Complaint About Me
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Bushkill, Pa
Posts: 534
Why is it when I have everything lined up, a foot that has markings on it that I follow rather than the needle I still can't sew in a straight line? What is wrong with me? It's extremely annoying.
#3
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: North Texas
Posts: 8,710
JOin the party. Maybe better glasses? If you find the mark you want to sew on, I will put some blue painters tape down so it is straight, then another on top of it and maybe a third. It makes it thicker so you can pratically line the fabric up with the tape and feel the border. Might help you too.
#5
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Anchorage, AK
Posts: 1,397
staring at the needle or even at a foot close to the needle tends to result in crooked lines.....try marking the base of the machine a couple of inches ahead of your needle and use that as your guide for the edge of your fabric and see if it helps...If us use that as your primary check, you can spot check periodically to see that the edge of the fabric hear the needle is where you want it to be.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
#6
Originally Posted by ktbb
staring at the needle or even at a foot close to the needle tends to result in crooked lines.....try marking the base of the machine a couple of inches ahead of your needle and use that as your guide for the edge of your fabric and see if it helps...If us use that as your primary check, you can spot check periodically to see that the edge of the fabric hear the needle is where you want it to be.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
#7
Power Poster
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 12,861
one way that helped me start sewing straighter was to take a moment and draw the seam lines on my fabric with a pencil, it only takes a moment and makes a huge difference. i don't have to anymore, somehow just doing it for a couple projects helped me get the hang of keeping everything straight. i still always draw the lines for hand piecing but sew nice and straight with the machine now.
#9
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Piedmont Virginia in the Foothills of the Blue Ridge Mtns.
Posts: 8,562
Originally Posted by ktbb
staring at the needle or even at a foot close to the needle tends to result in crooked lines.....try marking the base of the machine a couple of inches ahead of your needle and use that as your guide for the edge of your fabric and see if it helps...If us use that as your primary check, you can spot check periodically to see that the edge of the fabric hear the needle is where you want it to be.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.
Two issues, the sticky back on the Post-it Note does NOT adhere to most throat plates more than a minute -- I use a fat, thick rubber band around the free-arm portion of MY Bernina 1031 to hold it in place. Or a long piece of scotch tape. Both are easily repositioned for changing bobbins or sewing other seams.
Also, if your feed dogs extend outside the width of your presser foot, this technique becomes more difficult. Try learning to sew with a changed needle position to create your 1/4" seam allowance.
This little tip has saved me literally countless hours of pokey driving like a little old lady eyeballing right off the hood of her car! I now sew a perfectly straight seam with the pedal to the metal!
Jan in VA
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12-18-2012 08:26 AM