4 Surprisingly Useful Sewing Tricks

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As enjoyable and rewarding as sewing is, it’s not without frustrating moments. We do a lot of sewing over here at Sailrite®, and we’ve found a few unconventional techniques that can help you avoid aggravation. Make those hair-pulling moments few and far between with these four surprising sewing tricks!

Do you have trouble remembering to hold down the loose needle and bobbin threads before stitching? This first suggestion keeps those loose threads out of your way and off your mind. It also eliminates a possible ugly rat's nest of thread for the first inch of sewing. Place a piece of double-sided tape (we use Seamstick Basting Tape because it’s handy) on the back of a quarter. Stick the quarter just behind and to the right of the sewing machine needle (around the 1 o’clock to 2 o’clock position). Then, before you start sewing, slide the loose needle and bobbin threads under the quarter. The quarter will hold the loose threads for you and keep your stitching perfect from the start!

Tenara is a high-quality thread that comes with a lifetime guarantee, but it can be difficult to sew with. Skipped stitches are a common problem with Tenara thread. There are various solutions for this problem, but an easy one that many of our customers have found to be successful is hanging the thread cone horizontally. By arranging the thread cone like a roll of toilet paper, the thread is not twisted as it comes off the cone top. This removes kinks in the thread that cause skipped stitches at the hook.

This third tip is specific to sewing with the Sailrite® Ultrafeed® LS and LSZ Sewing Machines. The Ultrafeed tension knob cover has a plus and minus sign that provide a guide for general thread tension settings. If you need a more specific reading on the tension, you can remove the outer knob cover by wiggling it while pulling it toward you. Once removed, you can see how tight or loose the tension is set by looking at how the smaller tension knob is threaded on its post. The further the knob is screwed onto the post, the more tension. Starting tension for marine canvas is when the outer surface of the knob is flush with the end of the post.

This last trick will help you avoid misplacing small notions while you sew. All Sailrite sewing machines have cast iron bodies, which are magnetic. You can stick small magnets to the machine casting to hold presser feet, multiuse pins, thread snips and other magnetic notions! Put the magnets somewhere easily accessible yet out of the way while you work. This will help you keep your worktable clear and make sure you always have your most-used notions within easy reach.

Have you tried any of these tricks? How did they work out for you? And if you have any unique and helpful sewing tricks of your own, leave a comment below to share them with your fellow DIYers.

Footnote:

This blog was updated in March 2023 to include the Magnetic Item Holder Trick.