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Slipstitching tips? mine is so bad.
J A   Intermediate Member since 5/28/06 Posts: 5	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 8/9/12 8:16 PM Many patterns call for slipstitching, and mine always comes out looking like poop. Are there some tricks for it? How do you hide the knot at the end?
stirwatersblue Intermediate KS USA Member since 12/13/08 Posts: 2469	Login to reply to this post 1 member likes this. Date: 8/9/12 8:29 PM Practice.Tiny stitches, tiny sharp needle. I don't knot my last stitches, per se--I have a lifetime of needlework experience, so I tend to just weave my last stitches back and forth through several previous ones, then pull the needle down through the fabric, then back up through the seam. Pull *tightly,* snip really close to the fabric, and when you release, the end will slip back inside. If you're really struggling with getting even stitches, a good, truly invisible alternative, is the ladder stitch. It's great for closing seams on pillows, and for inserting linings. Youtube has an awesome tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CjOXMuTFXo ------ ~Gem in the prairie
tourist   Intermediate BC CANADA Member since 7/23/07 Posts: 5414	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 8/9/12 10:08 PM Yeah. Practice works. I found mine improved with age in that I looked at something I sewed ages ago and was seriously impressed with the hand sewing, especially when I realized it must have been mine! I am sure I thought it was horrible at the time. ------ http://bgballroom.wordpress.com to follow the progress on my next ballgown.
Miss Fairchild   Advanced USA Member since 8/24/02 Posts: 6990	Login to reply to this post In reply to J A << Like this post Date: 8/9/12 10:10 PM Another thing I can suggest is that you slip the needle down the fold, just barely behind the fold. That way, you won't see the stitches as much. If you slip the needle down the fold to where it comes out in front, you'll see your stitches and they'll look like poop. ------ "We don't impose our rhythm on Nature. The key is to respect and live within Her." Jean-Charles Boisset, Winemaker "And no, now that you asked, I didn't enjoy that play one bit, and I'd like a refund" Signed, Mrs. Lincoln My Etsy shop: auntmaymesattic My blog: auntmaymesattic.wordpress.com Avatar: First place award for jacket at county fair
clotheshorse   Intermediate BC CANADA Member since 3/24/10 Posts: 632	Login to reply to this post In reply to J A << 1 member likes this. Date: 8/9/12 10:17 PM Make sure you use a good quality fine thread and good needles. A good needle makes a big difference I think. I use the Japanese needles that Susan Khaljie sells. Most people like using beeswax, but for most of my hand sewing I like Thread Heaven. It really just takes practise and once you get the hang of it, you might find as I do, that hand sewing is very relaxing. ------ Viking D1, 1+, Pfaff 7570, Singer 503 Rocketeer, 66, 15-91, Featherweight 5 Flock, Babylock Enlighten & Coverstitch and Pfaff Creative Performance
stirwatersblue Intermediate KS USA Member since 12/13/08 Posts: 2469	Login to reply to this post 2 members like this. Date: 8/9/12 11:31 PM Oh, I also want to mention that you shouldn't expect your hand stitches to look machine perfect. They just won't. I always thought my hand sewing was really sloppy (especially compared to my embroidery), until my DH bought me a book called SEVENTEENTH CENTURY FASHION IN DETAIL, which features extreme close-up photographs of existing gowns from the 1600s... it is the most stunning, breathtaking handwork you will ever see. ...And my stitches look just like those! They're uneven, crooked, slightly different sizes, all just a little... handmade. :D It made me feel 100% better about my "sloppy" handwork! -- Edited on 8/9/12 11:32 PM -- ------ ~Gem in the prairie
J A   Intermediate Member since 5/28/06 Posts: 5	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 8/10/12 10:12 PM Thank you all SO MUCH! I'll use your tips, get some nicer needles, and *try* to go easy on myself.I feel better already.
sings2high   Expert/Couture NJ USA Member since 11/25/11 Posts: 146	Login to reply to this post 1 member likes this. Date: 8/11/12 1:18 AM Hey, you just haven't lived until some sewing teacher takes a ruler to your line of hand-stitches and marks off if any vary in length more than 1/16" of an inch, LOL. Of course, most of my stitching at that time of life was done in a Costume Shop where the rule was "if it won't be seen from the audience, don't worry about it." That didn't exactly encourage careful even stitching. Now I have a highly developed sense of when to be totally OCD and when to throw all caution to the winds. :-) ------ Measure twice, cut once.

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