Sewing Tips - One of my Fav Products

I love, love, love this stuff!!! HeatnBond ULTRAHOLD (no-sew) iron-on adhesive.

The ULTRAHOLD is the strongest. Heat n Bond also has LITE, which you can sew through, the ULTRAHOLD is not sew-friendly, that's why I use just the narrow strip for closing. The 1/4" width and the 3/8th" width are what I use most. The 1/4" width is becoming harder to find, not sure why. Here's my favorite use for it~

When you are making a quilted project that you are going to turn and the project has batting inside, I use this to close my opening.

I'll use making a simple pot holder as my example~

Step 1- Line up your seams together as straight as possible, pin them shut. Flat pins are great for this!

Step 2 - Iron the two seams with steam setting, if possible.

Step 3 - Cut two lengths of heat n bond the same length as your opening. I use two pieces for extra security, if your item isn't going to be washed much, one is OK.

Step 4 - Iron the pieces inside your opening seam, (using the iron setting guidelines on the package), one on each side.

Step 5 - Give it a few secs to dry and peel off the white tape exposing the glue. This is your last chance to adjust the seams if necessary. Click on the pic to enlarge if you can't see the glue.

Step 6 - Iron the seams together and you're done!! The seams are tight and the ULTRAHOLD is strong enough to keep glued through washings!! Look how neat that closing is! It's awesome stuff!!

Can you think of a use for this awesome product? Do you already use it? I welcome your comments!

Fabric ~To Wash or Not to Wash ~ My 2 Cents

And the answer is...up to YOU. Washing or not washing fabric before using it is a personal preference. Some like to cut the fabric while it still has a bit of stiffness... I personally like to wash it for a softer feel and to get all the chemicals off, especially if I am sewing for a baby. I like to wash and dry it and get the shrinkage down, as fabrics do not shrink equally. I don't wash my batting, so I know that in the end, the quilt or project will still shrink a bit when washed. That's my usual MO, but I DO occasionally break from this way of thinking. If it's a Christmas ornament or something that will only be out seasonal, and thus won't be washed much, I may bend my wash rule.

I DO, however have a smart tip of advice for you...when you have a very dark fabric, especially reds or any really deep color, I suggest you at least do a colorfast test. Trust me, it doesn't matter where you bought it or how much you paid for it. Every now and then a color will run. Case in point. I was making a queen size quilt a few years ago and following this rule. I had picked a white background on my blocks and was testing all fabrics that were really dark before I washed them. I had a beautiful deep rose fabric similar to the one below and the minute it hit my sink basin it exploded in color. It came from a very reputable quilt shop and a very reputable fabric manufacturer. I rinsed it several times and got it to run clear and it looks very pretty in my quilt. Can you imagine if I had not given it the bleed test? Do you KNOW how much work goes into a queen size quilt? I shudder at the thought.

It only takes a few minutes to get a basin half filled with some lukewarm water to do this test. Example below. As you can see this one passed!

Another tip! I use these Shout Color Catcher Sheets when I wash a load of new fabrics. Just throw one in the wash and it helps to pick up some of the "loose dyes" you may have from your fabrics.

~Sewing Hints~

About your feed dogs~

I would like to share with everyone that sews and pieces their fabric a mistake that I have been making while sewing. I hope that it prevents you from making the same error and avoids sewing machine repairs.

When I sew quilts and table mats and other projects I very often chain piece, which saves both time and thread. Chain piecing is feeding one sewing unit after another through your machine without breaking the thread. View this great video from Marguerita McManus from Crazy Shortcut Quilts on chain piecing. Marguerita has many helpful videos, you should check them ALL out, (like I did).



I had to have my feed dogs AND my throat plate replaced on my sewing machine due to my error in chain piecing. As you can see from the video, when you chain piece you should have one unit butt up against the next while sewing your units. Your units should be only about ¼ inch from the foot as you come off the last piece. I was often chain piecing with space between my pieces, sometimes as much as an inch. (See the picture below on how NOT to do it.) You can see in the picture that my needle isn't even in that next piece of fabric yet. That means that the foot of my sewing machine was traveling over top of my feed dogs metal to metal, wearing down the feed dogs over time.

Another hint~ (This IS something that I do.) ALWAYS use your quilting foot when you machine quilt. And always use your quilting foot when you add your quilt binding to your quilt. Basically, use this foot whenever you are sewing more than 2 layers of fabric or batting. This is what your quilt foot is made for, to pull layers of fabric through your machine with ease. It puts less strain on your feed dogs.

One more hint~~ Whenever you quilt (including free motion quilting) you should ease your sewing pressure. Most machines have an adjustable pressure gauge. Mine is a dial at the top of my (Janome) machine. The normal setting is 3, but NOW when I quilt, I release the pressure to a 2. (See the picture below of my pressure gauge.) Most commonly, when you quilt you are sewing through at least 2 pieces of fabric and a batting. You don’t need as much pressure for this thickness, so it is wise to lighten your pressure gauge. It takes the pressure off, guess what? Yes you got it, your feed dogs.



The reason my throat plate needed replacing is because the feed dog problem was causing my needle to hit the throat plate.

I want to thank Marsha at AGR Sewing Machine Sales and Service (Central Square, NY) for helping me realize the mistakes I have been making while sewing. They were subtle, but over time caught up with me. So thank you, Marsha for setting me straight on chain piecing and pressure gauge and all the other great tips you have given me over the years with my Janome machines.