Sew Inspired, LLC - Sleepless Crafter

When I was about six years old, my aunt gave me and my sister her entire Barbie collection (which was a lot). Over the years, they have gotten worn and needed some touch-ups. I researched how to touch up the paint, what kind of paint to use, etc. Then I went to work. I had a lot of fun giving my vintage Barbies makeovers and making them look like new. My daughters brought me their Barbies, too, to touch up or change the color of the lipstick.

Joann’s Fabrics had their 99-cent sale on Simplicity Patterns, so I bought a bunch of Barbie clothes patterns. My daughters saw all of them and squealed as they picked out which ones they wanted me to make. My oldest daughter was so persistent, she picked out the fabric and said, “Come on, Mommy, let’s make my Barbie dress.” So I gave in.

I’ve learned a lot about my Singer XL400 Embroidery Sewing Machine since I wrote my review. Reverse Stitch Button One thing that I didn’t know about the XL400, that I had to edit in my review was the ability to “back-stitch” when the thread runs out or breaks. It was frustrating that the thread ran out and there was no way—or so I thought—to go back and re-stitch where there were no stitches. There’s a little magic button on the machine, called the “ Reverse Stitch Button ” just above the Start/Stop button.