Upgrading

Somehow, this weekend I have managed to find some sewing time so I have been working on the Spiderman Totes for my twins.  I ran out of interfacing halfway through cutting it for the second tote, so instead of doing them in tandem like I originally planned, I just kept going on the one that I had all interfaced and now have it almost done.  It will make the second one come together like a breeze, I'm sure! 

They are turning out fabulously cute, if I dare say so myself.  They are also way bigger than I had originally intended, despite trimming two inches off during the cutting.  But with all the traveling we will be doing this summer, that may not be a bad thing.  More room for weird boy-stuff storage.

When I finally got to a store to get the interfacing, I decided to upgrade my rotary cutter to an ergonomic version. 

I developed carpal tunnel when I was pregnant with my last son, and if I do too much sewing over an extended period of time, it comes back in the form of my hands falling asleep at night while I am sleeping.  Nothing like waking up from a sound sleep with hands full of pins and needles!  I'm hoping this new cutter will help some.

However, I am one who doesn't like to replace something if it is still working fine, and my old rotary cutter was still in perfect shape.  And I have had it for at least 10 years.  It was a Christmas gift from my sister many Christmases ago.

But I was able to justify a new one like this:  My dear husband bought me a rockin' new Bernina Artista 730 for Christmas.  I had been using my mom's old mechanical Bernina 1001.  Now that I have my new machine, I am giving my mom's back to her.  My mom has no sewing equipment whatsoever.  So I will gift her the rotary cutter (as well as a darning foot and a walking foot that I had purchased) when I give back her machine.

It's the least I could do for her letting me "borrow" her machine for the past eight years, don'tcha think?

I also picked up an adjustable gel thimble for binding.  I always end up pushing the needle through with a thick part with the quilt to protect my finger, and get poked more often than I want.  So That is an upgrade too, I suppose.  From nothing to something.  

Here is to prick-free fingers.  I hope.