need help

I've never sewn minkee but I seem to recall reading that you need to add a stabilizer to the back of it before sewing to stop the stretching because it is a knit fabric. A light weight iron on stabilizer should do the trick. You could even apply it before cutting the pieces. You could also try stay stitching in the seam allowance before cutting out the pieces, but it may not work as well as using the stabilizer. Debra in VA See my quilts at

I'm sure you could iron on a stabilizer but you might not like the added stiffness. Assuming (?) you have some scraps to run trials, see what happens if you apply a strip of blue masking tape alongside your stitching line. That just might keep the rascals under control until you have your seams matched. For goodness sake, don't stitch through the masking tape. Or - you might want to try pinning lots more and scoot the wayward stretching with a stiletto, corsage pin or wooden cuticle pusher. Show no mercy and take no hostages. You can do it - it is just slow-going and worth every minute. Polly

thanks,

I will try both the stabilizer and the tape method to see if it helps.

Denny in Fort Wayne

/\ / \ / \ \ / \ / \/ \ \ / \ \ / \

Debra wrote:

thanks,

I will try the tape to see if it helps. I just realized I am having problems with the fleece more than the minkee but am sure tape would probably work for both.

Denny in Fort Wayne

/\ / \ / \ \ / \ / \/ \ \ / \ \ / \

Polly Esther wrote:

Can I ask what kind of pattern you're using?

I've never used Minkee before (been thinking about it though - it sounds so cuddly!) but when garment sewing tricky knits what often helps is a blunt stiletto (at least, that's what I used). Perhaps you could try keeping the Minkee on top and controlling the stretching by controlling the Minkee with a blunt stiletto (or a well sanded bamboo skewer?).

A stiletto (not sure how many quilters have one of these) is essentially a large "needle" on a thimble (at least, that's what it looks like to me). You'd wear it, like you do a thimble, on your left "pointer finger." And then use that long needle-like projection to hold or control the fabric as it feeds. If it seems that the Minkee's shrinking (since you'd be sewing with the Minkee on top), you can ease it just a tiny bit using the stiletto (but very gently).

Sigh. I don't know how much sense I made in trying to explain what I'd do. I think it's possible that I should go out and buy some Minkee just to see!

Also, have you tried basting it? Basting, IMHO, often works better than pins with tricky knits ... or perhaps some staystitching might help so it won't "grow" so much if you decide to keep sewing with it on the bottom of the "sandwich" ...

I really wish you all the luck with this! I just wish I was more help!! :/

Hello all, I haven't posted in donkey's years, but just had to pipe up here. I was going to suggest basting, but then I remembered Wash-Away-Wonder Tape. It is used for inserting zippers and such, and dissolves completely when washed. It comes in rolls 1/4 inch wide, you apply it to one side of your work, and then peel off the paper and attach it to the other side. Holds very tightly, too. I've never sewed on Minkee, but I would bet actual money that it would work well for your purpose.

Maria in NE PA

Pattern? I don't do well with instructions LOL. When I use small squares, it works ok, it's the longer strips of fleece or minkee which stretches so bad. I will try all the suggestions.

thanks,

Denny in Fort Wayne

/\ / \ / \ \ / \ / \/ \ \ / \ \ / \

C>

getting seams to match up. I pin a lot and the minkee just stretches while I sew it even though pinned every couple of inches and the result is seams which are off 1/4" or more.

Be careful about ironing on a stabilizer. I remember reading or hearing that the back of the minkee does not cope well with heat. I don't know how true that is (it's certainly fine in a dryer), but you might want to investigate with a small piece first. I've made two baby blankies with minkee, plus a double-sided minkee quilt (yes, with batting - never again!), and a pillow. Each time I swore I would never use minkee again, and now I want to make a third baby blanket. For the baby ones, I usually just do a cotton or flannel on one side (pieced or not) and a minkee back. That way you only have to worry about the minkee curling on the edges and stretching enough to make binding (or quilting, if you are going to do that) a nuisance. I have the utmost respect for people who piece minkee blankets; I think it must take the patience of a saint. Good luck! Oh, and definitely use a walking foot, if you're not already. Let us know what other tips you discover.

here are a few suggestions I found by googling:

Hey, I have some of that! Will try it on some samples.

thanks,

Denny in Fort Wayne

/\ / \ / \ \ / \ / \/ \ \ / \ \ / \

Maria O wrote:

No experience with minkee, but I've sewn a lot of fleece. Your walking foot may be just too much. Look in the manual and see if there's a special foot for knits, or a foot with a slippery bottom, and try a couple of samples. Roberta in D

"Kiteflyer" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news:3eEti.4740$I64.1344@trndny08...

If you have anything in the way of a newer machine I would call the folks you bought it from and see if they can help. They are so all knowing when you buy a machine I like to think of really giving them a challenge occasionally. Just an idea.

This new high 6600 Janome actually seems to have a differential adjustment to it. I am accustomed to that > Pattern? I don't do well with instructions LOL. When I use small

I made a bathrobe out of Minkee. It puckered. pulled and any negative thing you can think of, and burned out a motor in my machine. When I went in to have the Machine fixed the ladies in the store said Minkee is really not made for home machine sewing, except maybe just hemming, and even that looks better and works better on a serger. NOW THEY TELL ME> Kay

I've used Minkee many times with no problems. I pin a lot and use a walking foot. I've never used an iron on stabilizer, but would suggest that you test it first, as Minkee is polyester and would probably melt when ironed. I wonder if spray on adhesive would work better to keep the material from shifting.

Denise

I've never used Minkee, Denise - do you like it? It sounds like an awful lot of trouble and problem-ridden ... is it worth it?

We're doing preemie quilts for our guild's community projects and I'd like to do some Minkee blankies ... but I'm worried about how many I could get done if they're so difficult to sew. :/

I'd really like to get as many done as possible - the more I can do, the more I can contribute ASAP, you know??

Is it easy to take care of? Parents with preemies have enough on their hands, I figure ... last thing I want is to make their lives harder!

Any suggestions for a beginner on sewing fleece?

Joanne's has a sale, and I thought I'd make some Linus blankets.

Thanks!

Martha

It's actually very forgiving. No need to finish edges of seams. For a blanket, it's nice to put a binding around the edge. This could be a purchased knit edging or bias satin binding (not very durable but babies love it) and cut the corners into curves to make it easy on yourself. Or you could cut strips of contrasting fleece twice as wide as you want the finished binding to be, fold in half and zigzag over the edges. Makes it easier to catch both sides in one pass. For this, wider is easier to work with. Don't fiddle with mitered corners, just overlap. (Haven't tried this method on curves, but it might work with a narrower strip....)

In a moment of madness (and it took longer than a moment, I made several) I have put together lots of patchwork blankets from fleece scraps. All you need is perfectly even pieces. Butt the edges together and sew using something like a feather stitch on your machine. This will catch each side of the join and hold it firmly. No seam allowances! Then bind the outside edge. Roberta in D

"Martha" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@news.sover.net...

Great tips, Roberta!! I've got some preemie blankies to make and I think I'll use fleece this go! :)

Thank you!! :)

Also, use polyester thread (I forget why, but I tried cotton for my first fleece project and it knotted and tangled terribly until I popped in some polyester and it was perfect).

-Lynn

Odd... I used cotton and had no trouble. Might be a needle issue, although I can't remember what mine was. Roberta in D

schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@q3g2000prf.googlegroups.com...