The dull tip on the needle allows the tip of the needle to go down through the fiber instead of puncturing or tearing the fabric. Look for a needle that is marked for jersey or stretch. This is a BIG one! You do not want to sew knit fabric with a universal needle. What Type of Sewing Machine Needle to Use
The reason is the polyester thread or polyblend have a more "give" than 100% cotton thread. When I'm using my sewing machine I go with either 100% polyester or a blend. When I'm using my serger I use regular serger thread. When choosing a knit fabric make sure you refer to the pattern for the specific stretch and type of knit fabric. unlike woven fabric that has very little give in any direction. These lopped fibers allow Knit fabric to stretch in all directions. The fabric fibers are actually looped together instead of woven. Knit fabric is a fabric that is "knitted" instead of woven. In this post I'll share my top tips to make sewing with knits easy. After regaining my composure and pulling out some test fabric I was ready to go.
STITCH ERA UNIVERSAL POLYESTER SETTINGS PROFESSIONAL
I sat and cried for a bit and then I called my mommy! Having a mom that's a professional tailor does have its perks. It was a disaster! This was way before YouTube and being able to go to Facebook groups for help. I still remember the first time I tried to sew with knit fabric on my sewing machine. I checked with a different sewing machine as well, same result… Do you have any suggestions? I am reluctant to check more fabrics, since there are very few options here, and all seem to be the same quality, and I wouldn’t like to spend money on a potential failure… could it be the fabric, or the sewing machine? The fabrics I found and used were all rather thin, with a mesh back (like the inexpensive ones you showed above, but i wouldn’t call them inexpensive at all).Īny help and tips will be greatly appreciated.How to Sew with Knit Fabrics: Top Tips for Beginners A clean cut, as if made with a razorblade. I made a jacket and a small purse, each from different fabrics, and they all tore from the seam. At first I tried stitching the fabric on its own, and it didn’t seem to have any problems (the sample stitch anyway), but as soon as I made an extended seam, that’s when things went wrong. A few years ago I tried it for the first and last time, I tried a few different fabrics I bought from two different fabric shops, but I always had the same issue: they tore clean right at the seam.
I have tried sewing faux leather before, but I haven’t had much luck with it. Here is a good link I found about tensions which might help you further ? If it is still not right & you have to adjust your tension ( which I hate doing ) …since your bobbin thread is loose….you have to tighten the upper tension. I have discovered that my machine will sew with almost any thread …but when I go to topstitch with certain threads…she will complain, ( break, knot, skip stitches) …I have learned that she prefers a thinker thread for top stitching ( Diva!!) I would first try stitching on normal cotton (after rethreading your machine & putting in new needle) …if your stitching is fine then your machine doesn’t like the faux leather…LOLĪctually it could be that it doesn’t like the thread. Your stitch length is right, so is your needle sizes ( they are new needles? Not that they have a burr on them or are dull ). ( she knows when you cheating & will complain! LOL) I’ll be sewing along nicely & then my machine will go crazy…somehow the thread came out of a disk or something ? I will never understand it …& I have learned not to try and cheat and only rethread the last part…I rethread it all. Believe it or not most problems are solved by this. Are you using the same thread in top & bottom ( my machine doesn’t like it is I use 2 different kinds)įirst thing…rethread your top thread & bobbin…take both threads totally out & rethread them.