Saturday, February 24, 2007

little tips mean the most...

One of my favorite parts of quilt guild are the times when we share our show and tell, or the times we give tips and demonstrations. Since I share most of my projects here I thought I might also throw in a couple tips.

Now, I am the type of person that LOVES buying new fabric and fat quarters, but I also have problems cutting into it right away too! There is something about a full piece of fabric that I find hard to just slice into. I try not to be stingy with my fabric, but I DO tend to be with my thread. Maybe it's the fact that it's been pounded into my head to not use cheap thread by my father (who repairs sewing machines) and my mother (who sells machines). So when I pay 9 dollars for a spool of thread I don't like clipping the inches of ends off stitched blocks just to throw away. Now I introduce the Thread Saver...the next best thing to sliced bread!! It might sound pretty flashy, but it's not. It's something you all have in your possession right now! It's just a tiny piece of fabric folded in half and ran through the machine before and after you piece your fabric. You would be surprised how much thread snipping time this saves you! I don't sew without them ever!! It also helps me not to forget to snip the excess thread off!



My next discovery is the Wonder Wall..and no, I'm not talking about the catchy song by Oasis. It's also a handy item to have next to you sewing machine. It reminds me of those felt boards that our kindergarten teachers used. Your fabric and blocks stick to them like magic so your pieces can't get disheveled on your sometimes messy work table! If you can't find one of these things, you can also use one of those plasticy vinyl table clothes with the felty side on the back. Just turn it to the back and tape it to the wall. I've also found that fleece pellon (what I use for interfacing of my purses) works great too!



Well, now it's time for me to get back to it.

1 comment:

Amanda Jean said...

Thanks for sharing your tips!

I have a plain piece of flannel stapled up to my wall that I use...it works well...now that I have it, I couldn't work without it.