How do YOU measure the illusive 1/4"?

Good morning on this shortest day of the year for those of us in the northern hemisphere.  I'm counting down the days until Christmas and it's getting so close now.  I have all the regular Christmas cookies made and am down to the truffles and the shortbread that have to be done only a couple of days from the big day.  So tomorrow will be 2 days away!  Wow, it get's here faster every year.

My big rush of shopping and wrapping is over, Whew!  So now I can relax, do a little fixing up here and there and be ready for the small group that will gather this year.  Some years I'm just swamped with stuff to do right up to the day of festivities but this year I think I have it under control, Yeah!  I sure hope it's that way for you as well.  While I actually am able to get a lot done when I'm under a deadline, stress is not my friend and I like to stay as far away from it as possible.

I was able to pick up another featherweight recently that had masking tape on the bed to mark the seam allowance again. Is that the way you mark the 1/4" for quilt piecing?  It's a job getting that old dried up tape off and we'll talk about that on a later post but for today I want to chat just a bit about the many ways to get that illusive 1/4" seam allowance.

I guess the Singer Sewing Machine Company didn't  think it was necessary to mark seam allowance lines on their throat plates because they didn't start doing that until the 1950's.  Really?  Did you ever make a project where the seam allowance wasn't important?  I haven't.  But many of us have those older machines with no lines and many of us can't just 'eye it'.  The edge of the regular presser foot is not 1/4" so that doesn't work.  I hope you haven't been doing that.  And, putting the old creme colored masking tape on the machine bed isn't good either.  If you are using tape, use the blue or green kind that painters use and don't let it sit too long. So, you have to do something or your projects aren't going to turn out right.  So, what are your options?

What about this idea?  You could use the Singer cloth guide that came with your machine so many years ago.  Maybe you didn't even know what that little attachment was for.  There is a screw hole on the bed of your machine to screw on the guide and you can loosen the screw to move the guide for a narrow or wide seam allowance.  You should have that large screw in your box of attachments for that purpose.  Don't go buy a screw at the hardware store.  Singer's screws don't have the usual thread gauge sold today.  They wanted you to have to go to the Singer store to buy anything for your sweet little machine and using a modern screw and forcing it into that hole will strip the threads and that's major damage.  Don't do that!

Or, if you don't have one of the original cloth guides you can buy newer versions of that at the Singer Featherweight shop. Okay, I usually don't plug other places but this is one place that you want to check out.  They are my go-to place when I need some advice and I'll be the first to admit I don't know everything.  Their website is:  www.singer-featherweight.com.  This is a plastic guide that get's attached to the bed of the machine just like the original guide.  And, they include a screw, too, just in case you don't have one with your machine.  Nova Montgomery makes one, too.

Then, there are several different 1/4" feet that are available, too.  The one I've pictured is just one of the types.  Those are available at the featherweight shop, too.  Be sure to watch their video on 1/4" to pick the one that will work best for you.  I have 2 or 3 different types and some work better than others for the way I sew.

I probably should have chatted about all of this when you still had time to put these things on your Christmas list, sorry.  But you probably have a birthday coming up or you can just get what you need because it's what you want.  That's what I do.

And, I wish you a fantastic Christmas.   May it bring you joy and peace.  And if you're feeling down and lonely, call someone.  Go visit that relative that you haven't seen.  Reach out.  There are those that want you to get through any tough time and live on to see a better day.  I want you to see a better day.  I will always believe a better day is out there for each of us. And if you know of someone having difficulties, you do the reaching out.  We need to help each other and make this world a better place.  We'll chat after Christmas.... now go have a great day.

One Week left till Christmas. And a Featherweight reminder, too.

Well, Christmas is only one week away so I've had to step up the cookie baking to get it all done in time to send cookies to the grands and great grands.  It's a tradition I still enjoy and  the grands and great grands seem to be pretty happy to get them.

But with all the busy happenings as we get closer to the actual holiday, I think I need to send out a reminder here.  Do you remember that it is suggested that you grease and lube your featherweight every 6 months?  Well, for some reason end of the year and middle of the year (June) seem the perfect time to do that and it's a habit now for me to do it between Christmas and new year's day and then again on my birthday in June.  Okay, I don't know how you are going to remember doing this in June but maybe I'll remind you again.

Go ahead and clean off any grease from the gears with a toothpick, an old toothbrush or a cotton cloth that was in the rag bag.  If you see any globs of grease inside in places other than the gears, clean that off, too.  Then put new grease (a glob about the size of a sweet pea) on the gears and turn them around to get a bit on every part.  Wipe off any excess with your finger and you turn the gears around one more time. You don't need extra grease on gears because a lot extra just gets thrown around inside the machine and you don't want that to happen.

Now, you'll need to remove the old motor lube from the lube spots and replace the old with nice new lube.  Use that little plastic tube that came with the motor lube to remove the old but do be careful to not push that plastic tube beyond the spot where the lube stops and the felt wick starts.  Just be gentle.  Now fill that lube spot with the new lube and you're ready to go for another 6 months.

Are you oiling all the spots that need oil every 8-10 hours of sewing?  I do hope so.  I listen to my machines carefully and they tell me when they need oil.  They sound different.  When the new oil is in place the sound is music to my ears.  So if you aren't doing it already, listen to the sounds your machine makes.  They speak to you if you're willing to listen.

Okay, I'm off to finish up my cookie baking for this year.  I hope you have all your quilting projects for Christmas DONE!.  I do have a couple of little things to finish and I'll share later but I'm getting so close to being finished and ready to clean the house and cook the big meal that I just need to keep busy to finish everything up.  

I'll stop in later in the week to check and see how you all are doing with your preparations and remind you of the things I do to keep my FW running smoothly once again.

Do you need a little snow? I'll share!!

Mother Nature wasn't teasing this time.  She packed a punch and left us a ton of snow.  This picture was taken at midnight last night and the snow was still coming down.  I'll go out with my ruler and measure how much we got but thank goodness we have a nice warm house and don't have to go out today.  Well, we may go out after the neighbor comes to plow us out.  The road is another matter.  They usually don't come down this country road to clear out the snow very quickly.  For those of you in warm weather, enjoy it.  I'm thinking we're in for a cold, snowy winter this year.

I did get some things done yesterday since I didn't want to get out on the roads in all that mess.  I did wrap some more Christmas presents so I'm close to done now.  I didn't bake any more cookies because I baked all day on Tuesday.  Here are the ones I made that day.  

And, I'm not done yet.  Baking a ton of Christmas cookies is a tradition I'm not ready to drop even at my age.  If you'd like any of these recipes, let me know in the comments section and I'll add them to the recipe tab.

I did get to go in my sewing corner yesterday and finish another of those donation baby quilts, Yeah!!  I needed to get that one done so I can load a friend's quilt and quilt it for her before Christmas.  This is the season for giving and I'm just so happy she's gotten this top done.  It's her 1st quilt ever so finishing it up is so important.  Do you remember your 1st quilt?  I do and I was so proud to get it done and on the bed.  I bet you felt that way, too.  So, I'll push very hard to get her quilt finished for her so she can put it on the bed before the big day.

Have you had a chance to look at the applique tab yet?  I have a lot yet to do on that tutorial but it's a start.  Taking the pictures slows me down, I'm afraid.  I'm going to applique a little flower as I go along with each step.  Join me and let me know if you have any questions so I can answer them in the tutorial.  

And, thanks for coming by to visit.  You're always welcome.  I hope our sharing will help all of us not only improve our quilting skills but also help everyone find a peaceful time enjoying what we love.

Mother Nature decided to give us a Christmas picture yesterday with about an inch of the white stuff.  My quilting friends down under tell me it's an especially hot Christmas season for them this year but that seems so strange since the winter white is the norm here in Michigan.

How are you all doing with getting ready for the big day?  I'm still baking cookies and have started wrapping presents but I'm always reminded that Christmas is not just about us.  I always think of those that have a difficult time about now.  All the stories we watch or pretty pictures we look at seem to show a holiday filled with cheer and delight.  But that's not always the case.  It makes me sad to think of those feeling helpless and having no one to lend a helping hand. I'm not rich and can't solve everyone's problems but I can be a listening ear.  I can do one small thing each day that will lighten the load that someone is experiencing at the moment. Maybe I can put a smile on someone's face.

For me, that one small thing is to work with a wonderful group of ladies that make pillow cases that get used at our local hospital to cheer the children that are sick.  And I also help another group of angels that make preemie quilts for the nicu unit at that same hospital.  I finished quilting another little quilt last night and will put the binding on today.  It's a busy holiday season but there will be kids needing a smile in their day as they recover from some illness they don't deserve or a frightened family with a tiny baby that hopefully will feel a bit of love by that quilt on their baby's isolette.  Maybe my skills of making something for someone in need can help.  I like to think that.

I do wish blogs allowed more sharing but you can post a comment if you so choose.  Three weeks
till Christmas eve.  Let's keep those less fortunate in our minds this year.  Do one small thing that will put a smile on someone's face.  You'll find the time.  After all, Christmas is a giving time.

Taking a break from quilting to do some holiday baking

It's tradition to make the Lebkuchen the day after Thanksgiving so that the cookies can take the time they need to soften up and absorb the flavor from the piece of rum soaked bread.  But I didn't follow that schedule this year.  I didn't get the cookies finished until last night.  But I have a huge box of them now and they are already yummy.

We make so many different cookies, holly wreaths, fruitcake bars, traditional sugar cookies and Mexican tea cakes.  Maybe I'll post a photo when I do  each kind.  I'll try and work on the quilting before Christmas as well. 

Check back in before the end of the week.  I'm planning on starting the applique tutorial that will take several days to finish up.  If you are looking to learn hand applique I'll pass along some great tips.

Busy week here.... How about you?

I had a great time this past weekend teaching the FW Club Classes and working on getting ready for the holidays as well.  This blogging thing is new to me and I'm going to be fiddling with things to change the look or add postings so do stop by often to see what's going on.

At the Club Class, we talked about the FW maintenance classes coming up and I'm still working on getting a date set up to make the FW case cover in a class perhaps in March.   If anyone is interested in applique classes, keep checking in here.  I'm hoping that will happen early in the new year, too.

And, whats happening here this week?  I'm finishing up the Lebkuchen cookies and getting the tree up and decorated in the next day or two.  That baby quilt on the LA needs to be finished so I can work on the lap quilt my sister-in-law brought last week.  Yes, it's a Christmas present so I'd better get moving on that.  I'll try to post some suggestions for applique very soon.  Many people have asked me to help them to learn applique so I'll add some things from time to time.  Stop by to get those tips.  Have a wonderful day and stop by soon.

About jdquilts123

Hi !  I'm JD and my love is quilting and all things about quilting.  Welcome to my blog.

I am a retired teacher that has always loved to sew.  But, quilting has become my passion along with working with vintage sewing machines and such.  I teach classes on the little featherweights, doing needle turn applique and just about any quilting project that others want to make.  I'm always up for a challenge so I hope you'll join me in this journey of creating another quilt and getting another sewing machine up and running  well again.