Basting Tape!

There are some projects that can use basting tape, making things much easier than using pins or using regular basting seams. Pins get in the way, ruin needles if you accidentally sew over them, and poke your fingers! Regular basting seams stay the position unless you take them out and start over. But basting tape has a bit more flexibility.
You can move the two items you are sewing together easier AND no pins to sew over.

There are lots of brands -- they all seem fine!

I used basting tape on my first epattern called 'Hide Your Stuff.....in your closet!' The basting tape helps hold the zipper in the zipper window until and as you sew it in place. 

Basting tape holds the zipper in place until you get it sewn it!

Best Press - maybe my favorite notion of all times!

Okay, maybe Mary Ellen's Best Press Clear Starch Alternative is my favorite notion of this whole series. I use it every time I sew - 'cause I press every time I sew. It is very simple. The starch makes the pressing faster and more crisp. Especially those times when a cotton just doesn't want to press a crease. This does the job! And it smells fabulous -- at least 'Tea Rose Garden'. There are other scents but I don't know what they are since I love the rose scent so much, I haven't bought the others. But smelled them at the store and they smelled good too!

Mary Ellen's Best Press Clear Starch Alternative

The Edge Foot and All It's Glory!

The edge foot happens to be a great accessory for any sewing machine. It has a couple of ways to use it to your advantage. 
First, obviously, as an edge foot. This is great for things like top stitching along the edge of project. See the blade that comes down from the center bottom of the foot. Align the blade with the edge of the fabric. Then align your needle the distance from the edge that you want. And sew - - the seam maintaining a perfect distance from the edge. This really adds the "perfection" status to your project.

Second, the edge foot is great for "stitch-in-the-ditch". The ditch is the seam or junction of two fabrics. Stitching in the ditch means putting a seam right in that junction. When you do this, it seemingly hides the seam -- a great technique when you Don't  want the 'top stitch' look. So align the blade in the ditch. Then sew. The blade guides the seam to stay in the ditch. It's magical!

The Edge Foot!

Letter openers for Sewing???

Yes, I use letter openers for sewing projects. ? They are actually great for smoothing out the edges of projects that have been turned right side out (rso for those that have been around awhile). Things like soft sculpture, pillows, placemats, anything with corners, purses, on and on.........
Let's say you have made of fabric doll. You have sewn the body of the doll, turned the body right side out, then stick the letter opener inside and smooth out all the edges from the inside with the letter opener. And then it just seems like you start using the letter opener for everything!! I suppose anything that is flat, with a somewhat dull pointed end, will work fine.

The top letter opener was a souvenir from a Nauvoo, IL giftshop. The other two are from Dollar Tree. The bottom letter opener is my favorite.

Bonnie Christine on CreativeLive.

So I spent three days with Bonnie Christine talking about 'Surface Pattern Design' on CreativeLive. Bonnie did a great job and I love CreativeLive.
Bonnie is a fabric designer for Art Gallery, and her fabric is featured in our pattern 'Sew ImPressed' (P209). She obviously has a whole range of talents which are very impressive. Watch out Martha Stewart!

Bonnie Christine's online class for Surface Pattern Design

Hugo's Amazing Tape

This glueless, reusable, self-adhesive tape is great! I use it to wrap around spools of thread, especially metallic threads. I also use it to wrap around pieces of trim. Really keeps things organized. I wonder how many different things this could be good for -- it really is amazing! http://www.amazingtape.com/products/

Hugo's Amazing Tape

Rotary Cutting!

Rotary cutting is an accurate and efficient method for cutting pattern pieces with a length and width measurement. Our patterns use rotary cutting techniques when paper pattern templates are not provided because they are something other than a square or rectangle. Though it is possible to make our patterns without rotary cutting tools, using a grid mat, grid ruler, and rotary cutter is preferred. Note that rotary cutting tools are basic to any modern sewer's inventory of supplies.

Grid ruler and really cool tape for grid rulers!

If you were to have only one grid ruler, which size should you get?  The 5" by 24" would be my suggestion. But I have tons of sizes and use them ALL. I love my 4" by 36", my 1" by 12", my 12" by 12", and even my 20 1/2" by 20 1/2".

I also like the cool colored tape shown above. If you are cutting lots of edges, let's say at 1 1/4", the tape can be put on the ruler, helping the quick identification of the 1 1/4" mark.

Cutting up with scissors and rotary cutters!

The only scissors I will use are Elan 8" Dressmaker with Florine made by United Notions. They have a slight serrated edge, so they grip the fabric -- right up to the tip of the scissors. Since they have a serrated edge, they can't be sharpened but they do last a long time. After that, the price point should be under $20 so just go get another pair every few years.
I also use the smaller 28mm Olfa rotary cutters. I have tried tons of different rotary cutters, but I always come back to these simple and plain Olfa's. Why complicate things when they don't need to be?! I also use these cutters to rip out seams -- though I hesitate to say this because it takes great skill to not cut the fabric. Be careful if you do this!

Elan 8" Scissors by United Notions and Olfa 28mm Rotary Cutter

Ring Around the Patterns

Keeping things organized in the sewing room is a big battle. Love the way I have found to organize my patterns. Each pattern, in its bag, gets stored on my gigantic ring. Check it out:

The Big Ring!

Iron cleaner - a must!

I can't tell you how many projects I have ruined or almost ruined because of a dirty iron. The ONLY thing I have found to clean them is Iron-off. You put about a 1/2 teaspoon (in a line) on an old dish towel. Then rub your hot iron on the goo - for quite awhile, back and forth really hard. You will be surprised how much dirt comes off the iron and onto the towel!

Iron-off [Hot Iron Cleaner}

Cordless Iron - love it!

Just have to tell you about the new iron I acquired recently. Brewer and Vanilla House teamed up at Quilt Market -- I demonstrated a new cordless Panasonic iron they are selling and they demonstrated my new pressing boards [P209 Sew ImPressed]. In the end, Panasonic gave me the iron. It is cordless, which is great for taking it a ways away from the wall plug. But mostly, just great not have to drag the cord around. It is pointed on both ends, so it forces you to put it back in the charger instead of standing it upright on the ironing board like you normally do. It doesn't take long to get used to that. I am finding I don't want to use my other iron since this one heats up very quickly, presses fabulously, and is easy to add water [the tank separates from the iron and you take that to the sink - so great]. I would give the iron 4 1/2 stars out of 5.

Panasonic Cordless Iron NI-WL600

[Bias] Tape Makers, etc......

There is a lot going on here -- let me explain . . . . . . .

I love putting trim on projects - always looks good. Bias trim that goes around edges that are curved, like my Pot Pinchers (P156), (takes more fabric since it is cut on the bias) and regular trim (not cut on the bias) can go on straight edges (uses a lot less fabric to make). Using tape makers, the trim can exactly coordinate with the fabric of your project (versus buying the closest possibility from ready-made trims). 
There are different sizes for different widths of trim. The pastels can attach the fusible Steam-a-seam as your press your trim. The basic colors like the red one doesn't! If you are going to buy a tape maker, go ahead and buy a pastel just in case you ever want to attach Steam-a-seam to your trim.

The tape is by The Warm Company and the tape makers by Clover.

 

Pot Pinchers have coordinating bias trim around the edges. This trim uses the 50mm tape maker and is folded again after the pressing in the tape maker.

The trim on the top of the pockets is straight and does not need to be cut on the bias.

Bobbins, bobbins, oh my!

Love these bobbin holders.  I have two in my drawer right below my machine and they are indispensable! Can't live without them.

Bobbin Holder

Favorite Stuff! .....series!

Thought I might post some of my favorite tools on the next few posts. After 20 years of business, I surely have some I really like.

505 Spray Adhesive

I love using 505 Spray Adhesive for various procedures. It's great to use when making oven mitts. When attaching several layers together -- the inside and outside layers, and two layers of Insul Bright fleece, spray the layers to keep them together. Without the adhesive, you have to pin the layers together. And they will still torque a bit at that. But with the adhesive spray, they hold together great as you baste  around the edges of the layers.
What's the box for? The over-spray is pretty sticky, so I keep a box around to set my project in and spray inside the box. Just keep an old box around the studio!
This company has all sorts of different sprays for different purposes.

Market Drawing - We have a Winner!

The winner for our Market drawing is O'Susannah's Quilt & Gifts in Watkins Glen, NY. 

Congratulations!

O'Susannah's wins a copy of each of our six new patterns AND a finished sample of each pattern. Yeah!