Keep Those Hems

Welcome!  I’m Carly and I love to sew.

I grew up with a mom who shared her sewing talents with her children.  Handmade dresses for her daughters, Fisher Price Mandy doll clothes, Barbie clothes, Cabbage Patch clothes, Halloween costumes, you name it!  What a fun mom she was and still is.  She had to return to working outside the home when I first started grade school, so her time sewing had to drastically change.

Fast forward to my junior high years when I learned to sew locker caddies, pencil cases, and boxer shorts (90s) in Home Ec class.  I also learned how to sew scrunchies (again, 90s). I got so quick sewing them that I started selling them at a local gas station with the help of a dear friend.  I was hooked!  When I turned 16 I was given my very first sewing machine.  A Bicor vx1005 (made by Brother). That beast lasted me 22+ years until a part broke that was no longer replaceable.  I loved that thing.  It moved with me across the country one way and back the other way.  Many quilts, blankets, aprons, baby clothes, Mandy doll clothes, 18 inch doll clothes, cloth dolls, Halloween costumes, stuffed animals, and so on and so on.  I didn’t know where to go next!

Machines had really progressed since I was given mine and I didn’t really want anything too fancy.  I liked my simple but sturdy gal.  I got a phone call from my mom telling me she wanted to give me her old trusty machine.  The one in the big red hard case.  The Bernina Record.  What?!?! I didn’t know what to say.  I was honored.  She rarely used it and she knew I was really in need of a replacement.

A few years have passed since then and the Record and I have really bonded.  I still have a lot to learn about her, but she is strong and sturdy.  I love that I am sewing things for my girls on the same machine my mom did for us.  This page is all about our adventures together.  A lot of content will be about AG (American Girl) related projects, as my oldest daughter and I have become doll enthusiasts, but there will be lots of other fun sewing/crafting projects as well.

Follow along if you enjoy what you see!