Category Archives: tips

Giveaway Winner & Tips for You

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Our latest winner of the Little Bird and Daisies workshop giveaway is Debby P. Congratulations! I’m sending off 2 yards of Wonder Under #805 fusible web to Debby soon so she can fuse up a storm!

Tips on Fusing You Can Stick To

Need a little reminder about fusing etiquette? You’re in luck! The Chicago School of Fusing has a handy list of the do’s and don’ts when working with fusible web. Learn about:

  • What types of fusible web and fabrics to use
  • How to fuse tack so you don’t kill the glue
  • How to clean that filthy iron

Check out the Rules of Etiquette from the Chicago School of Fusing here.

Remember, in celebration of having my online class, Little Bird and Daisies, on Creative Spark, I’m giving away something every Tuesday related to the online workshop. See you next Tuesday!

Being Knotty

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For a long time, I’ve been a knotty girl. As you can see, I tend to place a knot on the end of my pearl cotton threads before stitching. But no longer! I have mended my unsightly knotty ways. 

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Now I neatly start and stop my stitching on the back of the fabric. Here are a few tips on being a neat stitcher:

  • Take a few back stitches concealed in the back of the fabric when beginning a new thread (don’t let the thread appear on the top of the piece). If you use a knot to anchor the thread, be aware that your needle may strike the knot when stitching and stretch previous stitches.
  • To end a thread, run the needle through a few adjacent stitches on the back of the work and snip the thread.
  • Snip ending threads close to the fabric. Long threads on the back may tangle with other threads while stitching.

How to Clean Up Your Work Area

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 As you may have guessed, I am a total Neat Freak. And if you guessed this, you would be wrong. Cause I am neither neat, nor tidy, nor clean when I sew. There are fabric and thread clippings everywhere! 

But I do have a cleaning tip for you. Use batting. Place a small square of batting next to your sewing machine and drop your thread snips onto it. It’s a good way to keep the threads from slipping to the floor.

 

580CD0F9-77AE-4EC6-95CC-7C80A2FB8C09 Sweep up your work area with batting. I use it to dust my work tables and Teflon covered work table. You’d be surprised at how many fibers it collects. (No doubt my Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval is in the mail.)

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And here’s another use for batting. Make a small ball and throw it to your cat. My cats would go nuts over a ball of batting. Not sure why. Who knows what’s going on in the brain of a cat?

Another cat related item. A student in my class who loves cats had a bag that said “I’m just one cat short of crazy.” Keep that in mind all you cat lovers out there!