Some basic info about sewing and quilting.

 

Some Basics about sewing machines.  

1. Find your manual and keep it with the machine. You can refer to it for so many things. How to use certain stitches or even what stitch to use. How to thread the machine, how to insert a new needle, what needle to use, all of those questions should be in the manual. There is usually a section on trouble shooting, so if something is going right you have a clue where to look. There is probably a diagram of your machine too. If you can't find your manual, try the internet. Do a search for the make and model of your machine along with word manual you can probaly find it. Next read or at least look through the manual.
 2.Clean your machine. Somewhere with the accessories that came with the machine there should be a small lint brush. If not you can use a small paint brush or buy one at a fabric store or store that sells machines. Clean open the area where the bobbin, remove the bobbin and the bobbin casing, (look at your manual) put any screws in a safe place. Use the brush to clean the lint and little pieces of thread from the area. Some web sites will tell you to use canned air to blow the debris away but I would not since that might blow the stuff deeper into the machine. Oil moving parts, (see below) Put the bobbin casing back together. Now go to your tension disk area. Take a thin piece of papper and run that between the discs. If you can open the head of your machine do so and use the brush to clean there. I do a quick cleaning when I change the bobbin and a more thorough cleaning when I've gone through the 4 or 5 bobbins I have prewound. Clean the feed dogs while you have the brush out.
 3.Oil your machine. Most modern machines are self oiling, but I still put a drop or two of lubricant on any moving parts that I can reach. Use oil for sewing machines the oil from your garage will not work and will mess up the machine. You might have remove a few screws to reach places.
 4.Change your needle often. I change mine after every project at least. It's also the second thing I do if my machine is acting up, right after re-threading the machine. 5. Some sites with more details on how to maintain your machine. The last one is a diagram of a generic machine. basic ssewing machine maintenance, sewing machine maintenance 2,  http://sewingschool.org/2010/11/10/meet-your-machine-anatomy-of-a-sewing-machine/
     Troubleshooting some things to check or do when the machine isn't working right.
 1. Re-thread the machine
2. Replace the needle.
3. Check your tension (especially if you have any little ones around who like to turn dials)
4. Check your manual to make sure you are using the correct thread and needle for your project.
5. If your machine won't run at all make sure it is plugged in and any switches (light switch, strip switch) is turned on and that the foot pedal is attached correctly.
6. Make sure the bobbin winder spindle is in the correct position.

 How to find your scant ¼ “ seam allowance

    In quilting we use what we call a ¼ or quarter inch seam allowance. It is realy a scant ¼ inch seam allowance. That means it is just few thread widths narrower than a true quarter inch. This is important when your blocks have to be say exactly 12 ½ inches unfinished and there are a lot of pieces to the block. Finding this magic spot on your machine is easy but might take you a few tries.
    Cut some light and dark colored fabric strips 2 X 4 inches. On your machine either use a quarter inch foot or if you use the standard foot find the quarter inch mark on the needle plate. Take one light strip and one dark strip. Sew together lengthwise with edges aligned with either the quarer inch foot or the mark on the plate. Sew another light strip to the dark strip again lining up the edges to creat a quarer inch seam allowance. Press the seam allowances to the dark fabric. Take a ruler and measre the center dark strip from seam to seam (right side up) It should measure 1 ½ inches wide it's entire length. The two light strips should be 1 ¾ inches. If they are you are good to go. If you used the marking on the plate I would suggest putting some masking tape along that line to make it easier to find and follow.
    If the measurements aren't right there are a few options. If you can move your needle position in small increments move it maybe one or two. Move it in (to the right) if the dark fabric was narrower and to the out (to the left) if it was too wide. Try again with 3 new strips and remeasure. If you can't move your needle you will have move the fabric. First try taking a ruler (a ruler for rotary cutting works best) with ¼ inch markings and placing it under the needle (might want to turn the machine off here so you won't accidentally start the machine and hit the ruler or a finger with needle.)Put the ruler with it's 1st quarter-inch mark just below the needle's tip. Make sure the ruler is straight and compare it edge with the marks on the plate or with the quarter- inch foot. If it appears to be right on with what you had previously followed nudge the ruler a little so the needle is just a smidgen to the right of the quarter inch mark on the ruler. Put a piece of tape on the plate it's edge flush with the rulers. Try another set of strips. You might have to try a few more times. Just move the tape a little each time. When you find the correct position put two or three more pieces of tape directly on top of the first. This will give you your correct scant quarter of a inch mark. A hint once you get a set of strips sewn exactly save it! That way if the tape gets moved or you are using a different machine you can use the strips as a guide with out going through everything again. Also if some reason you are using thicker fabric, like flannel you might want to do strips with that fabric. http://quilting.about.com/od/machinepiecingyourquilts/ss/seam_allowance_2.htm and finding 1/4 " seam allowance

 Here's a list I made for my class

Quilting Acronyms and Terms

BOM Block of the Month- Where you make one block (sometimes it

means many of the same type of block) a month to complete a quilt.

Usually sold by quilting catalogs and quilt stores.

FQ  or  Fat Quarter- a piece of fabric made from cutting a yard of fabric

in half one way and then cutting those 2 pieces in half again to get

pieces that are about 18” X 22”

HST -Half Square Triangles - a square made of two triangles, the seam splits the square in half diangonally.

WOF -Width of Fabric usally refers to a cut from slevage to slevage

WOW - White on White – fabric with white print on white background

Applique - Sewing a shape cut from fabric on to a larger piece of fabric either by hand or by machine

Bating- Layer in a quilt between the top and backing. Can be cotton,

polyester, blends, silk, wool, bamboo. Can also be called wadding.

Batik- A fabric that is dyed using wax or some other substance to prevent the dye form penetrating certain areas of the fabric. Indonesia is famous for this fabric.

Bias - The diagonal direction across a piece of woven fabric. Stretches easily.

Binding- Strip of fabric used to finish the edges of the quilt. It wraps around the edges.

Birthing a quilt- A method of sewing the top, batting and backing together along the edges and then turning the whole thing right side out. The layers have to laid out in the correct way.

Border- Fabric that frames the center of the quilt. Can be long strips or pieced.

Chain sewing- Sewing several block pieces together one right after another without stopping.

Finished size- The size of a quilt or block when it is completely finished. Does NOT include

seam allowances

Frog Stitching- Ripping out your mistakes and EVERYONE make them, so dont' feel bad.

Grain - Woven fabric has a grain. Lengthwise and crosswise. Warp is the lengthwise grain. Weft is the crosswise grain. Lengthwise grain stretches the least and runs parallel to the selvage.

Layout - The arrangement of the blocks in a quilt

Long Arm Quilting- Quilting using a very frame and a commercial quilting machine. The machine is moved not the quilt.

On point- Setting the blocks in a quilt so their corners are pointing to edges of the quilt, s etting triangles are needed to fill in the sides, top and bottoms

Precut fabric- Fabric usually collections by manufactures sold in stacks or rolls of precut shapes. Jelly rolls (2 ½ “ x WOF) , Cake layers (10”x 10” squares) Charm packs (5” squares ) are a few.

Rotary cutter and mat - The cutter has a circular blade (think something like a pizza cutter) to cut several layers. The mat must used with cutter to avoid damage to surfaces, the blades and yourself.

Rulers - Quiting rulers are made to work with rotary cutters and mats. There are basic rulers and specialty rulers. They come in many sizes. I would advise sticking to one brand for the basic rulers.

Tied quilt - knotted strings or threads are usde to hold the layers of the quilt together.

UFO Unfinished objects or WIP (works in progress).- Project you started but haven't finished for whatever reason. Yep I have a few of these laying around. Some eventually become know as WOMBAT (wast of money batting and time)