How to take perfect photos of your Machine Embroidery project.

One of our previous sewalongs was this beautiful Tassel Bag Design ...

Today I thought I would share with you some handy tips in presenting your finished bag in the best possible way in the group.

Picking the fabric you use for the Tassel Bag takes time

We often hear and we agree as well, that picking fabrics for a project can take nearly as long as doing the project itself. Picking the fabrics is possibly the most important part of the whole process, it doesn't matter how well something is made if the fabric choices aren't 'spot on'. Having said that fabric choices are a personal matter and what might look fantastic to you might raise other's eyebrows, and that is perfectly fine.

...which brings me to the main point of this blog

We all put so much time and effort into making these projects, all the hours sourcing the right fabric and then the actual making of it. We then and rightly so want to share all our efforts and show the world how wonderfully creative we are. So why not 'show off' your project in the best possible way you can.

There is a time and a place for everything

and the time for doing dishes is not the place to be showing the world your precious Tassel Bag.

at least it is all colour matching I guess : /

Follow the light

apart from the very questionable location in the photo above, there is a distinct lack of natural light for the photo.

open your curtains to get natural light into your room

Feeling flat and inflated?

Ok so we have moved out of the kitchen YAY! and found an area that is neutral ( maybe too neutral), BUT look at this sorry sight for a bag. It is all scrunched looking and it is showing it's bottom ( very unsavory). PLUS is that a finger obscuring the lens? oh dear

Iron, Iron and Iron like there is no tomorrow

I dislike ironing as much as the next person. In fact I have a whole room dedicated to ironing, the ironing goes in there and just stays in there. Kinda like an extra wardrobe :) BUT I do iron my bags... well maybe not after they are fully completed. I iron as I sew. Ironing is recommended in all our design instructions and our Tassel Bag is no exception. We gently remind you to IRON at different stages through the sewing process of the Tassel Bag BUT if you think you are being sneaky and skip those steps.. you will end up with a scrunchy looking bag. Not nice ! Before you IRON the flap for the Tassel Bag it is a good idea to push the 'tip' of the flap out as far as you can. We use a chopstick but any BLUNT object is fine.

Don't be a plain Jane

We have moved out of the Kitchen and opened the curtains for natural light. The table was just white and plain with a plain white wall behind it. Be brave and inventive, we used a floor mat to disguise the plain table, it is neutral and doesn't compete with the Tassel Bag. If you have a beautiful garden ( we don't at Swpea HQ) why not take your Tassel Bag out there and take a photo. Remember, the only part of your garden that is seen is the teeny tiny part of it that is in your photo. You could clear a small patch of weeds and have your Tassel Bag proudly displayed in maybe the only weed free part of your garden, and NO ONE will ever know. Same thing goes for if you take the photo indoors, your room may look like a bomb has gone off in there but NO ONE will ever know if you just tidy and 'stage' a small little area for your Tassel bag photo shoot.

Now to address the bottom showing...

You want the bag to sit straight and firmly on your surface. The photo above showed the bag looking very messy with it's bottom showing. You can easily fix this by grabbing what ever you have at hand to 'fill' out the bag. Something like a large folded piece of fabric. Just make sure it is quite heavy and fold it to the size of the base of the bag. You can maneuver the folded fabric into the inside corners of the base of the bag to make it stand up proudly.

fold any large piece of fabric to the size of the base

push folded fabric deep into the bag, filling out the inside corners

Pretty as a picture

Plain Jane

Steady as she goes

Finally an important tip.... It is much easier to take a photo whether it be with a camera or a phone if you steady it by resting on something stable. Here I am using just a box that was laying around. It will probably involve some bending to get to the level of your photographic subject but it will be worth it.