I got into a good embroidery groove last week during an online conference, I was able to get a bunch of the light green leaves started and work on the outline. And then, I broke the needle. I had a backup, but it was difficult to rethread the needle while it was attached to the work. I haven’t broken a hand needle in ages. It was surprising when I heard the snap.

Thank you The Princess Bride and the Dread Pirate Roberts for that memorable and oh so applicable quote. Thanks to this pandemic, I decided to try my hand at sewing masks. I documented my process on Twitter, but feel free to enjoy this long form version as well. My soldering station has been switched to sewing. pic.twitter.com/hODEzsEGux — Jenn (@geekgalgroks) April 13, 2020 This was the first mask I have tried and I followed this Craft Passion pattern.

I remember my grandmother using her sewing machine that came in the wooden cabinet. It had a thigh press and cam buttons. The thing was a beast and what I learned to sew on. I later got her sewing machine and used it until the Bakelite reverse button broke in half. I then continued to use it while using a thimble as the button until the post broke. It could sew through anything, silk, jeans, canvas, and sailcloth.