Difference in Thread Weights

 I don't remember where I found this photo, but it's a great visual of the various thread weights available today.  50 wt is what I use on my long arm.  40 wt is usually used on embroidery machines as well as quilt piecing and sewing garments.  I use 70 wt thread for bobbin thread on my embroidery machine.

A new kind of rotary cutter!

 There is a new type of rotary cutter available and it is wonderful!  Much different than the usual rotary cutter, it has ball bearings in it that make it so much easier to cut.  You don't have to press nearly as hard to get the blade to cut.  And the best thing is our cutting mats will last longer! 

Another benefit is for people who have arthritis in their hands or shoulders.  With less pressure placed on the cutter there is a bit of relief from pain while using a cutter.

It's sold only at Missouri Star Quilt Company.  

UPDATE:  They have introduced a 60 mm and a 28 mm rotary cutter with ball bearings in it!  

A great set up

 I thought I'd share the way I iron seams when I'm piecing small pieces.  I've done this for years and it saves from having to get up and down going to the ironing board.  This Dritz mini iron is 19 years old.  I bought a new one 3 years ago thinking this one would conk out eventually.  But this one keeps working!  

I found a June Taylor mini press n' cut that fits nicely next to my machine.  I love this set up!  Unfortunately, they stopped making the mini press n' cut.  I found one on ebay and that's about the only place where you can find one now.

How to avoid twisted binding

This video has a very good tip for joining the binding.  She folds the binding over at one point and this tip has certainly helped me.   I used to end up with twisted binding about 50% of the time, but with this folding idea, no more twisted binding!

Dye has bled on your quilt - what now?

When a quilt with red, black, purple or dark blue fabric has bleeding of colors it can ruin a perfectly good quilt.  Synthrapol is a solution to fixing the problem!  

The first thing I'd like to do is have you watch a youtube video by Rob from Man Sewing. 

This video teaches how Synthrapol works, and it's important to learn this before 

you try using Synthrapol the first time.

Note: I have you starting the video in the middle.

Synthrapol is a neutral detergent.. The neutral pH means it is good for taking care of the excess dyes.  All laundry detergents and dishwashing detergents, such as Dawn, are high pH and as a result you need multiple cycles of washing to get all the excess dyes out. They don't work all that well, frankly.

Rob gave very good information about how to use Synthrapol.  (The first half of the video talks about how to use Retayne, it's good information too!)  But he doesn't give information on how to remove excess dyes from a big 'ol quilt.

For a top loading washer:  

Add the quilt and the Synthrapol.  Use one teaspoon for every gallon of water... 1/2 cup (4 ounces) will go into 20 gallons, which is the typical amount a washer holds.
The water in the washer must be hot, raise the temperature of your hot water heater temporarily so it's plenty hot.  Let it run through a cycle, agitation is important here... and use a warm water rinse. A second warm water rinse wouldn't hurt.

Check the fabrics to make sure the dye was removed.  Do not dry the quilt in the dryer until all the excess dye has been removed.  If you still see excess dye, simply repeat the wash cycle again.

For a front loading washer:

Because of the small amount of water used in a front loader, a front loading washer is not recommended.  You should go to a laundry mat in that case, or visit someone who has a top loader.

Note: this post was originally posted in 2019.  It's being repeated now since it's good information!

A solution to leaking irons

I see complaints on the sewing boards about leaking irons and I thought I'd create a post about spray bottles.  Back in the day our grandmothers used a shaker bottle filled with water while she ironed. Of course, they didn't have steam irons back then so they used what worked.

We have better choices than what our grandmothers had back in the day.  The bottle I use happens to be a spray bottle used by hairstylists.  It has a fine mist that doesn't saturate the fabric and it sprays continuously which is a great feature when you have a large area of fabric.  If you have a leaky iron try using a hairstylist spray bottle, there are even some available in quilt themes.

 
There is a new type of iron that is available.  I bought one and in 5 years it has never leaked or sputtered.  It is a steam generator but without the tank of water you'd expect with a steam generator. I highly recommend this iron!  

Reliable Velocity 240IR 1800W Steam Iron - Compact Vapor Generator Home Steam Iron. 

1.   There is an override for the auto shut-off if you want to keep the iron on. 
   
   
2. The Reliable Steam Generator has a sensor in the handle that knows when you are touching the iron.  It runs the steam as long as you're touching it. The steam results on even my most challenging quilt blocks is amazing.  
   
   
3. The steam works really well, and it's conservative in it's water usage, which makes it last longer.  And not one sputter or drip!!  You can turn the steam off, of course, and use it as a dry iron as well.

Glow-line tape

 I found a great product to help me see the lines on rulers quickly and easily. I used Omnigrid highlighter tape called Glow line tape on my ruler.  I love this tape, really helps to see the lines on the ruler at a glance. It comes in 3 colors, pink, orange and yellow.  All 3 colors come in the package!

This quilt is called Diamonds & Pearls.   The top is made using a ruler called the Split-Rects and it really makes a nice quilt.

Fons & Porter made a tutorial on how to use the ruler to make this quilt.  The video is on YouTube:

Star Block wall hanging

 I have had fun creating a new quilt this week!  I bought Electric Quilt 8 earlier this month and started working on a quilt right away.  I saw a quilt hanging in a quilt shop and I tried to buy the pattern for it only to find out it wasn't being published any longer.  So I set about making one of my own.  This is the result!  

Click here to download a copy of the pattern!  It's a PDF file, a step by step tutorial and it is recommended for intermediate quilters.  The letter Q would be a bit daunting for a beginning quilter.  If you are a confident beginner I say "Go For It!"

Star QUILT Wall Hanging
by Christine Chamberlain

Fat Quarter Storage

My husband built this for me, isn't he wonderful?  It is modeled after the letter organizers you used to see in the school office, the place where teachers would gather their mail.  Only turned on end instead of the usual way.  I have it in the corner of my longarm quilting studio.

On the wall to the left is a tattered and worn quilt made for me by my great grandmother when I was born.  It was used by my mother for all 4 of us kids.

Dritz Petite Press Mini Iron

I bought this little iron about 18 yrs ago and it's been a wonderful item to have next to my sewing machine. I use it when I'm piecing quilt blocks and it has had a tremendous amount of work over the years. I have a tiny pressing board next to it and it is so easy to iron seams, I don't have to get up and down, up and down, going to my big ironing board.

It has 4 heat settings on it for different weights of fabric, but since I use quilting cotton I always have it set to the high setting. The iron covers 2-1/2", which is perfect for ironing a jelly roll seam, or 2 halves of a charm square seam. It has a little beep when the iron is ready plus the red flashing light turns solid. There is an attached stand that keeps it from touching the table, it can be adjusted as well. The angle of the heating iron can be adjusted as well, very handy! I had the Clover mini-iron at one time but I bought this one because the iron is about twice the size, and is much better, in my opinion.

Mine has had much use! It had a white cushion where you can place your finger while pressing but mine disintegrated a few years ago! It's the only reason I'm thinking of retiring this one!

I bought a 2nd one 2 years ago but haven't opened the package yet because this one just keeps on working! 

Make a great tote bag

I found a free tote bag pattern and thought I'd mention it so you could download the pattern. You have to log into the website in order to download the pattern.  The pattern is found here, on the ByAnnie website.  

 The pattern uses 3 fat quarters.  There are videos to help as you sew each step.  The pattern calls for a soft and stable interfacing to help stiffen the fabric. One of the fat quarters is used to make bias tape to cover the raw edges on the inside.

The first step has you quilting the outer fabric, Soft and Stable and the lining fabric together.  I used 505 temporary spray adhesive to hold my pieces together.  I used a walking foot to do the sewing and the quilted fabric turned out perfect.



The pattern was very easy to follow, I hope you'll try making one!  I needed something to carry my sewing supplies when I travel with my machine.










I had so much fun making the first one I made a second one, and I fussy cut the fabrics for that one.

Diagonal Seam Tape

I wouldn't sew a HST without Diagonal Seam Tape!  It's  a perfect solution for sewing straight diagonal seams without having to mark any lines! The special washi tape is strong, thin, and removes cleanly after sewing projects. I keep mine on for months at a time and it always removes cleanly.

Simply place the tape in front of the feed dogs with the red line in front of the needle as the stitch line. If you're making a single HST line up your square with the red line.

 The black lines on either side of the center line represent a perfect 1/4" seam allowance and you'll line up the corner of your block with the black line if you're making 2 HSTs out of your squares.

Buy it here!!

Pocket Prayer Quilts

I made a few pocket prayer quilts this afternoon and thought I'd share the video tutorial I used to make them.  I hope you enjoy watching this tutorial and I hope you make a few for your friends!

I bought the cross charms and pins at Etsy online.  I used leftover charm squares to make the quilts.  I printed out the card on my computer!

Click here to download the prayer print out!

Here are 4 of the 12 I've made so far, they are easy to sew!

Start to Finish: How to stitch a pantograph

 I had a few people ask me to make a video showing how to stitch a pantograph from beginning to end so I made a video showing just that!   I hope this helps!

Pumpkin Wallhanging Tutorial

 Lisa E. shared a pumpkin wall hanging she created on one of the facebook groups I am on and I was inspired to make one like it only smaller.  Here is a tutorial on how to make a 7"x22" wallhanging!  Find a FREE pdf download at the end of this tutorial.

Material list:

5 orange fat quarters
1/2 yard of white background
brown scraps for the stems
green scraps for the leaves

Directions:

1. Cut 1-1/2" strips from each of the orange fat quarters.  Sew them together lengthwise using 1/4" seams. Press the seams open.  Cut the strip set into one 7-1/2" piece, one 5-1/2" piece and one 3-1/2" inch piece.
   
   
   
2. Cut four 1-1/2" WOF strips from the white background fabric.  From one of the strips cut a 14" piece and remove 1/2" lengthwise from the strip.  Then sub-cut the remaining 1" strip into twelve 1" squares.
   
   
   

How to clean your iron using vinegar

It's just like using vinegar to clean a coffee maker or a steam humidifier. It softens the calcium deposits that can gunk up the vents or cause particles to break loose and cause leaks where once water was kept tight.

Step #1
Pour half water, half white vinegar into your iron. (Vinegar will not hurt your iron). Fill the iron, turn it on and let it sit for an hour. The auto-shut off will turn it off eventually, this is ok, just let it sit to soften the crud.

Afterwards, take the iron to the sink, hold it upright and shake it gently to loosen the crud. Then turn the iron upside down and pour the vinegar out of the iron.  Fill with water, shake and pour the water out.  If you've never cleaned your iron before repeat step #1 two more times.

Step #2
Add white vinegar to the iron, fill it to the top. Turn the iron on high, turn the steam to high and hold the iron horizontal over your sink.

Let the steam vent out until the iron is about half empty of vinegar. Then turn the iron upright, shake it gently as before and turn it upside down to pour the remaining vinegar out of the iron.

Fill with plain water, empty, fill with water again and repeat the process of venting steam until you're satisfied all the vinegar is out of the vents.  Now you've just added another few years of service to your iron! 


Note: This is the cutting board my husband made for me.  A tupperware colander fits perfectly.  I place a plastic cutting board on top of the colander and slide the veggies into the bowl of the colander as I go.

​

Pocket Prayer Quilts

I found a sweet project tutorial that I had to pass along!  I hope you enjoy watching this tutorial and I hope you make a few for your friends!

I bought the cross charms and pins at Etsy online. I printed out the card on my computer!

Click here to download the prayer print out!

Here are 4 of the 12 I've made so far, they are easy to sew!

How to avoid twisted binding when joining the edges

This video has a very good tip for joining the binding.  She folds the binding over at one point and this tip has certainly helped me.   I used to end up with twisted binding about 50% of the time, but with this folding idea, no more twisted binding!

A solution to leaking irons

I see complaints on the sewing boards about leaking irons and I thought I'd create a post about spray bottles.  Back in the day our grandmothers used a shaker bottle filled with water while she ironed.  Of course, they didn't have steam irons back then so they used what worked.



We have better choices than what our grandmothers had back in the day.  The bottle I use happens to be a spray bottle used by hairstylists.  It has a fine mist that doesn't saturate the fabric and it sprays continuously which is a great feature when you have a large area of fabric.  If you have a leaky iron try using a hairstylist spray bottle, there are even some available in quilt themes.

Tip for Longarming: Check your Wide Backing

When I load backing on the quilt frame I use the grain of the fabric, not the cut edge.  Here is an example of why it's important to check your wide backing.

This backing was wonky when it was wound on to the bolt.  I'm sure the person cutting it did cut it straight as it came off the bolt.  But as you can see, the fabric is cut way off the grain.

Be sure to check the backing and  straighten the grain if it is off.  If you don't want to straighten the grain, there is a simple solution, buy an additional 4 or 5 inches more after you've already added the 8" the longarmer needs.

Fortunately, this client sent a backing that had plenty of extra fabric so I didn't have to send it back.