sewing frustration
 

Anyone who sews please help!!!!! I am having the WORST time trying to sew on velcro and make it look neat! I keep breaking the thread!!!!!!!!!! Anyone have any ideas?

Maybe loosen the tension a little or lengthen the stitches. And go slowly, even if you have to turn the wheel by hand.

I'll try but I'm starting to think that I need to just hand sew it

Try hard to sew just on the very edge of the velcro, where there are no hooks - that very TINY, NARROW edge - and good luck! It's tricky but can be done, you'll have fewer broken threads and a lot less frustration:) I have been known to turn the wheel by hand too.;)

Oh Lord is it that hard to sew on Velcro? I got an outfit cut out but I don't have any Velcro...so it is just sitting...Anyways Girl we got to see it when you get done!!

Ohhhhhh my...I had/have the same problem also.....I bought some of the self stick velcro and thought that if I used that and sewed it also it would be extra sturdy...........well all it did was mess up my needle/needles and kept leaving the sticky residue.... so I have learned...you can't use self stick velcro and try to sew it also..... :eek: :eek: :eek:

what size needle are you using?

I can't think of the size of needle but I'm using the ball tip needles. as much velcro as I use:rolleyes: turning the wheel by hand will take forever. Oh well

LOL...I just went through this also, I learned an important lesson....I can't sew through sticky goo.....

My old machine was just not cut out to sew velcro, no matter the tension nor the needle size. When I got my new machine, I haven't had any problem at all (I only spent $120 on my new machine). Ballpoint and Mettalic needles sew the best on most of your standard fabrics, including velcro.

When you use self stick velcro it helps to put a tiny bit of machine oil on the needle every inch or so. I put the oil on a Q-tip and that way it doesn't drop on the fabric you're sewing.

Here's some tips I found.

Sewing Velcro
When sewing the hook side of Velcro to clothes, it tends to grab the thread
and break it. In order to avoid this problem, I am using little leftover
pieces of water-soluble plastic (the kind we put on top of the fabric when
embroidering on fleece fabric) and once the job is done I simply pull it
out or leave it until the item is laundered. You can also use tissue
paper.
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Is the needle old? That will cause all kinds of trouble.

Check to see that the needle isn't for light fabrics. A denim needle is a good idea...

How about your tension - is it set for medium or heavy weight fabric?

And use heavy thread (nylon, poly or cotton-coated poly)
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Save old needles (such as 90’s) to use when sewing on the Velcro. Stitch around the four edges and a little into the middle, back stitching at the beginning and end. One lady suggested using a small stitch when sewing Velcro.
If you had problems with the machine skipping stitches when sewing on it. Using nylon thread to solve the problem of shredding and using a different needle a heavier weighted like for denim or leather.

Have you tried a heavier thread?

Thanks for the tips Rosey I wrote them down!

i use size 14 and not ball point. I have never had a problem with thread breaking. make sure your needle is new and it might even be bent if you are having problems.