Set the pile of partially finished cloth grocery bags aside. Now it’s time for making bag straps. If you are going to make cloth straps rather than use purchased webbing, now is the time to do it. Dig through your stash and find those 45-inch-wide pieces of moderate-weight junk fabric in a reasonably coordinating color. […]
There’s no lack of information and advice when it comes to how we should live. The Greek philosophers asked that question and Romans such as Marcus Aurelius left behind works that considered how best we should behave. Today, we are beset by how-to books that promise us the path for maximum production, to hone our […]
In this step, you will prepare the fold-down top, iron the bag, sew down the fold-down top, and then trim it out. At the ironing board, fold down the top edge 2 inches, and press, aligning the stitch line with the stitch line in the bag beneath. The triangular cutouts will allow the foldover to […]
Agatha Christie caught a break early in her career when her second novel “The Secret Adversary” was syndicated in American newspapers. Yes, American newspapers published fiction – real fictional stories in addition to the usual collection of fake, pseudo-fake, trendy, and actual facts. American newspapers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American newspapers […]
While English is a dominant language, getting your novel translated into another language can open new markets for your business. This is especially true if your book has something that appeals to that country’s readers. It may be that the story is set in that country, or an historic event plays a big role in […]
This is the step whereby the flange is turned into a skeleton, supporting the tailored cloth grocery bag. This step reinforces the six edges and four corners of the bags: front panel side, bottom, and side and back panel side, bottom, and side. Measure Twice, Cut Once Measure down 2 inches from the top edge […]
Getting book reviews soon after the publication is useful. Amazon’s algorithms seem to take the number of reviews into account to determine which works to promote (although sales probably have a greater impact). The number of reviews is also a benchmark by BookBub in deciding which sales to publicize. As for readers, the jury is […]
At this point, you should have several grocery bags ready for the second pass. In this step, you will iron a crisp knife-edge on each of the six seams. Then you will sew a half-inch seam all the way around, front and back, producing a flange that will enclose all the raw edges. The flange […]
It’s getting on late Sunday and I’m not sure if I’ll have enough time to get another installment of the Career Indie Author written. We spent most of last week in Rochester, N.Y., enrolling our son in the university. It’s been the culmination of more than a year of planning, researching, executing, and sheer bloody […]
Your cloth has been purchased. You’ve washed it (if needed), unpicked any seams (if it is repurposed fabric), and you have ironed it. You measured the fabric, then worked out the most economical layout of panels and gussets on paper. You cut the fabric into panels and gussets. Now it is time to start sewing […]