By Afton Warrick
For the past few weeks I’ve been giving you a tour of time-saving, useful notions you may not have heard about previously. There’s been an Iron Shine Cleaning Pen, Hot Ruler, Patchwork Pins, Wedge Iron, Self-Threading Needles, Wonder Clips, and the Natural Fit Leather Thimble. What could I have possibly missed?
In quilting, an accurate 1/4″ seam allowance has a huge impact on the final outcome. Having a seam allowance that’s not quite 1/4″ adds up to inches lost over the course of the many, many seams within a pieced top.
It’s also important to make sure sewn units measure as expected. For example, two 2 1/2″ unfinished squares sewn together with a 1/4″ seam should measure 4 1/2″. If your unit is still shy, fabric bulk and thread thickness taken up in the fold could be responsible, and you may need to use a scant (slightly less than) 1/4″ seam allowance.
While I have a pretty good handle on my 1/4″ seam at this point, my consistency becomes questionable with other measurements, and bulky or curved seams.
The time had come for me to turn my purchased raw materials into a tote for my first grade son’s super hero-loving teacher. This occasion was a perfect opportunity to put my
Clover 6-in-1 Stick n’ Stitch Guide to use.
If you’re like me, you wonder just what the six things (of the 6-in-1 title) happen to be.
Here goes:
1. Straight Stitching
2. Quilt Strips
3. Outer Curves
4. Inner Curves
5. Left Side Topstitching
6. Right Side Topstitching
First, put your needle through the hole in the positioning template for whichever size seam allowance you desire. Clean off your machine bed. Peel the protective plastic cover off the sticky base of the gauge (but save it for later). Stick the guide in position, as illustrated in the instructions, before lifting the needle and removing the template.
After giving this pattern a whirl, I have a few recommendations:
1. Use the
Clover Hot Ruler instead of the
Hot Hemmer. It probably wasn’t mentioned in the tutorial because it was recently released, but it’s an even better fit for this purpose.
2. Where the pattern says, “Pin a length of piping to the top curved edge of each pocket piece,” only add piping to 2 of the 4.
Not satisfied to stop while some remnants of super hero fabric remained, I decided to make a Noodlehead Open Wide Zippered Pouch. I liked how the 2-piece guide allowed for a variety of placements.
My 1/8″ straight stitch to seal up the hole for turning was so much neater using the guide.
The guide is designed to be reused and repositioned. If the base loses its stickiness, you can clean it off with soapy water, and it’ll be as good as new. To see more about use of the guide, check out Clover’s YouTube video tutorial.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNEwWeKH6ew]
As a former elementary school teacher, I’m a proponent of recognizing all the hard work teachers do. I hope I have a very happy recipient.
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