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My Favorite Tips for Quilters

Last week I blogged about what inspired me to quilt and asked about your inspirations. This week, I thought I’d share what I think are the most important quilting tips for all quilters, beginners to experienced. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list and many quilters will have their own thoughts on what are the most important things for successful quilting. Share with me your favorite tips and maybe we’ll all learn something!

Tip #1 – Machine Cleaning

Very important: Always be sure your sewing machine is ready to stitch. That collection of lint under the throat plate is actually not a part of the machine! I recommend a yearly tune-up at the shop where you purchased your machine. If that’s not possible, make sure you are cleaning the bobbin compartment, hook race and bobbin case as well as the area under the throat plate. Be sure to drop the feed dogs before lifting off the throat plate. 

I use the small soft brush that came with the machine to clean out these areas. If you do not have that brush or one did not come with your machine, you can use a clean, small makeup brush easily found in the cosmetics department. 

Finally, be sure to pull out your machine manual and lubricate it as advised. Most machines today have a sensor that will tell you when lubrication is needed, but if yours doesn’t you should lubricate the recommended areas when you notice your machine sounds different than normal as you stitch. I can tell when my machine sounds louder. Once I lubricate, it quietly hums as I’m sewing. If you use your machine several hours a day every day like me, you will have to lubricate more often. And …..

beware of the cat who wants to help….. 

Tip #2 – Needles

Be sure you are using a fresh needle. Don’t wait until a needle breaks to change it. A good rule of thumb is to put in a new needle after every completed project, especially if you have just completed a large one. If you have just made a table runner, you can probably get away with keeping the needle for your next project. Another way to know when to change a needle would be after you’ve gone through 3 bobbins.

Damage to a needle is not visible to the naked eye but under a microscope, you will see burrs and cracks. Click here to see what a damaged needle looks like. It can also be bent. Here are some ways you can tell you need to change your needle:

  • If you hear a “punching” sound as your needle enters the fabric. 
  • Your top thread keeps breaking.
  • You see snags develop in the fabric where the needle enters when you are stitching.
  • You can see the holes where the needle entered.

Needles are relatively cheap. Certainly cheaper than fabric and thread, so keep that needle new as often as possible so you’re not wasting thread or damaging your fabric.

Tip #3 – Thread & Bobbins

I recommend 100% cotton 50w thread for stitching your pieces. I like to use Aurifil 100% cotton 50wt. I have found that this thread creates the least amount of lint build up as opposed to other threads I have used.

I choose a light neutral color thread for all projects unless I am working with really dark fabrics. In that case I will use a dark brown or black thread for piecing.

I also recommend winding several bobbins before beginning a project, especially a large one. That way, you can quickly pop a new bobbin in instead of having to stop to wind it.

Tip #4 – Tools, Pins and other Things

Keep your tools close at hand. I like to have my scissors, a small ruler and a pressing stick right by my machine. The pressing stick is my favorite of these because I can press seams on small units of a block so I don’t have to keep getting up for pressing at the iron. Here’s how I store my tools:

That’s a soap dish I found at Target in the bathroom supplies aisle. It’s the type that affixes to your shower wall with suction cups. I just ditched the suction cups and use Command strips to affix it to the edge of my sewing table.

Here’s the pressing stick and  how you use it:

My other favorite tool I keep by my machine is a small ruler that is handy to measure units as I go to make sure I am stitching them the correct size.

Did you notice my pins? To keep them corralled next to my machine, I turned a magnet upside down (the kind you buy as a souvenir), affixed it to my sewing table with a Command strip and I have an instant magnetic pin catcher!

Tip # 5 – Time to Stitch (Random Tips)

Speaking of pins, I recommend always pinning your pieces. This really does help with accuracy. If the pieces you are stitching together shift as you are stitching, your unit will be off. The feed dogs below and your guiding hand can move the pieces at different speeds. It only takes a tiny movement of one or the other and you’re ripping stitches! Pinning also assures the seams that you were careful to line up before stitching stay lined up.

Chain stitch where you can. To make chain piecing even more efficient, consider pairing up the pieces you are stitching and stacking them so you can just grab and feed!

Finally, I like to use what I call a leader/ender piece when I begin stitching.

This is a thread saver, since I am not pulling my finished piece away from the machine to snip it. I just run this leader/ender piece through at the end of my stitching and snip my sewn unit off after it’s out from under the foot. I like using this to lead off stitching pieces to avoid thread glitches or fabric pieces scrunching up. It’s also a good way to put some fabric scraps to good use!

That’s all I have for now. I hope you enjoyed my favorite quilting tips. Share yours in the comments below. Perhaps they will be helpful to others. I will draw a name from the commenters to win a pair of scissors to keep by your machine so you will always have them available!

The drawing will be on Monday, July 12th. Good luck!

Happy Stitching!
Deanne

***We have a winner! Congrats, EllenB!***

Upcycling Everyday Items for Sewing Room Use – Part 2

Welcome back! I hope you enjoyed my upcycling and recycling of everyday items in the sewing room in last week’s blog post. As promised, I have more for you this week! I hope you continue to share with me the items you put to good use in your sewing room. There were some pretty good things shared last week in the comments. Remember, the drawing for two of my patterns will take place on Monday, December 28th. I’ll be choosing the winner from the comments of both this week’s and last week’s blog post…. you still have time to enter!

So here we go ….

Item #1

In the comments last week, someone said they use empty prescription bottles to store sewing needles or to dispose of used or broken needles. Great ideas! Here’s how I use my bottles:

These prescription bottles are a great storage solution for bobbins! And since the bobbins are stacked in the bottle and can’t move around much, there’s no unraveling of the thread. You can also pre-wind several bobbins for a project you are working on and store them in the bottle for easy access as you are stitching. No stopping to wind a bobbin!

Item #2

Sticking with bobbin storage, if you do not have access to prescription bottles, I have another fun solution. Toe separators! 

Yes, you read that right! I picked up a few extra of these pedicure supplies at the drugstore and put them to good use in my sewing room:

As you can see, the bobbins fit nicely into the separators. And because these are made of a soft material, they can fit any type of bobbin and secure them nicely. The second photo shows how they can be stacked to fit neatly in a sewing box or drawer.

Item #3

If you are a golfer (or know one!) and you have a lot of extra tees laying around, you can do this:

This is a great way to keep a bobbin of thread paired up with the spool of matching thread for quick access. 

Addie approves of these last two items!

Item #4

Moving on from bobbin storage. Let’s look at something that makes sewing a bit more comfortable. What can you do with this?

You can adjust your machine for optimum ergonomics while sewing with a pair of door stops from your local hardware store. These will slope your machine at the degree you want, depending on how far you push them under.

This has actually relieved some of my neck and back strain that comes from hunching over the machine. Now I can see what I am stitching better because it’s angled towards me and I do not have to hunch over to see my seam.

Item #5

Here’s another item that I keep in my sewing drawer:

I use this to mark the line on my ruler for cutting strips. This is really helpful when I have a lot of strips or pieces of the same size to cut. It helps me find the mark on the ruler faster and cut accurately.

So that’s 5 more of my upcycling or recycling ideas. Trust me, I have many, many more of these ideas and I will share them in upcoming blog posts in 2021. Next week’s blog will be on finishing the 2020 BOM! 

Like I said above, share some of your tips in the comments and be entered in my drawing for two of my patterns: Marbles & Jacks lap quilt pattern and Loop-d-Loop table runner pattern!

The drawing will be on Monday, December 28th so you still have a week to enter! **We have a winner! Congrats, Donna Schulz!**

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Upcycling Everyday Items for Sewing Room Use

I like to find interesting uses for everyday items not only in the sewing room, but in every room around my house. I guess it’s in my nature. I hate to throw things away knowing they will just end up in the landfill. That’s why I like to find other uses for items that have outlived their original usefulness. I’m sure many of you have done this too. A lot of times these everyday items are to help me with organization and storage in my sewing room.

Share with me the everyday items you have put to good use in your sewing room and you will be entered in my blog drawing! So, let’s have some fun here…..

Item #1

Galvanized Peg Board. These are made for the garage, but who says we can’t use them in our sewing room?

These peg boards are great if you have a dedicated sewing room. Affix it to the wall, buy some hooks and load it up!

I even added an optional basket to the top to hold my task light! 

If you do not have a dedicated room for sewing but you can find a storage closet to use, put the peg board in there to keep the rulers stored until you need them. Or, for a less permanent storage solution, we move on to …..

Item #2

Item #2 is actually two things. A large binder ring and a hanger made for ties or scarves. You can use these to hang rulers and then hang them in a closet to store them. Thread the large binder ring through the hole on the ruler, then hang it from the ring on the hanger.

Item #3

Do scissors and rotary cutters float all around your sewing area? I used to hunt around for mine until I came up with a solution. I had this old coffee mug stand in my kitchen that I was not using anymore. So, I tried it out as a way to corral my cutting tools.

And there you go! All your cutting tools at your finger tips.

Item #4

I had some of these old plastic sign holders that I used to use in my Quilt Market Booth.

I do not use them in the booth anymore for signs, so of course I needed to find a new use. I now use them, with the help of large binder clips, to hold a pattern next to my machine for easy reference.

If you do not have any of these lying around the house, they are fairly cheap at the office supply store. You can even use it (or a smaller version) in the kitchen to hold recipes.

Item #5

Don’t throw these away! These can be used for sewing supply storage!

What can you use an empty paper towel roll for? Use it to store your fusible web or interfacing. Instead of folding those things up and shoving them in a drawer to get all creased and crumpled, roll them up and secure them in the empty paper towel roll for storage.

Those are just 5 of my everyday items I use in my sewing room. I will have more next week. Like I said above, share some of your tips in the comments and be entered in my drawing for two of my patterns: Marbles & Jacks lap quilt pattern and Loop-d-Loop table runner pattern!

The drawing will be on Monday, December 28th so you will have two weeks to enter! **We have a winner! Congrats, Donna Schulz!**

Happy Quilting!
Deanne

Tame the Quilt Area!

My sewing area can get messy from time to time …. I’ve shown you the photos! I do, however, have some easy tips to keep my sewing tools organized and close at hand. I thought I’d share some of these tips to help you organize your sewing area.

First, I like to keep my cutting table area free of clutter. Nothing is more frustrating than getting ready to cut out a quilt …. and not being able to find the ruler you want or the space to cut your fabric! To solve that problem, I bought a metal pegboard that was made for a garage and hung it on my wall.

This keeps my rulers hanging to the left of my cutting surface. I can just pick the ruler I want! Before I had a place to hang them, I would just put them down anywhere on the cutting mat. They would either get in my way, or I would bury them in fabric and not be able to find them!

I also keep a wire basket next to my mat to the right to place all the extra strips left over from cutting. Before I did that, scrap fabric used to pile up on my cutting mat and get in the way. Let me tell you, that was not good. When the scraps take over your cutting mat, it leaves no room to cut out a new project!

By the look of the basket ….. it’s time to store or use some scraps!

Next, I occasionally need marking pens or pencils, my klutz glove and other tools while cutting. I re-purposed an old sewing machine drawer and placed it at the top of my cutting area above my mat. Now things are easy to reach when I need it!

Once again, it keeps things corralled so they don’t “disappear”!

On the other end of my cutting table, I have my scissors, rotary cutter and some other small tools I use hanging on an old coffee mug tree. 

 

It’s fun to find things around the house that you can put to good use in your sewing area instead of throwing them out.

Have you ever struggled with where to put a pattern while your sewing? I like to keep block patterns and instructions I’ve written close by while I am sewing, but I never knew where to put it so it doesn’t get in the way. At a garage sale, I found an old wooden clipboard and problem solved!

If you have a wall space next to your sewing machine to hang the clipboard on …. even better! I don’t so I just prop my clipboard onto a wooden box I have next to my machine.

Speaking of wooden boxes ….. besides holding my curious studio cat …. I use these to store the tools I need while I’m at my machine. Machine needles, pincushion of pins (to hide from a prying cat), wooden pressing tool and machine cleaning tools. It keeps them close at hand but they’re not scattered across my table to get in the way of my piecing. This is a great storage solution if you do not have a sewing cabinet with storage. I don’t because I use an old dining room table for my machine.

So, that’s a few of my tips on taming my sewing area. Do you have some to share? Put some of your ideas in a comment and be entered into a drawing for my book, Blooming Patchwork!

Blooming Patchwork - a quilting book by Deanne Eisenman

The drawing will be on Monday, September 17th….  so leave your comments and tips below and good luck! Ooops! Today is 9/23 and I missed my deadline to choose the winner. Congrats, Eugenia! You’ve won my book!

Happy Quilting!
Deanne