Math in Sewing [PT 4]: Make Your Own Wedge "Ruler"

A wedge ruler you can DIY...

In my previous post from this series, I wrote at the end that I hadn't been aware of the true nature of wedge rulers when I made that curvy table topper.

It was at once a surprise – and yet not a surprise – to discover that quilting wedge rulers are math-based. The wedges are determined by their angles, measured, of course, in degrees.

Example of a wedge ruler you can buy...

In my search for information since then, I've discovered that 9, 10, 18, and 22.5 degree rulers are widely available. Commonly used to make round quilts, it makes sense that any number that is evenly divisible into 360 (total degrees in a circle) can be used for a wedge ruler degree measurement.

Once I had those basic facts, I decided to go back and see how far off my template was for the table topper.

To do this, however, I needed a protractor.

---

---

You'd think that a former math major would have a math set somewhere in the cobwebs, but no. I briefly entertained the idea of popping into my local dollar store to buy one, but then it occurred to me that images of protractors are likely all over the internet. Thus it was that I printed one out, attached it to some cardboard and presto! A DIY protractor. Easy peasy.

To measure an existing wedge template, you have to finish drawing – or somehow extend – the sides of the wedge all the way down to a point in order to use a protractor.

Extend to a point; i.e., to 0 degrees...

Here's how to do it.

Take a couple of sheets of paper and line them up along both sides of the wedge as shown above. Place the middle of the protractor right at the intersecting point. (If you have an actual protractor, it may have a tiny pinhole right there for more accurate placement.)

Protractor shows this wedge is 10 degrees...

The reading on this example shows 10 degrees (shown more clearly in the inset with the closeup view).

As it turns out, the wedge template I made for my curvy table topper measured only 6 degrees. When I investigated further, the ruler that the designer used was 7.5 degrees. 

My wedge template came in at 6 degrees...

With that out of the way, we can get to the actual topic of today's post, which is to make your own 10 degree wedge "ruler".

Because the fact is, buying one of these is going to cost you. (If you're not likely to use one again and again, there are probably other things you can spend your money on when it comes to sewing.) For example, when I looked at the one from Creative Grids at the top of this post, it was on sale for $10 off... but the price was still $38.99. (That's $CDN; those of you stateside will see a lower price.) There is just no way that I am going to spend forty bucks on a specialty ruler. My 6" x 24" Omnigrid did not cost me that much.

---

The countdown is on: just 7 more regularly scheduled posts!

---

I've already covered how to DIY this, but you will need a protractor of some sort if you want to make a wedge ruler.

Gather up the following: pen/pencil, protractor, double-sided tape, regular tape, sheet of heavy stock paper, rotary cutter/scissors, large cutting mat and a long ruler. You'll also need some sturdy flexible plastic such as described in this post.

Put some double-sided tape onto the back of your protractor and secure it onto your cutting mat, ensuring that the 0 and 90 degree markers are on a vertical grid line and that the curved edge of the protractor is just touching a horizontal grid line

Put down protractor...

Place the sheet of paper 1.5" below the protractor. Tape it down so that it doesn't move.

Put paper 1.5" below protractor...

Position your ruler so that it touches the 0 degree mark of the protractor while lining up with the 95 degree measurement. For best results, ensure that you look down directly over the protractor.

Align ruler at 95 degrees..

Draw a line down the entire sheet.

Draw first line of template...

Swivel the ruler so that it stays at the 0 degree mark but this time lines up with the 85 degree measurement.

Align ruler at 95 degrees...

Draw a second line down the entire sheet.

Draw second line of template...

While the paper is still taped in place, draw lines 1/2" apart along the entire length of the wedge, making use of the grid markings on the cutting mat.

Draw lines at 1/2" intervals down the entire wedge...

You may also want to indicate the inches with actual numerals, too. (I forgot to do that!)

Next, measure off a 10" total length for the template.

Finish drawing the full template...

Measure out and draw a smaller wedge on the inside, leaving a 1/4" border all around. If your lines have been lightly drawn to this point, darken them up appropriately and then cut out the wedge shape.

Using the paper template, cut a matching wedge out of the stiff plastic and set aside. This type of plastic is easily scored with a rotary or box cutter (if using your rotary cutter, you should have a blade reserved for cutting non-fabric materials), enabling it to be broken apart by simply bending it back and forth. 

Make a plastic copy of the template...

Take the paper template and cut out the inside wedge to leave just a 1/4" border. Using your choice of double-side tape and/or regular tape (I actually used both), very carefully adhere the paper border to the plastic wedge.

This part can be tricky!

You can now see through your wedge "ruler".

If these final steps don't work out so well, you can always go back and redo the paper part. (I was able to do this using just regular paper, so if you choose something heavier, it will be less tricky.) Also, if you feel the 1/4" border is too small; you can always try 3/8".

A couple of serviceable DIYs!

And if you don't have any flexible plastic, you can just make this out of cardboard and customize the total length of the ruler to the project requirement. (I will discuss this further next week in relation to an actual project.)

---

Check out crafty classes at Creativebug! [affiliate link]

---

This DIY wedge ruler would have produced much better results for my curvy table topper project. However, that is all water under the bridge as I have my own bargello wedge quilting project to share with you next week. And that's when we'll put this little ruler to the test!

It is Remembrance Day today here in Canada and I know for a fact that many countries observe November 11 in some way for the same reason. Given the present state of our world, please take a moment to remember and honour those who bravely went before us to fight for better lives... and understand that the fight doesn't end with them.

'Til next...

"Must Haves" For Your Sewing Toolbox

What's in your sewing toolbox?

A couple weeks ago, I served up some blog "potpourri"; i.e., three draft posts that had been languishing for years that I managed to stitch together into one. Today's entry is an old draft that I've actually taken the time to complete... because I think it can be potentially helpful.

It was originally titled "some of my favourite blog posts". I erroneously assumed that it was a collection of my own posts that were deemed favourites. It turned out to be a bunch of URLs to articles from other blogs that I had long ago bookmarked for future reference. Most of them were from Sew4Home.

A handful came from other sources, but as this compilation was started years ago, some of those old links are no longer valid. Rather than try to track down the content, I decided to put this out with just a Sew4Home focus. 

Because Sew4Home is just that awesome.

As sewers, we all probably have sewing toolboxes filled with actual notions and doodads that assist with our hobby. The lessons that I'm highlighting today are invaluable additions for your virtual sewing toolbox, particularly for those who are just starting out and learning the ropes, so to speak.

---

---

A skill that every sewer will pick up along the way is how to box corners for a basic pouch or bag. There are essentially two ways to accomplish a boxed corner: cut squares of fabric away from the corners and then sew up the seams, or sew a straight bottomed seam and then (squish and sew and) cut away the triangular corners.

We generally become familiar and comfortable with both techniques as we build up our sewing expertise. They're not difficult to understand or carry out and it's fairly easy to achieve good results.

Sew4Home shows you how to "box" your own corners!

BUT... have you ever been more adventurous with boxed corners to want to apply them to a project of your own? Then, it's a matter of, well, how big do I need to cut this piece of fabric to get a finished item that's this high and that wide?

Sew4Home comes to your rescue with this post that includes all of the tricky math – which is the topic of some future blog posts that you'll soon see – that you'll need (copy and paste this link into your browser; it's not a hot link):

https://sew4home.com/tips-resources/sewing-tips-tricks/how-box-corners-two-methods-formulas

Once we've mastered the basics of pouches and bags, we might want to finish them off with extra detailing to have them stand out from the pack. In this unusual post, you're introduced to how zippers can add a designer touch in ways that you may never have expected.

Everything you ever wanted to know about metal trims courtesy of Sew4Home...

As a bonus, there is a discussion on how to shorten a metal chain strap with fabric trim threaded through it. (You can purchase these online or find them as belts like I did.) Let me say that while you may never use any of the tips in this article, it is likely to germinate creativity and inspire new ways of looking at things that you can use to jazz up your bag projects.

Again, copy and paste the following link into your browser to check this out:

http://www.sew4home.com/tips-resources/sewing-tips-tricks/tips-working-metal-trims

---

Watch live classes for FREE at CreativeLive! [affiliate link]

---

Staying somewhat on topic, our handmade pouches and bags usually need to be closed in some manner. This summary – which directs you to other more detailed posts on Sew4Home – covers the "how to"s from buttonholes to (three different styles of) zippers.

Sew4Home covers you everything you ever wanted to know about applying "closures"...

Once again, even if you never have a specific need to use some of these closures, just learning about their possibilities can do wonders to boost a budding sewer's confidence level.

Dritz snap kit...

I will say one thing, however: the discussion on installing snaps involves hardware that will incur additional cost to buy, i.e., specialized pliers and such.

While there is a paragraph devoted to an "old school" snapsetter tool, a simple solution that works for me is to buy a basic snap fastener kit from a discount store that comes with snaps and a couple of setting tools. (The Dritz set shown here is an example, but there are other brands that cost less.) All that's needed is a hammer and a firm surface to pound on. As long as you're not making something that requires a whole bunch of snaps, a kit like this can meet your requirements for about five bucks.

[By the way, instructions for these are printed on the back. If you choose to dump these snaps into an actual sewing toolbox, be sure to keep the cardboard backing from the packaging!]

To check out this post, copy and paste the following link into your browser:

https://sew4home.com/top-10-closures-a-handy-list-of-tutorials/

The final post I want to draw your attention to has to do with everything you've ever wanted to know about binding, from making it (and determining how much fabric you need to do so) to how to sew it onto your specific project... which doesn't have to be a quilt.

---

Check out crafty classes at Creativebug! [affiliate link]

---

While Sew4Home's instructions for making bias binding (AKA bias tape) is different from my preferred method, it's probably the most commonly used method, involving cutting strips of fabric and sewing them up one at a time.        

The full meal deal on bindings courtesy of Sew4Home...

There are several ways to attach binding to something (some of which I covered here), and over time, we all end up with our own personal preferences. If you're new to the whole concept of binding and are looking for a detailed description, the content here will not disappoint. Not to mention that there's also some much appreciated instruction on how to turn corners and join ends... something that I admittedly do in an ad hoc fashion most of the time!

To check out this post, copy and paste the following link into your browser:

https://sew4home.com/tips-resources/sewing-tips-tricks/complete-step-step-binding-quilts-throws

One final suggestion for all of the above: save the material as a PDF. Sew4Home has a convenient button on a floating sidebar (left hand side of the screen) to save individual posts as PDFs. That way you can keep these toolbox must haves forever.

How's that for helping?

'Til next...

A Potpourri Post

Pride & Prejudice book bag by Novel Creations...

This blog has a long list of posts in draft mode. At any given time, there's over twenty of them... twenty-two as of this weekend.

This stems from a habit I developed early on of recording anything and everything that I might want to cover in more detail.

Some of the posts date back a fair ways and are mostly abandoned, while others are more recent and are actively being worked on now and then.

For some that have been languishing for years, I thought I'd rescue what there is and "stitch" them together, so to speak. Three of them — about patterns, fabric, and purses made out of old books — form the basis for today's potpourri post.

---

---

Do You Hoard Sewing Patterns?

Have you purchased patterns over the years that you likely won't use?

We are all familiar with sewing enthusiasts who hoard fabric, but what about patterns? I'm convinced that there are people who do this for that "just in case" moment.

They purchase patterns and then literally forget about them. When a favourite designer releases something new — perhaps with an early discount — it triggers an instant buy decision with no plan for when the project might be made.

It's actually easy to be a pattern hoarder and not have it be a problem — apart from a potential financial issue — since PDFs are easy to keep. Unless you are the sort who prints everything onto paper (or you actually collect patterns in paper format), you can be awash in PDFs and no one would know it.

I haven't been immune. But as of this writing, I only have two purchased patterns that are sitting unmade. [Update: as of this actual posting, I have four. Three of them were purchased for $2 each, so I'm not as bummed out about the lack of progress as I might otherwise be, had I paid $10.]

What about free patterns that you didn't have to pay for? How many of those do you have and will never use?

Sadly missed...

Or might you actually not even have them?

Back when Craftsy ran their truly amazing and innovative independent marketplace, we were able to see stats for how many sales we had made and how many downloads resulted from them. In July of 2014, of the free patterns that I offered, 46% of them had been downloaded by their "purchasers". Checking again almost two years later, 54% had still not been downloaded; i.e., those who hadn't downloaded in 2014 probably never ended up doing so later.

Of those who actually did download the patterns, 66% took them on the same day of the sale or within a week. Of the remaining 34%, the vast majority of those (82%) waited at least five months and up to twenty-one (!) months to do so.

No wonder so many people were in an uproar when the marketplace closed down. Some folks realized too late that they had never bothered to download the patterns that they had paid for, or that had been free but were now nowhere to be found.

[Update again: I have many (free) PDFs that have been downloaded through the years. During these past months, I've been sharing some of them in my Nifty Things I Thought I Might Make series.]

---

Watch live classes for FREE at CreativeLive! [affiliate link]

---

It Might be the Fabric!

With fabric playing such an integral part in this hobby of ours, it's no wonder many of us have strong feelings associated with it. (And in this case, let the word "fabric" encompass other materials and substrates that we use in our sewing, like cork, vinyl and leather.)

Think about it. There are people who hoard fabric (often until their end of days). There are people who can't resist buying the latest and greatest fabrics just to have some of it. There are probably people who purchase fabric to show it off in organized rainbow stacks along their walls.

Then there's — maybe? — people like me, who have almost no fabric stash and are often stumped when it comes to picking out fabric for a project.

Have you ever been browsing for new projects to sew and something just jumps out at you from the screen and causes you to think, yeah, that's it; I gotta make that!

Taylor Unisex Bag by Huff 'n' Cuffs...

Do you ever stop to consider that maybe it's because of how you feel about the fabric?

Given how my eye is drawn to certain versions of bags that testers make for bag designers, I'm convinced that the right fabric is what makes a project. Quite often I can be scrolling past a whole slew of whatevers that are based on the same pattern and most of them won't make a huge impression on me. But every once in awhile, one will pop out and suddenly I'm near to being convinced that I need to make one.

Of course, what might be the "right" fabric to me, may not be to you. We all have our individual tastes to take into account. Even so, some choices (and combinations) are simply more universally appealing than others. This is actually an important factor for designers to keep in mind if they want to sell more patterns with the samples that they make.

[Update: the image here features the Taylor Unisex Bag from Huff 'n' Cuffs that I used as a basic pattern when I remade a bag for Mom. From the very first moment I saw the yellow-zippered test version by Carissa MacNaught, I was fascinated by the bag... totally because of the fabric.]

---

Check out crafty classes at Creativebug! [affiliate link]

---

Bagging a Book

Are you a lover of books? Do you appreciate hearing the crackling sound of opening a new volume and the crispness of pages that have never been touched by another? Or do you relish the well-worn softness of old books, bound in leather, accompanied by the distinct aroma of aged paper?

I used to be a voracious reader, but most of my books were/are paperbacks (for economical reasons). Today, I mostly read on an eReader and only occasionally pick up a physical book. That said, I do still have some interesting hard cover volumes in my library. Last October (2018), I discovered someone who specializes in turning one's favourite books into a one-of-a-kind purse, clutch or wallet.

I'd seen them done before, but never would have guessed that someone could turn it into a successful business venture. But someone has, and her name is Karen Higham; she's the creative force behind Novel Creations.

My fabric being used for coin purses...

First of all, a bit of background regarding cause and effect. I came upon Karen because she purchased some of my Pride & Prejudice fabric on Spoonflower. My eager fingers accidentally sent her my default thank you message twice, upon which I checked her Spoonflower profile, which led me to her Etsy shop. I was impressed by the quality of her work and the success of her shop. It got the wheels turning in my brain about featuring her in one of my blog posts.

The next morning, I received a notification via Spoonflower that she had added me as one of her "connections" (sort of like a "follow" thing). Potentially long story short, I reached out to her with this idea of an interview and here we are.

And yet here we are; i.e., why this post stalled.

Even though I received a very enthusiastic response ("Heck yeah!!!!") to my initial request, when I sent an email with my interview questions, I never heard back. I wasn't going to chase her down, given that I thought she might be busy with her business and would get back to me in good time. When that didn't happen after the passage of weeks and months, it just seemed like the right moment to pursue it was gone.

During the intervening years, she has still occasionally purchased fabric from me. Her Etsy shop, however, has been on hiatus since August of 2022, so I'm hoping all is well with her and that she's able to continue her crafting soon.

Back to the earlier discussion of hoarding patterns (LOL), let me close off this potpourri post with notice of a Big Bag Bundle Sale that's currently on until Monday. It's run by Sew Modern Bags and features twenty-four patterns – with a combined value of over $245 – by various designers for an unbelievably low price of just $24.95.

The patterns run from pouches to wallets to full featured purses, several with access to video instructions. If you scroll through the projects and find yourself wanting only three of them, it would already be a great deal, but I'm sure many more will churn your creative juices. The bundle is enough to keep you busy for a long time, I can guarantee you that.

For the full deets on this amazing deal, click through this link here. (I have no skin in this game, but one of my designer friends does.)

'Til next...

Amazingly Awesome Sewing Tips, Tricks & Hacks

Who doesn't like tips to save time and money?

It's July 1st already? (Canada Day to my fellow Canadians.) Half of this year has just whipped by, in a seeming blink of an eye? Wow.

In another "wow", today's post is a collection of tips, tricks and hacks that I may never actually use, but are so amazingly awesome that I feel compelled to share them.

And the only reason I say that I may not use them is due to my not engaging in the type of sewing that these tips relate to... but you might.

Some are so marvelously simplistic and easily accomplished that they might cause you to smack your head and say to yourself, why didn't I think of that?

I found these all on YouTube and will provide text only links (i.e., non-clickable; you'll have to cut and paste them to your browser) to them for reference.

---

---

The first two tips are ideal for the quilters among you. I personally don't foresee needing diagonal patchwork squares, but here is a phenomenal way to make thirty-two of them in one pass.

The video is from Estadistica Datos del Mundo, whose nifty projects I have previously featured.

image courtesy of  Estadistica Datos del Mundo...  

In this engrossing demonstration, Ulyana takes two pieces of quilting cottons measuring 33cm square (essentially 13" for those of us still stuck in imperial world), draws lines for cutting and sewing, sews and cuts, and then cuts again to produce a pile of 7.5cm (just shy of 3") patchwork squares as if by magic.

Quick patchwork squares method demonstrated by Ulyana of Estadistica Datos del Mundo...

The photos above highlight the process involved, but even if you'll never need to do this, I highly recommend you check out the four minute video, which can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hURvNSTLAeA 

In this second video, Ulyana makes an amazing twenty-two metres (just over seventy-two feet!) of bias binding in one fell swoop.

Fantastic way to make a whole lot of bias binding... if you need this much!

In about four minutes, you can see how a 137cm x 76 cm (about 54" x 30") piece of fabric is transformed into a continuous 4.75cm wide (just under 2") bias strip, just by sewing three seams.

Now you may wonder why I might never do this. Simply put, I can't see having a need for this amount of binding. (My normal go to method of using a square — usually around fat quarter size — will suffice for me.) But for quilters, I can definitely see how this would be a tremendous time saver.

It's a matter of sewing a few seams

Also, for those who like the idea of recycling textiles, an old bedsheet would be a perfect candidate for this purpose.

This isn't a secret or proprietary method, by the way. If you search through YouTube, you'll likely find other videos demonstrating the same technique. But if you want to see this one, it can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5S3KisE_Eo

---

Watch live classes for FREE at CreativeLive! [affiliate link]

---

These next tips come from a YouTube channel originating from Germany called Tale Handmade. (If you want to build your skills for clothing sewing well, I highly recommend the channel.) The first few are hacks for DIY-ing seam allowance guides to help you sew straight — or curved — seams.

These first two are basically the same. In the one using the thicker plastic foam, she inserts a couple of used sewing machine needles to hold the seam in place underneath. The other one uses (thinner) cardboard with four regular pins through which you would slide the seam in a staggered fashion to hold it in place.

Seam allowance guides courtesy of Tale Handmade...

The plastic foam or cardboard piece is held in place with double-sided tape on the sewing machine. Pretty simple and effective, don't you think? You can check these out for yourself at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPI98UNnfKU and at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nIuh4GUzuo

This next one seems ingenious in its simplicity. Help yourself around a curved neckline by sticking a bottle cap or lid in an appropriate spot on your sewing machine.

Curvy seam allowance guide courtesy of Tale Handmade...

The only thing that may be a bit of a puzzler is knowing where exactly to place the guide, but I suppose that might be something you'll know when you need to do it. (I don't have the link for this video, but she doesn't exactly describe how to position the thing, so maybe just try it out.)

Another cool trick from Tale Handmade is this method of controlling elastic as you sew it. If you've ever sewn elastic onto something, you know that you have to keep it taut as you go, but it's not easy to pull on it while ensuring that the fabric underneath keeps feeding normally.

Hack for sewing elastic courtesy of Tale Handmade...

This little trick with a binder clip (wonderful little tools, by the way; go look up all the things you can do with them when you get a chance) lets you pull on the elastic without losing control of your sewing. Video is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5EFLfqsqIg

This last one (still from Tale Handmade) is for anyone who has considered purchasing a bias binding foot. Before you spend any money, take a gander at this simple little hack and see if it might do the job for you, for zero dollars.

Hack for a bias binding "foot" courtesy of Tale Handmade...

All that's required is a piece of plastic, folded and creased like bias tape. To use it, "thread" it with binding and secure it to the front of your sewing machine with some double-sided tape. Even if the binding hasn't been pressed to perfection, it will feed itself through the plastic guide. (To answer your question, yes, it can also double as a bias tape maker.)

For the entire demonstration on how to use this handy little hack, check out the whole video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPW3Q9W1prQ

---

Check out crafty classes at Creativebug! [affiliate link]

---

This final tip is pretty cool in its simplicity again. While you may have a large bowl to trace around, what if you needed one slightly bigger? Check out how Laura of Sew Very Easy fashions a compass-like tool out of a piece of cardboard to add some extra inches.

Circle drawing hack courtesy of Sew Very Easy...

 
You can find this trick in her tutorial here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iapdZ1VLsg&t=237s

With all of the above YouTube channels, there is plenty more to explore and discover from these talented ladies, apart from what's featured here today. Go and take a look through their archives and remember: if you find a video that's been helpful, let it run all the way with ads so that the YouTuber can collect some coinage in return. Again, it doesn't mean that you have to sit/stand here and watch it; run the video and go sort your laundry, water the plants, grab a cup of tea or whatever!

'Til next...