Quick Tips: Using Clips For Sewing
Nicki LaFoilleLearn how to use sewing clips on certain fabrics, and what to watch out for. Certain clips are made specifically for sewing and quilting use. These are characterized by a flat underside, which is designed to be able to slide up and over a sewing machine bed without catching. Other types of clips may be used for sewing, such as binder clips or chip clips, but the lack of a flat underside makes them less suited for sewing and quilting use.
When working with fabric that may be damaged by pins, such as vinyl, laminated cotton, and faux leathers, clips are a good way to keep your fabric layers together when sewing. Some clips may pinch so tightly that they leave marks in the fabric if it is malleable, such as faux leather or if it has a nap that may be crushed, such as velvet. If this is the case, use the clips within the seam allowance.
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When you're working with a fabric that's too thick to pin through, or you might just not want to put pins through because when the pin goes through the fabric, it'll damage it or leave a permanent hole such as vinyl or a laminated fabric or a leather or a faux leather. Clips are a great way to keep your layers together. And they do make clips that are specific to sewing, like these ones, and these are great because they have this flat underside so that when these clips slide up and over the machine bed they don't get caught on anything. Now there are various types of clips around that you can use for sewing, such as binder clips or just some regular clips that you use for chip bags. But for binder clips, a lot of times those pinch so tightly that you don't want to use them on a fabric like a full leather where they might put in dents in the fabric.
So if you do use them, you want to make sure you stay within the seam allowances so that dent isn't visible on the right side of the project. So you can see. The dent that that made in the fabric and even these regular sewing clips when used on a faux leather, they bite so hard that they can leave a little indent so. When you're using these on a fabric like this, try to keep those clips within the seam allowance so as not to see those marks on the right side. And these clips you can use, however, like I mentioned, the the bottom of these isn't flat, so when this is sliding up over the machine and even with the binder clips, the bottom side of that clip can kind of get caught as it's going up over the machine bed.
Which is what makes these. Sewing clips so nice is that flat side so that it can slide gently. And these are nice for when you are even uh sewing on something that is so delicate that the pins might not really work well, like lace that has such an open weave that your pins don't really bite into anything. clips can be a really good way to keep your layers together there as well. So it's a great tool to have in your sewing room.
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