Fabric.com coupons… again!
October 18, 2009 by Lex
Filed under Features, Supply Junkies Anonymous
Those evil fabric pushers at Fabric.com are at it again!
Here I was, minding my own business, when I found myself buying MORE fabric! I just can’t contain myself, I guess.
In my own defense, part of my order was for making high efficiency curtains for our house (tutorial to come!), which will save us money in the long run. That’s not so bad, right?
I was able to further excuse my behavior by using one of their fabulously evil coupons… 30% off ain’t nothing to sneeze at!
In case you’re like me, and you order fabric every time the sun rises, I’ve included several coupon options, since they’re one use per customer deals. And yes, I have now used them all. *hangs head in shame*
For 30% off: 2PLTRY9
For 30% off: 3PLTRY9 on orders over $50
For 25% off: 2TRY9
For 20% off: annv1
Now… off to sew, so I can make room for… more fabric!
how to make a pair of armwarmers tutorial
October 18, 2009 by Lex
Filed under 1 pin (Easy) Tutorials, Clothing, Sewing, Tutorials + How Tos, WhatTheCraft.com Tutorials
This is a super quick and easy tutorial – perfect for beginners!
Difficulty:
You’ll need:
- A t-shirt with a sweet pattern or about 1/2 yard of fabric
- Sharp scissors
- Sewing machine or needle and thread
Step 1
Measure around the top of your arm (where you want the top of the armwarmer to reach) and around your wrist.
Determine how long you want your armwarmers to be and add a few inches for hemming. If you don’t mind raw edges, or you’d prefer to finish the edges of the armwarmers with lace or trim, you can skip hemming all together.
Step 1
Step 2
Now you’re going to cut some trapezoid shaped pieces out of your t-shirt or fabric. The widest end should be half of your upper arm measurement, and the skinnier end should be half of your wrist measurement.
Cut through both the back and front of the t-shirt so you wind up with 4 trapezoids. If you’re using fabric instead of a t-shirt, fold it in half before you cut so you wind up with 4 pieces.
Step 2
Step 3
Lay each set of trapezoids so that the outside or “right” side of the pieces are facing each other. Sew up the side seams and hem the top and bottom if you want. Turn them right-side-out and ta-da!
You can add lace, buttons, whatever you want.
Step 3
Looking for awesome knit fabrics?
Try: Ebay – Fabric.com
Or take a look at our Craft Supplies Database for a huge list of great online fabric stores.
Step 4
Shazzam!
Some sweet armwarmers to go with your weird mitten hands! 
Step 4
Choosing the Right Needle
October 18, 2009 by Lex
Filed under Sewing, Sewing 101, Tutorials + How Tos, WhatTheCraft.com Tutorials
Using the wrong needle can make your sewing life a living hell. If your machine is skipping stitches or creating a lovely ball of thread on the underside of the fabric when you try to sew, and you’ve tried replacing the needle with a new one, it may be the wrong type of needle.
Universal needles are intended for most sewing projects. They work well with woven fabrics.
If you are working with knits, you should use ballpoint needles. They have a rounder edge than universal needles, which prevents the needle from snagging or cutting the fabric.
There are other kinds of specialty needles besides ballpoint. For example, there are special needles for sewing leather (made to make holes that close up on themselves) and denim (made to sew through many layers of thick fabric).
Most needle packages are marked with two sizes. The higher number is the European size. The lower number is the American size.
Here’s a quick guide with a list of some common types of fabric for each weight and the corresponding appropriate needle size.
|
Weight/Type of Fabric
|
Needle Size (American)
|
| Very Lightweight (chiffon, voile, organza, silk, etc.) |
8 or 9
|
| Lightweight (tricot, lightweight lycra, taffeta, etc.) |
9, 10, 11
|
| Medium-weight (muslin, broadcloth, flannel, most knits and jerseys, wool, satin, etc.) |
12 or 14
|
| Heavyweight (tweed, twill, sweatshirt fleece, fleece, etc.) |
14 or 16
|
| Very Heavyweight (denim, duck cloth, canvas, heavy upholstery/home dec fabrics, etc.) |
16 or 18
|
Measuring, fitting, and patternmaking
October 17, 2009 by Lex
Filed under Clothing, Sewing, Sewing 101, Tutorials + How Tos, WhatTheCraft.com Tutorials
If you’re using the tutorials on this site, please keep in mind that almost all of them are intended to be used with stretch fabric (t-shirts, knit, jersey, interlock, etc.). Why? Because the fabric stretches, you can be a lot less accurate with fit, and you don’t need to mess with darts!
If you’re a decent seamstress, you can probably adapt some of them to non-stretch fabrics pretty easily by adding an inch or two here and there, and by planning for some sort of closing/opening device (zippers, buttons, etc.).
If you’re making clothing for yourself, make sure you’ve got accurate measurements for yourself. If you don’t know how to measure yourself, it’s pretty simple:
Your bust is the widest part of your chest.
Your natural waist is the slimmest part of your torso, generally a few inches above your belly button.
Your low waist is where you wear the waistband of your pants/skirts.
Your hips are the widest part of your lower body.
Note: Your bra size is not an accurate bust measurement.
If you are not confident in your ability to correctly measure yourself, find a garment that fits you well (it’s best if it’s made of a similar fabric to whatever you’re going to be using), and measure that.
And finally: Any tutorial here will probably need a bit of tweaking to fit your unique bod.
I get a lot of questions about making patterns from scratch. If it were as easy as writing up a tutorial, I’d do it, but it’s not.
My first tip is to forget the “from scratch” part, at least for now. Most, if not all of us, at least started with a store bought pattern of some sort. Don’t believe me? My first hoodie pattern was made from a long sleeve t-shirt pattern that I’d bought and modified. I made up a hood pattern by tracing a hoodie I already had, and bam!
So if you’re interested in making your own patterns, I’d suggest to get comfortable with the basic shape of some simple pattern pieces first: sleeves, pant legs, etc.
The best way to get a good pattern, in my opinion, is to cut up something with a shape and fit you already like. It’s cheap, and you get to see what it looks like before you cut it up and make another one.
The second best way is to buy some actual patterns. A lot of people really hate patterns, but you get the added bonus of instructions for how to put it all together. Check out this link for really good instructions for resizing patterns: http://www.sensibility.com/pattern/resizepattern.htm
My last piece of advice is to get comfortable sewing before you try to make your own patterns. You’re taking a 2D shape and making it fit a 3D body… it’s not the kind of thing everyone is good at. Some people will get it faster than others, but with practice, you’ll figure out what goes where.
Finally, for a very basic, made-to-fit top pattern, check out this tutorial.
Sewing Machine Troubleshooting Guide
October 16, 2009 by Lex
Filed under Sewing, Sewing 101, Tutorials + How Tos, WhatTheCraft.com Tutorials
Unfortunately, I can’t really help you learn to use your machine through the internets. That’s what Grandma’s are for.
Saxby Says: Troubleshoot this!
If you’ve never used a sewing machine before, I highly recommend you either take a class or have someone who knows what they’re doing help you out. If you’re buying from a dealer, ask them to give you a quick lesson on at least threading the machine.
All machines are bound to be a little different, so even if you have used one before, take a look at the manual if you are using a new machine. I was threading a new machine wrong for 2 weeks before I actually looked up the manual online, and realized I had been skipping a step! Luckily, I wasn’t doing anything so wrong that it could do damage. It is possible to do something so wrong that you’ll break the machine before you even get to use it, so you might as well get friendly with the manual.
General Maintenance
Big Tip #1: DO NOT FORCE THE HANDWHEEL. If you put the bobbin in, and it won’t turn, something’s wrong. Forcing it is likely to break something.
Big Tip #2: READ THE MANUAL. If you don’t have a manual, I suggest you find one. You will need it. Some websites have the manuals for free online, other sites sell them. I’d read it pretty much cover to cover while sitting at your machine so you know who does what.
You might want to check you particular sewing machine brand’s website. They sometimes offer a downloadable version for free.
Here are some sites that have manuals available:
- FixYa – lots of free manuals, newer machines
- SewUSA – manual excerpts and repair guides, especially for older machines
- SewingOnline – manuals for purchase in the UK
- Singer Manuals -manuals for Singer machines, most of them are around $15
Big tip #3: Oil your machine often and keep it as lint free as possible. The manual should show where to oil it (See? You really do need it). My manual recommends a de-linting and oiling once a month, or once a week if you use it often.
On to the specific troubleshooting…
PROBLEM #1 – My bobbin thread won’t come out!
Once you’ve got the needle threaded, grab on to the end of the needle thread. Slowly lower the needle manually with the handwheel while keeping a loose grip on the needle thread. When you raise the needle back up, the bobbin thread will be looped around the needle thread. Pull the needle thread forward gently and grab the bobbin thread.
PROBLEM #2 – I can’t get the bobbin case IN!
When you’re inserting the bobbin, make sure the needle is in the up position. If the needle is all the way down, you won’t be able to get the bobbin in at all.
PROBLEM #3, 4, 5…. infinity!
Whether your thread is jamming, the machine is skipping stitches, etc.- if you’re having major problems with your machine, try some of the following tricks:
Trick #1: Needles
There are specific needles for different fabrics. For woven fabric (usually not stretchy) you want a universal needle, which is pretty much the standard. There are different shanks and machines that maybe require special needles, so again… check your manual.
For knits (think t-shirt fabric or other stretchy stuff), you want a ballpoint needle. It will usually say right on the package “for knits”.
If you try to use the wrong needle for the wrong fabric (i.e. a woven needle while sewing knit fabric), you can encounter problems. Some machines aren’t finicky enough to care, some are. Sometimes it’s just that time of the month for your machine.
Trick #2: Bobbins
Sometimes a bobbin gets wound just a little bit wonky. It might only be a small portion of it, but it can cause problems all the same. To rule out a crappily wound bobbin, try a new one. If your machine works alright with the new bobbin, unwind some of the thread on the bad bobbin, and try it again.
Trick #3: Needles again!
When you have trouble with your machine, try a new needle. Needles are fairly easily bent. Sometimes you wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at it that it’s bent, but as soon as you change the needle, everything works again. Trust me on this one… I hate throwing away what looks like a perfectly good needle. When my machine starts acting up, I’ll do everything BUT change the needle. Nothing works, so I’ll swear a lot, grumble to myself… and then finally change the needle, only to find that it was indeed the needle. Good as new.
And don’t forget to throw those bent needles away, they’ll only come back to haunt you if you don’t.
Trick #4: Tension
The tension controls how “tight” the stitches are.
When you’re looking at the top of your fabric, you shouldn’t be able to see the bobbin thread in the stitching, and vice versa. Both side of the stitching should only have one thread visible. If you can see two separate threads, you probably have a tension problem.
Top thread, good tension. You can't see the black (bobbin) thread from the top.
Bobbin thread, good tension. You can't see the red (needle) thread from the top.
If you pull gently on the seam with your fingers, you shouldn't be able to see much of the threads.
Generally, if your machine was working fine the last time you used it, you’ll only have to adjust the needle tension.
If you can see bobbin thread on the top (needle side) of your fabric, lower the needle tension.
If your needle thread (see photo below) is being pulled to the bobbin side of the fabric, increase the needle tension.
Why is tension important? Improperly balanced tension means stitches that are more likely to break.
The bobbin thread is so tight, it's pulling the needle thread underneath the fabric.
If you can see this much thread on the outside of your seam, one or both thread tensions are too loose.
If one or both tensions are too tight, you'll get puckering, like this.
Occasionally you might have to fiddle with the bobbin tension. There should be a tiny screw on the side of the bobbin that controls the tension.
The tighter the screw, the tighter the tension, and the looser the screw… you get the idea? You don’t have to adjust it much to make a difference.
bobbin screw - controls tension
Some machines don’t have bobbins. Some machines without bobbins don’t let you adjust the lower tension. I’d consult your manual if you’re having tension troubles in either of those cases.
TRICK #5: Throw in the towel
Well, not really. But sometimes, for some unknown reason, it helps to shut off the machine, and let it rest.
Sometimes your machine is just having a bad day and wants to left alone. You’ll come back the next day, and without changing a thing, she’ll work good as new.
I don’t know why this is: maybe the motor’s too hot…. Either way, it’s true.
TRICK #6: The last resort
If you’re having serious machine issues, and none of the above tricks helped, it might be time to see your local repairman. It’s always good to get a basic tune-up on your machine now and again, anyway!
no-sew tie back halter tutorial
October 16, 2009 by Lex
Filed under Clothing, No-Sew, Tutorials + How Tos, WhatTheCraft.com Tutorials
This tutorial is great for beginners because it requires no sewing! All you really need is a sharp pair of scissors, an old tee, and about 15 minutes!
Difficulty:
You’ll need:
- A t-shirt that’s too big for you or approximately 1 yard of stretch/knit fabric
- Sharp scissors
Step 1
Lay your shirt out on a flat surface. As always, I recommend trying this on an old shirt first, in case you make mistakes. Then you can use that as a pattern for your good shirt.
Step 1
Step 2
Mark your tee like so. You might want to use a tank top as a guide for where to place the shoulder straps. All 3 sets of straps (halter, bust, and waist) should wrap around to the back.
Step 2
Step 3
So the back will look something like this. You can add more rows of straps if you want. 1 strap, 5 straps, 10 straps. It’s all up to you. Just make sure the straps are long enough to tie in back. You can always cut them shorter once you know they reach.
Step 3
Step 4
Cut where you’ve marked. The end product, laid flat, will look like this. You’re done! You don’t need to worry about finishing the ends, because knit fabric doesn’t fray.
Step 4
Awesomely Spooky Contest!
Come one come all to the DiyScene ball where ghouls and goblins ooze out of our walls.
The game of the night is a seekers delight, where you might get yourself lost searching all through night.
Coffins and crossbones litter the scene, and it’s up to you creatures to determine who shall be queen.
On your throne you shall sit, basking in glory, of being the one written into the DiyScene story…of who won the HALLOWEEN EDITION OF HIDE AND SEEK!
Let’s get it on!
This Hide and Seek Halloween Edition is brought to you by the amazing Etsy Street Team, DIYScene. (Search tag DIYScene Team on Etsy for great stuff!) All of the shops listed below have secretly placed one of these two icons in their shop photos. Your job is to find them. Don’t forget to check sold items!
Hide and Seek runs from October 1st through October 9th. Make a list of the item links and email them to: diyscenehns2009@yahoo.com. ALL correct entries will then be placed into a randomizer to determine 3 winners so take your time, and browse around!
Each shop that is playing has donated something amazing for the prize baskets grand prize valued at over $300.00 and 2nd and 3rd prize valued at over $200
These are the icons you are searching for. Each shop will have one of the icons in one of their listing photos. Search carefully, some are not so easy to spot!
Shops to search:
www.AfterMidnightDesigns.etsy.com
www.FabulouslyFiercePets.etsy.com
www.Indiscretion.etsy.com
www.ItsASwindle.etsy.com
www.jenellsrevenge.etsy.com
www.PoisonedCreations.etsy.com
www.SyntheticSeduction.etsy.com
www.TheClayPony.etsy.com
www.XpoppysWickedGardenX.etsy.com
