How to hem your jeans

One thing that I find both convenient and frustrating about buying designer jeans is that many of them are sold without inseam sizes. The manufacturer makes them extra long, so when you buy them, unless you are supermodel tall, you have to have them hemmed.

This is great becuase it makes them easier to shop for since you are not dealing with inseam sizes as well as waist line sizes, but then leaves you with the pain in the butt of hemming (or paying to hem) your $100+ jeans.

UGH!

Well, for those out there who feel like they would like to tackle this task on their own, here is a tutorial on how I hem my jeans, and keep the original hem intact. I personally think this is very important. Especially considering how much money you paid for all of the washing and distressing that goes in to a nice pair of jeans, keeping the original hem really maintains the look of the jeans. So, here we go...

Step 1: Either try on the jeans to be hemmed and have a friend mark them at the spot you would like to hem them at. Or, if you are alone, find another pair of pants that fit you correctly. Lay them flat on top on one another on a ironing board. make sure the inseams match up, and mark the jeans where they need to be hemmed.

Step 2: Cut the jeans. If this is the first time you have done this, it is very scary. If you are afraid of messing up, give yourself a 1/4 in extra to work with. It won't effect the overall fit of the jean dramatically, and gives you the ability to cut off a boo boo and start over.

Here is a pic of a pair of jeans cut to the correct length. Make sure you have the hem lined up all the way around as you cut, or marked evenly all the way around. Otherwise, your jeans will end up shorter on one side and longer on another. I highly recommend both washing and ironing your jeans before doing this.

Step 3: Now you will need to trim the hem off of the bottom of the jeans. Make sure you leave at least a 1/4in on the edge of the hem, You will need this to fold in when you go to sew the hem back on to the jeans. In the pic below you can see how much I am leaving on the hem.

Step 4: Seam rip open the hem

Step 5: This is optional! Find the part of the hem that looks like this...

Turn it inside out like this...

And trim off a little of the serged hem like this...

Make sure you are not cutting into the actual side hem, just taking a little of the fabric off the end. This will help make it less bulky for your sewing machine to go through later.

Step 6: Now comes the tricky part, attaching your hem to the jeans. Begin by locating this part of the hem...

Find the matching side seam on your jeans, and match them up. You will notice that the former inside of your hem will now be on the outside of your jeans.

Step 7: Fold the raw edges of your hem in towards the center...

Place the cut end of your jeans inside the hem, making sure that the former inside of the hem in now on the outside, and the former outside of the hem is now on the inside.

When you are ready to pin it should look something like this. The folded over edge of the hem on the inside of your jeans used to be the hem on the outside of your jeans.

Step 8: Pin every few inches, making sure to double pin on either side of the side seams where the material is thicker. This is where your sewing machine will have the most trouble. Make sure to go slow through the side seams and you may even need to turn the hand wheel a little to help your machine along. If you don't go slow, I guarantee you will break your needle. Not fun.

Step 9: Using whatever foot you feel most comfortable with, sew around the hem of the jeans, I sew on the outside so I can make sure it lines up well and looks nice. Who ever sees the inside of your jeans hem?

Step 10: Back stitch, trim your threads and VOILA! You have hemmed your jeans! Below is a pic of the finished product. All distressing and washes intact :) I'm not all that picky about what thread I use. They don't really ever match the side seam thread to the hem thread on the jeans to begin with. You can buy a jean weight thread, but I've used a regular all purpose weight thread with no issues.

I hope I've inspired you to take on the task of hemming your own jeans, or at least demystified it a bit :)

Happy sewing,

Janice

Next blog series

After having blogged, and learned so much about thread in doing Thursday's thread, I think I'm going to continue with that same idea in my next blogging series. This time I'm going to tackle the entire quilting process, start to finish.

My goal is to post on the following steps to creating a quilt:

• Measuring and cutting
• Piecing and ironing (both quilt top and backing)
  
• Basting
• Quilting (going over how to free motion, how to use a walking foot, and how to quilt if you don't want to do either of these methods)
• Binding

I will share any short cuts or tips I have learned, and try out some new ones I have read about but not tried myself. Also I will go over common mistakes (ones that I made the first time around ;) as well as how to fix them (if possible).

Hopefully I will not only learn about the process on a more in-depth level myself, but can help give a beginner quilter the confidence to start a blanket or quilt on their own :) I will be starting next Friday, so hopefully between now and then I can finish Sentimental Me... I'm hoping the deadline will force me to sit down and finish it.

Happy sewing!

Janice

Satin Blanket Binding

After trying to talk my mother in law through stitching on sating blanket binding to a baby blanket, I thought it would be a nice thing to do a mini tutorial on the subject :) So here it is. My way to attach sating blanket binding, without pinning!

This blanket is going to another little boy who has to have surgery. My mother in law picked out the fabrics, super cute! The giraffe print is a super soft almost fur/velour fabric. What is trickey about it is it is a knit, and therefore has a bit of stretch. If you are combining fabrics with different stretches, make sure the stretchier one is on the bottom, you will be less likely to pull it with your hands, and when strait stitching, the feed dogs help to ease the stretch a bit.

Personally I really hate working with the satin blanket binding. It is slippery as all get out, snags on everything, and attracts all kinds of velcro in the wash. But it definitely has its place. Sometimes there is just no better way to finish of a blanket than with a nice, soft, shiny binding.

My way is a bit unorthodox, but it works for me. First I start by laying the blanket binding (now on referred to as BB) open, and overlapping the edge of the BB with the edge of the quilt about a 1/4 of an inch, like so.

Then I begin sewing on top of that 1/4 inch overlap. You'll notice I am using a Bernina #10 presser foot, it is called an "edge stitch" foot or "stitch in the ditch foot." It makes the process a whole lot easier, well worth the $28.00. Start in the middle of an edge, not at the beginning of a corner. This will make it easier to tie the edges of the BB together at the end. When you get to your first corner, stop about 1/4 from the edge of the blanket. Back stitch, and cut your threads

Then fold the BB back in half along the crease that is already there, and create a mitered corner. You can see in the pic below how it should look. This fold will help you determine how much fabric to allow for your corner when you start sewing again.

Next mark your corner with pins, if you look in the picture below you can see where I place my pins. You need to put one pin as a marker for the two points of the corner. Make sure you are only going through ONE layer of BB, not BOTH, or you will not be able to unfold the BB to stitch it down.

When you unfold the BB it should look something like this.

The pin in the middle of the BB is the outer corner, the pin on the bottom is the inner corner. Now comes the tricky part, fold the BB so the pin on the bottom meets the bottom corner. In the picture I have below you can see the pin marking the inner corner and the pin I have to hold everything in place.

Again, make sure you are only sewing through one layer of the BB. Back stitch and sew down the next side.

Repeat for each of the corners until you come back to where you began the BB. Below is a pic after I have sewn it down.

When you get the the end of the BB, fold the raw edge under and stitch it down.

Now turn the blanket over and begin the next side. First stitch down the raw edge about 1/2" past the over lap, and back stitch back the 1/2"

Then fold the BB over, and stitch it down. I try and line up the BB with the stitch I can see from sewing down the other side. If I fold it over about 1/8" past that stitch line, you can hide your stitching and do a straight stitch around the blanket.

Another option is to do a zig zag stitch or a satin stitch around the blanket, which works well too. I usually let the weight and loft of the blanket determine what kind of stitch I am going to do. The thicker and lofty-er the blanket, the more likely I am to do a zig zag. This particular blanket did not have a layer of batting, so I went with a straight stitch.

Once you have finishing attaching both sides of the BB, it is time to tack the corners. I first make sure both sides are lined up, and then do a zig zag stitch on zero length for about 10 stitches right in the middle of the corner. This prevents it from coming un-tucked. If you look closely in the pic you can see the tack. But its pretty tiny, and is hidden well.

Once you have tacked all your corners, you're done! Here is the finished blanket...

And a closer look at the quilting, stippling all over...

I'm beat! Long day, hope this was helpful :)

Happy sewing,

Janice

Basting

Since I'm still working on the sister quilt to "Blue Skies," I thought I'd post on how I approach basting. I know everyone has their own way, but this is how I baste. It took a little while to work the kinks out, but my last two quilts didn't have a single pucker!

First I begin by pressing all of the fabrics, the backing and the finished quilt top. This is also a good time to snip any threads that are on the right side of the quilt top, or on the edges, that are long and may get caught in the darning foot of your machine.

Then I lay the backing on the floor (make sure you clean your floor first!). Lay the backing right side down and smooth it out as best you can. Always work the wrinkles out from the center to the edges, rather than from one end to the other. Next, use masking tape (not painters tape) to tape your quilt down.

I start on one edge in the middle, then go to the opposite side in the middle, then repeat so all of the middles of my edges are taped. It is important to pull the fabric taut before you tape it down. Next go to one corner and tape it down, go across the quilt diagonally, and tape the opposite corner down, pulling taut before you tape. Repeat this as well. Once I get the middles and corners done, I fill in the empty spaces with a little tape. The end result should look something like this.

Next I lay the batting down. I use 100% cotton batting. It naturally "sticks" to the cotton, so I roll the batting up into a log and line up one of the edges and roll it out onto the quilt back. Once it is laid out, I smooth out any wrinkles, again going from the center of the quilt to the edges.

Once you have made sure your batting is smoothed out as best as possible, lay out the quilt top on top of the batting the same way you rolled out the batting. Roll it into a log, line up one of the edges, and then unroll it. Then smooth from the center to the edges.

You can see from the picture I let my backing and batting overlap the edge of the quilt top by about 2-3 inches, that way if the top shifts a bit while quilting, I don't have to trim any of the quilt top before adding the binding.

Next is pinning. I use basting safety pins that are bent in the middle. This is really helpful in getting through all of the layers of the quilt sandwich.

I use Kwik Klip to help me close the safety pins. It is well worth the ten or so dollars it costs :) Also, because I am basting on floors that scratch, slide my cutting mat under the quilt so I don't have to worry about scratching up my floors, and I can also be sure I've made it through all of the layers of the quilt.

I place my pins about 4-6 inches apart, depending on the complexity of my quilt top. The more complex the piecing, the more chance you have of ending up with a pucker because of the seams, so pinning closer together helps the avoid this.

So there you have it, a basted quilt! It only took... two hours!! (Or at least that's how long it takes me :)

Happy Sewing!

Janice

How to oil your Sewing Machine

Hi, welcome to my blog! As someone who loves to sew, craft, paint, basically do anything creative, I decided to create a way for me to share my projects, as well as a few helpful hints, with people who love the same things I do!

To start I thought I would begin by going over the very basics of keeping your sewing machine in tip top shape. After all, the better your machine is running, the more amazing things you can sew on it! In this post I am going to show you how to take apart, oil and clean the bobbin case, shuttle hook, and race assembly (trust me, its not as intimidating as it seems!)

Most machines come with a container of oil. If you don't have one, or lost it, you can purchase them at any place that sells sewing machines. Begin by opening the door to your bobbin case. I have a picture of what it looks like on my Bernina, they are all pretty similar. You will also notice I have the foot place removed on my machine as well. This really helps you see what is going on in there. And also allows you the opportunity to clean out all that LINT!!! :)

Next you want to remove the bobbin and bobbin case.

Now come the tricky part, undoing the clasp that holds your shuttle assembly in place. Mine happens to be a little clip on the left hand side of my shuttle assembly, your may look different. It may be two black plastic clips that swivel in to lock everything in place. Your manual will show you how to unlock this part of your machine. When you have unlocked the shuttle assembly, it will drop open as pictured below.

Next, take out the shuttle hook... It is the metal piece that looks like a half moon and is on the right hand side of the shuttle assembly. It is not snapped or hooked in, so it will pretty much fall out when you touch it. DON'T WORRY, you did not just break your machine! I promise!

Now its time to clean and oil. First use the tiny lint brush that came with your machine to brush out any lint. NEVER and I mean NEVER BLOW THE LINT AWAY!!! This will push all of that lint into the inner workings of your sewing machine, which is a bad bad thing. If you must be super diligent in cleaning your machine, use a vacuum.

I oil my machine in three places, the back of the race, the back of the shuttle hook and once after I put everything back together. The race is the black plastic circle you can see that is folded down on my machine. Yours may be metal. I run a tiny bit of oil with a q-tip along the back of the race. Then I oil the back of the shuttle hook. Hold the bar the bobbin sits on and turn the shuttle hook so you can see the back. There will be a flat part along the outside, I put a little oil there as well. In the picture below you can see the flat rim on the outer edge of the circular part of the shuttle hook facing up (the shuttle hook is upside-down in this pic)

Now, put everything back together! First place the shuttle hook back in the assembly. It will not snap it, simply place it back in the machine. If you look closely there will be half of a circle in your machine, complete the circle with the shuttle hook. It is easiest to put it in while holding the post the bobbin goes in.

Snap the race (black plastic circle) make sure you hear it click or the tabs snap so you know it is secure. To check and make sure everything is in place, turn the hand wheel a few times. Finally the last place you can oil is in the re-assembled shuttle assembly. Turn the hand wheel until your shuttle assembly looks like this...



If you look closely, the shuttle assembly looks like there is a funnel, or the bottom of a hear shape at the bottom of the circle that is the shuttle assembly. Place one drop of oil in this "funnel" and turn the hand wheel a few times to distribute the oil.

Replace your threaded bobbin, and your foot plate if you removed it too, and you're ready to sew! I know it seems like a lot, but I try and oil my machine every time I change my bobbin. I don't go to all the trouble to take the foot plate off and de-lint every time, but I will usually do that before starting a new project.

You will really be surprised by how much quieter your machine is after you've finished. And after a few times it only takes a few minutes to complete the whole oiling and bobbin changing, (I promise, you will become a speed oil-er!) and is totally worth it in the stitch quality, and quietness of your machine.

I hope this posting has helped in showing you how to clean and oil your machine with confidence!

Happy sewing.

Janice