Saturday, March 17, 2012

The Cupboards are BARE!

Yup…old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard and found no more hexagons to sew…so she fired up the GO! and lickety split…

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… in a matter of minutes that ol’dog had more than enough hexagons to chew on! Or SEW the nursery rhyme goes!

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Seriously…this hexagon topper is moving along at a nice clip…I had run out of fabric hexagon, which the GO! quickly remedied!

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BUT I had also run out of the Mylar Hexagon templates…so I have resorted to cutting out my own using anything flat and plastic…like margarine and yogurt lids.  Then I found sheets of Mylar at my BFFs.. JoAnn’s (I love her!) and so I am back in business!!

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Now a new dilemma faces me…the glue that I have been using to adhere the edges of the fabric to the template.  I had been using the Sewline Glue Pens (LOVE IT!!)…BUT I am going through it like water…and just LOOK at the price and the SIZE of the refills!!  OUCH!!  Plus it is hard to find.  

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Someone at the Clubhouse said she uses Elmer Glue for this…so I gave it a try!

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YUP…Works great…and TWO of these Glue Sticks costs only $1.33…and they are huge compared to the Sewline Glue sticks!

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BUT ALAS… I heard from one of my readers that BUGS like this glue!!  YIKES!!  I DO NOT want bugs! 

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So I am back to the SEWLINE gluesticks until I hear otherwise!

Has anyone out there used Elmer’s Glue…and if SEW, did you have a problem with BUGS??  Inquiring minds want to know….

Have a Super (bug-free) Saturday and Happy Quilting!~P

18 comments:

  1. That's a lot of hexies!!!! I had not heard about bugs and that glue stick. Oh dear. We don't want that.

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  2. Hi Paulette!
    I don't use glue. I'd end up with it all over the place. I just hold the fabric against the templates with paperclips and tack the fabric together around the template. If you try this, I use a plastic coated paperclip, vs metal, and I put a clip on one side, then go to the opposite side and clip back to the start and then tack. The hexies are secure ask you sew them together too! Good Luck!
    Take care, Leslie

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  3. Wow! Look at you go! I've never had a problem with bugs liking my glue. But you do plan on washing it when it is completed anyway, so I'm not sure it would really matter.
    Have a fantastic day!!

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  4. I never thought of that, ice. I do use regular kids glue, it is purple and it works great without leaving a mess or being too thick, but I do have silver fish, hmmm. I just find them once in a while, have never seen them on my things.

    Debbie

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  5. IF you have SILVERFISH only. A little known fact about me is years ago I was a Licensed Pest Control Supervisor in California. Silverfish eat lots of things we all have in our homes. I wouldn't worry unless you already have a problem with them...and if you do it is likely they have already snacked on a few other things as well. Keep an eye on WOOL for other buggers too!

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  6. No, don't worry about the glue. It washes out completely. I use it all the time, never had a problem.

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  7. I've used Elmer's in a pinch and never had problems with bugs, but then I don't think Montana has many bugs that can survive the winter. I just received a Fons & Porter glue stick to try after seeing the price of the Sewline.

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  8. OK, I thought maybe about NOT commenting, but figured, what the heck. As a brand new quilter, I am totally confused. Are the templates something to do with the GO machine? I couldn't quite imagine a quilt full of little plastic thingies. I thought everyone might get a good laugh at my expense, but also thought it might be fun to realize what an inside thing real quilters have together.

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  9. If you wash the quilt the glue goes away. I've heard that same thing about spray starch, bugs and quilts, too, but don't know if it is true. We have so few bugs here in Montana (yea) that I don't worry about it.

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  10. You might want to try spray starch. I have not made a hexagon quilt but when I applique I make heat resistant plastic or heavy templates. and cut the fabric 1/8" - 1/4" all the way around. Spray a little starch in a small cup and use a small paint brush to paint the starch on the wrong side of the seam allowance and iron it down to the template from the wrong side. Once it is ironed dry you can remove the template and use it again.

    Lyn
    gingerquilter@gmail.com

    http://frontporchquilts.blogspot.com/

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  11. Anything involving templates looks like a faff to me at this point as I am relatively new quilting, but the hexes look a million dollars, and I can see myself looking to the technique in future - I know where to come for advice now! :-)

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  12. I tried glue, but used the wrong kind and got discouraged! I'm not sure how I'm going to muster the strength to pull out my freezer paper templates. Perhaps if i used the acrylic templates (patti's) that I'm now using, it may have worked. Anyway, what I do now is just 'baste' with a double thread that I want to get rid of, but it's not really basting either! I just fold the fabric over, and stitch it once, and then twice in the corner, jog over to the next corner, stitch, stitch, and on and on. It goes so fast when I sit down to watch TV in the evening. Now I'm ready to stitch my hexagon flowers together and I learned a tip about that too. First I read that the 'ladder stitch' would ensure that your stitches wouldn't show on the front, but someone else explained that it wasn't the strongest way to secure them. They went onto say that you just had to make sure your stitches went straight across (each stitch parallel to the next) and not at an angle when you were joining one hexie to another. Hope this makes sense and helps someone! I so appreciate all you folks who do blogs. I don't always comment, but learn so much.

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  13. Fun! I got myself a go baby today....as invited to the EE Shenks customer appreciation day...such a good price...the Hexagon die cut was sold out! Did get a tumbler and another one that I can't remember the name on..but can't wait to play with it.

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  14. I use glue stick all the time, not only for my hexis but I also use it to put my binding on my quilts so I don't have to have pins stabbing me.I have never had a problem with bugs and have been using glue stick for many years. It washes out when you wash your project.

    Judy

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  15. Well the same is with starch, bugs supposedly like it too. I use lots of starch and never had a problem. Most of my projects are kept in zip bags or platic tubs anyways.(Cats like to get on my blocks and tops). And glue and starch wash out. Kids white school glue is what many quilters use and it is totally washable.

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  16. If you ask at your local office supply store, Scotch makes a Post it Note glue stick, which is good for this. I've never had an issue with critters. They don't swim well up here in the Pacific Northwest.

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  17. Paulette I am new to quilting. Could you please explain why you use the plastic template? Why can't you reuse it?

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  18. I use the Elmer's School Glue and have not ever had a problem with bugs. But bugs don't seem to like Colorado either.

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