Sewing & Fashion Section

Sewing & Fashion Section

Table of Contents Sewing and Fashion What is Japanese Tailoring?... I-2 Crayon Art with Snippets... I-2 Sewing with Spandex... I-3 Tuffets & Box Top Curtains... I-4 Machine Embroidery on Ready Made Items... II-5 Floriani Wet N Slick... II-6 Dupioni Silk Pinwheel Square... II-7 Easy Holiday Pillows & Easy Initial Pillows... II-7 Raggedy Reverse Applique Patterns... II-8 Charm Squares... III-9 Sew Artfully Yours... III-10 Embroidery... III-11 Thread Painting... IV-12 Hardangish - Hardanger Machine Embroidery... IV-14 Aardvark to Zebra... IV-14 Lace Dreams... IV-15 Smocking the Modern Way... IV-16 Special Effects Using Decorative Bobbin Threads... IV-16 Due to the size of this section, there are 4 different PDF files. Example: What is Japanese Tailoring? is on page I-2, which means it s in Part I on page 2, Machine Embroidery on Ready Made Items is on page II-5, which means it s in Part II, page 5, etc.

Thread Painting It s as Easy as 1, 2, 3. If you can count, you can thread paint. 1. Draw the design on a piece of water-soluble stabilizer film. 2. Add the underlay stitches 3. Fill the design with threadpainting stitches, consisting of either straight or zigzag stitches. 4. Soak the completed thread appliqué. 5. Remove the excess tulle. 6. Attach the thread appliqué to the quilt top. DIRECT METHOD OF THREAD PAINTING The following guidelines will help you determine when to use the direct method. Dense designs less than 3/8 wide Dense designs less than 3/8 In width, assuming they are correctly stabilized, can be successfully thread painted to the quilt top without distortion. Even small designs with a high-stitch density generally do not create enough pull and pooch to create serious puckers. Puckers can sometimes form, but are normally small enough to blend in during quilting. To control distortion, use two layers of stabilizer backing, proper underlay stitches, a small hoop, and the correct needle. Designs with low-stitch density Low-stitch density designs have few stitches per inch. The design has a lot of air space around individual stitches, which are normally only one or two threads thick. Generally, the quilt top can be seen through the stitches. In LOST IN THE MOMENT (fig. 5 10), the small shrubs behind the river are examples of a design with low-stitch density. Unstable designs too small to cut out Threads in some designs are unstable and fragile. In LOST IN THE MOMENT, the airiness of the palm tree fronds and the number of small areas involved make it much simpler to thread paint them direct. It is not unusual for various scenarios to exist in one design. Basically, if the design is light and airy and daylight can be seen through the design, use the direct method. 12

Direct method directions 1. Cut out one piece of water-soluble stabilizer film large enough to fit the design to thread paint, plus an additional 2 on all sides. 2. Tape the master pattern to a flat surface, and with a permanent ultra-fine black pen, carefully trace the design from the master pattern onto the center of the stabilizer film. If you have a group of trees or other landscape elements, the entire group can be drawn on one piece of stabilizer film. 3. Lightly pencil mark on the quilt top the location where the design is to be thread painted. 4. Cut two pieces of stabilizer backing the same size or larger than the stabilizer film. Lay the two pieces of backing on a flat surface. Lay the quilt top on the stabilizer, making sure the area to thread paint is centered correctly over the stabilizer. Pin the three layers together. 5. Lay the stabilizer film precisely in place on the quilt top. Pin the four layers together to assure the stabilizers and quilt top do not move. 6. Take the outer ring of the hoop and slide it underneath the four layers with the screw at the six-o -clock position. Take the inner hoop and gently push it on top of the four layers until it is secure inside the outer hoop. With your left fingertips holding the inner ring down, gently pull on the stabilizer film to remove any wrinkles. 7, Gently pull the fabric to smooth out any wrinkles. Gently is the word here don t pull the fabric on the bias. If the fabric still does not settle, remove the inner ring of the hoop and start over. 8. Leaving your fingertips on the inner hoop, tighten the screw to secure the outer ring, using a screwdriver if necessary. Adjust stabilizers or fabric if necessary and retighten the hoop as needed during thread painting. 9. Roll excess fabric and stabilizer toward the hoop and pin out of the way. Slide the hoop under the presser foot, assuring that no fabric is caught underneath. Pull the bobbin thread to the surface of the quilt top, secure a few stitches, cut the thread tail, and begin thread painting with the drawn-on design as the guide. Sometimes the thread-painted design lies at the edge of the quilt where there is not enough fabric to fit in the hoop properly. In this case, cut a piece of muslin 4 wide by the length of the side and machine baste it along the edge of the quilt with a 1/4 seam allowance. Hoop as previously explained (fig. 5 11). Remove the muslin strips when the design is complete. Removing stabilizer The stabilizer film and backing need to be trimmed or rinsed away once the section is complete. I. Cut away as much of the top stabilizer film as possible. Turn the quilt top over and trim the stabilizer backing to within 1/8 of the design. 2. Run hot water over the deign until most of the excess residue is gone. Use your fingers to work out the excess stabilizer. 3. For best results, let the quilt top air dry on a large towel. Steam press any wrinkles from the back. Remember not to touch the iron to the thread on the quilt top. Regardless of which method you use, thread paint the entire design in the hoop before moving the hoop to another location (fig. 5 13). It is easier to change thread than to keep moving the hoop around. COURTESY: Nancy Prince Author & designer 13

Hardangish - Hardanger Machine Embroidery Hardanger embroidery (pronounced Har-dunger) is a form of cutwork which originated in the Hardanger region of Norway several hundreds of years ago. As a precursor to true lace, Hardanger spread through Western and Southern Europe with the Renaissance, helping inspire other cut fabric and lace arts. With the migration of Scandinavian immigrates to the United States during the 1 8th century, Hardanger blended into American culture and remains an enduring fabric art that is done with the greatest patience and care. Traditional Hardanger is a form of counted-thread embroidery worked on an even-weave fabric with 22 threads per inch and, since its revival in the 1970 s, comes in many colors. Pearl cotton #5 and #8 is the thread used to create Hardanger by hand. fabric, exposing the water-soluble stabilizer bottom layer. Once the hoop is reattached to the embroidery unit, the machine stitches the rest of the design on the fabric and on the water-soluble stabilizer, as appropriate. Once the design is stitched, you may remove the fabric from the hoop and rinse out the water-soluble stabilizer. One concept of my Hardangish, includes the creation of individual blocks of Hardangish designs, sewn into squares by any of today s machine embroidery with a hoop capable of stitching a 4 x 4 square design, these Hardangish squares can be stitched together to create a larger Hardangish piece, as large or small as you desire, in any arrangement you can imagine. Hardanger is usually made into aprons and table linens and requires many hours of detailed stitching to create a Hardanger piece. Even the smallest of Hardanger pieces can represent dozens, if not hundreds, of hours. Despite the time and detail, even today you may find this art form being used to create ornaments, christening gowns, and a long list of very interesting and intricately ornate garments. You can now sew Hardanger on an embroidery machine in a fraction of the time. I call this Hardangish because it is Hardanger-like. Hardangish attempts to capture the best elements of this art form while remaining as true, as possible, to its cutwork concepts. Fabric and water- soluble stabilizer are hooped together into the machines embroidery hoop. The fabric is the top layer and the water-soluble stabilizer is the bottom layer. To create the cutwork areas, the machine sews an outline defining the areas of the fabric that you cut away. Once cutwork sections are defined onto the fabric, the machine stops. At this time, you remove the hoop from the machine and trim away the Because it divorces itself from the concept of counted and pulled threads in favor of the precision and accuracy of machine embroidery, Hardangish designs may be sewn onto a much wider variety of fabrics woven or knits, high-thread count cottons, silks, and synthetics. Hardangish can and has been tried on clothes, pillowcases, linens, and turned into ornaments. Yes, you may even sew Hardangish onto traditional Hardanger fabric or any even weave fabrics, if you seek a more traditional look. For threads, again, Hardangish expands your notions palette to include a wide variety of cottons, rayons, silks, polyesters, metallics, etc. To give your Hardangish an authentic look, use the same thread in the top and bobbin of the machine, should your machine allow it. Doing so gives your Hardangish piece a more authentic look that, hopefully, only a true, by hand, Hardanger embroiderer will ever notice. COURTESY: Laura Waterfield Laura s Sewing Studio www.laurassewingstudio.net For information on making dolls and animals and doing needlesculpting, contact Lois Boncer at www.aardvarktozebra.com 14

Lace Dreams Lace Dreams is an ambitious series of embroidery projects, whereby I attempt to take embroidery beyond the hoop. With Lace Dreams garment patterns, we take individual pieces of lace which we sew with home embroidery machines. Once the lace pieces are sewn, we zigzag stitch them together to create yokes for our Lace Dream garments. We assemble the fabric portion of our garments separately, using the same techniques we would use in any garment. The lace yokes are then attached onto the fabric portion of the garment. To add additional detail to the garment, more lace is made and applied to the hem. This series of Lace Dream garments are designed so that you may create a nightgown, dress, jumper, or blouse, simply by altering the hem line. This concept applies to both Sophia and Anastasia. To make lace with an embroidery machine you must first hoop only water soluble stabilizer. Lace Dream embroidery designs are meant to be sewn in all one color and directly onto the water soluble stabilizer. After you sew the lace, you wash out the stabilizer, leaving the thread as lace. Once dry, you zigzag stitch the completed lace pieces into the appropriate pattern. It s as simple as that. You may use a variety of embroidery threads to create your lace, including cotton, rayon, polyester, metallics and specialty threads like glitter, holographic, iridescent, as well as, glow in the dark threads. While Lace Dreams may be my way of taking embroidery beyond the hoop, the dream of what to do with it is ultimately yours. 15 Laura Waterfield Laura s Sewing Studio www.laurassewingstudio.net

Smocking the Modern Way Step #1 Gathering the fabric. Use a fabric that has an obvious line that you can follow like a plaid, or draw a single thread on the crosswise grain at selected intervals for the spacing desired. Demonstrate shirring using special purpose foot and straight stitch set at longest stitch length, tension loosened slightly. Draw bobbin thread manually to gather the fabric. We recommend using a contrast color thread in your bobbin, so that the bobbin thread can easily be identified. Demonstrate shirring using the gathering foot. This foot automatically gathers the fabric for you, saving time and effort. You will need to increase the tension for the amount of gathering you desire. Press the fabric after it is shirred. Step #2 - Embellishing the fabric. Using a decorative stitch from your machine run rows of stitching between each row of gathering. Demonstrate using a honeycomb stitch, commonly used in hand smocking. Once you have completed the rows of stitching between your gathers, remove the gathering stitch and run rows of stitching following these lines. Step # 3 Cutting the fabric. Shirr the entire section and then cut the section according to your pattern piece. Demonstrate laying the pattern on the fabric and cutting. Step # 4 Assemble the garment. Special Effects using Decorative Bobbin Threads Step #1 Preparing your machine. Demonstrate threading upper tension of machine with lightweight monofilament or matching allpurpose thread. Demonstrate how to wind the bobbin with specialty thread. Step #2 Preparing your fabric. Show sample of how you mark design on tear-away or watersoluble stabilizer if using a solid fabric. Demonstrate placing pre-printed fabric face down under the needle. Demonstrate stitching slowly, following the design lines on your fabric. Step #3 Cutting out the fabric. Demonstrate laying the pattern piece on the embellished fabric and cutting out. Step #4 Assembling the bag. COURTESY: Vivian Lavinskas Singer Sewing Co. www.singerco.com 16