New Materials: Linen Knit

It's always fun to try out new materials, techniques, and styles.  While in Minneapolis, I found some linen jersey knit.  I've worked with woven linen fabric and some knits, but never a linen knit.  So, I bought enough to make a T-shirt as a test garment.

Most fabrics I buy go straight into the washer before I even think about cutting them out.  Pre-shinking the fabric means the final garment will still fit.  In this case, washing before cutting may have been a serious mistake.  The fabric came out of the dryer with a very serious roll to the selvages.  I decided to iron the fabric and take care of that problem.  BIG MISTAKE.

Ironing did remove most of the roll, but in the process, the selvages were stretched relative to the center.  A second trip through the laundry didn't fix the problem, nor did an attempt to stretch the middle of the fabric with an iron.  Lack of recovery (not returning to the original shape after stretching) seems to be an issue with this fabric.  After a third trip through the laundry, the problem wasn't all fixed, but it was at least better.

The roll at the edge of the fabric made it impossible to line up the pattern pieces on the straight of the grain in the usual way.  I tried to lay out the fabric straight, then applied the pattern pieces.  I'm sure there's some error in the placement, but with a knit fabric, maybe that's OK.  Also, due to the earlier differential stretching, there wasn't a consistent grain anyway.

I my standard T-shirt pattern and construction techniques, described in detail in a previous post.

Unfortunately, a fold of fabric got caught up in the neck seam.  I was able to fix the problem, but in the process, I got some small holes in the thin fabric.

I was able to fix the holes and hopefully the repairs won't be too obvious.

I'm not sure that I like this fabric.  Maybe I don't know the right ways to deal with it, or maybe I didn't have the right application for it.  I'll wear the shirt a while and see how it goes.  Linen is a wonderful fabric for summer, very cool and comfortable.  Here in the South, we've definitely got some more warm weather coming this year.

Come back next week for a post about the embroidery on this shirt.

Amateur Radio Operator's Purse

It's Hamfest Weekend here in Huntsville, Alabama, when amateur radio operator operators gather from far and near.  There aren't many Young Ladies (a term encompassing all females with radio licenses) in the hobby, but there are a few of us.  We all need some place to stash a handheld radio.  It's also customary for radio operators at an event like this to wear something, like a hat, shirt or name tag with our call sign that identifies us to others we might have talked to on the radio, but never met.  I decided to create a purse that would fulfill both needs.

 This handy purse displays my call sign and has a specially designed pocket for my radio.  The lightening bolts and daylilies are just on there for ornamentation.  It's made of micro suede, which is easy to work with, durable, and even washable.  I'd live to give a pattern number for this purse, but there isn't one.  It's an original design that I've evolved after making a few purses.  The purse is deliberately small, so it doesn't tend to collect junk.

I used a variety of techniques in embellishing the purse.  The radio is applique.  Needless to say, there's not a applique pattern commercially available, so I designed my own and hand guided my machine to stitch it down.   The buttons on the radio were also hand guided machine embroidery, with a wide zig-zag stitch.  The lettering is from built in stitches in my sewing machine.  The "speaker" in the middle of the radio is actually reverse applique.  The mesh is attached to the back of the micro suede fabric and once the circle was sewn, the micro suede was cut away to reveal the mesh.  There's a matching mesh window in the purse lining, enabling the radio to be monitored while it's in the purse.  My call sign and other embellishments were done with conventional machine embroidery.

The top of the radio pocket has elastic, which keeps the radio from falling out.  The purse is closed with a zipper.  The open end of the zipper is on the same end as the radio pocket, so the antenna can stick out of the purse while it is closed.

Come back next week when I explore using a new to me kind of fabric.

Latch Hook Rug Pillow

We all have those projects lurking in the sewing room that never seem to actually get finished.   One of mine was a latch hook rug.  The latch hook part has been done for nearly a year, but I've never done anything more with it.  There's a few things you can do with the rugs, like making them into wall hangings or decorative throw pillows.  I chose the pillow route.

The first thing is to select a suitable backing material.  A heavy fabric works best and I chose a black duck canvas.  It works well with the black in the rug.

The backing material needs to be machine stitched to the rug all the way around, which means either a zipper or overlapping panels needs to be used.  I cut pieces of the canvas so that they would overlap by about 6" and have a 1" seam allowance for the rug to canvas seam.  The overlapping edges of the panels need to be finished first.  Then, the whole back of the pillow is basted together.  Here's the pillow back laid over the rug.

It's necessary to trip excess canvas from the rug.  Leave about 1" of canvas all around.

The rug and back can be sewn together with a wide stitch.  I used a three step zig-zag.  The wide stitch helps catch more threads in the mostly open rug canvas.  Be careful to sew very close to the yarns without catching them in the seam.

The finished pillow is 14 x 20, definitely not a size where you can get a pre-made pillow form.  I made a pillow in the right size with polyester-cotton broadcloth left over from a different project and poly fiber fill.  

To finish the project, just insert the stuffed pillow into the rug cover.  Whew!  That's one more project out of my sewing room and out doing something useful.

Purse with Hungarian Style Embroidery Part 3

This is the final installment in a series discussing the construction and embellishment of a purse.

Part 1 discussed materials selection and embroidery.  Part 2 discussed finishing the outer shell and some modifications made necessary by the use of different materials than those recommended by the pattern.  Now, we'll take a look at the lining and finishing.

For the lining, I chose light green poly cotton broadcloth.  My aunt pointed out that a dark lining in a purse just makes it harder to find things!  This is an experiment to see if a light colored lining is an improvement.  The pattern calls for just one pocket, divided into two sections in the lining.  So lame!  I decided that adding a zippered pocket would make for a much better purse.  To make the pocket, I cut two rectangles, each 11" x 7".  I cut a slit in the lining and in one side of the pocket 9" long and about 1/2 wide.  

The 9" zipper was sandwiched between the lining and the pocket piece.  Getting this lined up correctly does take some effort, but it's doable.

Next, the back of the pocket is stitched to the front.

After the pocket is added to the other side of the lining, the lining from and back can be sewn together.

Add tabs and a facing, and you have a complete lining.  The lining is then sewn to the outer shell.  I like to top stitch around the top opening of the bag.  I find it holds things in place better an adds to a neater appearance, especially with the use of heavier materials.

The handles can now be sewn on to the D-rings.

The final step is to add a stiffener to the bottom of the bag, to help it hold it's shape.  The pattern calls for cardboard or plastic canvas to be covered with lining material and simply added to the bottom of the bag.  I like the idea of plastic canvas a lot better than cardboard.  It's tougher and more washable.

Finally, the purse is complete.  Come back next time for a new project!