Hi! Been a silent admirer of your works for a while now. Undertook some experiments on my own and came up with some questions I don't seem to find answers to. Hopefully, you can offer some help.
1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Hi There, It's a bit strange to write to someone whose name is a mystery. Anyway, thank you very much for the compliments - We are flattered. We'll try to answer your questions the best we can - See our reply below within your text.
Best breezes Eli & Shula Shavit
1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
This indeed is a problem that we face too - Sewing does cause some shrinkage along the seams thus affecting the flatness & size. Here are a few suggestions that may help: • As you mention, playing with the thread tension helps sometimes. • How do you keep both layers of fabric together during sewing so they don't slip? If you use pins they tend to distort the fabric. We usually use a water soluble glue stick. Not all glue sticks work well for kite fabric so you have to get a suitable one - We (& many other kite fliers) use the UHU glue stick. This type does not "harm" the sewing machine. You do, however, need to clean the sewing foot occasionally to remove any accumulation of glue on the bottom. Excess glue is wiped off the fabric with water easily. • We are using several sizes of templates as we go and not just the final size of the block. For example, if we make a 30cm x 30cm block using the Log Cabin technique, we would would have at least four sizes of templates - The center square, 10cm x 10cm, 20cm x 20cm & 30cm x 30cm. We mark each of them accurately and sew on the lines. This gives you a much more accurate block & helps flatness. • Sewing accurately and straight along the lines is very important. If you "venture" even one millimeter from the straight line you will immediately get a bow in the fabric when you open it.
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Yes, we fold back and make the second seam each time two pieces are sewn together. You can also sew a bunch of pairs and then do the fold back in sequence one after the other. It is important to do it always before the next step of sewing.
Hi There, It's a bit strange to write to someone whose name is a mystery. Anyway, thank you very much for the compliments - We are flattered. We'll try to answer your questions the best we can - See our reply below within your text.
Best breezes Eli & Shula Shavit
1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
This indeed is a problem that we face too - Sewing does cause some shrinkage along the seams thus affecting the flatness & size. Here are a few suggestions that may help: • As you mention, playing with the thread tension helps sometimes. • How do you keep both layers of fabric together during sewing so they don't slip? If you use pins they tend to distort the fabric. We usually use a water soluble glue stick. Not all glue sticks work well for kite fabric so you have to get a suitable one - We (& many other kite fliers) use the UHU glue stick. This type does not "harm" the sewing machine. You do, however, need to clean the sewing foot occasionally to remove any accumulation of glue on the bottom. Excess glue is wiped off the fabric with water easily. • We are using several sizes of templates as we go and not just the final size of the block. For example, if we make a 30cm x 30cm block using the Log Cabin technique, we would would have at least four sizes of templates - The center square, 10cm x 10cm, 20cm x 20cm & 30cm x 30cm. We mark each of them accurately and sew on the lines. This gives you a much more accurate block & helps flatness. • Sewing accurately and straight along the lines is very important. If you "venture" even one millimeter from the straight line you will immediately get a bow in the fabric when you open it.
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Yes, we fold back and make the second seam each time two pieces are sewn together. You can also sew a bunch of pairs and then do the fold back in sequence one after the other. It is important to do it always before the next step of sewing.
Thanks for the reply. Everything I've done to date is self taught. Your help to shorten my learning curve is greatly appreciated.
Looks like I have to turn to the inevitable: GLUE, something that I've been avoiding for some time now. This will increase the build time significantly, no?
Apologies for the nic, old school but necessary to keep my obsession from plying eyes (bosses!). BTW, this is my FB page: http://www.facebook.com/sgwindman
Hi! Been a silent admirer of your works for a while now. Undertook some experiments on my own and came up with some questions I don't seem to find answers to. Hopefully, you can offer some help.
ReplyDelete1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Hope to hear from you soon.
REgards,
SgWindMan
Hi There,
DeleteIt's a bit strange to write to someone whose name is a mystery. Anyway, thank you very much for the compliments - We are flattered.
We'll try to answer your questions the best we can -
See our reply below within your text.
Best breezes
Eli & Shula Shavit
1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
This indeed is a problem that we face too - Sewing does cause some shrinkage along the seams thus affecting the flatness & size. Here are a few suggestions that may help:
• As you mention, playing with the thread tension helps sometimes.
• How do you keep both layers of fabric together during sewing so they don't slip? If you use pins they tend to distort the fabric. We usually use a water soluble glue stick. Not all glue sticks work well for kite fabric so you have to get a suitable one - We (& many other kite fliers) use the UHU glue stick. This type does not "harm" the sewing machine. You do, however, need to clean the sewing foot occasionally to remove any accumulation of glue on the bottom. Excess glue is wiped off the fabric with water easily.
• We are using several sizes of templates as we go and not just the final size of the block. For example, if we make a 30cm x 30cm block using the Log Cabin technique, we would would have at least four sizes of templates - The center square, 10cm x 10cm, 20cm x 20cm & 30cm x 30cm. We mark each of them accurately and sew on the lines. This gives you a much more accurate block & helps flatness.
• Sewing accurately and straight along the lines is very important. If you "venture" even one millimeter from the straight line you will immediately get a bow in the fabric when you open it.
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Yes, we fold back and make the second seam each time two pieces are sewn together. You can also sew a bunch of pairs and then do the fold back in sequence one after the other. It is important to do it always before the next step of sewing.
Hi There,
DeleteIt's a bit strange to write to someone whose name is a mystery. Anyway, thank you very much for the compliments - We are flattered.
We'll try to answer your questions the best we can -
See our reply below within your text.
Best breezes
Eli & Shula Shavit
1. Whenever I seamed the smaller pieces together, I had a hard time keeping the pieces flat. Tried lessening the thread tension but that don't seems to help. Any suggestion?
This indeed is a problem that we face too - Sewing does cause some shrinkage along the seams thus affecting the flatness & size. Here are a few suggestions that may help:
• As you mention, playing with the thread tension helps sometimes.
• How do you keep both layers of fabric together during sewing so they don't slip? If you use pins they tend to distort the fabric. We usually use a water soluble glue stick. Not all glue sticks work well for kite fabric so you have to get a suitable one - We (& many other kite fliers) use the UHU glue stick. This type does not "harm" the sewing machine. You do, however, need to clean the sewing foot occasionally to remove any accumulation of glue on the bottom. Excess glue is wiped off the fabric with water easily.
• We are using several sizes of templates as we go and not just the final size of the block. For example, if we make a 30cm x 30cm block using the Log Cabin technique, we would would have at least four sizes of templates - The center square, 10cm x 10cm, 20cm x 20cm & 30cm x 30cm. We mark each of them accurately and sew on the lines. This gives you a much more accurate block & helps flatness.
• Sewing accurately and straight along the lines is very important. If you "venture" even one millimeter from the straight line you will immediately get a bow in the fabric when you open it.
2. When do you do the fold back? Immediately after each seam or......
Yes, we fold back and make the second seam each time two pieces are sewn together. You can also sew a bunch of pairs and then do the fold back in sequence one after the other. It is important to do it always before the next step of sewing.
Thanks for the reply. Everything I've done to date is self taught. Your help to shorten my learning curve is greatly appreciated.
ReplyDeleteLooks like I have to turn to the inevitable: GLUE, something that I've been avoiding for some time now. This will increase the build time significantly, no?
Apologies for the nic, old school but necessary to keep my obsession from plying eyes (bosses!). BTW, this is my FB page: http://www.facebook.com/sgwindman