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How To Set Your Sewing Machine To Piece Blocks
If you are new to quilting, many of the terms and techniques might sound strange to you. Since I cannot cover everything in just one article, I will share here the setting for piecing blocks only. Getting the machine ready is the first step in having a beautiful quilting project.
Knowing your sewing machine is the key to using it effectively. Whenever in doubt, consult your manual or pay your dealer a visit and find out a way to solve what is troubling you.
If you are looking for a sewing machine to quilt, the best sewing machine for beginners
may be the best choice.
Piecing blocks
I attended a new owner class after buying my machine so I had already known the basics by the time I started my first quilting project.
Tips to Set Your Sewing Machine To Piece Blocks
When sewing patchwork pieces, using straight stitches is mandatory. Depending on how much you can adjust your machine, the length can be somewhere between 1.8 and 2.4.
The key here is to use the shortest stitches possible since the pieces are probably small and the seam length is short.
Please note that you don’t want to backstitch in piecing. The reason is that you will sew on them later when you build up the blocks.
Another thing you may want to adjust is the stitch width. This means the needle will move to the left or right in the needle’s oval opening.
This may sound weird to you but it is quite common among quilters. Adjusting the width will make something called a scant ¼” seam in piecing. This measurement is smaller than ¼”.
You can create the scant ¼” easier on some beginner sewing machines, if you want to know about these models, read this article Best Rated Sewing Machines For Beginners
to find out.
Scant ¼” seam
And why do you want to make this? When you press, a certain amount of the seam allowance is taken up. The scant ¼” will make up for that loss, causing the project looks more even and professional.
Not many beginners want to use this technique so it is popular among experienced and advanced quilters. When you make simple designs, this may not be important but when you move on to more complex patterns, this is a useful method to learn. At least for now, if you see the instruction refers to scant ¼”, you know what they are talking about.
A trick I usually use is the starter fabric. You use a piece of scrap and sew it first, then come to the main pieces. It’s like chain sewing. The scrap will take all the hiccups and brunt so that they will not impact your real patchwork.
Conclusion
When you take up quilting, there is no need to invest in a complex machine. A simple model might be just the one you want. If you don’t know where to start, read the article Best Sewing Machine For Beginners Reviews
to have a clear idea of what you should look for.
If you are new to quilting, many of the terms and techniques might sound strange to you. Since I cannot cover everything in just one article, I will share here the setting for piecing blocks only. Getting the machine ready is the first step in having a beautiful quilting project.
Knowing your sewing machine is the key to using it effectively. Whenever in doubt, consult your manual or pay your dealer a visit and find out a way to solve what is troubling you.
If you are looking for a sewing machine to quilt, the best sewing machine for beginners
Piecing blocks
I attended a new owner class after buying my machine so I had already known the basics by the time I started my first quilting project.
Tips to Set Your Sewing Machine To Piece Blocks
When sewing patchwork pieces, using straight stitches is mandatory. Depending on how much you can adjust your machine, the length can be somewhere between 1.8 and 2.4.
The key here is to use the shortest stitches possible since the pieces are probably small and the seam length is short.
Please note that you don’t want to backstitch in piecing. The reason is that you will sew on them later when you build up the blocks.
Another thing you may want to adjust is the stitch width. This means the needle will move to the left or right in the needle’s oval opening.
This may sound weird to you but it is quite common among quilters. Adjusting the width will make something called a scant ¼” seam in piecing. This measurement is smaller than ¼”.
You can create the scant ¼” easier on some beginner sewing machines, if you want to know about these models, read this article Best Rated Sewing Machines For Beginners
Scant ¼” seam
And why do you want to make this? When you press, a certain amount of the seam allowance is taken up. The scant ¼” will make up for that loss, causing the project looks more even and professional.
Not many beginners want to use this technique so it is popular among experienced and advanced quilters. When you make simple designs, this may not be important but when you move on to more complex patterns, this is a useful method to learn. At least for now, if you see the instruction refers to scant ¼”, you know what they are talking about.
A trick I usually use is the starter fabric. You use a piece of scrap and sew it first, then come to the main pieces. It’s like chain sewing. The scrap will take all the hiccups and brunt so that they will not impact your real patchwork.
Conclusion
When you take up quilting, there is no need to invest in a complex machine. A simple model might be just the one you want. If you don’t know where to start, read the article Best Sewing Machine For Beginners Reviews