Simple techniques for saving time and stress for sewing

[canadian gardener]

Ever noticed that pattern companies started and run by women have better designs' and easier construction techniques.

And some of the best tips come from women who sew. Big surprise eh? LOL well here are some of my favourite women in the sewing industry.

Kwik Sew Patterns by Kerstin Martenson is my top favourite of all time. She wasn't as well known as Ann Persons' stretch and sew line, but she has more than made up for that now, and her books on sewing with their multisized multigarment traceable patterns included are the best investment in patterns that I know of. http://www.kwiksew.com/

Stretch and Sew Patterns and sewing classes for stretch knits were the original pioneers of home sewing stretch knits in the late 60's started and run by Ann Person. The company continues to employ state of the art construction techniques re done for use on home equipment. Much like Kwik Sew in fact.

https://www.gmidesign.com/stretch/home.html

Nancy Zieman who wrote several favourite sewing books and runs Nancy's notions at http://www.nancysnotions.com/Nancys/...=false&GiftID=

Nancy is prolific. In fact CJ may know her thru quilting as she is involved there too. She wrote 20-30-60 Minutes to Quilt, as part of her line of 20-30-60 minutes books. I have and HIGHLY recommend her book Sewing Express. isbn 0-8487-1413-X but I suspect it's out of print now. That is ok, Nancy prefers to write new books and tips on her website at the drop of a hat whenever she discovers a better way of doing things which is amazingly often.

She even has a TV show-- Sewing With Nancy. I find most sewing shows a bit like watching paint dry though, so I don't bother, preferring to get the best of her tips in print or online form at her site.

Sandra Betzina author of a number of wonderful books on how to sew with sanity intact. She collaborates with some of the pattern companies, but hasn't sold her soul to the dark side. Her patterns and construction techniques are good and professional. Check her titles on the site, then get them out from your public library. I still prefer Kwik Sew patterns for speed of construction and good fit, but she has some incredibly good ideas that you can use in all your sewing.

Sandra is one of the featured authors on the latest issue of THREADS magazine (I recommend it too!) in an article called MAKING JEANS FIT. I've read it and it's good.

http://www.sandrabetzina.com/

Patti Palmer and Susan Pletsch wrote a number of good books on everything from sewing pants that fit, to entire wedding parties. You often find their books for sale still, 25 years after the first printing, still selling briskly at the local fabric shop. Those original classics are still looking a bit like they were run off on a cheap photocopy machine and bound at the local print shop.

http://www.palmerpletsch.com/index.htm

Lately however Susan retired and Marta Alto is working with her. Still producing state of the art sewing books and advice.

Gail Brown is another name to pay attention to in the home sewing industry. She wrote a book, I forget the title on caring for your sewing machine and serger. It was at the public library back in Prince George and is out of print. BEST ADVICE EVER.

http://www.gailbrown.com/

Gail and Patti have collaborated on a few books and I particularly love the one on sergers that I have called Sewing With Sergers. There are some tricks in there that are simply breathtaking in originality and ease.

[canadian gardener]

One Magazine you may want to ask your library to get a subscription to is

THREADS

from Taunton publications. My sil gives it to me for combined birthday and Christmas present (I give her Vogue Knitting for same)

http://www.taunton.com/threads/index.asp

and here is an article on their site on sewing machine maintenance: http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00022.asp

The current March issue which is in front of me has the Sandra Betzina article called Making Jeans Fit, other headliners are:

46 tips to help you sew for special occaisions (in time for the June bride season)

Techniques that Make Hemlines Swing (a WONDERFUL article on hemming skirts to allow them to move nicely)

How to Create Chic Crushed Velvet (use your iron to create your own crushed effects in a whole bunch of really gorgeous ways)

On the inside the other articles include:
Making silk flowers
Skirt godets, using them to make swingy skirts out of plain patterns.
LIne and Underline in one step

and much more.

It is far too expensive to get if you are an occaisional sewer but I do HIGHLY recommend anyone wanting to learn to sew easier or better

to get the library to subscribe, then carefully pore over each issue, and make a tip file and copy any articles you plan to keep for later use.

There are 6 issues a year, 32.95 in US$ (so you see what I mean)

individual copies are $6.99 US funds or $8.99 in Canada.

[canadian gardener]

On the threads site they have a number of useful articles to watch on video on the web, or download via PDF or just read online. http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/th_feat_sewbas.asp

Here is 20 ways to Improve your sewing by Barbara Emodi, http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00001.asp

and the 15th tip says "Don't use a standard hem measurement.
A good hem is one that hangs nicely, which in different fabrics means different hem widths. As a rule, the wider the skirt, the narrower the hem -- and vice versa."

the 16th tip is terrific and says" Clip to the stitch, don't stitch to the clip.

Many patterns (especially those with V necks) tell us to clip and then stitch to the end of the clip. This can be very difficult when the fabric frays easily, or when we lose sight of the end of the clip under the presser foot. It's much easier to mark the point to be clipped to, stitch to this point, stop in the needle-down position, lift the presser foot, and then carefully clip to the stitch. Then lower the presser foot and complete the seam."

Good advice on not following the pattern instructions, blindly.

Here is one with Sandra Betzina writing for Threads, An Easy, Flat Fly-Front Zipper

http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/tvt008.asp
"An Easy, Flat Fly-Front Zipper

Ignore the pattern instructions and use this simplified version for "ready-to-wear" results with Sandra Betzina See the video (they have a video link there)

If a pair of homemade slacks look homemade, it's probably because of the way the zipper was inserted. Sandra Betzina, TV host and author, advises, "Ignore the instructions that came with your pattern. Most are so complicated, you'll give up and switch to a lapped zipper insertion."

In her book Power Sewing Step-by-Step. Sandra gives detailed instructions for converting any zipper opening to a fly front, and in this video she demonstrates the procedure.

In preparation, ensure the that existing extension is 1-3/8 in. wide and 8 in. long. If converting, merely add the extension beyond the center-front cutting line."

[canadian gardener]

for the quilters, here is the link to threads QUILTING tips which may be enjoyable or not, I'm not a quilter so I can't tell

http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages...t_quilting.asp

[SewCrafty]

All wonderful tips, thanks Margery!

[Darlene]

Wow Margery, you've got your finger on the pulse of everything!

[canadian gardener]

I've got a wide range of interests and I tend to deeply enjoy certain subjects like OAMC, Homeschooling, cleaning more efficiently, simpler living, gardening, and sewing/knitting kinds of things.

For a while there I'd lost the joy in sewing though.

LOL don't ask me how many UFO's are in my sewing closet or I'll die of embarrassment. I haven't been sewing much in recent years, my eyes aren't good for fine work any more, and I find it hard to focus on my sewing machine. Ditto with knitting actually.

When I put reading glasses on I can do it, but that doesn't always work well at the range the machine is either. I think I need mid range glasses for deskwork.

I'm not a fast sewer either, but I like it. I've done a lot of things over the years but I have friends who are way more accomplished and work far faster. Mostly I'm slow because I tend to get hung up on details and making it perfect.

When you hear me harping on about the 80 20 rule, I'm talking to me mostly. I tend to forget that it's not about how minutely perfect a single collar point is, it's about getting the darn thing done already.

For me, perfectionism has sometimes delayed, sometimes held me back from finishing stuff-- not all the time, I do finish most things, but I do have more than my fair share of UFO's.

(it isn't going right, I put it down, and start something else while I contemplate forever the possible solutions to the problem).

So I have done a fair bit of sewing, but not lately. I need to get back in there.

Sew Crafty's stuff is making me feel like getting back into it again.

[Katybird]

Thanks for the great links.

[canadian gardener]

More stuff I wanted to share--

a dressmaker friend taught me to cut out fabric with a little trick she called stroking the cat.

It means that there is a direction when cutting stuff on the diagonal or on the bias (not straight up or down along the fibres) that either stretches the edge as you cut it, like stroking a cat backwards (poor cat, poor fabric) or if you do it right, smooths the cut edge as you are cutting (stroking the cat).

Say you are cutting a skirt. a normal A line style. The front center is usually on a fold line, but the side seams go from big at the bottom to narrower at the waist.

You would start cutting from the bottom up.

Cut a little bit of fabric and see what I mean. You want the garment to stay neat and smooth and unstretched.

So Stroke The Cat.

Another way to keep from distorting fabric as you cut, is to use a rotary wheel cutter and a mat underneath.

I also love using weights. Saves time and distortion from pins. edited to add, I use tuna and salmon tins from my pantry as weights, they are just right.

I pin the grainline first, and the corners, and put weights for the rest.

If you nip 1/4 inch in with scissors you don't have to cut out the little points. The reason for those is to mark important matching points.

which gets me to marking the dots in the middle, dart points etc.

Wash out marker is good if the garment will be washed. chalk markers work, so does soap carved to a sharp edge.

[canadian gardener]

one caution about using the nip method of marking. You need the full 5/8" seam allowance for that so it doesn't weaken the seam.

so if it's the first time, you use the pattern, and you might need that full 5/8'inch for playing with fitting, then use the notches cut properly.

[canadian gardener]

Burda from Germany is very stylish, and their garments don't look home made (that home made look is often from using way too much ease, on top of normal wiggle room)

but be careful

you must be VERY accurate in buying for the proper size. They REALLY don't have the fudge factor of normal American patterns.

AND they don't always include seam allowances or hems, and when they do, they may not be the full 5/8ths inch that north americans are used to.

I found adding the seam allowance and hems a royal nuisance, but since then I've found newer patterns with that done, but I seem to recall they used a 1/2 inch SA. Which makes you slightly crazy when you go to sew it, and need to mark a new edge guide on your sewchines edge plate.

So check first.

My mil bought me a years subscription to their magazine, and I LOVED IT. Up to the minute European styles, super ideas for dressing up plain patterns. A real sewing course in itself.
but EXPENSIVE. I saved them, but I couldn't afford to continue my subscription. Some magazine shops carry them, you may like to look, and buy a particular one.

There are up to 30 or so patterns included in each magazine along with complete instructions. The instructions aren't easy or for beginner sewing enthusiasts, but once you've successfully done a blouse or so, you would be fine. I substitute my own flat construction for their set in sleeves for example.

You have to trace the patterns, and you need to do 2 things if you are using a Burda Magazine pattern and that is

1-- tracing is easiest if you use a blunt knitting needle with dressmakers carbon paper (it isn't reg carbon, it makes coloured chalk marks--whatever you do DON"T USE REG CARBON, you DON'T want black permanent stains on your garment!!!) underneath, on top of the paper you are tracing onto.

Reason being-- the patterns come in different colours, all over each other and it's impossible to lay it down and trace even with the sheerest of stuff.

2--ADD THE SEAM ALLOWANCES AND HEMS!!!! the magazine patterns DO NOT COME WITH THEM AT ALL.

so why bother tracing from the mag or getting the mag?

Well up to the minute styles, good looks and fit, great ideas, multi size patterns that use many basic components.

After a while you begin to see how basic princess lines or A lines work, and you can use the same pattern but the new collar so to speak.

[canadian gardener]

which brings me to my grannie's methods. Granny Thomson, my maternal granny was a very frugal lady and busy mother of 4, granny, and volunteer.

she sewed most of her own clothing

She used to save time, effort and money by sticking to the same few patterns. She had one dress pattern that was her basic, she stuck to it and used it for at least 40 years that I know of, and probably more judging by the pics.

Granny found that staying with the classic meant she knew it in her sleep. She could add a new collar or sleeves to bring it up to date, hems go up or down according

but because she knew it inside out and backwards, she could buy fabric for a dress, and know exactly what is needed. Ditto buttons, and other notions.

Because she knew it so well, she saved tons of time sewing it up -- she could cut and sew it in her sleep practically.

It's worth keeping in mind. Have a few basic patterns, learn to change them a bit for fashion but once you've done the hard work of fitting and knowing whether the style suits you, you have it MADE!!!

And that is another point. Once you find one that suits you, you know, you aren't guessing when you go to the store for fabric. You KNOW that dress will look good on you.

So many times we get frustrated with a new pattern because if you went to the store and bought an outfit, you try about 6 on, before finding "THE ONE".

so it is with patterns.

Find a few good ones, use them and enjoy sewing.

[canadian gardener]

Oh and keep a little index card/planner page in your purse with fabric lengths for your favourite dress, skirt, pants or blouses and any notions. That way if you are out and you hit a sale, you can buy for your favourite classic pattern at home.

People so often buy a pattern when they buy fabric and it's all such a gamble. I find the safest ways are usually the least stressful, but patterns are out of date quickly so it pays to have the info.

OH AND ONE FINAL POINT BEFORE I QUIT YACKING MY HEAD OFF

and that is

BUY MORE THAN YOU NEED. YUP this is one place not to get too frugal.

If it shrinks, if you want to change something, if the layout sucks, if you need a bit more later

you will be glad. It is seldom more than 5$ to buy an extra 1/4 of a yard or half a yard but the ability to play around with it and the peace of mind is well worth it.

You can quilt with the scraps or embellish other things or make little gifts, whatever, just having more on hand is a peace of mind thing.

I have often decided to make something else altogether, and you can do that kind of thing with your fabric if you bought enough to play around with it in the first place.

[SewCrafty]

As always Margery, wonderful tips!

I'm going to check into the Burda Magazines, they sound fantastic!

[canadian gardener]

Dee I am pretty sure you'd enjoy a copy and anyone else who wants a bit of fashion and sewing inspiration, no matter what your sewing skill level.

When I was in bed resting this week, I grabbed that years worth and it was part of 2001 and part of 2002 and it's amazing how the stuff from that is just now in the mainstream north america. They are about a year to 2 years in advance depending on whether it's colour or lines.

Not always. but most times. Summer of 2002 is particularly full of stuff I would like to make for summer of 2004.

And I was noticing again, how they use several basic pattern "bodies" and vary the collar styles or sleeves etc. That was what reminded me of my Granny's sewing. Granny always looked stylish in a very elegant and classic way but she did it with a few basic patterns, that dress I mentioned being the best example.