OCA Sewing Tip #6: Presser Foot Trick

Back in October of 2008 I had this to say about using a proper pressure foot:

When sewing with oilcloth it is important to have the right presser foot. Oilcloth has tendency to crawl and to not want to stay put, this results in puckers at every pin. Using a roller foot or a teflon foot will help remedy this. When you use one of these handy presser feet you take some of the friction away and have less puckers in your seams.

These pressure feet can be costly, and I could see why someone might be worried about the cost if this was their first oilcloth project. So, the other day I was thrilled to get the following tip from another Oilcloth Addict!

One of our readers had recently read on a sewing forum that you could use painters tape on the bottom of a regular pressure foot. This really works! I don't have a proper foot for my industrial, so there are just some projects I can't do on that machine, for example, topstitching.

I didn't have any painters tape, so I used plain old masking tape! Place the tape on bottom of your favorite pressure foot and then just cut it away using a sharp exacto knife. Now your good to go.

Thanks so much for that no cost solution! If you have a good tip, please contact me at Kelly@modernjune.com.

BTW, I am still working on this weeks tutorial, I made something really fun but when I was done with it I came up with a better way to do it! So back to the back yard drawing board!!! Intrigued yet?

Great Idea: Laminated Cotton Apron

How totally cute is this laminated cotton apron!?! Laura, See How We Sew, has made a wonderful hostess apron with PLEATS!! She's brilliant, brilliant I tell you! Not only did she floor me with pleats, she added a D-ring so she could keep her tea towel handy.

Painters tape to the rescue!! Personal note, don't leave the painters tape of for too long, it can leave a sticky film if it's on too long -- I've learned that one the hard way.

Pretty laminated cotton pleats!! 

Head on over to See How We Sew and tell her how much you love it. She's hosting a give away too. Good luck!

Show and Tell: Tablecloth trick gets center stage

 

How darn cute is this kitchen?! You may remember it from Elyse's oilcloth covered kitchen tablecloth from our first Show and Tell features. Well now you can see her practically pretty table and more of her lovely home in this months Fresh Cottage magazine. I can't wait to hit Barnes and Noble today to pick up my copy.  

She transformed her table with the red polka dot oilcloth in about 15 minutes with nothing more than a pair of scissor and a staple gun. Actually, she just uses blue painters tape. What really surprised me is that she feeds two boys at this table and painters tape kept the oilcloth in place for about a year. Totally cool!

Elyse is a "stay-at-home mom, writer, communications consultant, tinkerer, blogger and online shop owner." Check out the Tinkered Treasured blog and shop.

Elyse's done it again, this time she's got a bit bolder with the dots on red print. The sign intertwined on the fence says it all! LOVE!

Vine: How to cover a pressure foot

Top stitching on oilcloth can be pretty sticky business but don't fret is an easy fix. If you don't have a fancy roller foot or Teflon foot you can just cover your favorite pressure foot in painters tape. Here's my Vine video clip to show you just how easy it is.

Don't let all the naughty news about Vine scare you away from all the fun, there's a lot of good stuff to enjoy. Find me on Vine under the name ModernJune or follow my on Twitter feed.  

Once your all connected with me on Vina and Twitter, come back and check out more tips that use painters tape.

Round Up: Oilcloth Covered Tables

I spend a lot of time searching my own blog for information so I know you must get really frustrated. So in an attempt to fix this I am creating Project Round Ups for the top projects I've featured on my blog. There are Show and Tell, Great Idea,  Q and A, I spy Oilcloth features along with my own projects all corralled by subject.

I'll start with the oilcloth covered table's that I've featured.

Here's the lovely oilcloth cover table project from Farm Chicks book, Farm Chicks in the Kitchen. You can find the How To here.  Serena used a heavy duty hand held stapler to attach the oilcloth to the table, much like I covered this bench.

Elyse's oilcloth covered kitchen tablecloth is applied to the table with painters tape. She's a mom with two active boys and this technique lasted two years, when she switched from red polka dotted to white dots on red. Elyse also has a very lovely Etsy shop called Tinkered Treasures  

Elyse's oilcloth covered kitchen tablecloth and her lovely home are  were featured in Fresh Cottage magazine.  

 Elyse's done it again, this time she's got a bit bolder with the dots on red print.

 This one comes from a fellow homeschooling mom, Jessica has saved an abused table by covering it with black and white gingham oilcloth.  How great is her at home school?

 I spied this oilcloth covered table on an episode of Top Chef!!!

Sandy, from 521 Lake Street, has done a great job making over a old thrift table into a wonderful craft table. And she used my favorite oilcloth print, I just love those perky cherries.

It's a darn good thing that I have Oilcloth Addict spy's everywhere!! While I was on car pool duty one of my best friends, Suzanne, spotted Chalk Cloth on the beer tasting table that Martha showcased on yesterday's Today Show. You know we love our chalk cloth, the more ways to use it the better!

To get this look, all you need is enough chalk cloth yardage to span the width of your table and then you can use painters tape to adhere it to the bottom of the table top. Easy and fun, once the beer tasting party is over, just roll it up and store it for the next party or kids play date!

Want to cover the whole table top? Here is one of my favorite ways to use chalk cloth, a custom chalk cloth table topper! I cut down chalk cloth to the exact size and shape of our Thanksgiving table, kids of all ages had fun doodling through desert! 

Please don't tell Martha that our pie was from the freezer!! I would die if she know!

Check out Sewing with Oilcloth for more great chalk cloth projects, my chalk cloth table runner pattern would be perfect for a beer tasting party. You can download that for free at SWO's  Amazon page!