Puget Sound Sewing & Craft

How to Sew a Quick Flat-Felled Seam

Flat-fell (or felled) seams are one of the workhorses of the fashion world.  They are strong, yet attractive and work well for a variety of applications.  Most people think of denim jeans when they think of flat-fell seams but this tidy seam-and-finish in one also lends itself well to other projects.  I use it on silks, especially on home dec projects or casual jackets that will not be lined.

Traditionally, flat-fell seams are made using a flat-fell foot and one of the seam allowances is trimmed away.  I will show you how to make a flat-fell seam using standard presser feet and an untrimmed 5/8" seam allowance.  This simple technique has been taught and demonstrated by many sewing experts including Margaret Islander and Claire Schaeffer.

Click on any of the underlined sections below to see a photo of the step described. 

Step One: Press a 1/2" fold along seam allowance from right side towards wrong side (the folded edge will become the edge of the seam). 

Step Two: Insert second seam allowance into fold, butting up against folded edge, wrong sides together.

Step Three: Stitch 3/8" away from folded edge.  An adjustable edge guide foot works really well for this.  Note: do not worry if you miss any of the raw edge of the folded seam allowance.  What matters is that your stitching remains consistently 3/8" from the folded edge.

Step Four: Lay item flat on ironing board, right sides up, turn and press seam so that underside/raw edges are concealed.

Step Five:  Edgestitch along folded edge.  I like to use the blind hem or edgestitch feet for this. 

That's it!  No trimming necessary!  Wasn't that easy?  If you are working on a curve, you may need to clip the folded seam allowance.  Be sure not to clip through the folded edge. 

Here's what the finished seam looks like -Front View and Back View.  Of course, you can choose to construct the seam with either side to the front - it's up to you! 

--Katrina

Where Beauty and Utility meet – on Quilting and Chicken.

I love a day off.  My job is challenging and interesting, my co-workers are fun and caring, but there is nothing like a day at home, with no schedule beyond the one I have assigned myself.  I can get so much done, or so much nothing done, and feel my stressed soul return to a state of order. 

I spent a recent day restoring my soul by making this sunny butterfly quilt – the pattern is called Butterfly Town, and it was inspired by our most recent collection of  bold, colorful Kaffe Fassett prints. (Available now at Northgate or August 8-10 at our APNQ booth!)  This is such a pleasantly easy pattern – just a few fat quarters, some simple piecing, and it was together in a few hours.  It’s a great pattern for using some bold lovely prints, and would make such a beautiful baby quilt – if only one of my friends were expecting! Oh well, it will look lovely on a wall for a while, which is one of the things I love about quilting – you can make objects that are valuable both for practicality – it’s a blanket – and for aesthetics – it is an object of beauty.  William Morris, founder of the Arts and Crafts movement, member of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, and one of my aesthetic heroes, famously advised that you should have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.  I love it when both those qualities are found in the same object.

While I made the quilt, I made a roasted chicken that my boyfriend declared to be the best chicken ever. Brown crispy skinned and wonderfully juicy, it was both nutritious and gorgeous – a chicken Morris would have approved of. 

Anna-Beth’s Beautiful and Useful Roasted Chicken

3-5 lb fryer chicken

3 Tbls salt

Fresh herbs – I used thyme, parsley, basil and chives, but you can use whatever flavors you prefer – about a loose cup and a half before chopping.

Another tsp salt

1 stalk of celery

¼ of a medium onion

2 Tbls butter

The day before you plan to eat you chicken, rinse it thoroughly, take the neck and innards out from the cavity, and place it in a large bowl.  Pour in your 3 T salt, then fill the bowl with water till it just covers the chicken.  Cover and refrigerate overnight. (This is called brining, and will make the chicken super juicy - it is wonderful for turkey, too!)

2 hours before you plan to serve your chicken, preheat your oven to 425°.  Chop your herbs finely and mix them with your remaining tsp of salt

Drain the water and begin, using your fingers, to loosen the skin from your chicken – you want to be able to slip your whole hand in, around the breast, and loosen the skin around the drumsticks and thighs. After the skin is loose, start working that herb and salt mixture around inside the skin.   Spread it around into the crevices of the chicken, but make sure that the breast gets a good covering.  When you are satisfied with the spreading of the herbs, chop your celery stalk and quarter of an onion into large pieces and place them inside the cavity of your chicken.  Tie the ends of the drumsticks together and place your chicken on a roasting rack, in a roasting pan, breast side down. 

Melt butter and baste the side of the chicken that faces up. Put the pan in the oven.  After 20 minutes, turn your chicken to one side, baste again, and roast for another 20 minutes, then repeat on the other side.  Then turn the chicken, breast side up, baste again, and roast for about 35 minutes. 

Using a meat thermometer, check your chicken – if it needs to be in longer, just keep rotating it every 15 minutes while it is in. If it is sufficiently cooked (times will vary depending on size and oven personality – mine is a nasty old beast that is slow to build heat and leaks steam like mad.)  remove it from the oven and let it rest for about 10 minutes.  Carve and serve.

Leftovers make splendid chicken salad. 

Needle Felting Inspiration

I love needle felting - it adds textural interest and is very simple to do.  It's also tremendously versatile and can be used not only as an embellishment tool but also as a construction technique and a way to create 3 dimensional objects such as hats and soft sculpture.

The tools are also very simple.  A needle felting tool and something to 'punch' into, either a brush or piece of foam.  I also like to have a small selection of single needles for detail work.  All of these are available at Pacific Fabrics along with rovings and fabrics that work well for exploring this technique.  The Puyallup Pacific Fabrics even has ready-to-block hat felt that I've been eyeing for some time.

I like the look of needle felted designs made with roving (carded fiber that hasn't been spun yet)  on a background fabric but I must admit that sometimes my creative energy stalls a bit when I'm facing a blank canvas.  So I use a design outline.

My favorite way to create an outline on the fabric is to use machine embroidery.  I simply stitch out a running stitch design and then fill it in with roving - just as if I were coloring in a coloring book.  I like the look and it is very simple. 

In this example, I used an iron-on transfer design from a Dover Publishing book on Art Nouveau embroidery designs.  I scanned in the iron-on transfer and then translated the image into a running stitch embroidery design using 4D.  I stitched it out onto the back piece for a jacket I am constructing and now I'm in the process of 'coloring' the design with wool roving.  I'm having a lot of fun with this project.  I especially like playing with the colors, such as blending two different colors of wool to give a little extra dimension to the rose motifs.  I can't wait to show you the finished product!

p.s. It's Fair Time in Pierce County!  I had the good fortune to be asked to judge the Junior division of the 4-H Fashion Revue.  If you've never seen a 4-H Fashion Revue competition, it is an amazing showcase of youth sewing talent.  Each participant has sewn the garment(s) they are wearing and are judged based on their interview skills (many of the questions relate to sewing and garment construction), the construction of their garment (as it appears when worn) and their ability to present themselves and their outfit.  The kids are just incredible, and the many adult 4-H leaders and volunteers who work with them to teach them how to sew are even more amazing.  I hope you all get the chance to get to the Fair to see all these amazing kids at work and to check out all of the sewing and craft items on display by kids and adults. 

--Katrina

New Ways of Thinking About Fabric - My Visit to the Bellevue Arts Fair

Almost every year my artist husband and I spend a few hours strolling through the booths at the Bellevue Arts Museum Arts Fair and so on Friday, July 25th that's where I was. David (the artist husband) had already walked the fair on his lunch hour since he works across the street, so most of our time was spent stopping at booths that interested me. What a shame! And, of course that meant textie artists and wearable art. I had a chance to chat with a few of the artists and as I did, I began to think about fabric, yarn and fibers in very different ways than I usually do and I loved the way many of them were seamed and hemmed on the outside with a serged rolled edge - most using black thread. We are not, of course, going to copy these designs and start traveling from fair to fair. That would be highly unethical! But take a look at some of these web sites, think about my comments and let me know what it sparks in you for your own personal wardrobe.

Sonya MacIntosh of SmARTWORKS (at left) loves knitting machines and felting. Her exquisitely artistic work is first knitted, then felted, then embellished with crocheted edgings. It was a joy just to stand and turn slowly in her booth gazing at the lovely creations on every wall. I wonder what I could I do with a little hand knitting, felting and a crocheted edge??? Click on 'Press Pass' to read more about what motivates Sonya.

You know you just can't find enough furniture for all the gorgeous home decor fabric we have at Pacific Fabrics & Crafts, but Lori O'Neill will inspire you to buy all those yummy pieces you love anyway. Her jackets, hats and handbags, showcasing precious gems and stones, have me planning my Fall wardrobe with delight while I'm wearing tank tops in the sun this month!

Mary Shemeta (at right) makes beautiful clothing from a beautiful fabric - Tencel.  Always one of my favorites and Mary turns it into wonderful, drapey art you can wear. Makes me want to head to the store and grab an arm full of Tencel to dreamy with!

Okay - this is really cool! Joanna Stasinzkis (at left) looks at silk and linen in a way you've never thought of before. Her "out there" hand dyed silk creations are called The Silk Project and I'm sure all the silkworms vie for a chance to be part of her garments. These are my very favorite fabrics and so . . . I've got to try dyeing now. You'll find me on the dye aisle at your nearest Pacific Fabrics & Craft store. That is if I'm not in the silk or linen department hugging bolts!

That should get you started - it certainly did me. Let me know what you think and what inspires you and let's stretch our textile brains together!

Annette

Designer Embroidered Jeans in 4D ~ Part 6 ~ Stitching Out

At last!  We've reached the final stage - stitching out the design.  For me, this is the most nerve wracking part of the process.  After all the work put into setting up a design, it's exciting and often a bit scary when it comes time to actually stitch out the design.

Thankfully, there are some options for stitching out the design.  If you are hesitant about your ability to do multiple hoopings of a design, you can always stitch the design onto a polyester (or similar synthetic) organza and then applique the embroidery onto the garment.  Cut carefully around your embroidery motifs, and give a final touch up to eliminate and stray 'hairs' or similar with a hot knife (it melts any little frayed edges around the design - just be careful not to melt or burn your embroidery threads).  You can then applique the embroidery design onto the garment or object being embellished.  This is a good choice for very dense designs or embroidery for difficult fabrics, such as velvet.  It's also a great way to be able to decide your placement after stitch out, rather than before.

In the case of my jeans, I decided to go ahead and stitch directly onto the jeans themselves.  I opened the inseam (it was not a flat-felled seam which made it easier) prior to embroidery.  Now it was time to choose my stabilizer.  I've had good results with Floriani Wet 'n' Stick for these types of projects, so that is what I chose to hoop.  When I stitched these jeans, I did put another layer of stabilizer - cutaway - under the bottom part of the design.  I accidentally omitted this layer (oops!) when stitching the upper, but luckily I found that my results were just as acceptable.  But if I were stitching out a denser design I would want the support of another layer under the whole design. 

So I dampened my Wet 'n' Stick stabilizer and placed my jeans leg.  I used Precise Positioning to make sure that the bottom of my design was where I wanted it to align with my pant leg hem.  I also checked (using Precise Positioning) to make sure that the strong vertical elements in my design ran parallel to my leg seam.  When I was satisfied that my design was aligned correctly, I stitched out the first hoop of my design.

Now the more delicate step in the process: aligning the two designs.  Thankfully, Design Aligner can and will (if options are selected - see previous posting) provide alignment stitches which help this process a great deal.  In the photo you can see the alignment stitches (they make an 'L' shape) at the corner of the design.  I use these reference marks as well as connecting points on the embroidery (the rose stems and other areas that flow from one hoop of the design into the other)to ensure my designs stitch out accurately.  Many embroiderers use templates instead or in addition to this  - whatever works best for you is the best technique!  Before adhering my second hooping to the stabilizer, I use Precise Positioning to find the corresponding alignment stitches for the new section of embroidery.  I make sure that my hoop is positioned with my needle at the 'intersection' (as shown above) and then sink the needle into my jeans at the intersection of the alignment stitches on the previous stitching as shown.  Leaving the needle sunk into the fabric as a pivot point, I then adhere my project into the hooped stabilizer.  I do my best to align it as straight as possible; any small adjustments to correct rotation can easily be done using Precise Positioning.

I cannot stress the importance of using Precise Positioning enough.  It is a great tool!  It is designed to ensure that your design is aligned perfectly.  It will be your best friend when embroidering; it just takes a bit of practice.  I highly recommend taking a class if you have not learned this tool yet.  I use the magnification on the Precise Positioning screen to check any and all areas of the design to make sure that the needle is going to land where I want it to land.  You can increase the magnification to over 1000% so that you can literally see every stitch.  In this photo you can see the  Precise Positioning screen.  The magnification is set at 1250% so that I can clearly see the ends of the 'stems' in my design where the design will intersect with the previously hooped portion.  You can see from the photo that I am at 'step 1' - determining where the first point of reference will be.  I can move the point of reference (the red +) wherever I want using the stylus or the directional buttons in the big circle.  You can also move your field of view around - that is what is happening in this screen - I can tell because of the 'hand' symbol that appears in the large circle as well as the fact that the hand button (located to the lower left of the big circle) is highlighted.  The best way to learn how to use a tool like Precise Positioning is to simply practice.  That is true of any embroidery technique. 

  And here it is - the finished product.  Overall, I am very happy with my design and stitch out.  The jeans have been through the washer/dryer cycle a few times so they've had a chance to be fully softened up. 

What I've learned from this particular project (I always learn something): I actually like the upper part (where I forgot to put a layer of cutaway stabilizer under the hoop) a little better - it's softer and more flexible and for a pair of jeans I don't really care whether it lies perfectly smooth.  Do I wish I'd done anything differently?  Of course - I don't think I've ever done a project where I don't have a 'learning experience'.  In this case, what I wish I'd done differently was to omit the strong vertical element of my design from the upper half (the gold 'trellis').  While I like the way it looks, I did not realize that my jeans were a bit boot cut, and therefore taper a bit toward the knee.  As a result, when laying flat it looks like my trellis is 'leaning' a bit at the top.  It's not obvious when the jeans are worn, but it's enough to cause me some mental irritation!  If I had omitted the top of the trellis motif, I would have simply had a semi-random pattern of twining roses which would not have obviously been straight or crooked when stitched.

• Hope you enjoyed the series!  It's a time consuming project but one that is a lot of fun to make and especially to wear. 

--Katrina