At 07:35 AM 7/29/2005, you wrote:
Jeri, threading the needle as the
thread comes off the spool had never occurred to me.
....after you have threaded the needle there will still be two threads
hanging either side of the needle and they will lie beside each other and
go through the fabric in exactly the same way whichever way you have
threaded the needle.
So is the action of putting the thread through the needle the part which
causes the problem with the thread - roughing up the fibres if you put it
through the wrong way?
Yes, the portion of the thread that goes through the needle will be
reversed. However, in proper sewing there should only be a short segment
that is doing this. The main working portion of the thread should be going
the right way. When the seam is sewn, the thread left in the seam should
lie smoothly because it is all going the correct way. The end of the
thread that went through the needle, and was pulled through the fabric the
wrong way, is usually cut off and discarded. Since it is roughed up and
weakened, this is a good reason for not trying to sew to the last inch on a
strand of thread.
I have seen this most clearly with embroidery floss. The end of the thread
that went through the needle is actually thinner by the time the sewing has
reached the end of the thread. When I was doing embroidery, I knew this
was true, but not the reason behind it. Little fibers are pulled off the
floss that's pulled through the fabric backwards. The end of the strand is
worn out before the strand has been completely sewn.
If a person puts half the thread through the needle and uses it double,
they are not worried about fine sewing. They are probably trying for a
quick fix and the fine points of sewing technique are being ignored
anyway. I have done this when sewing on a button or mending a seam in my
DH's pants. Utility, not looks, is the key factor in this case.
Now back to last minute details of packing for IOLI.
Alice in Oregon
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