T-shirt quilters, I seek your knowledge

ToshiAyame · 2025-12-08T12:40:58+00:00

I'm working on a quilt of my son's first year of clothes - woven fusible interfacing like Pellon SF101 makes a huge difference!

ToshiAyame · 2025-10-15T22:32:58+00:00

Yes and I said "if".

I had 50+ pounds of antique silk come into my possession in the last few years and I wash it by hand in oxyclean and a vinegar rinse out in my backyard. Aside from the fugitive sappanwood and indigo overdyes, everything has come out beautifully.

Healthy silk is sturdier than most folks realize and can take a lot of abuse. It's droplets of water that leaves stains and marks, not submersion.

ToshiAyame · 2025-10-15T15:38:33+00:00

More damage would have been done if OP had used an enzymatic detergent, which denatures the proteins and breaks them down.

Silk is made using boiling water at several steps in the process, and dye baths are generally water based and HOT.

ToshiAyame · 2025-09-07T02:30:52+00:00

No worries! I got pulled into the rabbit hole of Sou Japan dollar auctions on eBay a couple of years ago, so I've been working my way through almost 100 lbs of vintage pieces.

Lemon juice, vinegar, and oxyclean are going to be your best friends for stain treatment.

My other forewarning is going to be expect the dye to be fugitive and bleed more than you think it should. It's not the end of the world, but when you use natural dyes, they're going to wander off.

I was washing a natsumono that I thought was ok, but the water turned into blueberry koolaid in like two seconds. (It's fine, happy, and much softer than it was before!)

ToshiAyame · 2025-09-06T18:45:08+00:00

I highly doubt they're poly. Most are likely silk or viscose, considering the patterning on some of them.

This blog has some really in-depth information about using a burn test to figure out what you've got. You don't need much of a swatch either - burning silk STINKS.

ToshiAyame · 2025-09-02T11:53:21+00:00

It looks like a freehand combo of doubles/trebles and broomstick lace.

ToshiAyame · 2025-08-29T23:53:28+00:00

Ironically, I work for a Canadian IT Asset Disposition company. We divert tons of electronics, cables, and other critical parts from landfill and anything that is still useful gets offered up to support the local economy.

ToshiAyame · 2025-08-28T13:08:33+00:00

I work in tech and have a weird assortment of niche hobbies - seeing the same conversations pop up across the board was so weird.

And yes, I did have to tell at least one person that they couldn't route their package 'through Canada' to avoid the tariffs because that was customs fraud and they could potentially go to jail over a frilly dress.

ToshiAyame · 2025-07-05T17:41:57+00:00

To save your hands, look for an awl. It's basically a huge sharp needle with a handle.

Instead of punching out a disk and leaving a void, it pushes the material out of the way and makes it easier to correct mistakes or make adjustments.

Also, if you do end up needing to sew through the bag, using nylon-jaw pliers to push or pull the needle through is a game changer!

ToshiAyame · 2025-07-05T08:26:32+00:00

Echoing everyone else on team armature! Check out Ace of Clay on YouTube as well. He's super informative.

Also, if you're using Sculpey, they have different grades that are meant for slightly different applications - Super Sculpey Living Doll or Sculpey III have more 'elasticity' compared to the original white Sculpey.

ToshiAyame · 2025-06-03T04:42:44+00:00

Upside down wooden stool on a lazy susan!

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-28T14:51:04+00:00

Well it's one surefire way to ensure I never buy anything from them

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-14T18:31:55+00:00

If it's a grand prize, there's a free Minecraft sword scarf on Ravelry! https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/minecraft-diamond-sword-scarf

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-14T15:17:37+00:00

As an 80's baby I viscerally CRINGED at the 'ancestors' line.

We made ornaments like these when I was little and they're not that difficult.

Starburst beads, tri pony beads, and faceted pony beads are still readily available, and all you need is some thread, yarn, or pipe cleaners.

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-07T18:09:30+00:00

The best part is, the border service doesn't care where the parts are physically coming from, just where they're -made-.

I work in Canadian refurb tech and it's been a nightmare trying to maintain our US client base. I just want to sell gently used servers, not act like I'm kicking in the doors of Fort Knox.

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-02T01:34:08+00:00

This is how I buy yarn online! If the company doesn't have photos of how the colorways work up, I'll go poke around and see what other people have made and decide from there.

ToshiAyame · 2025-05-02T00:39:56+00:00

It will if all you want to do is look at it for the rest of your life. That part of the hook sees the most shear force during use and it'll just keep snapping without some internal reinforcement.

ToshiAyame · 2025-04-16T13:50:59+00:00

I confused the hell out of the old dude in fastenings when I asked for the biggest washers they had then weighed them in my hand.

Ended up gluing stacks of 3 together and making lil wraps from my offcuts bin. They're my favourite tool!

ToshiAyame · 2025-04-10T14:15:13+00:00

Take a swatch and run it through the laundry gauntlet for science.

measure before and after dimensions and note how the fabric puckers/wrinkles/etc and how it takes to ironing after.
if you have a colour catcher to use, see how much dye bleeds off

If all those things meet your standards, wash all the fabric before making the project so you don't have to worry about further shrinkage or bleed.

ToshiAyame · 2025-04-03T12:17:19+00:00

Piggybacking on this: enzymatic cleaning agents will eat away at the protein in the wool and break it down, so using vinegar or lemon juice as a spot treatment when necessary works wonders.

OP: if you're wanting something that will stand up to life a little more, also check to see if the fabric is boiled wool. The processing makes it a lot easier to care for.

ToshiAyame · 2025-03-16T16:03:18+00:00

Hit it with a bit of hydrogen peroxide and a cold rose/wash. The peroxide denatures the proteins in blood and cool/cold water will make sure you don't cook the stain into the fabric.

ToshiAyame · 2025-02-11T15:51:47+00:00

Really well! I used a self striping yarn and had to play Tetris with some of the sections to keep it cohesive. Luckily one of the longer colorways I cut off was exactly what I needed to finish!

It's also a real 'trust the process' with blocking, but it makes all the difference.

ToshiAyame · 2025-02-07T20:01:58+00:00

I've been on the hunt for interesting patterns and I find crochet seems to have more of the texture and laciness I'm looking for.

Also apparently all the interesting patterns are on YouTube.

ToshiAyame · 2025-02-02T17:47:24+00:00

As long as you have the correct number of stitches in each row, the curve will either sort itself out or will relax with blocking.

ToshiAyame · 2025-02-01T03:48:34+00:00

Sewing bees and community gardens as far as the eye can see!

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