| Nuts and Bolts |
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The hardware store holds an array of gadgets and goodies that are
indispensable in the sewing room. Best of all, you may already have many of these items if
you have a home workshop.
- A rubber
mallet is surprisingly useful in flattening seams or hems on thick fabric or leather and
especially on heavy flat-fell seams. Test on a fabric scrap first and be careful not to
leave mallet prints. Then fold and pin heavy seams in place. Heat them with steam from the
iron (if appropriate for the fabric), without actually touching the iron to the fabric.
Place the seam or hem right-side-down on a padded surface and strike it with the mallet to
flatten. Stitching through the flattened seam is much easier.
- Small,
soft-bristle paintbrushes can be used to clean lint from the sewing machine or serger. A
1"-wide brush can get into small spaces, but covers a larger area than the tiny
brushes that come with most sergers.
- Needle-nose
pliers, like medical hemostats, are wonderful for getting into small places or pulling
needles through tough-to-sew fabrics.
- Which side
is the right side? A bit of masking tape to mark a fabric wrong side will save a lot of
time and frustration later. Test first to be sure the tape won't leave a residue or
distort the fabric grain when it's pulled off.
- Also
available are rubber-coated gripper clips. Like binder clips, these can hold heavy fabrics
and leathers together without damaging them. Clip your pattern guidesheet in one and hang
it on the sewing room wall to keep flat surfaces clear.
- Make your
own oversized ironing board for pennies with a 24"x40" rectangle of 1/4"
plywood, a couple of surplus store blankets and canvas or duck cloth. Put the battle
behind you. Stack three clean blankets layers on the plywood. Cut the top blanket layer
large enough to pull the edges to the back, and staple to the plywood wrong side.
Cut a 26"x42" rectangle from drill cloth, canvas or denim. Finish the long raw
edges. Cut two 4"x30" rectangles for the end pockets. Zigzag a 22"-long,
3/4"-wide elastic strip to one long edge of each rectangle, stretching the elastic to
fit. Turn under the edge the width of the elastic and edgestitch. Gather the opposite long
end of each piece to fit the large rectangle short ends and stitch one in place at each
end. Stitch the small rectangle short ends to the large rectangle long edges. Slip the
cover over the blankets and plywood. Add elastic to the cover long edges if desired. The
cover can easily be removed for laundering.
Mark a "ruler" on the cover, near one edge, using a permanent marker and a
straight edge. Draw an 18"-long (or longer if you prefer) line, indicating 1"
and 1/2" measurements.
If you'll be using the oversized board on top of your traditional ironing board, place it
on your ironing board and mark the outline of the ironing board on the underside of the
plywood. Remove, place upside-down and glue 1"x1" strips along each of the four
sides to hold the oversized board in place on your regular board.
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Makeup cases in an array of shapes and sizes are available in beauty supply
departments. These are especially helpful to hold sewing notions for traveling sewers.
Small projects for the car or plane pack neatly into these boxes so your sewing can go
with you. 