trial stocking, take dueaux

SO,
As previously blogged about, I have a sewing machine. Today, the lovely, gracious, and adorably round Ashley "Ting-Ting" Johnson came by to help a sister out and figure out how to thread this thing up. (Bless you!) Once the machine was ready to go, I excitedly decided to attempt my first sewing machine-made stocking. My second stocking-making attempt resulted thusly:

Again, the materials used were fabrics I had lying around the house, specifically, a pillowcase. The red satin ribbon I bought from Walmart. This stocking took about an hour to complete, whereas the hand-stitched one took about four. However, this stocking turned out a lot rougher than the last. I have my suspicions as to why: firstly, the pillow sham fabric was much sturdier than the pillow case, allowing more structure and less give when being handled. Also, that sewing machine is strong-willed, and it will probably take me several more trail crafts before I can make those stitches as straight as possible.
Expect more pictures of my sewing adventures. For now, I leave you with another picture of my latest creation:

Notice the little photo-bomber in the background. :D