Table Of Contentessential
h h
Reference
tool
• Tools & Supplies
• Stitches & Seam Treatments
• Ruffles & Bias Tape
• Zippers & Buttonholes
• Sewn Accessories
S
• Home Dec • Garment Making
e
w • Sizing Charts for All Ages
i
n
• & More!
g
All-in- One
Visual Guide
CARLA HEGEMAN CRIM
CARLA HEGEMAN CRIM
essential
h h
Reference tool
• All-in-One Visual Guide
• Tools & Supplies
• Stitches & Seam Treatments
• Ruffles & Bias Tape
• Zippers & Buttonholes
• Sewn Accessories
• Home Dec • Garment Making
• Sizing Charts for All Ages
• & More!
Text copyright © 2013 by Carla Hegeman Crim
Photography and Artwork copyright © 2013 by C&T Publishing, Inc.
Publisher: Amy Marson Production Coordinator: Rue Flaherty
Creative Director: Gailen Runge Production Editor: Joanna Burgarino
Art Director / Book Designer: Illustrator: Mary E. Flynn
Kristy Zacharias
Photo Assistant: Mary Peyton Peppo
Editor: Liz Aneloski
Cover photography by Nissa Brehmer;
Technical Editors: Doreen Hazel, Instructional photography by Diane
Teresa Stroin, and Ann Haley Pedersen, unless otherwise noted
Published by Stash Books, an imprint of C&T Publishing, Inc.,
P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549
All rights reserved. No part of this post an up-to-date listing of corrections
work covered by the copyright hereon on our website (www.ctpub.com). If a
may be used in any form or reproduced correction is not already noted, please
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recording, taping, or information Lafayette, CA 94549.
storage and retrieval systems—without
written permission from the publisher. Trademark (™) and registered trademark
The copyrights on individual artworks (®) names are used throughout this book.
Rather than use the symbols with every
are retained by the artists as noted
occurrence of a trademark or registered
in Essential Sewing Reference Tool.
trademark name, we are using the names
These designs may be used to make
only in the editorial fashion and to the
items only for personal use. Donations
benefit of the owner, with no intention of
to nonprofit groups, items for sale, or
infringement.
items for display only at events require
the following credit on a conspicuous Library of Congress Cataloging-in-
label: Designs copyright © 2013 by Publication Data
Carla Hegeman Crim from the book
Essential Sewing Reference Tool from Crim, Carla Hegeman.
C&T Publishing, Inc. Permission for all
Essential sewing reference tool : all-
other purposes must be requested in
in-one visual guide - tools & supplies
writing from C&T Publishing, Inc.
- stitches & seam treatments - ruffles &
Attention Teachers: C&T Publishing, Inc., bias tape - zippers & buttonholes - sewn
encourages you to use this book as accessories - home dec - garment making -
a text for teaching. Contact us at sizing charts for all ages - & more! / Carla
800-284-1114 or www.ctpub.com for Hegeman Crim.
lesson plans and information about the
pages cm
C&T Creative Troupe.
Includes index.
We take great care to ensure that the
information included in our products is ISBN 978-1-60705-860-1 (soft cover)
accurate and presented in good faith,
but no warranty is provided nor are 1. Sewing. I. Title.
results guaranteed. Having no control
TT705.T775 2014
over the choices of materials or pro-
cedures used, neither the author nor 646.2--dc23
C&T Publishing, Inc., shall have any lia-
bility to any person or entity with respect
to any loss or damage caused directly or 2013024144
indirectly by the information contained
Printed in China
in this book. For your convenience, we
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
TOOLS AND SUPPLIES
Sewing Machines 6
Sewing Machine Feet 7
Cutting Tools 10
Pressing Tools 12
Marking Tools 13
Sewing Machine Needles 14
Straight Pins 15
Thread 16
Elastic 17
Other Notions 18
STITCHES AND SEAMS
Stitches 20
Seam Allowances 23
Curved Seams 24
Simple Seam Finishes 25
Couture Seam Finishes 27
Hems 29
ZIPPERS
Zipper Length 58
Stitching Zippers 59
Centered Zipper
MATERIALS
Installation 60
Fabric 32
Lapped Zipper
Interfacing 34 Installation 62
Other Fusible Invisible Zipper
Products 38 Installation 64
Stuffing 38 BUTTONHOLES
AND BUTTONS
Batting 39
Buttonholes 66
EDGE TREATMENTS
Buttons 70
Gathering 40
HOME DECOR
Ruffles 43
Bed Coverings 72
Bias Tape 45
Pillows 76
Piping 52
Bed Skirts 82
Trims 55
Curtains 83
Table Linens 87
SEWN ACCESSORIES
Belts and Key Fobs 94
Bags 97
4 Essential Sewing Reference Tool
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GARMENT MAKING NUMBER CONVERSIONSn
t
Making Darts 102 Decimals to s
Fractions 123
Adding Facings 103
Yards to Inches to
Linings 104
Decimals 123
Sewing Casings 105
Yards to Centimeters/
Sewing Set-In Sleeves 106 Meters 123
Patterns 108
Ease 112 Index 124
Adjusting for Height 113 About the Author 127
Adjusting for Girth 115
SIZE CHARTS
Infants’, Toddlers’, and Little
Kids’ Sizes 116
Infants’ and Toddlers’
Vertical Measurements 117
Little Kids’ Vertical
Measurements 118
Girls’ Sizes 119
Boys’ Sizes 119
Girls’ and Boys’ Vertical
Measurements 119
Misses’ Sizes 120
Women’s Sizes 120
Misses’ and Women’s
Vertical Measurements 121
Men’s Sizes 122
Men’s Vertical
Measurements 122
Contents 5
Tools and Supplies
h h
Sewing Machines
BASIC MECHANICAL SEWING MACHINE
Simple, motorized machine that makes straight, zigzag,
and usually a few decorative stitches. Stitch settings are
controlled manually with knobs.
COMPUTERIZED
SEWING MACHINE
Makes a wide
variety of utility and
decorative stitches.
Stitch settings are
controlled by buttons
or a touch screen that
is connected to an
internal computer chip.
EMBROIDERY MACHINE
Stitches digitized
embroidery design
files. It can be a stand-
alone machine or a
module that works in
combination with a
computerized machine.
6 Essential Sewing Reference Tool
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QUILTING MACHINE OVERLOCK MACHINE
Features a larger Also known as a serger. Utilizes
work area and more multiple threads to simultaneously
advanced feeding stitch and finish seams. Features
mechanisms than a include a blade for trimming edges
standard computer- prior to stitching and a stitch finger
ized machine. for creating rolled hems.
Sewing Machine Feet
STANDARD FEET
For general stitching
FOOT FEATURES/PURPOSE
Exclusively for straight stitching. Gives even
Straight-stitch
pressure for fine or thick fabrics.
All-purpose foot for straight stitching, zigzag
Zigzag-stitch stitching, and most decorative stitches. Allows
for needle position adjustment.
Open on one or both sides to allow for variable
Zipper needle placement and stitching close to zipper
coils or bulky embellishments.
Photos on pages 7–9 courtesy of BERNINA of America
Tools and Supplies 7
FLANGED FEET
Feature thin, smooth blades
called flanges that act as guides
for stitching placement.
FOOT FEATURES/PURPOSE
Aligns with a fold, so the appropriate stitch barely catches
Blind-hem
the fabric (see Machine Blindstitched Hem, page 30).
Sews a perfect 1/4˝ from the raw edge with a right side
flange on the outside of the foot to maintain the 1/4˝ seam.
1/4˝ piecing
On the inside of the foot a notch is cut out as a guide for
¹⁄8˝ seams.
Allows for precise edgestitching, topstitching, and in-the-
Edgestitching
ditch stitching.
Gives a clean edge finish on most fabrics. Especially good
Overcast
for knit fabrics that tend to curl on the edges.
GROOVED FEET
Facilitate centered passage of trims and thick
specialty stitches.
FEATURES/
FOOT
PURPOSE
Wide passage allows for more visibility and flexibility than a
Open-toe or
standard foot. The groove on the bottom accommodates a
Satin-stitch
thicker stitch mound.
Works in conjunction with a twin needle to make raised
Pin-tuck
tucks in the fabric.
Cording For centered attachment of one or more cords or thin trims.
For side or centered attachment of thicker trims such as
Piping
piping, gimp, and pearls.
Invisible- Gives precise stitching placement for installation of invisible
zipper zippers.
BUTTONHOLING AND BUTTON-SEWING FEET
Designed to automatically make identical
buttonholes (see One-Step Buttonholes, page 68),
and to attach buttons by machine (see Tip:
Attaching Buttons by Machine, page 70).
8 Essential Sewing Reference Tool
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HEMMING AND RUFFLING FEET B ies s
Direct one or more layers of
fabric into the proper position
C
for stitching. A
D
FOOT FEATURES/PURPOSE
Rolled-hem Rolls the fabric edge into a narrow double-fold hem of a
(A) specified width.
Equipped with a funnel that facilitates the wrapping and
Binding (B)
stitching of binding around the fabric edge.
Gathering Creates soft gathers in lightweight fabrics. The tightness of
(C) gathers is adjustable.
Ruffler A moving blade tucks fabric during the stitching process
attachment and optionally attaches it to another fabric at the same
(D) time. Pleat depth and spacing are adjustable.
NONSTICK AND WALKING FEET
Allow for smooth sewing of sticky, shifty,
thick, or otherwise challenging
fabrics (such as leather, suede,
velvet, and oilcloth).
FOOT FEATURES/PURPOSE
Roller “Wheels” on the bottom of the foot coast over the fabric.
Glides over plastic-coated fabrics such as oilcloth and
Nonstick
laminated cotton.
Moves with the feed dog mechanism to evenly feed two or
Walking
more layers of fabric through the machine.
FREE-MOTION FEET
Allow for user-controlled
stitching with dropped feed dogs.
FOOT FEATURES/PURPOSE
Used for simple back-and-forth stitching to repair holes.
Darning
Also works for free-motion quilting.
Free-motion Similar to the darning foot, but with an opening cut out
embroidery for better needle visibility.
Tools and Supplies 9
