Sewing Tip - Cutting Slippery Fabrics

A few tips on cutting fabric...

When cutting fabric, don't close your scissors all the way to the tips. You will be more likely to get jags and pulls in the fabric if you do. Close them about 90 percent of the way, open, slide forward and keep going without closing all the way to the tips.

Cutting fabric in a straight line isn't as easy as you might think.

• Try marking a line on your fabric using a fabric marker and a yard stick.
• For loosely woven fabrics, try pulling a thread out of the fabric with a pin. When it's out, it will leave you a visible line that you can use as a guide for cutting.
• For tightly woven fabrics, make a small cut in the selvage of the fabric. Tear the fabric, then clean up the line buy cutting a half-inch to an inch away from the torn edge. If the fabric doesn't want to tear, don't force it. You may damage the fabric or destroy its grain.

Cutting slippery, slithery fabric such as rayon challis or silk georgette can be a big challenge. Try sandwiching your fabric between tissue paper and the pattern pieces. Pin through all layers, then cut your fabric. Leave the fabric sandwiched between the layers until you're ready to sew.

Another method for cutting slippery fabrics is to iron the fabric to the waxy side of freezer paper before cutting. Experiment with scraps first to make sure the wax won't damage the fabric. Slippery fabrics are often made with synthetic fibers that will melt if ironed at a high temperature.

If only sewing slippery fabrics were that easy!

No Stretch Spaghetti Straps!

Spaghetti straps that stretch out can be a serious (and seriously embarrassing) problem. To keep the straps on your new summer creation from stretching out, use this simple technique...

Create your straps the way you normally would. Before you attach them to the dress, feed a length of nylon drapery cording or other thin nylon cord through the strap. Make a few stitches at each end of the strap to keep the cording in place. Stitch the straps in place on your garment.

It's that easy. You'll never have to worry about stretched out straps again! This method also makes your straps very strong.

Tips:

• Be sure to use nylon cording or cording made from some other synthetic material. Cording made out of a natural fiber like cotton could stretch when worn or shrink when washed. Drapery cording is a great choice.

• We've all encountered annoying straps that constantly slide down our shoulders. When attaching the straps to your garment, make sure that the straps are closer to each other in the back than they are in the front. If the space between them is the same as the space in the front, they will be more likely to slide. Criss-crossing the straps in back is an even better choice and can add a charming detail to your creation!

• Use a loop turner to feed the cording through your strap. A blunt plastic needle works great too. You can usually find them in the knitting department of a craft store.