The Fabric Maverick says "Do not be afraid to work with knits" Once you have mastered the basics, you are on your way to a lovely garment. Let's get started.

A knit is a fabric made from interlocking looped stitches.  The lengthwise ribs are called wales.  The crosswise is called courses. Knits are wrinkle resistant and do not ravel. They stretch.

 Notions:

1.    Needle type- Ballpoint machine needle

2.    Thread: Fine polyester or poly/cotton thread for lightweight knits. Use an all purpose polyester or poly/cotton thread for medium to heavy weight knits.

3.    Elastic- No-Roll elastic is good for waistbands. Braided elastic is not good for knits.  Check out the specialty elastics for swimwear and lingerie.

4.    Interfacing: If your pattern requires interfacing, a good choice is Fusi-Knit.  This is a fusible tricot. 

Fabric preparation checklist:

·         Check to make sure the knit fabric has the proper stretch for the garment you are sewing. The pattern will indicate the amount of stretch required.

·          Check your knit for memory- the knit should return to original position after it is stretched.

·          If the knit is washable, wash it to remove excess sizing.  If there is too much sizing, you may have skipped stitches when you sew.

·         Check to see if the knit is on grain. The wales and courses should be at right-angles to each other.  If they are not, the knit will need to be blocked.

You are well on your way to making a great garment! Choose the pattern layout for fabric with nap. When cutting your fabric, do not let it hang off the cutting table. It may distort the grain. If there is a permanent fold line which will not steam out, create another fold line to cut from. You may use a straight stitch or a small zig-zag stitch. when sewing your garment. When you press your fabric, use a pressing cloth. Press the fabric, do not iron it.  When you finish the garment, let it hang for 24 hours, before marking the hem.

Many books and articles have been written about working with knit fabrics.  This is just the basics to get you started.  The Fabric Maverick always keeps a basic sewing book available to which she refers frequently.  Go create something beautiful.

This is my take on Project Runway. The grocery store is not my favorite challenge. I guess because I would be the first designer out. I would probably try to make something out of zucchini. I do agree with Tim that a lot of designers made the mistake of going to the tablecloths.  Do you think Jerry should have been the person to be ousted? I do not. What are your thoughts? Go to our Forum Discussions and post your opinions! Now I have talked enough- back to Chef Bubba.

 Chef Bubba "I do not understand this interest In Project Runway. It is obvious to me that Top Chef is the show to watch" What I wanted to bring to you today was my daughter, Becky Sue, favorite back-to-school recipe. Help your children make that transition to school with this sweet treat!

MONKEY BARS

3 cups miniature marshmallows

1/2 c Honey

1/3 c butter or margarine

2 tsps vanilla extract

1/4 c peanut butter

1/4 tsp. salt

2 c quick cooking oats

1/4 c peanuts

1/2 c coconut

INSTRUCTIONS:

Microwave marshmallows, honey, butter, peanut butter, vanilla and salt in a 2-quart microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds. combine oats, coconut and peanuts in a  13x9x2 inch baking pan. Pour marshmallow mixture over dry ingredients. Mix until thoroughly coated. Pack mixture firmly in pan. Cool and cut into 24 bars.

Kids love this recipe and this is one way to get them to eat oatmeal!

There are always projects I say I am going to make but I never seem to get around to it. One of these is a casserole carrier. During the holidays, I always end up taking a casserole somewhere and it is always an issue on how to pack it so I will not have a backseat full of green bean casserole. Do you have a project that is in the back of your mind? Get into a sewing mode now. Once you have determined what you would like to sew for the holidays, set up a sewing schedule and stick to it. I am planning to have my projects done by October. Time seems to fly between November and Christmas. Now is also the time to do price comparisons on line or in stores for those gifts you want to buy. I imagine that money will be tight for everyone this year so planning to stretch your dollar is very important. Go through your gift wrapping supplies and make sure you will have enough tape, ribbon, gift wrap, etc.

Even though this will not happen to you prepare your IOU coupons. These are coupons for those people whose presents did not get finished. It should include a finish date to be redeemed by recipient. You can always blame it on the elves who are notorious for being tardy and unruly. In fact, an elf was supposed to push a button to publish my blog yesterday but he fell asleep at the switch. It was a good thing I checked this morning.

First the authors recommend that you do not wash the jelly roll strips. I did test for color fastness by rubbing a wet white paperttowel across the very bright colors. When I wash this quilt, I will use a carbona dye catcher just to make sure there is no dye transfer to the other fabric. I did wash the border fabric.

• Most of the projects call for separating the jelly roll into light and dark strips. Some of these may fall into the medium color range. I just picked one color to be a light or dark strip. In the end, you will see that it will not make a difference to the design. Here is where you begin to strip! You will sew a strip set of alternating light and dark strips. The key for this project to be successful is an accurate seam allowance. The strip set must be 8 1/2". If it is not, review your seam allowance until you get it right. It took me 15 hours to complete the quilt top. I was stunned!  Due to an old sewing injury, I can only sew 2 hours straight. I worked over 2 weekends. A very motivated person could finish in a weekend. I would expect a beginner to take a little longer.

Beginners can practice these skills:

• Sewing an accurate 1/4" seam allowance
• Accurate measuring (Measure twice, cut once)
• Chain Piecing
• Pressing
• Properly measuring and attaching a border

Reviewing the book from a beginner's perspective, there are a couple of criticisms. The book does not tell you how much backing each project will require. My finished project was a 60" square. If I used 108" fabric, I would need 1 7/8 yards of fabric. If I used 45" fabric, I would need about 3 2/3 yards of fabric. There is always some leftover fabric that may be used for a future project.  The General Techniques section is very good except it assumes the quilter knows all about backing. My complaint about all quilting books I have seen is that they always end withe the phrase "Quilt as desired". I believe that there is an assumption that you will be having someone else do the quilting.

My tips for beginning quilters are:

1. Pick a jelly roll with a lot of pattern. If you make a mistake, it is less likely that the quilt police will arrest you.

2. Read all instructions thoroughly.

3. Quit when you become tired or you will be using Mr. Seam Ripper.

I do agree with the authors that jelly rolls can become addictive. I have just purchased 2 more. In all, I give this book an A-.

This is your finished quilt top-

 

I have been approached several times by Nancy or Fabulous Phoebe as she wants to be called to make her a "decorator" grill cover. In fact, I have been driving around for a year with the fabric in my car. I kept finding ways to delay the final moment when I would be faced with sewing the grill cover. After all there is no Simplicity pattern to make grill covers that I know.

Here are the instructions and tips for my one time only grill cover.

1. Measure the width of the grill and add 3 inches,
2. Measure the depth of the grill and add 3 inches.
3. Measure the height of the grill and add 3 inches or enough to make a casing for draw string.

I have added 3 inches to cover seam allowances and any measuring mistakes. When Nancy saw the finished product, she asked "Isn't that too big!" It was not. This is like covering an elephant.

Tools:

Sewing machine, heavy duty thread, heavy duty needle, rotary cutter or scissors, cutting mat, ruler and outdoor fabric

Fabric Tips:

If you decide to use a fabric with a repeat and the pattern runs the length of the fabric, you will need extra fabric.  I, heartily, recommend using a solid color fabric, extra wide fabric, or a pattern that runs crosswise to the selvedge.

Nancy's grill measured 65" wide, 23 inches deep and a finished length of 35 inches.

I would suggest creating a paper drawing to visualize how you will need to put it together.

Option 1:

You will need 5-5 1/2 yards of fabric

If you are using a solid color of fabric, the amount of yardage and number of pieces will be reduced.  Based on 54" width fabric, you will need to cut two pieces (front and back) that measure 68" wide and 38 inches long. You will need to cut a 3^rd piece that measures 26 inches wide and 144 inches long. To save on yardage, I suggest cutting the front and back first.  You will need approximately 4 yards of fabric. First cut a strip that measures 144 inches wide by 38 inches long. If the fabric is 54" wide, you will have a left over piece that measures 16 inches wide x 144 inches.   You will need another piece that measures 10 inches by 144 inches to make a strip that measures app. 26 x 144".  Since this piece is facing the back, you can piece this from 1 yard of fabric.

• Using a 1/2 inch seam allowance, sew front strip to the center strip. Mark centers of each fabric piece and match. I suggest pinning as you will need to pivot the center piece at the end of width of the front piece and sew along the length of the fabric.
• Attach back piece in the same manner.
• Clip threads and finish seams as desired.
• Turn bottom raw edges up 1/2 inch and press.
• Turn bottom edges up 1 1/2 inches and sew close to edge. This will create a casing. Leave opening on the side to insert cord.
• Place over grill and make any adjustments if necessary. Draw cord up and you are finished.

Option 2:

If you are using a directional fabric you will need to 7- 7/1/2 yards of fabric.

Follow the general directions. I had to piece the front and back to create a piece that would measure 68" long and 38" high. I cut 2 separate side panels to measure 26" x 38". I sewed the sides to the front and then to the back. Then I cut a top panel which needs to meaure 26" x 68". Matching centers I carefully sewed the front to the top and then the back to the top. I then sewed each end pieces to the top. This is why I recommend a non directional fabric. The best would be if you can find an extra wide piece of fabric.

Phoebe is now happy.

Chef Bubba will be back later with his barbecue recipes.

With the popularity of sunrooms, outdoor fabrics are being brought inside. It is the nature of woman to want things to be attractive. No more drab fabrics for us! Men, of course, can live with orange crates and burlap. Thank God manufacturers pay attention to what women want! There is a whole new generation of outdoor fabrics. There is fabric made from acyrlic, polyester, blends, cottons and more. The colors are beautiful and virtually maintenance free.

How bright and cheerful are these colors!  There is a style for everyone. There are the classic awning styles, fanciful children styles and traditional styles. From the sunroom, this fabric is migrating to family rooms. It is perfect for the family with children and pets.The fabric will hold up to spills, climbing and whatever the pets and children can think of doing. Husbands can be pretty tough on fabric also. Women have too much going on to spend time cleaning upholstery.

Thursday - Check out the grill cover that Victoria made for fabulous Phoebe.

A great start is the centerpiece. Since we will be eating on the patio, I grabbed an old watering can and filled it with white daisies, red zinnias and blue salvia. Tuck in some miniature flags. This will make a very pretty flower arrangement. Toss some red and blue pillows on the furniture. This makes a great start to creating the mood.

I have created some easy placemats to make. This is a great way to use some fabrics from your stash or some novelty fabrics. Everyone one has some leftover batting. I used patriotic novelty fabrics to make napkins.

Old Glory Placemats:

Tools:

Rotary Cutter and mat

Ruler

Sewing machine

Thread

Red fabric

Blue fabric

White fabric

Batting or flannel

For each placemat:

You will need a total of 7- 2 ½ "strips of fabric and 1- 6 ½ "blue square

1 backing measuring 19 inches wide and 14 inches high

1 batting measuring 19 inches wide and 14 inches high

Instructions:

1. Cut two red and white strips 2 ½" wide and 19 inches long.
2. Cut one white strip and two red strips 2 ½" wide and 12 ½ inches long.
3. Cut one 6 1/2 "square of blue fabric.
4. Cut batting and backing to measure 19 inches wide and 14 inches wide.
5. Seam allowance is ¼".

Beginning with the red strip from #1, sew a white strip to the red right sides together. Press the strip to the dark side. Keeping the red on the bottom, add a red strip to the white strip. Continue until you have a strip set of 4 strips of fabric- red, white, red, white. Sew a 2^nd strip set of 3 strips measuring 12 ½" wide beginning with red and ending with a red. Press to the dark side of fabric.

Sew the 6 ½" blue square to the left side of the strip set. Sew the 1^st strip set and 2 strip set right sides together on the long side. This is your top.

Layer the backing and top right sides together. Add batting to the top of the sandwich. The batting will be on the top when you sew the sandwich together. Sew around the edges ¼ "leaving an opening for turning right side out. Turn and press. Slipstitch opening together. You may quilt top as desired.  This is very fast and easy.

If you wish to make napkins- cut 2 squares of patriotic fabric in 19" square. With wrong sides together, sew in 1" from the sides. Trim edges with pinking shears or wave rotary cutter. You are done. When is that cobbler going to be done?

Ingredients:

11/2 cup all purpose flour (not self rising)

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup lard less 1 Tb.

1 stick butter

1 package frozen strawberries, thawed

1 package blueberries, thawed

Lemon juice- splash to taste

Now, understand my great grandmammy did not use measuring spoons. It was all tasting and touch and feel. Some of you out there have passed out from the mere mention of the word "lard"!  Lard still makes the flakiest crust. You may substitute shortening but it will not be the same.

Tools:

Rolling pin

wax paper

13 x 9 baking dish

Medium size mixing bowl

Measuring cup

Medium size sauce pan

Wooden spoons

Instructions: Heat oven to 375 degrees

1. In medium size mixing bowl, add  flour and salt. Cut in the lard until the lard is well mixed with the flour. Add enough water to make into a ball. Place in refrigerator, until ready to roll out.

2. Place thawed berries in saucepan. Add 1 cup of sugar. Heat until sugar is melted and fruit completely thawed. Add a splash of lemon to bring our the flavors of the fruit. Taste and add more sugar if needed for your taste buds.

3. Prepare your 13 x 9 baking dish by spray of Pam or you may use butter. I am trying to save a couple of calories for you.  This is to make clean up easier, but someone will probably scrape the pan for you any way.

4. Pour 1/2 of the berries in your pan.

5. Bring our your crust- divide into 2 balls.

6.Using wax paper with a sprinkling of flour, roll one of the balls into a pie crust no thicker than 1/4 inch. Cut to the size of your baking dish.

7. Place crust on top of berries.

8. Add rest of berries on top of crust.

9. Cut butter into small pieces and sprinkle over fruit reserving some for the top crust.

10. Roll out remaining pie crust and place on top of fruit.

11. Sprinkle crust with sugar and rest of butter. May add more butter if you wish.

12. Place in hot oven. Cook 35 to 45 minutes. Crust will be golden brown and you will be salivating.

I have sold many houses by cooking this recipe at open houses!

Cobblers are best when served warm! Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and you have red, white and blue cobbler!

Put the scale away and Bon Appetit!

During the summer, Eileen contacted me about some camouflage knit fabric. She wanted to make curtains for an ROTC unit. Since this was a knit fabric I tried to discourage Eileen from this project because after a few months I believed they would stretch out of shape. Being the inventive person she is, she departed from the "normal" way of making curtains. She made several small curtains, used no weights in the bottom, no buckram in the top. In her own words, it was 'Quick and Dirty". The commander and the ROTC were thrilled with the curtains. Here is the picture for her "knit" curtains.

 Here is a picture of her daughter, Steffie, in a beautiful yellow linen dress she made for her. Isn't she beautiful!

  Currently, Eileen is sewing outfits for a wedding that is scheduled on July 27, 2008. Hopefully she will be able to finish the Mother of the Groom's dress in time of the wedding.  I helped her pick a lovely fabric with embroidered dragonflies on it.

While Eileen is preparing for this wedding, I received an email last year from Kate whose mother made her wedding dress. I was thrilled that she had the time to share her thoughts with us. I kept her email because I wanted to share her thoughts with you!

"Hello, I purchased some of your silk shantung fabric for my

> wedding dress last spring. My mother made the dress

> - it was fabulous! The

> fabric was so beautiful, my simple design never would have turned out

> had it not been such perfect quality, thank you! Everyone loved the

> dress, and our photographer thought it was the best she'd seen all

> year. You can see a picture of the dress online, as our wedding was

> recently featured in a Seattle bridal magazine. The link is below.

> Thank you! Kate Kappel Haba

I was unable to download the pictures, but if you would like to see the lovely pictures you may check at Bride & Groom. Kate's wedding was absolutely joyful. It was a beautiful dress and wedding!

As you can see, all of our customers are talented people and we learn a great deal from them. If you would like to see more, please check out the photo gallery!

Think about thread for a moment. There are embroidery thread, machine quilting thread, dual purpose thread, invisible thread, upholstery thread and more.

There are books devoted to interfacing. Interfacing can make or break a project. If you are using the right interfacing, no one will notice.  If you are using the wrong interfacing, your project will somehow just not turn out like you thought it would. There is interfacing for clothes and crafts. We have recently added three new interfacings to our store. For the apparel sewer, we have added a hair canvas (NR-497) to use in more tailored outfits. For the craft sewer, we have added a mid weight interfacing (NR-498) and a heavier weight (NR-499) comparable to TimTex, TimTex was used to give a rigid construction to weekender bags and totes. I was surprised when Timtex was no longer available.

I must confess to a secret fetish. I love rulers! Big rulers, little rulers; I have them. I think sometimes about people who design rulers.  Are they closet mathematicians? All I know is that anything that takes the math out of the equation works for me. We have added a new ruler called the Strip Tube Ruler (NR-506). It is used primarily with strips of fabric such as the 2 ½ inch Jelly Rolls. I have become addicted to Jelly Rolls, but that is a subject for another day.

We will some be adding Best Press to our notions section. If you have never used this, you are in for a treat. This is a light starch which brings back the body to quilting fabric after it has been prewashed. It is not for cotton only. The beauty of it is that when you spray it on a dark fabric, it does not flake. It also comes in several scents such as lavender.

As you can see, we are adding notions everyday. If there is something you feel we are missing, please let the Fabric Maverick know.

Well, I have a new ruler to test so have a happy sewing day!

I have an easy project for you that will spruce up your outdoor dining or your patio. I love our oil cloth. I'm always trying to think of things to do with it. Since it cuts cleanly and is water repellent, I have made some tropical

coasters I'd like to share with you.

Supplies:

One yard of floral oil cloth and ½ yard of solid oil cloth

Fabri-Tac

Sharp and pointed scissors

Sharpie marker

Wax paper

A heavy book or other weight

Choose the flowers you like on the floral oil cloth and carefully cut them out. You can decide whether you like the leaves on yours or not. The pointed scissors will help you get into the tight spots.

Lay out your solid oil cloth with the back of the oil cloth facing up. Lay your flower

with the front of the floral oil cloth facing up. In other words, wrong sides together. Carefully trace your flower on to the back of the solid oil cloth with a Sharpie. Don't worry if it looks like the backing will be a little bigger. You will do a final trim after the Fabri-Tac dries.

Cut out your solid piece that you just traced. Repeat for all the coasters you want to make.

Working on a piece of wax paper to protect your work surface, put a bead of

Fabric-Tac around the edges of the solid oil cloth cut out. Match your floral oil cloth cut out with the solid one and press the edges. Wipe away and excess Fabri-Tac as you adhere the two pieces together.

Take a couple of pieces of wax paper and sandwich your newly glued coaster between them. Lay a heavy book on top (I used the Joy of Cooking), and let them dry about 30 minutes.

Trim the coasters neatly, removing any of the backing that shows from the front.

Enjoy your new colorful coasters!

1. Not machine washable

2. Cannot fold -should be rolled

3. Require special sewing methods

Do's

1. Use a Teflon presser foot or masking tape when sewing. If you are using masking tape, apply it to the presser foot. If you place on the fabric, the residue will be hard to remove.

2. Use binder clips or tape to hold fabric in position. If you pin it, make sure it is within the seam allowance. Otherwise the holes will show on the finished side.

3. If using an interfacing, you might want to use a temporary spray adhesive to hold the fabric and interfacing together. I have used this method and found it works really well. You can also reposition the fabric on the interfacing easily. It does not gum up your needle.  I used NR-369 with great success.

4. Use a size 16 needle if sewing 2 pieces of oil cloth together. If you are working with cotton laminate, you may use a size 14 or less.

5. You may use a regular cotton/polyester thread in most applications.

6. Fabri-tac is a good adhesive for most projects.

Don'ts:

1. Sew one time- if you have to remove stitches they will show

2. Do not use pins 

3. Do not fold

4. Do not apply heat or iron.

5. Do not put in the washing machine- wipe clean with a sponge and mild detergent

If your fabric is wrinkled or is showing a fold mark, lay out in the sun or warm room.  Give the fabric the chance to remove the wrinkles. Fabric.com mails all of these types of fabrics on a roll to minimize that problem.

These fabrics are waterproof, but where you create seams are not. If you wish to have a completely waterproof product, you will need to apply a seam sealant.

Finishing raw edges:

Since this fabric does not ravel, nothing needs to be done. If you want a more finished look, you can use double sided bias tape or sew a hem.  Sewing a hen will be easier with cotton laminate than oil cloth.

Look out for Thursday- Kristl is back with a great sew or no-sew project for oil cloth.