Saturday, July 30, 2016

57: Fabric Jams

Fabric jams in the race!

All is going well. You are sewing easily and quickly, when all of a sudden the fabric jams in the race!

What CAUSES THIS PROBLEM?


The zigzag plate and foot.





The answer is simple: when one uses a zigzag plate and foot the zigzag plate's wide opening and the open width of the zigzag foot makes it easy for fabric to jam down into the race through the zigzag plate's opening.



What is the solution?


This problem can be quickly solved by changing the sewing machine’s zigzag plate and foot to a straight stitch plate and foot before sewing straight seams..

However, many home sewers prefer not to change the plates and feet on their sewing machines when they sew straight seams. They have found they can sew straight seams with zigzag feet and plates. Changing the foot and plate takes time, and is aggravating. This is the reason many home sewing machines now are sold with just a zigzag plate and foot. Straight-stitch feet and plates may not even be available for many home sewing machines.

The straight-stitch  plate and foot

Where can one buy a
straight-stitch foot and plate? 

The straight-stitch plate has a
small hole that prevents jamming.
Straight-stitch feet and plates can be ordered for some sewing machines. Unfortunately straight stitch plates are not manufactured for many home sewing machines. However, if one uses a straight stitch foot, even if one does NOT use a straight-stitch plate, much of the jamming problem can still be eliminated.

Not the greatest foot to use when straight-stitch sewing. But it will prevent jamming.
Sometimes straight-stitch feet can be bought on E-bay. It is difficult to find a true straight-stitch foot with a 1/4 inch prong. But there are straight-stitch feet now manufactured for quilting that have 1/8 inch prongs.

It is also possible that one might find a straight-stitch foot with a 1/4 inch prong at a yard sale or at a sewing machine dealer.

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Phone: 215 884 7065
© Laurel Hoffmann, 2016. All rights reserved.
All material on this blog is copyrighted by and is the exclusive right of Laurel Hoffmann.

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56: African Fashion on a Global Stage

The exhibit contains many wonderful
examples of African fabric and clothing designs.
A beautiful collection of clothing designs from Africa is showing in the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Perelman building now.
This is the show’s description on the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s website:

Vlisco: African Fashion on a Global Stage

April 30, 2016–January 22, 2017
Joan Spain Gallery
Discover how the Dutch company Vlisco became one of the most influential textile brands in West and Central African fashion and a design inspiration around the world.   This exhibition explores the company’s most enduring designs, follows the creation of a new textile, and showcases a selection of contemporary fashions.

 Here are pictures I took when I visited the exhibit.
 

The explanation of how the fabric
is printed.
The prints are unique. The walls of the exhibit
are mounted with many of the prints.

Male suit







 


e-mail

Phone: 215 884 7065
© Laurel Hoffmann, 2016. All rights reserved.
All material on this blog is copyrighted by and is the exclusive right of Laurel Hoffmann, with the exception of the written material copied from the Philadelphia Museum of Art's website.
Photos by Laurel Hoffmann.




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