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Easily Sew Ties For Face Masks

3/27/2020

 
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There is a movement across the country to sew and donate face masks. I did a blog post a couple of days ago with a mask pattern and shoe lace ties. You can see that here.  When individuals and  groups began sewing masks most of the patterns used elastic.  I thought it might be difficult for people to acquire with everyone staying in their homes.  Also, several comments I saw on forums stated elastic was getting difficult to order online. The idea to use alternative materials like shoelaces worked and the masks have been holding up great.  Today I wanted to post an easy way to create mask ties from fabric. Most patterns advise using bias binding that is pre-made or making your own
You can use a binder foot  to sew fabric ties very easily. These ties are not as wide as bias binding, but they are very durable with all the raw edges being enclosed. This particular sewing foot is not a standard attachment but you might have one in your sewing feet and not realize it.  I actually have one for my sewing machine and one for my serger. Binder feet are used to add binding to quilts and other projects like vest and jacket edges. In most instances you would have the binding being attached to other fabric. Here, you are sewing just the strip of fabric by itself and it works great. Most people that sew love to try and buy additional feet because they really do make short work of sewing tasks.  If you don't have one, look in your machine manual and see if they are available for your model.
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This is what the foot looks like. It has a curved center and might seem intimidating but it is magical when you see how easily the fabric is folded and sewn in one step.
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I usually start by trimming my fabric to the correct width. Here you see I have an assembly line going with my strips.  My particular foot requires the strips to be 15/16th of an inch wide. I have tried sewing them just a little shy of this and they still work great.  
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I trim the end to a point and that makes it easier to slide into the curved part of the foot. The fabric goes in with the pretty side facing to the right.
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A pair of tweezers will assist in pulling the fabric through under the foot.  I have my stitch on center needle with 2.5 mm width and 2.5 mm  length. Verify all of these settings according to your machine and binder foot.
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You make sure that the foot is lowered and hold the fabric at the same angle as the foot for smooth sewing.
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Fabric strips go in and sewn ties come out with no exposed edges.  As long as you hold that fabric at an angle and feed it smoothly, the foot will fold everything in place allowing the machine to sew beautiful fabric ties. These would be similar to spaghetti straps. If you want to do some relaxing sewing, this will certainly do the trick to watch these little ties being created with minimal work on your part.
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Check out the mound of fabric ties I have been able to sew. Now all I have to do is cut out my fabric for masks and insert these into whatever pattern I am using.  This has shortened my preparation time because all I am doing is trimming my fabric across the grain and letting the foot do the work.  I pressed my fabric flat before I made my cuts and have not done anything else to prepare it. The fabric doesn't need to be cut on the bias because I won't be going around any curves. Everything is straight sewing when creating these ties. So if you have a binder foot in your tools, give it a try. Just look up the recommended fabric width for your foot.  I have a video below showing my foot in action. I hope you have enjoyed this post, share what you learn and are generous with what you create. Someone will appreciate your hard work! If you are interested in donating face masks to very needy organizations, visit WENEEDMASKS.ORG
Many states are in dire need and would welcome home sewn masks. Look for your area and I bet there is an organization close to you having made a request. If you know an organization that needs masks, point them in the direction of the WENEEDMASKS.ORG website so they can add their contact information and address to make a request. This is a legitimate site being spearheaded by the Sewing and Craft Alliance and American Sewing Guild.
Leisa
4/7/2020 07:13:31 am

Thank you for this. As I was faced with no elastic, I thought that cloth ties would work. I dug through my sewing feet and found my foot. I've been posting same at different places to alert folk that this is a quick alternative (than trying to manually make bias tape). I cut it straight of grain, using 1" strips. I simply knot the ends. This works so well, and is strong and comfortable. And yes, it is a meditational sewing. The hardest part is is threading it through. I haven't used this foot in 30 years!

Lagniappe Peddler
4/7/2020 12:00:01 pm

Leisa, I am so glad you found your sewing foot! Yes it really does make a great alternative. Thank you for stopping by my site.

Karen
4/11/2020 02:44:14 pm

I tried this with a sample, and the binder worked perfectly. Now that I am trying to make the straps, the binder is leaving the raw edge of extra fabric outside the sewn binding. Sometimes the exposed fabric is on the top, sometimes on the bottom. I did cut the fabric to the same 15/16 inch width. Could this be a tension problem? I did notice that the fabric is not feeding easily through the machine, and I have to pull on it.

Lagniappe Peddler
4/11/2020 03:18:44 pm

Karen, I can suggest a few tricks depending on your binder foot. Double check the width required for your binder foot. There are different size binder feet and some are also adjustable. A little screw on some feet can loosen up and move to widen or narrow. If yours is that type you might be able to adjust it. Then double check that your fabric cut is not too wide or too narrow. I did many cuts at once and over time as I got tired some of mine were too narrow and I noticed the foot did not have enough fabric to fold onto itself. So I showed fabric edge. If it is too wide it will fold but the extra width of the fabric edge will still show. The fabric has to be pretty straight also as I had some middle areas that did not fold correctly. So I had to focus on making sure my fabric cuts were good. Another trick is to use the very tip of a skewer to help it start to fold when you first begin sewing. You can gently hold and begin the fold (kind of like when you press something and help it along) the top of the fabric where it is going into the foot and release when it goes to the needle. The top fold is what starts the process and then the bottom finishes so that top area is crucial. If the fabric is having a hard time going through the binder, try a new needle as it may be a little dull. Your feed dogs should do all of the work for you and you should not need to pull your fabric through once you get the tip into the foot. That may cause your machine to make a dull thumping sound as it sews. If you are using thicker fabric, you can try to loosen the top tension of your foot. This will alleviate the foot pressure and help the machine. If you are using regular cotton fabric like quilters cotton, a general top tension setting should work ok. Also make sure you hold that strip of fabric at the angle of the foot gently just to guide it. I used both hands. One at the front of the machine letting the fabric slide through and the second hand to the left holding tension very slightly and feeding it straight. If you had success on the sample, I bet it is your fabric cut width that you might want to double check. I hope this helps and thank you for stopping by.

Karen
4/12/2020 04:08:17 pm

I am working with lengths of cotton bedsheet. I adjusted the tension then rechecked the width and found 1/16 " variation, which I trimmed down. I then got my best run yet; it only shifted around about three yards before the end of the fabric. Feeling that this was progress, I cut another strip at 13/16 inch width rather than 15/16, and it worked like a charm. Thanks for your help. I would like to send photo of finished product.

Lagniappe Peddler
4/12/2020 07:21:52 pm

I am so glad it worked out for you. Would love to see your progress. You can go to my contact page and upload files there.

Jennifer
4/17/2020 06:01:55 pm

I have every foot but that one. The list is the regular foot, bead/sewuin, elastic, cording, taping, blind hem/lace and shirring ones. Can one of these work? I'm a newb and my machine came in last week. I've been just cutting one inch strips and serging the far side but would like something better looking. Thank you!

Lagniappe Peddler
4/17/2020 06:34:18 pm

Jennifer

The taping foot would probably be one to try. Not sure what your foot looks like, but some will have a screw at the front that adjusts the width of the tape you can insert. These feet usually use double fold bias tape which you can make yourself if you don't have any ready made in your stash. Although for making the ties, you don't need to cut the fabric on the bias. You can cut the fabric straight across the grain and then fold it so each side meets the center then fold once more in the center. That way all of the raw edges are already enclosed. Press really well as you make those folds.You will need to cut it wider than the one inch because of the folds. Double fold tape is cut in multiples of four. So if you want a one inch finished strap you would cut it four inches wide. If you want a 1/2 inch finished strap, you would cut it 2 inches wide. Make all of the folds, press and then you insert that tape into the foot. It may be easier to insert the tape before you attach it to your machine until you get used to it. The screw will be adjusted to the width of the folded tape. There is usually a second larger screw close to where it attaches to the ankle of your sewing machine that you can adjust also. This helps you with making sure the needle falls where you want it to especially if you don't have a needle that moves right or left. Just look at the needle tip and see where it sews into the tape. You should be able to move that position either with the foot or your sewing machine. I would look up the tape foot in your machine manual and it should help or online according to the manufacturer. I hope this helps and thank you for stopping by.

Maggie link
4/18/2020 04:04:53 am

Oh wow, oh wow, oh wow! I have dozens and dozens of feet that I have NEVER been able to part with. My dear Mom, who passed recently, somehow collected them over the years. I always wondered what the feet did and if they fit only certain machines. I will start looking through them to see if I am lucky enough to already have a binder foot. Thank you! And thanks Mom for not being able to part with the feet. =)

Lagniappe Peddler
4/18/2020 07:47:44 am

I also love to hang onto things. You never know when they might come in handy! Good luck on your treasure hunt and thank you for stopping by my site.

Maggie link
4/18/2020 10:35:29 am

I'm back! I got lucky that in the first batch of feet I found 2 of these! One says Singer USA 160339 and it has an extension in the front which you place the fabric into so it helps you guide it through. It also is marked 15/16 so having read your post I figured that was the fabric width. I tried it and it worked! This thing has to be at least 40 years old. The other foot is almost identical but does not have the markings or the fabric guide. My first attempt did not come out as beautiful as yours :-) the fabric is a little twisted but it is all enclosed with no frayed edges showing. I will practice some more. Thank you again. You're awesome! I imagine Mom's getting a kick from my excitement. LOL

Lagniappe Peddler
4/18/2020 10:40:29 am

What a wonderful gift to find those feet. I hope you have many happy hours using them!

Maggie link
5/24/2020 05:49:37 pm

And I'm back again! While getting a 70 year old Singer ready to give to my sister, I discovered the manual that goes with it. I found this same foot in the manual, with instructions as to its other functions. It's at this link, on page 23 (page 43 of the actual book). I was excited to find it! http://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_machine_company/manuals/singer-model-201-sewing-machine-manual.pdf

Lagniappe Peddler
5/24/2020 07:26:37 pm

Hi Maggie. That binder foot looks like it can be used for multiple sizes of unfolded and prefolded bindings if I read the manual correctly. What a great tool and finding the actual instructions! Also, the Singer 201 is a very desirable model. Your sister is very lucky to be receiving it. Thanks so much for sharing!

Maggie link
5/24/2020 09:35:38 pm

She actually does not sew at all. I've spent some time now going through the feet and comparing to the ones in the manual to make sure I can provide her as complete a set as possible. I know I shouldn't give gifts with conditions, but I'll be asking her to keep it forever or return it LOL. It belonged to our mother. Hope you're enjoying your weekend!


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    Lagniappe Peddler believes that the process of working with our hands can be one of the best forms of healing the hurts in our lives and welcomes all who visit this safe little corner of the world.

    What is a Lagniappe Peddler?

    ˌlanˈyap,ˈlanˌyap - something given as a bonus or extra gift
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