Top Tips On Sewing Knits

Knit fabrics are versatile. they can make smart casual wear as well as elegant formal dresses. You don’t need to iron them as they don’t show fold marks. They can stretch and don’t fray. Knit fabrics come in a number of varieties for you to choose from, so many benefits on a piece of fabric.

However, some sewists still avoid knit fabrics as they don’t know how to deal with them.

While it’s true that having a few special tools that are designed to handle knit is beneficial and will save you a lot of time, you don’t have to stretch your budget to buy a whole new machine for this job. Stick to the following tips and you will be fine.

Make Use Of A Walking Foot

A walking foot will be your best friend when you have to sew anything slippery or delicate. Some machines have a walking foot come with them. Check our website CraftsSelection.com so that you can find yourself the best basic sewing machine for beginners with this cool accessory.

It basically has another feed dog that is in charge of moving the top layer at the same pace with the bottom layer of fabric.

A walking foot can minimize most of the stretching and distortion when you move the piece of knitting through the machine.

Give Your Fabric Enough Support

Knit fabric can stretch easily so you need to make sure the weight of the fabric drape on one side of the table doesn’t drag the whole piece down and cause warping and stretching.

If the piece stretches when you are sewing it, the seams you make might be distorted and the project will look wonky.

Use A Ball-point Needle

If sewists often worry about their fabric fraying, with knit fabrics, they don’t fray, instead, they unravel. To make a piece of knit fabric, the thread is looped together so they will never fray.

To prevent unraveling from happening, instead of a sharp needle, use a ball-point needle. The blunted point will push thread aside when they penetrate the fabric but keep the thread intact.

Most sewing machines will come with a manual that has everything on which needle to use and what size to use. Mine has very detailed instructions. For advanced sewers, use the coverstitch sewing machine to achieve professional stitches. If you don't own one, read our coverstitch machine reviews to choose the best machine on the market.

Use A Rotary Cutter

Knit can stretch easily so avoid all situations when you may accidentally pull it too hard. Instead of pinning the piece down and cut it with a pair of scissors, use a rotary cutter.

Keep the cut clean by using a fresh blade with the cutter. If the knit fabric you are using is slippery, don’t pile up several layers at a time otherwise they can slide off course.

Stretch Stitch Setting

While a serger will do the job faster, your sewing machine can also handle knit fabric if you know the setting it needs.

If the piece is thick and doesn’t tend to stretch much, straight stitches are enough. But for most knit varieties, the stretch stitches are a better choice. If you don’t know what I am talking about, that is the zigzag stitches, which come as the standard for most sewing machines.

If you haven’t had a sewing machine yet, look here Ultimate Guide To Best Sewing Machine For Beginners Reviews And Comparison then pick an affordable sewing machine within your budget.