CREATING "BINDING" ON FLEECE

According to Claire Shaeffer, author of "Claire Shaeffer's Fabric Sewing Guide", you can create the look of binding on fleece without the effort. Fold the hem or seam allowance to the right side, edgestitch 3/8" from the cut edge, then trim away the excess. For a decorative finish, trim with pinking shears.

EASY NO-SEW EDGE TECHNIQUES for FLEECE

Easy No-Sew edge techniques include: DECORATIVE CUT - waves, zig-zag, pinking and more, just check out the decorative edge blades available for your Olfa Rotary cutter! FRINGE - using a straight scissors or decorative edge cut, cut 1/2" by 4" fringes and leave as is or tie into square knots. CUTAWAY Patterns - some prints lend themselves to fun finishes, simply by cutting around the design on the edge of the blanket.

DETERMINING AMOUNT FOR BINDING SCALLOPED EDGE QUILT

Use a string to follow the curved edges of a scalloped edge quilt. Then meaure the string to determine the perimeter to know how much binding you will need.

ROLLED HEMS on Oval or Circular Projects

Have you ever been doing a rolled hem on a circular or oval tablecloth or skirt and had it stretch on the bias as you do the rolled hem? According to Marie Duncan in the April 2006 issue of SQE Professional Magazine, you can prevent this from happening by doing the following: "Set your sewing machine for a small stitch, 1 1/2 or 2, and center needle position straight stitch. Align the edge of your foot with the edge of the fabric. Straight stitch around the edge being careful not to stretch the fabric. The edge should lie perfectly flat. Then carefully cut right next to your stitching. The bias edge is now stabilized and won't stretch as you feed it through the rolled hem foot."

HOSTESS GIFTS

Aprons make wonderful hostess gifts! FABRIC & TEXTILE WAREHOUSE has many fun, whimsical aprons, plus many beautiful apron panels to stitch for hostess gifts!
For $6 - $8 you can sew up an apron in less than an hour and give a wonderful gift!

SEW A PILLOW CASE AS A GIFT BAG FOR A FLEECE BLANKET!

Stitch a fun pillowcase to coordinate with that fleece blanket you are giving as a gift and use the pillowcase as a gift bag for the blanket!
Come buy some fun fabric to go with the fleece and FABRIC & TEXTILE WAREHOUSE will give you a free quick and easy pillowcase pattern!

EASY MITERED TABLECLOTH and NAPKINS PATTERN!

Stitch a fun and easy mitered tablecloth and matching napkins!
Materials Needed: 1-1/2 yard of 54" Main Decorator Print (54" Square)
2 yards of 54" Contrast Decorator Print for Border & Napkins
Directions - Sew using 1/4" seam allowance.
1) Prewash Fabric and Press.
2) From the 2 yards of Contrast Print, cut four 6-1/2" strips by 72" for borders, and cut four 15" squares for napkins.
3) Find the center of each border strip and crease. Match the border center with the center of one side of the tablecloth top and pin along the length, right sides together.
4) Starting and stopping 1/4" from each corner, sew the border strip to the main print. Continue to sew all four border strips to the main tablecloth print in this way. Press the seam allowances to the center of the tablecloth.
5) Working in one corner, fold the tablecloth top at a 45 degree angle, right sides together. Align the edges of adjacent borders, match border seam lines, and pin through all layers.
6) Place a ruler along the fold and extend the length across the border strips, aligning the 45 degree angle for the ruler with the border's edge. Draw a line from the border corner along the ruler's edge. Pin the border strips and sew on the marked line.
7) Trim the seam allowances to 1/4" and press open. Repeat for all the border corners. Finish tablecloth by hemming with a rolled hem or fold over hem.
8) Matching Napkins: Roll hem or fold over hem on all four 15" Squares.

SEWING MACHINE NEEDLE CUSHION

Use a "Tomato" Pin Cushion to keep track of the sizes of sewing machine needles. Using a permanent pen, simply number each section on the pin cushion with the different sizes of the machine needles you use. When you take out a needle, replace it with a large headed straight pin. This way you will be able to tell what size needle is in your machine when you sit down to sew!

PROPER PANT HEM LENGTHS

According to Mary Roehr, the standard pant hem length is the same for men and women. This standard applies to average business or dress pants that are 8" to 9" across the bottom when hemmed, a width that allows the pant hem to cover the ankle and part of the top of the shoe. When hemmed, the ideal length allows for a slight break in thr front, tapering down 1/4" to 1/2" longer in the back. The pants "bag" or have a slight fold that rests on top of the shoe when standing and disappears when the knee is bent. Always mark the new hem before removing the old one. A good hem width is 1 1/2" to 2". Hem stitching should not show on the right side of the garment unless it is topstitched. This excerpt is from Mary Roehr's SEW SENSATIONAL column from the February 2001 Sewing Professional Magazine. She is the author of several sewing books, including "Altering Women's Ready-to-Wear" and "Altering Men's Ready-to-Wear".

MATCHING UP SNAPS

If your snaps don't always match up, try this: first, sew the ball half of the snap, then rub the top of it with chalk. Fold fabric over it and then sew the other snap half on top of the chalk mark.

QUILTER'S HUMOR

A recent study has indicated that fabric gives off certain pheromones that actually hypnotize women and cause them to purchase ungodly amounts. When stored in large quantities in enclosed spaces, the pheromones in the fabric cause memory loss and induce the nesting syndrome, similar to the one squirrels have before the onset of winter (i.e., storing food).
Sound tests have also revealed that these fabrics emit a very high-pitched sound, heard only by a breed of women known as quilters. When played backwards on a LP, the sounds are heard as chants: "Buy Me! Cut Me! Sew Me!" In order to overcome the so-called feeding frenzy effect that these fabrics cause, one must wear a face mask when entering a storage facility and use earplugs to avoid being pulled into their grip. (One must laugh, however, at the sight of customers in a fabric store with WWII army gas masks and headphones!) In addition, studies have also indicated that aliens have infiltrated the earth, helping to spread the effect that these fabrics have on the quilting population. They are called FABRIC STORE CLERKS!
It has been my experience that these same pheromones cause a pathological need to hide away these fabric purchases when taken home (or at least blend them into the existing stash), and when asked by a significant other if the fabric is new, the reply is "I've had it for a while!"
(This article was originally published in the August 1997 issue of the Western North Carolina Quilters Guild Newsletter)