A New Piece of Equipment

I got a new toy. 

Ahem.

I got a new piece of equipment.

I had been operating in a sort of handicapped manner. I was using an older sewing machine that was purchased years and years ago. It was inexpensive and all that I could afford at the time. It has served its purpose and is limping along. The back up option no longer works and sometimes it is a hit or miss if it will zig-zag consistently. I decided that I really would like to upgrade.

I was sort of inspired by Leslie Saeta from My One Hundred Year Old Home. She recently shared about her Craft Room Upgrade and her new-to-her embroidery machine. Now, I have wanted an embroidery machine for years, but like Leslie mentions in her post, they can be a bit pricey and shopping for what I might want was rather confusing. 

I consulted my daughter and she gave me some tips because she has her own small business where she offers some machine embroidered goods. Her advice has been quite helpful to me because she knows me so well and knows a bit about the things I like and would like to stitch up. So, I surfed online and did my research. Then, I trekked off to visit the shop where my daughter gets her sewing machines serviced, Angus Sewing Center.

The gal there was so helpful at showing how to use different machines and explaining what options are available and giving tips for what to use to have the most success. So, I left with a new machine - a new piece of equipment to use in my endeavors. 

(Total aside: The Mister has a full machinery shed with all sorts of hay equipment that was an absolute need for his farming endeavor. So, I am 'justifying' myself at needing an upgrade in equipment sort of like he does when he gets a new piece of farm equipment.)

I brought home a Brother SE2000 Combo Sewing and Embroidery Machine and some accessories. My old sewing machine had been set up back in a dark little corner of my office. I knew that I wanted my space to be more efficient and inviting for my sewing enjoyment. So, as I mentioned in a post earlier this month, I worked on the office to make it better serve its purpose and accommodate for my new upgrade.

My upgrade can be seen there to the left of the desk. I can still enjoy the views outside the window and I have plenty of space to work. I can set needed items on the corner of the desk for easy access. For now that has been the perch for the operator's manual and extra spools of thread while I'm working on a project. 

I'm using the gifted typing table that has my name on it and it works just perfectly. It is just the right size and is sturdy but doesn't have space for me to set a bunch of junk on it when I'm not stitching. The boxes below it are currently holding the embroidery attachment and some of the accessories that came with it. This works fine until I have a better organizational idea of how often I will use them and where I should store those items when not in use. 

There has been a learning curve to using my upgraded equipment. I've already completed a couple of projects and have learned so much in the process. I love the precision that it provides when stitching. I've done some repair work to sew up a few rips. I love the simplicity of the way it fits together when changing out the embroidery deck and the sewing deck. I already love the options it provides for embroidery projects. My first embroidery project was adding a design to some napkins. I learned about the sizes available by completing a couple of practice samples and learned lots more things about the options the machine offers that I will share later. I tried out a couple of fonts for embroidering names and monograms and sizing that it offers for that. Then, completed a simple project for one of the grands to apply what I had learned.

A headband made from an old T-shirt and personalized.

I must say that I am so very grateful to be able to have the time and the opportunity to indulge in such a fine piece of equipment. It is rewarding to create something from scratch and even when a project doesn't turn out as perfectly as I imagine, I am grateful to be able to give it a try!

Just 3 Things | #24

Spring has sprung and I guess I am springing a bit as well. I've stuffed eggs with candies and treasures for the Easter Egg Hunt, and mapped out our Easter feast, and ordered groceries and, have recipes tagged with sticky notes. I plan to mark my list tonight as I plan what I will stir up and when I will stir it. Then, I'll dive into preparation tomorrow by making some cookies and go from there. We've had a busy week here. The Mister has spent quite a bit of time at his Cemetery Managerial duties. He is anticipating that people will visit the burial sites of their loved ones so having everything look nice there is paramount for him. He's also cut our grass ad manicured things around our house as well in prep for the children and grandchildren coming to our annual family egg hunt and feast. 

- What I've Been Reading -

One of the projects I worked on this past week had not satisfied me completely. I don't like to think of myself as a perfectionist but for some things, I'm pretty picky about how I want my work to turn out. This stool is one of those things that has me dissatisfied.

Oh, I'm pleased with how nicely the fabric covered it and how it looks with the chair and most all the things about it. However, there is one little part that irks me a bit.

Where the leg screws into the solid wooden bottom, the fabric is sort of pushed out and down the leg. So, the raw edge of the fabric underneath the stool looks a bit shaggy around the legs. 

It is readily visible when you zoom in and look where I've added the red circular shape. I know that most people will never notice this. I do, though. I look at this every day. So, I'm pondering a solution. 

Should I put a skirt on the stool? That would hide the shaggy edges next to the legs and would camouflage that the legs/feet on the stool are simple and the ball and claw feet on the chair are more ornate as well. 

Should I add a trim all around the bottom of the stool where it would not be seen? Should I just add trim at the top where the legs are screwed into the bottom of the stool? I'm pondering...and I am looking through decorator books to see what others have done to trim out footstools. So, this week I've been reading and searching through three of the James Farmer books that I keep on our den ottoman. 

 

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I've enjoyed reading different parts of each book and examining each photo. They provide such inspiration for creating a beautiful home but they also inspire me to want to share my home more with others. Plus, I just see such practical and truly southern things in each of them and it makes me appreciate how blessed we are to have the beautiful home where we live. Shouldn't most of the things we read make us feel grateful and bring peace?

- What I've Been Loving -

I've been loving the fact that my time is my own this week. Retirement is worth all the days of rising early and rushing off to work. I strongly encourage everybody to retire as soon as you possibly can! 

On Monday, I got a call at about 11:45 in the morning. The Mister's cousin had sent me a message a few minutes before and I didn't respond, so she gave me a call. A friend's father had passed and she wondered if we knew about it. We did not. She apologized for not contacting us sooner but let me know that the visitation with family was from eleven till one and the funeral was scheduled for one o'clock. The good news was that the services were to be held at a church about two miles from our house. So, I jumped into some more presentable clothes, combed my hair, added a bit of mascara and dashed out the door. I arrived in time to stand in a line that was snaking out the door of the church and down the sidewalk. Yet, I still had the opportunity to acknowledge our respects to our friends. I also had the opportunity to see some folks that I had not seen in years and years and give them a brief hug. If I was still obligated to a school or school system, I would have missed out on that opportunity and had regrets. 

I also scheduled a last-minute doctor appointment this week and glided in to get a diagnosis and treatment the next day just before noon. Again, since I had no rigid schedule, I could rearrange my days suddenly and without inconvenience to myself or anybody else. 

I have been thinking of purchasing a new sewing machine. So, one day this week, I just jumped in the truck and went to a sewing machine shop that is an hour drive from our house. Once again, operating with abandon and no obligation to anybody allowed me to do something I wanted to do and spend as much time as I wanted looking, asking questions, and learning about different sewing machines.

Maybe for the first time in my life I am feeling like my time is my own and I can do what I would like at any moment of it - or not do anything at all - and I can tell you that I am truly loving that!

- What I've Been Working On -

Despite the fact that I have been jaunting off willy-nilly this week, I have spent quite a bit of time working in my office. I've been pulling furniture away from the wall for cleaning. I have been clearing out and throwing things we don't need or things that are outdated away. I have been organizing so many things in there. Each little corner and every little space seems to better serve its purpose. 

I've been making a list of projects that I need to take on and adding notes about how I will best accomplish those tasks. I've also really enjoyed all the spring-like progress that I can see out those double windows of the office. I don't really have many photos to share because I have been focused on progress and getting things done. 

I relocated the file cabinet and the printer to make it more within reach when I am working at my computer. I never thought I would print much at all when I embraced digital technology and my job as an instructional technology coach and then digital designer required almost no printing. However, the rest of the world still seems to like a hard copy. So, in my volunteer post as the Cemetery Association Secretary, I am tasked with printing certificates of ownership and letters. I scan, save, and print old cemetery documents and send them out to folks. Therefore, I use the printer/scanner every now and again and having it right within reach of my desk is nice. 

Hopefully, I will have some more photos to share soon but right now there is still quite a bit of organizing going on and that is sort of the messy in-between. I am still working on getting things streamlined as well as making the room look presentable. So, sometime soon I may have a bit of a reveal.

I hope today is truly a good Friday for you and all your loved ones and I hope you enjoy the weekend and feel the renewal that only this time of year can provide. Thanks for stopping by and come to visit again soon!

Designating a Room as the Office

 One of the things Mike and I knew immediately that we wanted to do when reworking the basement and parceling out his mother's belongings as she had wished is that we knew I need a designated space as an office and work room. 

Since I was sent home to work during Covid, I had just perched on a little desk space that my parents had made when I was a girl and it worked out fine. Sometimes my need to be online in a live virtual meeting was an inconvenience for Mike. Sometimes there were distractions when I needed to be working. All too frequently, I worked long, late hours because it was just too easy to work with my computer and desk right there.

So, now we have the space for me to designate a room as the office. Just after Christmas, I noticed an inexpensive desk and chair offered for sale on Facebook. It was just the right size - large enough to hold my laptop and extra monitor and microphone and notes but not a big executive desk. So, I jumped on that and brought the desk home. Mike helped me get it out of my truck and into the room. 

I shoved the wicker sofa, chair, table, and accessories to the other end of the room. With the beginning of the new year and a new school semester I was beginning work in my new office!

I had already decided that we were going to set this office up on a shoestring budget. I didn't want to spend a potload of money to make it beautiful and functional when we already have so much stuff. However, I also wanted it to be beautiful and inspire me to work.

With a little time, I began to search for inspiration to make this really become a space where I want to work and am inspired to do good things. So, I started thumbing through my 'look books' where designers who are featured in places like Southern Living show how they have decorated homes for clients and themselves. I began to scroll through Pinterest and Instagram and save ideas that I saw which inspired me. 

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My first thought was that I would put my desk in the space where the window would be off to my side. So, this office really inspired me. I had thoughts of painting the desk and adding panels of drapery at the window and really making it a feminine space.

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I began to notice that another characteristic seemed consistent - there was shelving and storage in each of them. Knowing that I wanted to set this up on a shoestring budget and that I might not always want to have built-in shelving and storage in the room, I began to try to think of how to provide that shelving and storage in another way.

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I also noticed that several of the pictures I was saving as inspiration had cozy seating. Knowing that the Mister might stop in to visit and chat, I knew I would need an extra spot to perch. I thought it would also be a good thing to have comfy seating for when I'm not doing computer work. So, a comfy chair or seating area needed to be included.

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Sometimes saving a picture sparks more ideas and would prompt me to consider things we already have that could be put into service. For example, in the image below there is a green checked wingback chair. There was already a green checked wingback chair sitting in the room that had been my mother-in-law's. Seeing the drop leaf table also made me realize that there was one in the basement den and that might be a great way to have expandable surface space. It could be handy when I want to craft and need more surface area for spreading fabric out or other crafting supplies. 

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Seeing a couple of photos that had the desk centered up in front of the window helped me to realize that I could be taking full advantage of the light there. The room is in our basement and is painted what I call 'prison grey.' The paint color was chosen by my mother-in-law and is still in good shape but grey is just not a color I like. So, I hated to go to the expense of repainting when the color is rather neutral. I decided that I would just use the assets we have and make the most of it.

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I began to scroll through online estate sale postings and Facebook Marketplace. One of the first china cupboards I saw, I fell in love with. I thought the color of the wood was nice, warm, and light and might not even need painting and liked the number of drawers for holding things. The catch was that the seller wanted more money than I wanted to spend.

A friend started surfing and looking for similar items with smaller price tags. Yet, when I would inquire, it seemed that each one had a catch - something might be broken or the drive was more than an hour away or the seller didn't respond. So, after a couple of days, I bit the bullet and bought the one that tugged at my heartstrings. When I got it home, the Mister was all grumbly but I could tell he mostly was grumbling about having to move it more than anything else. He had lined up my bonus son to come over and help provide some brawn to get it unloaded and placed in the space. So, the three of us manhandled her into my new office!

Once in place, the bonus son commented, "That's a nice piece of furniture." So, the Mister rolled his eyes and I puffed my chest out and all was well with the world. Immediately, I moved the green checked wingback chair that had been sitting in the corner over on the opposite side of the room and things started taking shape.

Next, I dragged a drop-leaf table from the basement den down the hallway and set it across the room from the new cabinet. The color of the wood was almost identical. Plus, it would provide that expandable surface area when needed - and it is a nice, beautiful piece of furniture as well.

Things that are always being considered as I work on this space to make it a reflection of who I am and what the intended focus of this room is include:

• It is a basement room and there is very little lighting - only one can light in the center of the room.
• It will be used for my work as an instructional designer until I retire from the education business.
• It is where I will be working on writing projects and will continue in that capacity even after I retire.
• It is where I will be doing stitching and sewing in the space. So, there will be lots of stray threads and scraps of fabric.
• When I sew, I will also be using the ironing board and iron. So, there will need to be open space for that vital equipment.
• I will need to store fabrics, trims, thread, office supplies, crafting supplies, and such in there.
• I want the space to be a work horse but also keep to my shoestring budget.

So, the designated office space is taking shape. Updates will be shared in a later post. It already looks quite different from the photos here but it still has a journey to go before I will call it meeting up to my inspiration.