Have you seen the red denim jacket titled Western Flair in Volume 112 of Designs in Machine Embroidery magazine? If you have, then you know that machine embroidery is the focal point of the pretty pointed yokes. 

The jacket pattern I selected, Folkwear Pattern #242, inspired me to create a design combination to compliment the shape of the yokes on the front and back. I had fun decorating these yokes by mixing motifs from the design collection included in Wrapped in Embroidery. This group of classic designs has proved to be quite versatile as they've found their way onto many garments hanging in my closet! 

This article includes ideas and tips I think you'll find useful for designing your own machine embroidered masterpieces. You'll see exactly how the yokes were made and get a glimpse of the decorative stitching added to compliment the embroidery motifs. I like to think of decorative stitches as itty-bitty embroidery patterns. They are plentiful on the sewing side of the machine and compliment embroidery motifs quite nicely. Keep reading and I'll tell you more about these decorative stitches and how you can successfully stitch similar designs.

The diamond shaped stitch you see on the shawl collar and cuffs is from the Satin Element stitch menu on the Brother Dream Machine. These stitches are known as elongation patterns because the shapes can be stitched in five elongated sizes. The shape itself remains the same, whether it is a diamond, scallop, or geometric shape. However, the pattern is stretched out or "elongated" while maintaining the same density of the original pattern. You'll find these stitches in the decorative menu of many different machine models. They're actually quite common and have been around for a long time. I encourage you not to overlook them just because they're common. They can make an extraordinary accent on many different projects!

In the photo above you see an example of all five different sizes. 

Since these are made up of satin stitches the needle moves from right to left to form the pattern. If there is a high contrast between the thread color and the fabric itself you may notice a bit of fabric showing through the space between the stitches. While it's possible to shorten the stitch length you'll find that this also alters the size of the elongated shape. Today you'll learn mare about these stitches and learn a few tricks to get the look you want, maintain the size, and get a nice dense look on contrasting fabric.

First let's talk about some presser foot possibilities for successful stitching. The foot on the right is the "N" foot and this is the one the machine will tell you to use. It works fine but I prefer an open toe foot for these. Here you see a clear foot in the center and a metal version on the left. It's important to know that all three of these feet have one thing in common, they have a groove or a channel on ​the underside which helps the thickness of the stitch easily flow under the foot. It's also important to know that you never want to use the standard "J" foot for satin stitching. This foot is too flat and will surely get stuck on the stitches. The big red X is here to remind you to put this foot away while satin stitching.

You'll also want to add stabilizer for successful stitching. Here I added a layer of tear-way underneath before stitching the samples. It's important to know that this type of stitching should be done on a single layer of fabric. The collar and cuffs for the jacket were decorated before construction.

It's important to note that when the stitch is first selected the default size is (3). Touch the size key to scroll through and make a different selection. In the above photo you see the smallest size, size (1).

For the trim on the red denim jacket I wanted the diamond shapes to be dense, with good coverage on the high contrast fabric.

I started by selecting size (5), but I wanted the pattern to look like a size (3).

To achieve this I simply decreased the stitch length to 0.2. This shortens the stitch length but also shortens the actual pattern shape. The resulting stitch looks like a (3) and is also more dense, so it covers the fabric better and looks richer. Below you see an example of this combination of size (5) with a stitch length of 0.2. 

There is yet another way to achieve this effect and that is to switch to thicker thread. The sample below was size (3) stitched with 30 weight embroidery thread and no change in the stitch length. Be sure to use a size 14 embroidery needle with this thicker thread. Side by side these samples look nearly identical yet the results were achieved with two different methods.

I encourage you to experiment with these ideas. I'm hoping you'll find a way to use satin element stitches for some of your own special masterpieces. You are welcome to share your thoughts, questions, and ideas in the comments box.

P.S. You can see a blue denim version of this jacket when you click here to watch a repeat of It's Sew Easy TV episode 1008-1. You'll see additional sewing and embroidery embellishment techniques!

September is National Sewing month! Are you celebrating??? I know, I know, we celebrate our passion for all things made with needle and thread 365 days a year but it's nice to know that the art and craft of sewing is nationally recognized during the month of September. As the story goes, Ronald Reagan made the declaration in 1982. Thanks to the Sewing and Craft Alliance and the American Sewing Guild, sewing has been put in the spotlight for the whole month of September. You can read the full history HERE.

Here you see the exhibit list for the museum which includes a Fashion Timeline, with a collection of clothing that spans 200 years of styles and inventions that not only changed history but had an earth-shattering impact as far as clothing is concerned. If you are interested in further exploration you can view the timeline ​HERE.

The next display that sparked thoughts of quality resulting from careful sewing was the collection of Katherine Hepburn stage & screen garments, which included clothing from her own closet. Seems that many of the star status garments made their way into her closet as clothing she wore in everyday life. Known for her penchant for pants, each pair in the exhibit were utterly classic and obviously well-crafted with details like multiple rows of top-stitching at the waistband. 
 
​So how does all of this tie into modern day machines and the everyday sewing many of us enjoy on a regular basis? Well, straight sewing makes up a large portion of the seams we construct for garments, crafts, quilting, and home decor. The rest of this post is dedicated to highlighting some simple solutions to keep you on the straight and narrow when it comes to guiding fabric through your machine.

Let's start with the tried and true role that ordinary painter's tape can take. It's inexpensive for sure, and likely that you have a roll or two handy for household projects. 

For perfect placement of the tape I like to use a 6-inch square quilt ruler. Simply line up the tip of the needle with the distance you need on the ruler and then make certain it is level with the front plate of your machine. You can then place the tape along the ruler's edge with assurance that the tape will be equidistant from the beginning to the end. Use a longer ruler if you need the tape to extend in a longer line.

For another option, a pack of post it style sticky paper notes can be used to the right or left of the presser foot as well. This method is one that my quilter friends adopted long ago. Yes, there are "gadgets" you can purchase that do a similar job and they do have merit, but this idea works very well.

Speaking of quilters, if you are an avid quilter, or if you happen to own a walking foot you may already have the Quilt Guide accessory for your walking foot. Designed to fit in the small hole behind the walking foot, it also fits in the foot holder used for attaching snap-on feet. The red arrow in the photo above shows the exact spot for inserting this handy gadget. 

This next idea came as a result of necessity being the mother of invention.

I needed to stitch something using the free arm and wanted to be certain I could maintain the distance from the needle to the folded edge of my fabric for multiple pieces. 

Sewing a piece of colorful elastic into a band and slipping it onto ​the free arm gave me a simple guide to follow and proved to be especially helpful for a wide distance. Once again, you can use the quilt ruler to help align the band on the machine. You'll find a full tutorial for this option on the Brother Stitching Sewcial blog.

Depending on your machine and the elastic you use you may even be able to get the extension bed back on the machine like I did here. That gives you a flat surface so you can also use this for items that don't need a free arm.

Last but not least, you may own a machine that boasts the Sew Straight™ Laser Vision Guide option as an onboard aid to sewing straight in a variety of situations. This feature opens up a world of possibilities! Available on a variety of models, you can see how it works on a Dream Machine by watching this YouTube video. I could easily write six more posts showing how I like to use the laser guide. However, related to the topic at hand I'd like to share just one of my personal favorite ways to use this feature to sew an accurate seam allowance. CLICK HERE to download a free tip sheet on this topic.

I hope you found this information helpful. Feel free to leave your comments below :-)