posted October 27, 2024 6:00 PM by Lorna Shapiro
WIX had a big problem on what was to be our online sale day and so my website was unavailable to all of you who tried to place orders. I'm sure you were frustrated to find a message saying that the domain was unavailable. It took me four calls with WIX customer support, over 36 hours, to get their problem resolved... so I was probably just about as frustrated as you were.
However, it is now resolved.
Website once again available.
And by way of apology, I'm creating a new online sale that will start now and run through the end of Saturday, November 2.
Prepared Kits
Fabric Bundles
Custom Kits
Kimono Silks
Threads
Patterns
AGF Pure Solids
will all be on sale from 20% to 30% off.
That includes all of these lovely kits!
AGF PURE Solids price increase...
AGF recently raised the price of their PURE solids line and that price increase is reflected on my website. They are now $17.50/M, or $15.90/Yd. My feeling about this price increase is that I'm glad they increased the price rather than decreasing the quality, which I'm finding a lot of the other major manufacturers of quilting cottons are doing. Material, manufacturing, and transportation costs have all risen post-Covid and I'd much rather pay a little more but still have excellent quality. I wish all the manufacturers respected the work we do enough to hold the line on the quality of their goods.
Re-sharing a lesson learned...
Some time ago I posted about a lesson I learned regarding cotton thread breakage. I was recently reminded of this when speaking with a quilting colleague who was frustrated by experiencing her cotton quilting thread breaking frequently while working on a new piece. I, too, had experienced this when quilting our first queen size bed quilt. It turned out that the cotton thread had become dehydrated and hence brittle. The solution turned out to be placing the spool in my freezer, just sitting loose on a shelf, overnight. In the morning, I removed the thread, wiped off the excess humidity, and started quilting with it. Problem resolved. No more breakage. For reasons involving more physics than I understand, the humidity in the freezer re-hydrated the cotton thread, restoring its strength. I've used this trick on a few occasions and have had success in restoring thread.
Once more, the basics of needles . It really does help to know this stuff!
You'll find links to this information piece, and lots of others in the Useful Techniques section of my website. This is one I'm often asked to review with a customer, so thought I'd share it here.
There are four things that identify any needle:
Who made it (Schmetz, Organ, Superior, Klasse, etc.) -- In my experience, all the well known needle makers make quality needles so this is not of much importance.
What type of needle it is (Universal, Quilting, Jeans/Denim, Topstitch, Microtex (or Sharp), Metallic, Embroidery, Leather) -- Different types of needle vary in these ways: shape of point (sharp, very sharp or ball point), size and shape of eye (large or small, oval, rectangular, long oval), depth of groove running down needle face. These differences determine how the needle acts on the fabric and works with the thread… so they are important differences. You want to know what type of needle you are using. My experience, and that of many experienced quilters I’ve spoken to, is that Universal needles are universally mediocre, as are quilting needles. Most piecing and quilting wants to be done with a very sharply pointed needle and those are only Microtex and Topstitch. The Topstitch needle has a bigger eye and a deeper groove, that makes it work better with metallic or heavy threads. The Jeans/Denim has a ball point, which you want for stretch fabrics.
What size the needle is (60/8 to 110/18 for domestic machines) -- Smaller sizes are for thinner threads, larger sizes for heavier threads. If your thread is breaking, you likely need a bigger eye and/or a deeper groove. This can be accomplished by going to a larger needle or switching from a Microtex to a Topstitch. To test if the eye is large enough, thread a loose needle onto a 15” stretch of thread. Hold the thread taut and at an angle… if it slides down easily, the eye is large enough (this tip courtesy of Betty at Mason Sewing). If your thread is still breaking and your needle is new (i.e. not chipped), you likely need a deeper groove -- so go to a larger needle, or to a topstitch if you are using Microtex. If you are skipping stitches, you likely need a larger needle.
What material the needle is made of (chrome plated steel, titanium coated steel, ceramic coated steel) -- titanium and ceramic coatings purport to last longer… I can’t say one way or the other. I’ve used both but have not done extensive testing. Titanium and Ceramic are more expensive by quite a bit. Ceramic is reportedly better for embroidery machines because it heats up less than metal needles.
Here is a link to Schmetz’s needle chart which is worth printing out for reference…
An offer for your guild...
As I move towards retirement from this business, I'd like to make an offer to any of you who are in local guilds. If you'd like to arrange a special tea, social, and shopping day for members of your guild to drop by, I'd be happy to host your guild on its own day of your choosing and offer the group the clearance prices on all items in my studio. I'll provide tea and coffee, a place to visit, and my assistance with project planning and fabric selection.
If this sounds like something you'd like to arrange, please give me a call to discuss what would work best for your guild.
The open house studio sale dates remaining are:
November 2 & 23
December 14
January 11 & 25th.
The sale days will be open for drop-in between 11:00 & 3:00. I'll announce in the week before, what will be on sale... so just watch these posts.
There will be upcoming online sales, one a month, on the first Saturday of October, November, December and January.
If you'd like to come by and shop in person before then, don't hesitate to book your visit. You can do so here:
Sending you all my best wishes for an easy transition into the fall season. Thanks for being part of my quilting community...
Lorna
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