Slippers!

I picked up the Spring 2013 Stitch magazine last Monday, largely for the slipper pattern. Since I was at Joanns (long story involving a castle project, gray paint, a closed art supply store, and an impending due date), I grabbed the non-skid fabric and some ¼” elastic. The rest could come from my stash.

I dug through my stash, and indeed even had a solid flannel, probably form a Halloween costume over 10 years ago. Time to use that!

 I made the large size, hoping they would be large enough. They do just fit, though they are also too wide. But they are super cute.

The pattern is well written and easy to follow—what a relief after the last few things I have sewn. I learned a bit about the limits of my sewing machine: 10 layers is too many; and working on something curved and small is not a strength. Getting that binding sewn on was a nightmare in the front.

Changes I will make for next time:
• Reduce the width! I have narrow feet but wear off-the-shelf slippers all the time. These are crazy wide, even with socks. And socks make them too short....
• Add a quarter inch too the length. The pattern is only sized up to a 10.
• Sew the binding on before attaching the sole. It will be a lot easier to maneuver this through the machine without the sole on.

Change I made this time: rather than overlap the binding in the back, I left several inches unsewed on each end while I sewed the binding to the front 2/3 of the foot opening. Then I unfolded the part left unsewed and fit it so it was the exact right length, sewed a seam, cut the extra off, ironed the seam and then finished sewing the binding on. This enabled me to match my binding and and back seams.

I'm not sure what to do with the thickness issue. I broke 4 or 5 pins just trying to pin the many layers together, and when sewing the 10 thicknesses through the heel, I broke the top thread repeatedly (after it shredded each time). I even ended up with my machine set to "vinyl", which did help, but did not solve the problem. I used Dual Duty thread for the construction. Interestingly, my sewing machine needle did not break.

What's this?

**Update** After a trip through the washing machine, the quilting has crinkled up and the slippers have shrunken slightly (flannel and cotton had been prewashed; non-skid sole, quilt batting, and interfacing had not been). The width is now perfect, but the slippers are too short. They fit, but I am walking on the heel seam (not comfortable!), and I don't imagine the quilting cotton will hold up for long being walked on. Next time, I will leave the width and add a half inch to the length.

Linked to: Sew Darn Crafty 
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