A woven fabric popular in the early 1800s known today as jacquard would precipitate the Industrial Revolution and by extension our modern computer industry. The idea that detailed information could be stored by punching holes on a paper card would lead to the beginning of mainframe computers.

It happens to all machine sewers - you're sewing a seam and all of a sudden your machine seems to stop advancing and jam just at the machine's throat plate. You find your needle and bobbin threads in a knotted bunch under the fabric seam at the presser foot location. Probable cause and solutions!

Dressing up in costume for Halloween remains an enduring childhood tradition. Something quick and easy to sew or no-sew is often a must for busy households. Costumes for children should be easy to make and comfortable to wear with safety concerns and face mask wearing utmost.

Fold, twist, pleat, ruffle, ruche, crinkle, applique, embroider, smock, gather, pin tuck and shirr are just some of the various methods for adding interesting depth, ornamentation and texture to fabric. Dimensional and textural detail on fabric applied by hand or machine adds a sense of uniqueness.

Whether you sew to express personal creativity for economic necessity or for charitable contributions, sewing has a long storied tradition. September is officially recognized as National Sewing Month. Why not sew something special?

Purchased wreath frames of foam, straw or wire and decorated with fabric trims are easy to create and display. Using bits of leftover fabric and ribbon, trimmed with hand stitched ornaments or folded fabric flowers are charming to make and provide a seasonal or celebratory home decoration.

Sewing clothing and items for daily use, from times prehistory to our present, adds to our very human historical and contemporary narrative of who we once were and are even now. Sewing could easily be considered among the oldest of skilled crafts and continues as an enduring human pursuit.

Finding ways to use fabric leftovers from sewing projects brings as much joy as finally finishing the larger project from which scraps are inevitably born. Think of using leftover fabrics when beginning a new sewing project as a nod to zero waste and thoughtful sustainability towards our planet.

Fat quarters are one-quarter yard fabric pieces of precisely sized cuts usually bundled together from a variety of coordinating fabrics. Not rectangular in size but more blockish, precut fat quarter fabric bundles are very useful for small sewing projects.

A long-standing fashion discussion over the appalling lack of pockets in women’s clothing vs men’s clothing continues unresolved. The struggle is real. Pockets or what passes for pockets in women’s clothing can be frustrating for their lack of real functioning properties. Why not add a pocket?