jmcclannan Posted October 13, 2012 Report Share Posted October 13, 2012 OK, I have been quilting for a while and I have really struggled with those insections where 6-8 layers of fabric come together. My Millie really doesn't like those so I try to avoid them as much as possible but I have a quilt that is coming up for quilting soon and it has a million (ok maybe just a thousand) of those nasty corners. My needle just stops when I get to those. How do you all handle those? Oh, and please don't tell your machine doesn't balk at those cuz mine does! :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primitive1 Posted October 13, 2012 Report Share Posted October 13, 2012 Julie, Those thick seams can bend your hopping foot a little which results in crooked or off stitches. When I come across them, (usually working from the front of the machine) I slow down and if the needle stops or the machine groans, I help it with the fly wheel. Hopefully all those seams will be ironed so they are as flat as they can be. I've also heard that people will smash them with a hammer before they load the quilt to flatten those intersections. (I haven't tried that though). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yankiequilter Posted October 13, 2012 Report Share Posted October 13, 2012 I just completed a quilt with bulky seams and I handle them the same as Vicki. I try to sneak in and out of the bulky intersections by way of flatter areas but sometimes I get surprised. If I hit one of those spots and the machine makes a terrible noise and the needle gets stuck, then I change the needle to be assured that I am using a straight needle. If the machine doesn't make terrible noises but the needle gets stuck then I turn the fly wheel to release it and continue to use the needle. The quilt I just completed was batik top and back and I went up from a 3.5 to a 4.0 needle, I used about 6 needles and one of them broke on a thick seam.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oma Posted October 13, 2012 Report Share Posted October 13, 2012 Julie, Those thick seams can bend your hopping foot a little which results in crooked or off stitches. When I come across them, (usually working from the front of the machine) I slow down and if the needle stops or the machine groans, I help it with the fly wheel. Hopefully all those seams will be ironed so they are as flat as they can be. I've also heard that people will smash them with a hammer before they load the quilt to flatten those intersections. (I haven't tried that though). I have an orange rubber hammer I bought for just this reason. You have to have something hard underneath...lay the intersection across that...I like to spray it with a little Mary Ellen's spray starch then smack it with the hammer. It makes those intersections behave like crazy. I think the last quilt I had to use it on was my One Block Wonder where all those seams came together with each little hexagon parts. It didn't distort the quilt either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busy Quilting Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 i have a 3 pound sledgehammer for that purpose with a flat piece of wood underneath. tames those bulkies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Definitely use a 4.0 needle and slowing down is a good idea. My machine tends to handle most of them pretty well but I take it easy on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda S Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 I teach piecing in this area, and I teach people to pinwheel their seams so there won't be those horrible big bumps! I really don't like to quilt them, but I will also use a hammer to whap them down if need be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmcclannan Posted October 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 I had bought a "whacker" at a quilt show a while back so I smacked away at those intersections till my dh came downstairs and wanted to know what the heck I was doing. I told him I was beating this quilt into submission and he immediately went back upstiars. So far so good. Thanks for the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judy Ingram Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 If you can't dodge it, rub the thick seam with a bar of soap and move across it very slowly. If it's really bad, I just use the needle up/down function. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheri Butler Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 ROFLMAO @ Herb! I can just see the expression on his face, when he did his about turn! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheri Butler Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Oh, and for those of you who havent met Jewel's hubby Herb.. He most generally is a quiet individual. But...on those certain occasions, you can get a rise out of him. (ask me how I know that!) **Jewels...the pick up spot when we were coming back from K.C.** LOL!!! I flustered him all to H * * * L and back that day I think...! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs.A Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Susan Cleveland sells the Wacker on her website...a plastic hammer that REALLY DOES help to flatten seams & intersections. It also help to relieve stress & express anger safely but that's a different story. I tucked giant rick rack into the edge of one of my quilts. It wouldn't lay flat until I steamed and whacked the edge as Susan's instructions suggest. Voila - flat edges! It's not a tool you need often but it sure does the trick for this particular issue. Nancy in Tucson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmcclannan Posted October 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Sheri, we haven't been back to that spot yet. Yikes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnCavanaugh Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Hello gang, All good advice! Here's something about our machines that may help shed a little light on the "balking" Julie encounters with big seams. When you're in stitch-regulated mode and moving slowly (in anticipation of those bulky seams, for instance) the motor does not build up enough force and momentum to drive the needle through the seam. While worrying about a broken needle is certainly a valid concern, you'll actually find that if you move more quickly (get the motor some power) the needle will penetrate the seam much better. Since I haven't had a stitch regulator, I know that I had to increase my motor speed when quilting bulky intersections to get the machine to drive the needle through. The same is true with the regulator, though the motor's speed will increase automatically if you move more quickly. Think of it this way (since you're using the rubber hammer, the analogy will make sense:)). If you have to drive a nail into a piece of lumber, but you only tap the nail on the head with light strokes, you'll be pounding for quite a while. But if you give the nail a good strong smack with the hammer (with some force behind it) the nail penetrates the wood much easier. Your machine will force its way through bulky seams better with a little more motor force, and you get that by moving quickly. Of course, you still run the risk of a little distortion if the hopping foot can't jump up on top of the seam, and then you're probably better off helping it along with the fly wheel as Vicki suggests. Just food for thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klwheeler Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I have not tried the hammer, or the other methods, but have come to a complete standstill when I hit a thick spot in a quilt. The motor seems to make a humming sound and yet the needle is stuck going down into the quilt sandwich. I am helping the flywheel forward to ease the needle through the spots and that seems to work fine. I mostly use 4.5 needles and King Tut thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I also beat them into submission until they behave!! Just make sure you have a layer of batting between the fabric and the mallett. Make sure also that the mallett is rubber. I has a little give so it isn't as brutal to the fabric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustee Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I haven't had this problem yet. I have always been able to stitch through these problem seams with the method Dawn recommended. But, I love the hammer tip. I will have to get a rubber mallot to keep in the studio so I am prepared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmcclannan Posted October 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2012 Thanks, Dawn. The nail analogy makes perfect sense. I've broken needles before and it causes me to say words that would make my mother blush. I guess I'm a little paranoid. Anyway, the quilt I beat into submission behaved very nicely and no bad words were said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitepinesquilter Posted October 16, 2012 Report Share Posted October 16, 2012 You gals really take a mallet, hammer, etc., to fabric intersections? I honestly never knew this, and my first inclination when reading this was to wonder what damage it could do to the fabric fibers, if any? I appreciate the reasoning for, and the effects of using (a mallet) - but it really doesn't cause damage to the fibers that would be visible on down the road in time? Maybe I just don't trust myself taking a mallet to fabric if I'm frustrated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oma Posted October 16, 2012 Report Share Posted October 16, 2012 You gals really take a mallet, hammer, etc., to fabric intersections? I honestly never knew this, and my first inclination when reading this was to wonder what damage it could do to the fabric fibers, if any? I appreciate the reasoning for, and the effects of using (a mallet) - but it really doesn't cause damage to the fibers that would be visible on down the road in time? Maybe I just don't trust myself taking a mallet to fabric if I'm frustrated Marci, I don't actually "beat" my intersections...I give them a good "whack" and usually that's all it takes. I haven't notice any problems with my fabric fibers, but like I said...I DON'T keep whacking on them and I DON'T use a metal hammer. I don't do it out of frustration. I do what Linda said about "pinwheeling" my intersections, but sometimes you either miss something...I don't know...anyway you end up with this stupid thick seam and you really don't want to try to undo it so you take the nice rubber mallet and whack it and go on with your business. I don't need to do this on every quilt...I think I've only used it twice (on my OBW and I think one of MIL's quilts had some hefty seams), but when I did need it I found it worked beautifully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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