How to Stitch: Part 2
I've shown you how to set up your sewing machine, thread it and start stitching. Now I'm going to take you through sewing straight lines, curved lines and corners.
Stitching a straight line
Stitching a curved line
When you stitch, you’ll want to gently guide the fabric with your hands, keeping the presser foot lined up with the direction of the upcoming part of the curve. It helps to keep your eye on the part of the curve an inch or so in front of the needle, and keep that bit angled straight towards the needle. Go slow, taking as many pauses as you need to keep up with the twists and turns. It does take practice to get the hang of this, so have a few goes until your stitching line is following the drawn line.
Turning corners
Draw a right angled corner onto your fabric to practise. Start machine stitching along one line until you reach the corner. You want the needle to be pushed down through the fabric right at the point of the corner, so you could use your hand wheel or needle up/down button to help you get to the exact point precisely.
With the needle down, raise your presser foot so you can pivot the fabric so the next line to stitch is in front of you and pointing straight towards the needle.
Lower your presser foot again and continue stitching the next line of the corner. Voila!
If you'd like some more help getting to grips with your machine, check out our online video workshop, Make Friends with a Sewing Machine.
