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How My Life Would Be Better With a Serger

*this is a special post written for a contest to win a new serger from the blog Sew Mama Sew!  See details here.
You want to hear about how my life would be better with a serger…well shoot, how wouldn’t it be better?  That’s the obvious answer.  I could make my purses and
bloomers
more “professional,” and 
 my play tents
 more stream-lined, which means I could stop faking it with the zig-zag edging and french seams.  Yeah, yeah, yeah….so what?  That’s why everyone wants a serger.  And while it would be nice to have a serger for those reasons, I happen to have a much better reason why I need a serger.
So please, take my hand and allow me to escort you on a little journey back in time to where it all began….  (we don’t really have to hold hands…it was just an idea.)  Years ago in college I became obsessed with sewing.  Except I didn’t have a sewing machine… so I did it all by hand.  It started as an experiment with my own clothes.  Being short on funds I never had enough money to buy new stuff, so instead I would cut up the clothes I had and sew them back together to make new clothes.  I know this whole DIY clothing re-design is old hat these days, but back in 1999 I have to say I thought it was quite ingenious…sometimes tacky and homely, but ingenious.  Not having a sewing machine didn’t really bother me, If the pioneers could do it, so could I, I thought.  I even went so far as to piece an entire quilt by hand.  And then sew the entire quilt…by hand.  Looking back I had no idea what I was doing, but I did it.  And pretty soon not a shirt or a skirt in my closet was safe from my frequent sewing experimentations.  One day a roommate suggested I use her sewing machine.  She said it would be a lot faster.  Oooooohh…a machine that sews for you? Shoot, that’s just plain fancy.  I admit that I was pretty hesitant since I already knew what I was doing I sorta hated the idea of having to learn to use a complicated machine to do what I already knew how to do by hand.  But one night my roomie showed me how to use said machine–which surprisingly took all of 2 1/2 minutes–and my simple little sewing life became transformed.  Sure I only knew how to do straight stitches at first, but that was enough.  It wasn’t long before I went and bought my own sewing machine.  I had no idea how to use it, but I knew I’d learn.  And learn I did…one step at a time.
And this is how I know I love sewing.  I’ve never had a class, I’ve never taken a lesson but little by little and through pure desire to learn more, I’ve slowly taught myself how to sew.  You could say I caught the sewing bug.  As a painter I’ve always loved art and creating, but sewing is really the only thing that has been completely self-taught and self-motivated.  I’m not sure where this drive came from, but I can’t tell you how grateful I am–especially now–that I decided to learn to sew.  Because right now, after a 10+ year learning curve it seems like a gift…another blessing.
As most of you know–except the sewing people reading this blog for the first time–I have a daughter who was born with abnormal limbs.  On the blog she is known as baby Lamp.   
Right now, as a 6 week old, onsies are her uniform.  But with arms that are drastically different lengths (her left  arm pretty much missing altogether) and legs that are also different lengths I look at all the beautiful clothes we’ve received as gifts–especially long sleeved shirts and long pants–and my husband and I have commented more than once It’s a good thing I can sew.  Out of all the blessings that we’ve been grateful for during this time, my sewing skills haven’t been at the top of the list (you know, not quite as important as our amazing children’s hospital or the great insurance coverage we’re fortunate enough to receive) but in time, when my little Lamp starts to grow, sleeve lengths and pant legs will surely need to be altered.  And new clothes will need to be made to specifically fit her very unique body type.  Like most little girls (and big girls) she’s going to want to look pretty and wear cool clothes.  That’s hard to do if there’s not a retailer or designer on the planet that makes clothes that will fit you “off the rack” so to speak.  And of course I could make more professional looking, classy and cute clothes if I had a new serger.  So while being grateful that I can sew wasn’t on the top of my gratitude list, I am (and I think she will be) really grateful I ever caught the sewing bug.
In short, my life would be better with a serger, but my daughter’s life would be transformed.

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Hey, I'm Amy!

I'm an author, artist, and disability advocate. I live with my handsome husband and three beautiful daughters in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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