The Scoop on Cotton Fabrics

Jan17

For me, the best part of sewing is going to a fabric store and touching, looking at and then selecting my fabric needed for the project that I am planning. I have found over the years that some cotton fabrics have succumb to that new marketing of same old container but actually less product inside.

You use to always pick up your bolt of cotton fabric and it was 44″-45″ wide, however, now look closely because most of the time your cotton widths are now 42″-43″ wide.  Unfortunately, patterns still give yardage requirements for the 44″-45″ wide fabrics and depending upon your project, you might need to purchase more yardage than what is recommended.  It can be a little frustrating but knowing this fact, always check the end of the bolt to verify your fabric width size.

As a rule of thumb, if making clothing you might need to purchase about an extra 1/4 of a yard of your selected cotton fabric to insure you have enough for all your pattern pieces.  Before I cut out any pattern pieces, I always wash my cotton fabrics in cold water and place in the dryer at a medium temperature.  This way I feel I have reached the maximum shrinkage of that piece of fabric, especially if you are making children’s clothing because busy moms just want to through that item into the washer and dryer without any worries.  You really don’t want to spend the time and effort making a wonderful piece of clothing and wash/dry it and have it shrink a couple of inches.

Surprisingly, some cotton fabrics could shrink 2 – 3 inches after completing the washing and drying process.  That’s why I usually purchase a little extra to allow for the narrower width and possible shrinkage.  Nothing more upsetting than to find out you don’t have enough fabric when laying out your pattern pieces.  Even for quilting, because I solely use cotton fabric, I will buy a little extra for that same purpose of shrinkage and narrower fabric widths.

In rare instances, a 1/4 of yard extra might not be enough especially if you are using a one-way design fabric, which means all your pattern pieces need to go in the same direction.  Pattern design and size requirement of the finished item are specific measurements to look at when determining  your yardage needed.  Be sure to check with the individual who is cutting your fabric if you have any questions about the yardage requirements needed for your specific project.

I still LOVE to sew with cottons.  It makes up wonderfully in clothing, crafts, home deco projects and more.   There are many wonderful colors and designs available in cottons fabrics too.  Because it really has a great weave to it, you can just make a small clip and rip your  fabric to get a true straight of grain edge to work with.  Cottons are really a great fabric to work with too especially if you are a first-time sewer or helping a child sew a project.

You don’t just have to go to the big box fabric store either to purchase great cottons.  A couple of my favorite on-line fabric stores are fabric, thousands of bolts and fabric shack.  I still find it fun and amazing to be able to purchase fabric in my pjs!!!!

HAPPY CREATING!!

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The Mystery of Yarn Unraveled

Jan13

Since I had a comment about yarn, I thought I would take a minute and briefly highlight some facts about crocheting/knitting yarns.  It is so much fun to go to a store and just look and, of course, touch the various skeins of yarn that are on the shelves.  There really is a little more thought needed when purchasing yarn especially for a pattern or project that you have in mind.

When you look at a skein of yarn, there should be a yarn symbol with a number in the center.  Those numbers actually tell you the diameter or weight of the yarn and then you will find a number telling you the yardage/grams/ounces which is how much yarn is in that particular skein.  So you pick up a skein of that luscious purple that you think will make a wonderful scarf and you read that it is a number 4/100 yards.  So you are really purchasing a medium diameter or worsted weight yarn with 100 yards available for your use.   The Standard Weight Guidelines is a great website to check out for all the industry standards used on the labels of various yarns. https://www.craftyarncouncil.com/standards/yarn-weight-system

A simple review of yarn categories and weights is this:

(0) is a LACE weight perfect for shawls or extra find projects

(1) is SUPER FINE  fingering yarn mainly used for socks and/or baby items

(2) is FINE good for baby and sport yarn

(3) is LIGHT good as sport, light worsted for clothing

(4) is MEDIUM worsted weight for afghans and clothing

(5) BULKY for scarves, hats

(6) SUPER BULKY crafts, rugs

On the labels, you will find the company’s recommendations for what the yarn should be used for and what needle size to use.  When just starting out, I would stick with the pattern recommendations for both needle size and yarn diameter/weight to help you get the correct finished size.  Make sure you purchase enough skeins to complete your project using the yardage/gram information.

As you become more proficient, the needle size might be different based on how tight or loose your stitches are (which is called your gauge, a whole new blog) and you will find that you will either use a smaller size or larger size needle(s).   Also, it can be very creative and fun to take a pattern and use a different yarn than what is suggested, the results can be very interesting.  You just need to remember that when changing anything about a pattern, you will have to readjust your yardage amounts which means you will either need to buy more or less skeins of yarn.  Of course, having left overs is always a plus for those small items just needing to be made.

HAPPY CREATING!!

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Beginning Crochet – You have to start somewhere!!

Jan12

The definition of crochet, according to Wikipedia, is:  “Crochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn or thread using a crochet hook.” And truly that is really what you are doing when you crochet, knit, tat, or spool knit.  You can take the simplest crochet stitches and just make a flat piece of yarned fabric and let the imagination go wild. Even if you don’t want to do anything in particular with that flat piece of intersecting yarn loops, you have already created something useful.  A child will take that flat piece and use it as a baby blanket for their baby doll; place that crocheted piece on a chair for your cat to curl up on or depending upon the size, someone would surely love to have it placed on their lap for some warmth.  Anyways, you get the idea, you don’t have to get elaborate with crocheting if you don’t want to.  BUT, those creative juices will want you to explore further and challenge yourself to try to make something a little more intricate. Back to basics though, a simple chain stitch *(ch) combined with a single crochet  *(sc) will give you a lovely piece of yarn fabric to do with as your heart desires.  You say this doesn’t really appeal to you, well part of my goal here is to keep stitches going forever, so maybe your child or niece/nephew or students might have the interest in trying crochet.  You both could learn and practice together or show the younger generation what can be created out of a skein of yarn and one crochet hook. As a beginner, I would recommend using a larger crochet hook, say a size J and a 4 ply worsted weight skein of yarn.  There is a lot out there to chose from but stay simple in the beginning to minimize any frustration especially if you are working with a child.  Probably be helpful to roll your skein into a ball and then place that ball into a small bin or basket to keep it from rolling away from you.  As a side thought, you could probably use a square tissue box, gently open from the bottom, place your ball of yarn inside, then seal closed and have your yarn pull from the top.  Viola, you are ready to start crocheting.   Begin your project with the chain stitch (ch) making it as long as you want but probably 18″ – 24″ is a very workable width.  Here’s a link to a very informative YouTube video for the beginner crocheter to show you exactly how to do the chain stitch and single crochet.

After completing your chain stitches (ch), you will begin to do single crochet (sc) stitches beginning in the second chain stitch from your crochet hook. So, if you chained 50 chain loops, you will be doing 49 single crochet loops.   At the end of each row of single crochet (sc) you will do one chain stitch (ch), turn your work and then single crochet (sc) back through each previous single crochet (sc), which means you will always be doing 49 single crochet stitches for each row.  When you have your fabric as long as you want it or just used up your entire skein of yarn, you will then fasten off.  Very easy to fasten off, you have one loop on your crochet hook, wiggle your hook back and forth to enlarge that loop, take your yarn and cut it off leaving about a 4″ tail.  Pull that tail through your enlarged loop, remove your hook and then pull that tail very tight.  Basically, you are making a knot, then weave that tail through your stitches to complete your work.

Now you have a wonderful, flat piece of yarn/fabric to do with as you please bringing a smile to your face as well as your child’s face.  To me, there is nothing more satisfying than to have made something with your own hands and to pass along this art skill to someone else.

 

HAPPY CREATING!!

  *ABBREVIATIONS used in crochet patterns:   (ch) chain stitch    (sc) single crochet

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Not the same old Resolution!!

Jan11

The beginning of a new year makes us ready for resolutions of all kinds.  Why not take this time to organize all those sewing supplies, clean your sewing machine and stock up on your sewing notions!!

Make sure you have plenty of sewing needles:  Sizes 9, 10 are great for delicate fabrics, Sizes 12, 14 work for medium weight fabrics and Sizes 16, 18 are for those heavier fabrics like denim.  Sewing with a good, sharp needle can really make a difference when sewing and in the completed project itself.  One needle is good for about 15 hours of sewing.  Also, you can use little wire baskets to store your needles by sizes and types.

Now is a great time also to read your sewing machine manual again to make sure you are oiling it correctly.  Take off the needle plate and use a little brush to remove all those pesky thread fuzzies!!  Keep a small makeup brush in your supply stash to dust your machine regularly.

Purchase some new bobbins for your machine to have ready for all those projects you have dancing in your head.  Nothing worse than to begin a new activity and realize all your bobbins are filled with the wrong color of thread.  Also, organize your spools of thread by color on a thread rack.  They are ready at a glance for that inspirational moment that strikes at 10:00 p.m. or, like me, at 5:00 a.m. Take a moment to sort bias tapes, elastics, Velcro, etc. into small totes for easy access.  Small canning jars work nicely for buttons and make for a fun display too.  Sorting your buttons by color is really a time saver.

A couple of sewing references that I enjoy checking out are Clotilde and Atlanta Thread and Supply.

Just taking an afternoon or weekend getting your sewing space organized, labeled, and cleaned up will not only brighten your area but will give you that “feel good” fuel to generate new projects.

HAPPY CREATING!!

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