There are many fabircs whose right or outside is the same as the wrong or inside. To avoid having two of the same sleeve or some similar diasters, consider using blue painters tape.
When I'm cutting out a fabric that I know will make me think, I add a piece of blue painters tape to the wrong side. As a result, when I'm sewing, I just need to look for the blue tape to know I have the pieces properly put together. I need to see blue on both sides and then I'm safe to sew. Very helpful late at night.
This tip is especially useful when sewing multiple garments of the same pattern. When sewing pants for my Mom, I used to put the tape on the front and back pieces using horizontal and verticcal to distinguish them. It reduced my margin of error significantly and allowed me to speed right along with 3-4 pairs of elastic waist pants.
Blue painters tape leaves no residue (that"i've experienced to date) but stays in place as needed.
Another thing I have used it for was to mark the direction of a silk and another sheer fabric where I had 18 yards and needed to cut it in half and seam the two pieces together. In both instances, the light hit the weave in such a way that you had to treat it as if there were a nap. I did not want to use pins for fear of marking the fabric and the possibility of the pins coming out and then it would be a guessing game. A couple small squares of blue tape strategically placed before cutting solved the problem. |
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Thanks I'm going to try this, I used scotch tape before but it's hard to get off of some fabrics.
8/4/08 5:00 PM
This is a very good idea - Thanks !!
8/4/08 5:16 PM
I LOVE painter's tape for all your reasons, plus one. When I need to do top stitching (purses is a great example as sometimes you need to stitch a straight line in the middle of the fabric) There are several other areas I can think of where you can not simply use the edge of the fabric to use as a guide for tip stitching. It's simply wonderful and I can not live without it. I also use it as a guideline on my sewing machine when sewing very wide seams. Every designer should have a roll!
8/4/08 10:42 PM
What a simple idea! I've always used pins to mark the wrong side, but sometimes they have fallen out. I am going to add a roll of blue painters tape to may sewing supplies!
8/4/08 11:20 PM
Blue tape is also great for sewing darts. Just pin and press your dart, then place the tape right along the stitching line as a guide.
8/4/08 11:49 PM
I suggest using painters tape to map out the size of your finished roman shade. By doing this you can use a carpenters square to make sure your shade is square and it will hang straight. Just a Home Dec tip for painters tape Claudia
8/5/08 8:46 AM
Great tip.
8/5/08 8:47 AM
Great idea...especially for those late-night sewing events! Thanks...
8/5/08 11:13 AM
Thanks for the tip, great idea!
8/5/08 3:17 PM
I also have a roll of this in my sewing room. I like that it doesn't leave a sticky residue as scotch tape sometimes does. I also have adhesive colored "dots" which I use to keep things organized when I have lots of pieces. I also used them on my serger to remind me of threading order (I have reached the Age of Forgetfulness).
8/5/08 3:50 PM
Thanks for this tip. I've just gone out and bought a roll!
8/6/08 5:19 AM
This tip is brilliant. I'm off to Home Depot to pick up a roll.
8/6/08 7:14 AM
Great tips. Thanks.
8/7/08 0:04 AM
You can also use garment tape, which I have ordered from Cleaner's Supply. I haven't used it yet, but it looks like the same idea - a low-tack tape - but narrower and comes in four colors. Note that they recommend not to use on silk, velvet and velour. You might want to follow this with the blue tape as well, just in case. I bought it for pattern markings, but I like the topstitching and wide seam ideas, too! Thanks!
8/7/08 12:50 PM
I use this too and if I have to cut out in one direction I place an arrow on the left overs so If I have to cut out something else it is all shaded the same way.
8/8/08 12:13 PM
I do something very similar, except I have a little sheet of orange dots that I use. I just slap a dot on the wrong side. They're also handy for marking.
8/11/08 10:57 AM
Thank you for this tip!! I hate staring at the material, and the longer you look the harder it is to tell them apart sometimes1
8/20/08 2:26 PM