She has a really cool way of attaching the zipper.  This one took roughly an hour to complete once the pieces were all cut.  It's a very simple project and perfect for a beginner.

Thanks for stopping by.
Angela

Patchwork Teddy Bear for Threads of Love

My new machine came in last weekend, and this is the first project sewn with her. 

I have never made a teddy bear before. I have quite a few little areas that need improvement. We had two boxes of donated wedding gowns and bridesmaids dresses and the fabric has been too heavy to make TOL gowns. I thought this bear would be perfect to use those fabrics. It took me almost 5 hours to complete, so I won't be doing many of these. And because they require so much polyfil, it gets quite expensive too.

The pattern is a free McCalls pattern and it calls for gluing the eyes and nose on. I didn't like that, so I machine stitched the buttons and hand stitched the nose. It also has you hand stitch the arms in place. They are so close to the neckline, I think next time I will machine stitch them to the body before hand stitching on the head.

He's pretty large and will go to the pediatric ward at the hospital.

I think for my first bear, he turned out pretty good.  As long as he makes a little child at the hospital happy, that's all that matters.

Angela

Dress Form Continued

I've been working on this form off and on (more off than on) for a couple of weeks.

If you'll remember in the first installment, I suggested knowing certain measurements including the bust curve.  This is why that's so important.

This was my first padding attempt for the bust line.  My bust curve, that is from my apex down to my under bust, is 3.5".  When I remeasured this on the dress form after padding, the bust curve was 4.5".  Everything else was accurate, apex to apex, apex to side seam and shoulder to apex.  That meant I had overpadded the bra.

I removed the padding and started over.  She is outside almost "nekked" because the lighting was better.  I have no idea what my neighbors were thinking!!  I'm sure to get a letter from the HOA. Oops!

Anyway, now everything is dead on except for my full bust measurement.  That tells me that I need more in the back, not in the busts.  I have a wider back from doing pull ups in the gym, so once I pad that out, the new full bust measurement will be accurate.

So this means you can't just put your bra on the form and start padding out without knowing these measurements.  It won't give you an accurate representation, and we want this as accurate as possible.

I am working on my cover now.  I have carved out the sway back on the form, and I was left with a Jessica Rabbit butt. LOL  I know my hiney falls much lower in reality than on the form, so I'll be tackling that next.

Once I get that fixed, I'll begin padding out for the hiney, hips and the upper back where I need a little width/fullness. I have more an athletic build, but I do have a little more hip than Jessica is showing right now. Ha!  

I want to contour the hiney more underneath, so when I'm making pants, it'll be easier for me to fit - I hope. For that reason, I opted for a separating zipper, which I'll show in future posts.

I am posting as I go on this journey, so please feel free to ask questions or offer suggestions.  I know my friends are sick of hearing about this dress form, but they have been so gracious with their time and help, and for that, I am sincerely grateful!

Thanks for stopping by.
Angela

Uniquely You Dress Form - Surgery!

I have wanted a dress form for a very long time, but the standard form just wouldn't work for me.  My torso is much, much longer than the standard form, and I have a sway back.  After much research and analyzing, I finally decided on a Uniquely You dress form.

I chose this form because it's made of foam.  I can chop off what I don't need and pad out what I do.  The rest is supposed to compress once you put the cover on.  Word of wisdom, that doesn't work well.  As other reviewers have noted, it does not compress the 5" they claim it does.

Because of that, I chose the smallest form they had - a petite size.  Here are the measurements for all sizes.

My measurements are 36, 26, 35.25.  Based on that you'd think the small would have been the obvious choice.  I chose the petite, because I'd rather pad out than cut down.  I just think it's easier.  But that's purely personal preference.  What I didn't know was the back of the neck to the waist measurement.  It's 12.5" on the petite and 15" on the small.  In hindsight, I should have gone with the small just for that reason.  So my first tip to you would be to know that measurement before you order one.  I can fix this, but it'll take a bit more work.

I also want to mention that I took the Craftsy class on customizing a dress form, referred to LaSewista's blog many times, and watched this YouTube video.  All of these were a tremendous help.

My second tip is to take the class, so you know exactly where and what to measure.  I also took Joy Mahon's class Fast Track Fitting (the 2nd one) so I had quite a few other measurements that helped this process too.  You'll want to know your hollow of neck to waist, waist to hip, apex to apex, shoulder to apex, apex to side seam, upper bust, under bust, side waist to hip, back of neck to waist, front waist, and back waist.

Okay, so problem one: torpedo boobs.  A friend of mine thought this looked like Jessica Rabbit, so for now, that's her name.

My first order of business was to take those down a bit.  Based on other reviews, I used scissors in lieu of an electric carving knife.  I basically wanted to round them out.  That is tip number three.  Use scissors where you can.

And here is the after.

After that, I began making demarcations for my waist and apex.  I tied a piece of thin ribbon around the natural waist.  This is my own measurement not the form's.  I measured down where my natural waist would be and tied the ribbon.  Then I used a sharpie and marked all the way around the waist at the ribbon.  I also measured my shoulder to apex and apex to apex and made a mark as well.

You can see that measurement here.

Notice that it's much lower than the form's apex.  I chose not to worry much about that, because I sacrificed one of my own well fitting bras to pad out.  That is tip number four.  Use a well-fitting bra.  It will save you a lot of trouble trying to get the right shape.  That came from Bunny at LaSewista.

Here she is with bra on and padded out.

The next order of business was the waist.  My front waist measures 14 inches but my back waist is only 12.  So while the total circumference is 27" on the form, you need to know where to chop off that extra 1".  For me it was the back waist.  Since I know my sway back is part of that problem, I chose to carve out there.  I basically needed to begin to create a "shelf".  I have my bra pushed up out of the way, because I did use the electric carving knife here and didn't want to cut it.  I kept measuring as I went and remarked as well.

Another view:

Part of the next problem is that my bum sits 4" lower in actuality than on this form, so I have to move the full hip down 4".  My plan is to use the knife to just cut off the whole bum and move it down 4".  I want to get my cover finished and on her before I cut into again.  My markings are accurate, but I may not need to go to all the trouble of cutting off the whole bum.  Maybe I just need to contour more from the waist into the top of the bum and pad out the bottom part.  I wont' know until I get the cover on.

I have the muslin done and it fits perfectly.  I have the fabric cut for the cover and the darts stitched in.  I should have that complete today.

Stay tuned as I go on this journey.  I have no idea how it will turn out, but so far so good.

Thank you for stopping by, and I hope I've encouraged you to start customizing your own form if you haven't already.

Angela

General Casimir Pulaski - McCalls 4676 - modified

Robbie had a project at school for a makeshift wax museum.  They do this every year in the 5th grade class. Robbie was given General Casimir Pulaski.  I searched and searched through photos of Gen. Pulaski to find one I could replicate easily.  Okay, maybe not easily but doable.

This was my inspiration.

I used my latest pattern McCalls 4676.  I reviewed that pattern here.  I wanted a pull over style jacket that could be easily taken on/off.  I used felt so I didn't have to hem or finish any seam.  I used a dinner napkin tied at his neck to replicate a shirt underneath.  I knew he would get hot.  I used shoulder pads under gold lame' for the epaulettes and hot glued fringe to the edges.

I taped together my yoke pieces to the front and back pieces and cut them both on the fold.  Then I stitched my sleeves in and sewed down the side seams.  That left me with one large opening in the top for his head.

I marked my center front and measured down roughly 7" from the neck opening and marked.  I then measured over 3" on either side of the center line and snipped the fabric at the neck opening.  Then I drew lines from those 3" snips down to my mark 7"  to get my "V".  I cut those lines.

I placed a piece of red felt on top and marked the same lines and cut them to match the blue felt jacket.  I used fusible web to place it on top.

I found gimp the same color as the lame' and tried to replicate the trim on his coat as close as possible.  I used hot glue, because I was running out of time.  It did not hold up well, so if you try this, stitch it on.  I could not find small gold buttons so I found a cheap bracelet at Joann's and took it apart and used those as buttons.  I did have the larger gold buttons in my stash.  I hot glued all of them on.  I should have stitched the larger buttons so I could remove them and reuse.  Oh well, maybe he'll wear this for Halloween?

Lastly, I wanted something to simulate a white sleeve peeking out from the jacket, so I cut a 4" wide piece of white broadcloth double the width of the sleeve, folded it in half and stitched it to the inside of the jacket sleeve.  And that was it for the costume.  Then all I had to do was slick his hair back, and he became Gen. Pulaski for the day.

He absolutely loved his costume, and that's all that matters.

And of course, he had to have one final pose.

He had to stand on his podium and wait for others to push his button to come to life.  I was so proud that he memorized all of his lines and didn't miss a beat.

Thanks for stopping by my little world.
Angela

Tea Towel - DIY

I have a friend's birthday coming up this weekend, and I needed a gift.  And unfortunately, time ran out on me, so it had to be a quick gift.  I found this tutorial on Sew4home, and I fell in love with all their tea towel tutes.  And this was a winner, because it took me an hour.  It would have taken me less time had I not been constantly interrupted (but that was my entire week). LOL  I felt like I was behind the 8 ball all week long. Anyway, I digress......

I bought a package of flour sacks at Walmart months ago, because I knew they'd come in handy.  I bought a pack of 5 for about $4.00 I think.  They are roughly 29" x 28".  That size was a bit big for me for the towels, because I was adding the ric rac and extra fabric.   So I folded it in half and did a rolled hem with my serger on all 4 sides.

Here is the before.

And after.

The rolled hem.

I pressed them really well, because as you can see, the edges will ripple.  So they should be as flat as possible before you add all the embellishments.

I won't go through the whole tute.  Click on the link above.  The instructions are clear and easy to follow.  The only thing I didn't like was the way the ric rac is tucked under.  But there really isn't a better way to do it.

I made two towels, folded the top towel making a little pocket behind, and bought some wooden spoons to tuck down in the pocket.  Then I tied my ribbon and voile!  A super cute gift in less than an hour.  What could be better than that?

I actually had another idea for my tea towels but didn't have time to test it.  I need some for my kitchen, so I'll try it then.  Stay tuned.

BTW, these towels are super absorbent and are great for cleaning granite with no streaks.

Thank you for stopping by.  And Happy Friday.
Angela

Parson's Chair Slipcover

I am in the middle of a master bedroom makeover, and I've started with some parson's chairs.  We wanted some seating in the room, and I found these chairs at Pier One for less than $180 for both.  I just got the basic chairs with white fabric, because I knew I would cover them.  No sense paying for fabric covered chairs.

I found this suede fabric at Hancock's and thought it would be beautiful in the room.  I took the photo outside, because the lighting really shows the fabric off.

And here it is in the room.  The second chair isn't finished yet.  I still need to add the skirt.  My quilt will be next I think then the window treatments.

There is a craftsy class on slipcovers that I recommend.  But pay special attention to the class materials, because there was a mistake in the skirt calculations.  Just double check those before you cut your fabric.  I did not follow the class on these other than the skirt, because I did not want to pipe these.  And pin fitting is easier to me.

I also recommend lining the skirt even if you don't line the rest.  It makes the skirt hang so much prettier with the added weight.  I've done it both ways.  I definitely preferred the lined option.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Thursday - what's left of it!!
Angela