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Does anyone actually use effectively? (Moderated by EleanorSews)
Posted on: 12/16/06 10:11 AM ET
I have a blind hem foot for my Kenmore. I have figured out how to fold/lay pant leg as described in the book. BUT, unless I would find EXACTLY matching thread, the hem is unsightly. You can see the tread (maybe 1/16 inch long) evenly spaced around the hem. Perhaps I could make them a little smaller but, you'd have to be blind to not see them unless the thread is absolutely perfect color match.
Does anyone get blind hems with regular sewing machine and blind hem foot? Or, do you have to get a special blind hem machine (or hand stitch as DW does) to get a true blind hem?
Thank you,
Regis
-- Edited on 12/16/06 10:12 AM --
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Does anyone get blind hems with regular sewing machine and blind hem foot? Or, do you have to get a special blind hem machine (or hand stitch as DW does) to get a true blind hem?
Thank you,
Regis
-- Edited on 12/16/06 10:12 AM --
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Views from the amature side, but growing.
Posted on: 12/16/06 10:30 AM ET
Yes - but you have to really fiddle with the width of the stitch so it just "picks" at the fabric, and I always use hem tape. Then I go back and pick out any obvious stitches and redo. Make sure the tension is on the loose side as well.
Gail
Gail
Posted on: 12/16/06 10:45 AM ET
It takes a lot of practice to get the blind hem foot adjustment just right, and the fabric lined up just right to get a blind hem. If I want a really, really invisible hem, I'll sew it by hand. I'll use the machine if I don't care if I see a little bit of the hem.
Posted on: 12/16/06 11:04 AM ET
I hate handstitching so I do use the blind hem function of my machine often. Slanden is right that you do have to practice so that only a tiny bite is taken into the hem. And you are correct that matching thread is important.
But really, unless someone is on the floor with their nose near your pants hem, it's not going to show as much as you might think.
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But really, unless someone is on the floor with their nose near your pants hem, it's not going to show as much as you might think.
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"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
Posted on: 12/16/06 11:26 AM ET
I use it a lot. You can also get either the clear or smokey plastic thread that looks like fishing line. It matches anything. I would practice first.
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Marilyn
January 2009 to January 2010 81 yards out and 71yards in January 2010 to the present 106.7 yards out and 146.5 yards in. January 2011 to the present: 47 yards out and 69 yards in.
January 2009 to January 2010 81 yards out and 71yards in January 2010 to the present 106.7 yards out and 146.5 yards in. January 2011 to the present: 47 yards out and 69 yards in.
Posted on: 12/16/06 11:37 AM ET
I lengthen the stitch usually so the "bite" isn't too close together. I also try to get a small "bite" of fabric. I couldn't live without this feature. Only certain, really fine fabrics do I use a hand hem.
(Although after taking Susan Khalje's class a few summers ago, I feel very guilty about the machine hem)...it really doesn't take that long to hem by hand.
(Although after taking Susan Khalje's class a few summers ago, I feel very guilty about the machine hem)...it really doesn't take that long to hem by hand.
Posted on: 12/16/06 12:03 PM ET
I just can't sew by hand and I can't keep asking DW to hem all these pants that I'm making. I'll just have to learn how to get that very small 'pick' and match color better (or clear) on thread.
Thank all,
Regis
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Thank all,
Regis
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Views from the amature side, but growing.
Posted on: 12/16/06 12:16 PM ET
In reply to RegisG
1. Debbie Cook is right...Regis, if someone can see your hemming stitches on a pair of pants you're wearing....they're way too close to you! Tell them to stand up!
2. As far as color match, (and I don't know if this has been recommended or not) try going a shade darker when you're stuck matching thread.
I recently made another long sleeved t-shirt and I have been doing a mock coverhem on my sewing machine. I didn't like the thread color when I picked it out at the store with a swatch of my cloth, but when I finished the sleeves and hem, it actually looks great. The color is way better than I thought.
So...yeah, you gotta learn to do blind hems on your machine. Keep trying!
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2. As far as color match, (and I don't know if this has been recommended or not) try going a shade darker when you're stuck matching thread.
I recently made another long sleeved t-shirt and I have been doing a mock coverhem on my sewing machine. I didn't like the thread color when I picked it out at the store with a swatch of my cloth, but when I finished the sleeves and hem, it actually looks great. The color is way better than I thought.
So...yeah, you gotta learn to do blind hems on your machine. Keep trying!
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The single most important discovery made by a group of women? The Empty Tomb!
http://www.donnahodgson.blogspot.com/
http://www.donnahodgson.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 12/16/06 12:26 PM ET
Regis, it's kind of a two parter: First, get that fold lined up where you want it to be (preferably against the guide under the foot), and then lower your face until you're staring into the fold itself. While thus engaged (and putting a kink in your neck), work with the control of the needle's swing on the blind hem stitch. You may find that you can adjust the width very precisely, good enough to pick up just one or two little bitty threads on the hem. That's what you want.
Second, when you're actually stitching, spread the fingers of your left hand, and use them to control the fabric, keeping it flat and smooth, so that as it moves under the needle, you help it a bit more to maintain the proper alignment with the guide on the foot. Just a little wandering, and your stitches will be deeper and more visible.
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Second, when you're actually stitching, spread the fingers of your left hand, and use them to control the fabric, keeping it flat and smooth, so that as it moves under the needle, you help it a bit more to maintain the proper alignment with the guide on the foot. Just a little wandering, and your stitches will be deeper and more visible.
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Elona
Posted on: 12/16/06 12:29 PM ET
Just to piggy-back onto DonnaH's comment and because I don't know if anyone has actually said this to you Regis ...
We are our own worst critics. We work on garments much closer than anyone else would actually be to them. And we know where to look.
Try to use the 3-foot or "Galloping Horse" rule. Which means, if you can't see "it" from 3 feet away or while riding past on a galloping horse, then no one else will either and so "it" doesn't exist.
My friend Belinda also recommends the "Magic Wardrobe" (which is Magic Closet in US English) ... if you don't like something immediately upon completion, hang it in the Magic Wardrobe for a few days/a week. You'll probably forget everything that bugged you because you'll be a bit removed from it now with the passing of time, and you'll end up liking or even loving what you've made. Don't toss anything into the wadder pile without giving it a stint in the Magic Wardrobe.
-- Edited on 12/16/06 12:30 PM --
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We are our own worst critics. We work on garments much closer than anyone else would actually be to them. And we know where to look.
Try to use the 3-foot or "Galloping Horse" rule. Which means, if you can't see "it" from 3 feet away or while riding past on a galloping horse, then no one else will either and so "it" doesn't exist.
My friend Belinda also recommends the "Magic Wardrobe" (which is Magic Closet in US English) ... if you don't like something immediately upon completion, hang it in the Magic Wardrobe for a few days/a week. You'll probably forget everything that bugged you because you'll be a bit removed from it now with the passing of time, and you'll end up liking or even loving what you've made. Don't toss anything into the wadder pile without giving it a stint in the Magic Wardrobe.
-- Edited on 12/16/06 12:30 PM --
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--
"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
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