Five Tips for Sewing with Knit Fabric

Happy Saturday!

I love the feel of knit.  It is such a comfortable fabric.   As you know, the knits can be challenging to work with.  I have five tips to share thru my own trial and error.  Hopefully, these tips can be of use to you.

1.  Use a stretch needle when sewing with knits.  I used to use one needle for all of my projects and never thought to change the needle unless it broke.  It really is worth the expense and time to change out the needle to match the fabric.  Once I started using the right needle, my stitches looked so much better on my projects.
2. Take the time to set your tension on your machine for knit fabric.  A few minutes set aside to make sure the tension is correct, will save time and frustration later.  I know,  that I have spent alot of time taking out stitches that could have been resolved with the tension being set correctly.  Take some of the scraps of fabric and test it before using it on your project.
3. Use stay tape.  This is especially helpful when working with narrow hems.  I use this tape regulary  around the neckline.
4. The best hem for knit is the cover stitch.  This stitch will help your outfit have a more professional finish.
5. When working with slippery knits, use your sewing machine to stitch the pieces in place and then go back  with the serger to finish up the seams.  If you need to make an adjustment or fabric was caught up underneath, it easier to take out a simple stitch then to take out the overlock stitch.

I hope these tips help. Let me know of any tips that you have learned while working with knits!

Valerie