Sewing Tute: How to Make Easy Burpees

Now, let me first start by saying that no...there is no bun in the oven please. I am not even married (yet!).

Before I purchased my sewing machine, of course I did the right thing and researched on the Internet the things I could make with it. And one finds very quickly that baby/children things are in abundance. They are not only easy to make but can be very forgiving which is handy for beginners like myself.

I am slowly being surrounded by procreating women and these *burpees not only make wonderful, personalised baby shower gifts but also serves as an excellent first project for the beginner sewer.

So here is my step-by-step of how to make a burpee. I just combed the Internet for tutes and combined it all to make it my version.

*burpees aka burp coths: just like other humans, babies love watching the world go by and enjoy being propped up against the shoulder. But like every other baby, they do drool and have the occasional spit up. These are just prettier versions of the terry towel or whatever mothers use nowadays to protect their shoulders!

1)Start out by cutting your cloth into 30cm x 45 cm pieces.

As you can see from my picture, I cut the flannel a little larger than the muslin. I find that easier for me for some reason. The excess I will trim off later.

I had planned to use muslin for the top and flannel for the bottom as I've read that real life mothers have claimed that flannel seems to adhere better to a clothed shoulder and doesn't tend to slip off.

Just bear in mind that you want something soft for the top fabric (think of those chubby cheeks!) but also absorbent enough.

*Do invest in a pair of specialised cloth cutting scissors. I was reluctant at first but Leng talked me out of it and this $20 dollar pair cuts through cloth like butter! Definitely a must buy for all beginner sewers!

2) Iron your fabric out. This step is essential for beginners. It just makes life simpler!

*My ironing board cover says, "IRONING BORED" :):)

3) Place your fabric correct sides together (as you will be turning these inside out later on).

4) Pin the 2 pieces of fabric together, making sure you leave a gap of 7-8 cm on one side. This is the gap where you will be putting your hand in to turn the burpee inside out.

Picture of my pinned gap. The pins are essential for the beginner as you will find out!

Just be sure to remove the pins as you sew! Some machines come with a presser foot that allows you to sew directly on top of pins but I don't think my little machine can.

5) Sew right round with a simple, straight stitch (I used the Number 2 on my machine), but remember to NOT sew the gap which we pinned out earlier.

I normally start at one end of the gap and go right round to the other end of the gap. Remember to BACKSTICH (You Tube this) on starting and ending. I think this is so your entire burpee doesn't end up unravelling at the seams!

6) Cut away any excess cloth.

7) Clip all 4 corners. Just don't clip them too close to the seam. This is before...

And this is afters....

And why do we clip them you ask? To get a lovely looking corner! :)

You can aid your corners further by using the blunt end of a chopstick or eraser on the end of a pencil to gently push the corners out. It really does make a difference!

9) The final step is to iron out your burpee and tuck the excess fabric in at the gap and then topstitch all round the burpee, remembering again to backstitch at the start and end (sorry but I didn't take any pictures here!)

Tadaa!! And you have a burpee! This is my first ever burpee and I made it under 20 minutes!

Here is my complete set! I had originally wanted to give them out as Xmas presents but babies grow up so quickly that there might not be any use for them when I gift them!

Review: Brother Sewing Machine XL 2220

I thought I'd do a quick review seeing there is more than one woman out there on the brink of wanting to experiment with a sewing machine. Please however take this review with a pinch of salt because I have only used the machine to sew ONE thing (a burpee!!! Tutorial on that coming up real soon!).

There are MILLIONS of sewing machines out there and I was told by a fashion designer friend that Singers and Janomes were the way to go. Also, she advised that I wouldn't be needing one with an overlocker function (whatever that was!).

But when I saw Spotlight having a sale on this particular Brother machine, I knew it was the one. I read up a couple of reviews and it was nothing but good. Please bear in mind that I was after a Beginner's Sewing Machine and I knew that I wasn't going to venture into the sewing-my-own-dresses realm. More like sewing-small-projects-as-a-hobby kinda thing.

I've decided to dot point out why I have fallen in love with my sewing machine. Hope this helps you ladies out there trying to search for The One of your own :)

1) It's lightweight and compact.

Some reviews say plasticky machines are not great but for I love it that I can just plop it wherever I like. Think iMac versus Macbook Pro....you get the picture :)

It's small enough to just sit in the corner of your table underneath it's cover and lightweight enough to move around the table without it being a hassle.

2) It's so easy to use.

This may apply to any machine you get but the manual it came with combined with a little bit of You Tubing prior and you are literally ready to go.

3) The price was right

This was the biggest factor.

I have to be honest here and say that I could as quickly fall OFF of the sewing bandwagon just as quickly as I fell ON it. In this current fiscal climate of ours, I am trying very hard not to waste not, want not (oddly contradicted by me purchasing this machine in the first place!).

But I was really eager to learn something new. I figured if I could sew up womens' perineums, I could just easily teach myself how to use a sewing machine!

So when I saw this machine on sale with a saving of $140 dollars, it was in the bag so to speak :)

I dragged Leng back to Spotlight for a second time and he not only carried around rolls of fabric for me but also scouted out these accessories: extra bobbins, pins and a dedicated cloth only pair of scissors which is essential!

I suggest buying fabric on special for your first few projects as invariably, the first few things you sew will be in lack for better words...kinda crappy. I found flannel on special for $1.30 a metre and Leng requested I make him a pair of pyjama pants so we also got elastic waist bands and the cream coloured velcro are for potential baby bibs :)

My machine comes with 3 buttonhole sewing thingys and 10 different kind of stitches which I thought was sufficient for me. Just make sure you can sew buttonholes on yours too.

I love the little focused light!

It comes with a very lightweight, non-cumbersome pedal which can be easily stored away when not in use.

That little triangular piece you see next to the on/off button is the backstitch button. The sewing world has an entire new language and after awhile you will figure out what words like "bobbins, foot press and backstitch" are!

You can see how much thread you have left on your bobbin through the clear plastic.

The machine has a little accessories drawer which contained all of these in that white pouch. I have NO idea what they are meant for besides the extra 3 bobbins.

I Bought A Sewing Machine!

I think the title says everything but I've been perusing a lot of DIY blogs lately due to a certain looming "project" and suddenly had a huge urge to learn how to sew!

Let me first say that I have absolutely NO IDEA how to use sewing machines. The only sewing I did was when I was 12 and back in primary school. And that was basically just sewing little x's on to this checked cloth to make patterns. Mine was a bright sunflower yellow and cream cloth and I was terrible at it! I believe I got a "C" for it!

But I figured half of China was sewing just fine so honestly, how hard could it be right? I've got the fabulous Internet as my teacher and my love for Spotlight rekindled...Sewing 101 here I come!

NB: Spotlight is currently having a fabulous sale on the sewing machine I got. It's the Brother XL 2220 which retailed at $299. You get $100 off plus you get another $40 off with the VIP voucher (you just have to sign up as a VIP Spotlight member which costs nothing) so all up it will cost you a whopping $160 which I thought was a pretty good deal for a beginner sewing machine.

My dear Grand Aunty was a seamstress and to this day, her vintage Singer sewing machine is still at my parent's house. I remember her doing things like having to oil it, moving the lever of the presser foot up and down, and of course that fabulous movement of her feet on the vintage pedals below. I wonder if her heavy, black sewing scissors are still at my parent's house (I remember her telling me it could only be used to cut cloth and nothing else) as I would love to have them with me, to serve as a fond memory of her whilst I attempt to sew...

These pictures were taken at 11pm at night. We got home and I unboxed my new toy immediately! The instructions in the accompanying manual is actually pretty clear although, you missed the bit where Leng threaded and filled my bobbin for me! I threw a little fit because I wanted to do it myself (his mother was a seamstress and apparently he picked a few tips when he was a little boy!).