I'm a linen newbie. I have almost zero experience sewing with it.
Here's the extent of my use so far: I am making lots of hexagons with cotton fabric. I thought it'd be beautiful to make a zillion hexagons out of linen to put between the flowers on a grandmother's flower garden quilt...
So I bought some. I think I got 3 yards. I tried to make a 1 inch hexagon out of it. Not so good. The weave was really not tight enough to hold the knot that I used when trying to baste.
:( Very sad. Must come up with another plan.
But the bright side of this story is that I have almost 3 yards of linen... It's lost in my sewing room at the moment, but I know it's in there somewhere! I'll find it before January... If not, I can always buy some more!
Hi Nikki! Linen is definitely a tricky fabric. But - there are tricks to working with it. For hexagons, you may want to starch it first, for some stability, then skip the knot for basting. Luckily, linen creases fairly easy, so it's just a matter of keeping the flaps tacked.
ReplyDeleteThe hexies I'm working on right now have NO knots. I pull the thread through from back to front with a TINY/TIGHT stitch or two, then continue around and end where I started with another tiny stitch. I think the linen would look AMAZING! And, the end result would be worth the sweat equity. ;-) Good luck! keep us posted.
Oh ya! also, if you do plan on using it for another quilt, be sure to press your seams open. This will reduce the bulk and high ridges on the seam lines and give it a smooth finish.
ReplyDeleteTotally my own opinion, but trust me, it works. It also will help from stretching, shifting and wiggling that can happen with looser weaves.
I second the spray starch.... it's a necessity with linen that seems to have a mind of it's own.
ReplyDeleteAny particular brand of spray starch? The kind you get in a quilt shop? I need to get some.
ReplyDeleteI won't go to that much trouble for hexies made of linen... Might try a different fabric with texture... but hexies are on hold for now. Too busy doing other stuff!
Starch: I just use regular old starch from the grocery store and spray to the back of the fabric. (remember to shake well!) I have heard rave reviews about the lavendar starch at the quilt shops, but also a pretty penny to go with it...
ReplyDelete