Tips & Tools

Even with the Bendable Bright light and reading glasses on, black on black has become way too hard to see. I must be getting old - LOL. I used a dark grey thread to stitch the collar so I could see the stitching lines and trim close to but not through them - a good idea. This is how I stitch a collar. I run the lines of stitching right off the edges and then I go back and sew an additional line to reinforce the corners. Works like wonderful.




There are some great sewing books on the market. I haven't explored too many recent publications however, I would recommend Fit for Real People and Pants for Real People for basic sewing and, if you like to wear jackets, Jackets for Real People. If you can still find a copy, Looking Good is fabulous for the styles and lines that suit your body type. These are all from Palmer/Pletsch - a great company. They produce EXCELLENT reference materials that are full of tips for sewing a high quality garment (workshops too).




I'm not sure where I learned this tip - to sew the collar stand from the inside. I've been doing it for so long that I've forgotten. This way, when your shirt collar folds back, the seam is neat and clean where the wrong side of the button placket and shirt front are revealed. The hand stitching ends up under the collar. Just be careful when you join the collar that the interfaced portion ends up on top. It takes a bit of getting used to to figure out which way to attach it. I put them in position and then fold them right sides together so I get it right.

Along with tips, you need quality tools. This is a point press. It lets you get right into the corner on collars and other tight spots so you can press firmly and cleanly. What I learned in fashion sewing is what prompted me to write Press for Success for the quilting market. Pressing is VERY important no matter what kind of product you're creating. It can make the difference between a home grown and professionally sewn look.




Along with a diagonal stitch at the corner, a point turner helps you to push out the corners gently without poking through. It's much better than a pencil.




Clover makes FABULOUS tools both for sewing and knitting. They produce the best seam ripper I've ever used and this chalk wheel makes marking lines really easy. See how I can get the collar in exactly the right place and then I can brush off the marks and they're gone. YES YES!

As you can see, the collar stand and the collar were both 5/8" too long. That's because I was using the pattern from a different design. Shortening the stand was easy. I had to make a second collar. Here's a tip I developed on my own.




Interfacing shrinks when you press it so they (the great illusive know it all they) say that it should be pre-shrink, even fusibles. That's fussy to do and not so easy when you can't just plop it in a hot washer and dryer so I don't bother. Instead, I cut a piece of interfacing bigger than the pattern, fuse it to the wrong side of the fabric shrinking it as I press it in place and then I place the interfaced and another piece of the fabric right sides together matching grain lines, and cut out my two pieces. This works for cuffs, collars, facings and other areas like these.




I use these pressing tools all the time - a dressmaker's ham, a seam roll, and a sleeve press. All excellent. I'm not one for a lot of gidgets and gadgets. I like tools that work. The ones that I've mentioned today do. They're worth investing in - along with a good iron - and a serger.

I was surprised by the number of comments yesterday regarding not owning a serger. To me, it's as important to sewing fashions as free motion is to quilting. Serging makes a world of difference to the quality, appearance, and professionalism of a sewn garment. HUGE.

Sergers are expensive but not nearly as expensive as a sewing machine. I looked around my studio at how much fabric I have and the number of books and notions and did a rough calculation of what I would have to go without for how long to afford a serger. I'd do it. It's that wonderful. Of course that's easy to say when I've already owned a serger for longer than I've had children and have a stashed up studio BUT... it's such an amazing tool that I'd find a way to make it work. A little bit per paycheque would be worth it - LOL - if I had a paycheque that is. One day soon I hope.

Talk soon - Myrna

Grateful: friends - having fun with Barb in the studio