Peggy's Sewing Workshop Archive #12:
Satin! Satin! Satin!

A NEEDLE FOR SEWING SATIN
Connie hasn’t had her sewing machine out for a while but needs to make a flower girl dress (from satin-like fabric) for her granddaughter. In the past, she used Zweifel machine needles but can't find them anywhere. The Bernina manual says to use 705H needles. What kind of needle and size do you recommend for satin or satin-like fabric?

Bernina’s universal, normal point machine needle will sew this woven fabric just fine. The needle size depends on the weight of the fabric. For example, use a 70 or 11 on middle to lightweight satins and an 80 or 14 on heavier fabrics. A fine quality 100 percent polyester, long staple thread will give best results. Always start construction of a satin garment using a brand new needle in your sewing machine. If a dull needle is used there may be problems with skipped stitches, and a burred needle will pull the delicate floating satin yarns.


SATIN CUTTING LAYOUT
Suzanne wants to know if satin should be treated as a nap fabric in cutting.

Use A Nap Layout – Always: Do cut all the pieces of the garment in the same direction, as in cutting corduroy or velvet. When in doubt about handling any type of fabric, do cut it as a nap one, if only for peace of mind!

More Help For Sewing Satin, click here!


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