Sewing Tip – Page 9

July 3, 2020

Serger Piping

Pipe it Right

Perhaps you’ve never looked beyond the standard foot on your serger to see the other possibilities of this mighty little overlocker. Did you know you can actually make and install foolproof piping?

Check your instruction manual or with your dealer to see about getting a piping or cording foot for your model of machine. It’s either a metal or plastic foot with a groove on the underside, which is the secret to the process. Depending on your serger brand, you may be able to get different sizes of the grooved feet, like 3mm and 5mm (referring to the diameter of the cord that will go into the piping).

The piping foot can also insert ready-made piping if you prefer not to make your own.

Check your serger’s instruction manual for specific setting for your machine. The following are general instructions.

Making Piping

Determine the length of cording needed for your project and add 6”. Cut the fabric strips the same length.
Cut a strip of fabric about 2” wide and on the bias grain if your piping will be going around a curve or a corner. Plaids and stripes look great cut on the bias as well. If the piping is simply being applied to a straight edge, cut the strip on the crosswise grain. Piece the strips together with a diagonal seam to achieve the final length needed and press the joining seams open.
Center the cord length in the center of the strip wrong side and fold over the upper fabric so the raw edges meet. Leave about a 3” tail of cord extending from the initial end of the mix, so you can hang onto it behind the foot.
Set the serger for either a 3-thread or 4-thread stitch, with a fairly open length.
Slide the cord end under the foot and nestle it into the groove, then pull the end behind the foot until you get to the wrapped fabric portion. Put the foot down and stitch! The groove guides the cord with precision, the blades trim off the fabric edges and give you an even seam allowance. Voila!

Inserting piping

Set the serger stitch length to a standard length (about 2.5mm).
Place the piping between the two layers of project fabric, either matching the seam allowance edges, or with the cord along the seam allowance. Slide the layers under the foot and again place the piping tail extending behind the foot. Start stitching about 1” from the covered piping end if you need to finish the end upon completion. If the piping end goes into a seam, then start at the end.
Keeping the layer edges together and the piping in the foot groove, sew the seam, encasing the piping between the layers.
If your project has a corner, stop serging about 2” before the corner and clip into the piping seam allowance (only) at the exact corner location. Shape the piping around the corner, but continue to serge straight off the end of the seam area. Remove the item from the serger, shape the piping around the corner, and reinsert the project into the serger at a right angle to the previously serged seam. Start serging again on the next side, and repeat at each corner.
If your piping project is continuous, like a rectangular pillow, stop serging about 2” before the place you began and finish the joining using your conventional machine.

PHOTO CREDITS: All photos courtesy of Bernina, used with permission

~Linda Griepentrog
Linda is the owner of G Wiz Creative Services and she does writing, editing and designing for companies in the sewing, crafting and quilting industries. In addition, she escorts fabric shopping tours to Hong Kong. She lives at the Oregon Coast with her husband Keith, and two dogs, Yohnuh and Abby. Contact her at gwizdesigns@aol.com.

May 29, 2020

Stretching Yourself: Using Elastic Thread

We’re not talking about aerobics, but using elastic thread! Building stretch into a garment is easy with this thin, stretchy strand and a little ingenuity. Sections of your project, like yokes, sleeves, cuffs, waistlines and bodices are all likely candidates for shirring.

Shirring refers to sewing multiple parallel rows of stitching using elastic thread in the bobbin.

Shirring on distressed denim — Shirring using elastic thread on distressed denim

Shirring Tips

Shirring works best with lightweight fabrics, like voile, linen, etc., but you can also do it on lightweight denims and silks.

Look for elastic thread at the notions counter of your favorite store. It’s available in black and white. Some knitting stores may offer elastic thread in other colors. If you have elastic thread in your stash, double check it before use, as elastic can deteriorate over time.

Wind the bobbin by hand, not using the machine’s standard mechanism. Don’t stretch the thread while winding, but also don’t let it be too loose or you won’t get good shirring results. Fill the bobbin as far as possible, but be sure the thread doesn’t extend beyond the bobbin edge. If you’re doing a large project, wind multiple bobbins at once.

Insert the bobbin into the bobbin case and thread it like normal. Place regular thread in the top of the machine. Set the stitch length from 3 to 5mm for test stitching.

Test-stitch on the right side of the fabric and adjust the stitch length and tension as needed to get a look you like.

Draw lines on the right side of your project so that the stitched rows begin and end inside the seam allowance of the garment. You can draw multiple lines, or use a quilting guide for spacing, or the width of the presser foot.

Pull out about 2” of elastic and top thread to begin the stitched row. Sew along the first marked line, sewing slower than you normally do. At the end of the row, pull out 2” of elastic thread and top thread as well. Do not use the automatic thread cutter with elastic thread and do not backstitch. Tie off the threads on both ends of the stitching line. Repeat for all the marked lines, keeping the fabric flat as you stitch subsequent rows.

If you run out of bobbin thread while sewing, simply tie off the thread ends and start sewing with a new bobbin where you left off. Anchor the new threads in the same manner by tying off securely.

When all rows are stitched, steam the elasticized area to create the final shirring effect. Set the iron for steam and simply hover it over the stitched area right side to set the stitching and elastic in place. The steam causes the elastic thread to shrink up the shirring a bit.

Sew the seam crossing the stitched rows and stitch again 1/8” from the first line to securely anchor the ends.

Elastic thread can be machine washed and dried at temperatures under 200°. Do not put the iron directly on the elastic, as it can be damaged by higher heat.

April 17, 2020

Shelter in Place, Save Money and Sew!

You are living your best quarantine life, sewing up a storm and suddenly realize you are out of… or can’t find… or never had… something you need to finish your project. No matter what it is, you have no interest in going out into COVID world to pick up a spool of thread, a rotary cutter blade or a new pair of thread snips to replace the ones you must have dropped into the trash because they are nowhere to be found.

Now what?

Did you realize just how many of these things you can order online with a member discount?

We combed through the entire list of Special Offers just for members on ASG.org and created this table with the companies who carry some frequently needed sewing notions for you to have at your fingertips. Be sure you visit the members only Special Offers page to get the discount code to use when you place your order. Now it’s your turn! Go replenish your supply from the safety of your own home and enjoy great discounts while you do.

Click to open full size pdf file — Click the image to open full size pdf file

~Sheryl Belson

April 3, 2020

Can Silks be Washed?

One of my college classmates was a very recent immigrant from Korea and she once asked me to help her wash her “dance kimono.” Naturally I was eager as it is “common” knowledge that silks should never be washed. What I learned continues to influence my sewing today.

Her kimono was pieced of over 50 strips (up to 3″ in width) of silks, plus bindings (such as strips edging the collar) in different colors. Because the dyes were not colorfast, she had to take the entire kimono apart and wash every color separately, then press and sew back together with long stitches.

Lesson 1

Wash all fabrics separately until you determine whether the dyes are colorfast (like sweatshirts!).

Lesson 2

Don’t complain if a Western-style garment needs to be pressed after washing ─ doing laundry really could be worse.

The collar area was doubled fabric; it did not have a separate interfacing material and the excess was not secured so kimono collar would wrinkle and bunch up if washed.

Lesson 3

Baste or quilt any intact original kimono collar to wash. If making western style garments, make sure interfacings are secured. If deconstructing kimono to re-purpose fabrics, the collar probably has double the visible fabric.

Obi (belt) is generally the most elaborate part of the costume. It is also very stiff, the purpose is partly like a corset. For a light-weight silk, the stiffness is provided by covering a very dense canvas-like fabric, which is always blocked to retain the original size – unless you don’t plan to reassemble the obi.

Lesson 4

Unseen construction materials affect whether silk (or any) garments can be washed, so pre-shrink.

Some silks reveal textures that may not be apparent until wet. These fabrics may have quite subtle matte/shiny differences due to threads that are spun differently and thus shrink at different rates. All of these silks are intended to be blocked when washed.

Lesson 5

If you like texture, enjoy, even if you now have less fabric! Better to adjust plans than to finish and then shrink.

The following are things I’ve learned from deconstructing and re-purposing obi and kimono.

Both obi and kimono fabrics are woven in widths of 10-14 inches, and the garments utilize that to the fullest. The rounded corners of sleeves are left square and not trimmed, with the excess fabrics bunched up in the curved area.

If smaller sizes of kimono are made, seams are made extra wide but not cut off. If extra width is needed an entire extra panel of fabric may be sewn into the side and is not cut or could be half the width, with very wide seam allowances. Extra length will probably be turned up on the inside to replace some of the lining fabric. All of this is to take advantage of taking apart garments to wash, as when re-assembled fabrics can be turned to even out wear or to change the fit/size. No worries if you gain or lose a little weight; alter each time you wash!

Most of the rolls of fabric were made specifically for either obi or kimono, with pre-planned cutting marks. Bolts of fabric are a new concept. This means that the fancy portions of obi could be in the only area(s) that show, while plain fabric is woven for the rest. Do not assume the entire length is what is seen on the outside.

Some fabrics such as brocades and jacquards may fall apart or unravel if cut. This is not a problem for kimono or obi as the fabrics are nearly always left with selvages intact, with the exception of obviously pieced dance and fancy garments.

INSPIRED? Antique Pattern Library has antique kimono fabric designs and stencils in the “J” and “K” sections.

Lesson 6

Test a small cut before re-purposing kimono or obi; particularly be careful if threads are carried on the back. Also examine carefully to locate any possible embroidery and avoid cutting through that area. Embroidery threads may not be colorfast so know it could possibly bleed when washed, particularly true on ornate garments.

Examine carefully if there are any metallics. If painted/stenciled it could be metallic leaf that is not washable as it will flake off. If the metallic is woven in, test first but the threads are probably washable if of the same weight as the other threads. If the metallic threads are heavier or if embroidered, it is probably NOT washable due to the construction method of heavier metallic threads.

There are several ways to use for garments: (1) kimono are wrapped and tied, so many people can wear as open jackets/vests without altering; (2) side inserts can be added to keep the front area intact: use the bottom of long kimono, sleeves, linings, parts from a second kimono, other fabrics; (3) I’ve taken kimono apart completely and re-sewed into large enough blocks to cut Western-style blouses and jackets.

~Hope Wright, ASG Member, Springfield Lincolnland Chapter

March 17, 2020

Sewing with Vinyl

This quick video has 3 tips for sewing with vinyl.