Sewing Essential - Simple Serger Shifting Solution

:) Say that 5 times fast! :)

I was working with my serger the other night and it nearly leaped off my my desk! I immediately remembered using a piece of shelf liner on my old desk to help keep it in place, so, went on the hunt.

You can find this stuff by the roll, and pretty inexpensively. I've even found it at dollar and discount stores. I happened to have a roll stashed away, as it is also very good cut in thin strips to use on hairbows to keep them from sliding.....but that's another post. ;)

It's a foamy sort of sheet that completely prevents shifting and slipping. 

 I rolled a nice piece out, cut it and doubled it over to fit nicely under all 4 of my serger's feet. 

Right back to work.....with no machine leaping.

Happier and much safer stitching!

Go ahead and add that to your shopping list. Then, check out some of my other favorite sewing enhancers on my "Sewing Essentials" page at the top of the blog or by clicking HERE.

Sewing Essential - Iron-Off Hot Iron Cleaner

 

I received this product from Dritz several months ago, but had just bought a new iron, so didn't need it. Well, this weekend while using some fusible fleece, my hot iron apparently came into contact with some of the adhesive. Not ideal.

 Of course, the way I discovered this was with a nice black streak on my son's shirt as I was trying to iron it. Again, not ideal. 

I couldn't get the sticky mess to rub off. Quickly I remembered that I had a tube of this iron cleaner and figured it was the perfect time to give it a try. Truth is, I hadn't read the directions before, so I was expecting it would be somewhat complicated and require some kind of internal cleaning that I would have to repeatedly rinse out, so I was pleasantly surprise at how easy it was to use. 

 Simply set your iron to the cotton setting. Once heated, get a clean towel and squirt a bit of the Iron-Off onto the towel. Iron back and forth over the cream until your iron is clean. For stubborn (or extra sticky) messes on your iron, you may want to repeat. I did. And just look at this towel!!!

EWWWWW!!!! Right!?!?! Where did all that come from anyway???

 Apparently there was a build up of more than I could see from using starch as well. Needless to say, I was very pleased with the result. Look at my iron now! 

Here's a side by side comparison that shows even better the great results. 

I only had to use a small about of the tube as well, so I am equipped whenever another cleaning is needed. This has been added to my handy box of "Sewing Essentials". 

You can check out more of my favorite "Sewing Essentials" on the tab at the top of the blog or simply by clicking HERE.  

Treasures in UNexpected places!

Well, I must admit.....when the Hubs pulled into the giant, tool outlet store....with ALL 6 kiddos in tow....I wasn't exactly excited. :) Not the best place to keep little hands safe and busy while daddy enjoys a leisurely look about. But....he's (almost) always a really good sport about my fabric store stops, so, I agreed with a smile. 

Much to my surprise, I was able to find some great things at REALLY great prices, perfect for my sewing! I found all of these goodies, and for steal of a deal prices! The tape measures were only 69 cents each and are a durable quality. I'm all the time loosing my serger tweezers, so now I have a back up pair, and I think they were only $1.29. Can't beat it! I'll probably wish I had bought several. I thought the little clips would be useful for holding ribbons when I'm tying bows, and they were only 25 cents each! I bet they would work well for holding quilt binding in place while sewing too. My "big" spend was for the extra long hemostats I had been wanting for a while to help with stuffing long & narrow arms and legs on my plushies, I think they were $3.99. So all in all, a great little assortment of very useful tools for Mama was found too!   

One of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE Sewing Essentials also didn't come from a sewing/craft store. Nope, I actually "stole" this beauty from Hub's tool box. :) It's a super sized magnetic dish that sits right beside my machine. I don't even have to look while sewing, just toss the pins in the general direction of this heavy duty bowl, and it snatches 'em right up! It was designed to hold nuts and bolts while working on a car. I LOVE this thing!!!

Here's wishing you some pleasant and unexpected surprises in your week!

For posts sharing more of my favorite "Sewing Essentials", see the tab labeled such at the top of the blog. Lots of fun tools and gadgets that make sewing even more fun!

Sewing Essential - Crafter's Comfort (Arthritis Relief) Gloves

If there were ever an item I felt "essential" in my sewing room, especially during the colder months, this would be it! What I'm wearing above is the Crafter's Comfort Gloves by Dritz. I've worn a similar product focused towards arthritis patients for several years, so I was delighted to see this product being offered within the crafting industry, since I primarily wear them when I am sewing. 

 The gloves are part of a product line called Creative Comfort. This clever line of products has been thoughtfully designed by an Orthopedic Surgeon to enable crafters to keep doing what they love - while supporting, warming and providing pain relief to their thumbs, hands, wrists, back & neck. See the full collection here. 

I sincerely love these gloves!

 Having experienced an injury to my right arm several years ago that resulted in some loss of circulation to my hand, my hand gets very, very cold, very, very easily. Cold hands become stiff hands, and well.....stiff hands don't want to do all the things I need to do to be able to sew and create as I wish to. When I wear these gloves, they not only keep my hand nicely warm, but they help me maintain my flexibility and prevent some of the hand & upper arm arthritic aching that I experienced before wearing them. 

I use them comfortably & easily throughout my creative process.

The gloves come in a variety of sizes. They are made of a breathable cotton/spandex fabric, so no sweating. They provide mild compression throughout the covered area that supports and warms as you work. The open finger tips allow you to still be able to grip and type/text freely. They are machine washable. You can ask for them wherever you buy your Dritz sewing products. 

Because my hand is hard to keep warm during the winter months, I have often even slept with mine on. This is an item that I can not do without when it comes to sewing during the winter. My work room is in our basement, with concrete floors and is much cooler than the rest of our house. These gloves keep my hand warm & flexible which keeps me sewing....which makes me very happy! :) 

An absolute "Sewing Essential" for me!

For other items I like to keep in my sewing room or consider sewing essentials, see the "Sewing Essentials" page at the top of the blog. 

*Disclaimer: The particular pair of gloves used in this post were provided to me for review. All opinions are my own. 

Product Review: Petite Press

 I recently got to try a Petite Press Portable Mini Iron and thought some of you might like to know about some of the great features it has. 

As you can see, it has a digital control pad on the top that allows you to adjust the settings to 4 different temperature ranges from 176-410 degrees. Yes....this little thing gets HOT!!!! We never had the settings at the highest temp and still got great results. The little light will let you know when it's ready, along with a beep, and it didn't take long at all to heat up. We first used it when my nieces were here, so we had 6 kiddos waiting to iron and sew, so that was kind of important! :)

The handle has comfort grips that also help you hold securely to the press while using it. 

It also has a stand that you can click down to prop the iron with the heated soleplate up when not in use.

I was VERY surprised and impressed with the crisp seam this little gadget created! No steam at all! 

 While I've only needed to use it with the head in the original position, the dial you see on the side allows the head of the iron to pivot and be secured in multiple directions. 

Another thing I really liked was how long the cord was....very, very long! Made it easy to use.

All in all, this is a product I was pleased with, will continue to use and was pleasantly surprised with how well it performed. It would make a great iron to take with you in your sewing bag for traveling or events outside of your home, and while I haven't yet used it for applique, I imagine it would work beautifully for that as well.

Thanks for letting me share! If you have any specific questions about it, I'd be happy to answer as best I can. Just email me! 

*I was provided this item free of charge. No additional monetary compensation was provided for this review. The opinions shared are my own.

Sewing Essential - Tailor's Chalk

I must admit, I don't readily use Marking or Tailor's Chalk in my sewing. I've developed the habit of using washable markers with a house full of kiddos, since those are always readily available. ;)

However, when working with felt or in this case wool felt, especially darker colors, that just doesn't work well. I've read a lot of recommendations for using freezer paper, but it never seems to secure well enough to stay put for cutting the entire piece for me. So, I was surprised to find what will now be a Sewing Essential for me when working with felt, Tailor's Chalk.

This waxy chalk is easy to use, writes smoothly on the felt, and can be trimmed around or rubbed away once your piece is cut out. I've been on a bit of a doll prep/sewing spree of late, so I have broken in this new chalk very well. 

I will now keep it on hand if for no other purpose than this. 

Tailor's Chalk....easily accessible, inexpensive and perfect for felt. A new Sewing Essential for my "tool box". 

Check out my Sewing Essentials page at the top of the blog for a variety of other items I love to use in my sewing room. 

Sewing Essential - Seam Fix ...a different kind of seam ripper.

I use to think a seam ripper was a seam ripper, so long as it had a sharp blade. I mean there are some that are prettier than others, but when we are talking practically about getting the job done, never saw much of a difference. 

But now.....I have to say, this little gadget has won me over!

This is the Seam Fix.

 What sets it apart is this rubbery tip on the cap....

When ripping out a seam, you use the Seam Fix just as you would any other seam ripper.

This is where it gets fun!

After you have ripped the stitches out, you are left with all those little thread trimmings. Pop the cap back on your Seam Fix, use the rubber tip to rub over the ripped threads.....

 .....and it pulls them out of the fabric and picks them all up neatly!

 Now you are left with a nice and neat fabric ready to be resewn. 

What about that!?!?!  Pretty clever huh?

I have found a new favorite seam ripper. :)

The Seam Fix costs about $6 and can be found in most any sewing/quilt shop that sells Dritz sewing/quilting tools.

As a disclaimer, I received this item as a gift to try. The opinion shared is my own.

Sewing Essential - Doll Needles

 When it comes to sewing stuffed animals and dolls, these specialized needles are definitely a "Sewing Essential". 

The pack provides a variety of lengths, thicknesses and eye size openings to suit every possible type of soft toys stitching. Whether you are ladder stitching the opening of your soft toy closed or embroidering facial features....whether you are working with a light weight cotton or a heavy weight fleece.....you're covered.

 I also like that the needle eyes are wide enough to accommodate multiple strands of embroidery floss for more defined features. Yarn will even easily slide through the largest ones.

 The length provides the extra you need to complete your stitching easily too.

 And if your fabric is thick or dark enough that you won't see the threads passing through, the extra long needles make it very easy to move from feature to feature without having to knot off your thread and start over with each one. 

In this image, I wanted to see if I could stitch the facial features more defined by using the embroidery floss without separating any of the threads. No problem! Fast, easy and bold features. 

Doll Needles.....a Sewing Essential for anyone who enjoys making dolls and soft toys. 

See other of my favorite sewing gadgets on the Sewing Essentials page at the top of the blog. 

Sewing Essential - Quick Turn Tool

If you are making stuffed toys without one of these tools, you are doing it WRONG! :)

No, seriously....I was for a long time, and don't want you to make the same mistake. 

Quick Turn Tool Fabric Tube Tuners (don't try to say that too many times fast!) are truly a Sewing Essential! I can't believe I ever got along without them. And they are an inexpensive notion, so certainly something worth adding to your creative tool box.

They make the process of turning small stuffed toy and doll parts a snap and are super simple to use too. 

Simply, insert the blue straw-like tube into the open end of whatever fabric tube, or in this case "ear" you are ready to turn. 

Press the point of the wooden dowel into the top of your tube or whatever piece you are trying to turn.

Continue to gently push it into the tube until the entire piece is turned....

 ....and coming out the other end.

Now, using the point on your wooden dowel, you can smooth the edges and corners of your newly turned fabric tube.....arm, leg, ear or whatever it is you are working on.  

Working on my Ruby Lou dolls now, I'm especially LOVING this handy gadget for her skinny arms and legs. 

This tool has REVOLUTIONIZED stuffed toy sewing for me! :)

Check out other tools I keep handy in my sewing room on the Sewing Essentials page at the top of the blog.