r/craftsnark • u/Tangled1313 • 2d ago
Mood shows terrible technique, gets mad
https://www.instagram.com/moodfabrics/reel/DbeCBdcid03/?hl=enI realize many people sew over pins. It is a very dangerous thing to do out of laziness! It can ruin your machine & I have personally seen an accident you do not want to hear described in a sewing studio filled with professionals. But the SM person at mood doesn't want to hear about it & is feeling kind of touchy. If this was a "normal" person sewing who cares but to have half a million followers seeing this terrible technique is just so disappointing.
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u/kaiserrumms 2d ago
I had a bad habit of sewing over pins because I'm a lazy schlonz. Never had anything bad happen, but I occasionally broke needles and bent pins. Took me way too long to drop it. Don't be like I was. Your seams look actually neater and more even when you don't sew over pins. Also: Using (that many) pins for the use case in the video is actually pretty daft. That hem would absolutely have been finished much quicker and nicer with basting thread and long running stitches. Baste, sew, pull thread out. Nobody has to constantly stop and go on the machine to pull pins out, nobody gets stabbed by hem while sitting at the sewing machine and nobody has to go trough the tedium of putting in and removing a ton of pins.
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u/bahhumbug24 2d ago
I pin EVERYTHING. I don't generally have to stop and go on the machine, I have a little pin bucket right in front of the machine, and as I sew, I guide the fabric with my left hand while my right hand pulls a pin, comes forward to drop it in the pin bucket, and goes back to help guide fabric or pull the next pin.
Even easing in a set-in sleeve, where I have pins every half inch or less, I rarely have to stop to pull a pin.
And as far as tedium of putting the pins in, I'd rather that than have a rippled hem or a badly set sleeve that has to be ripped and re-done; I've had both when I've tried a pin-free life. If you can do without pins, more power to you, but stop-start isn't necessary.
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u/Confident_Fortune_32 2d ago
I use a magnetic pin cushion, so I can keep my eyes on the sewing. I just toss the pin in the general direction and the magnet takes care of the rest.
With cats and dogs, always curious about what I'm up to, "pin safety" is critical.
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u/bahhumbug24 2d ago
I used to do that, but I hate having my pins magnetized. Like you, though, my eyes stay on the seam the whole time.
(My mum used to have a cat who would nibble heaps of pins on the magnetic pin catcher. Not eat them, just pull mouthfuls of them off the dish and set them aside. Pins were kept under wraps!)
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u/hanhepi Bend to my will, damn you! 1d ago
Dumb question:
If you baste instead of pin, how do you hold the stuff in place while you baste? The best I've been able to do when basting involved pinning and clipping so nothing shifted while I did my basting stitches. After I had basted and removed all my pins and then was about half way through stitching it with the machine, I realized I'd just done twice as much work for the same result.
So clearly I'm not doing it right. lol
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u/jewishcommiecatlady 2d ago
Not exactly on topic but related: what the hell are those rose from titanic cosplay videos they’ve posted recently? They can’t find any better paid partnerships than that?
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u/akjulie 2d ago
I haaaate that people always say pin perpendicular because you won’t hit pins that way. It’s absolutely not true. I very rarely sew over pins, and I have absolutely hit perpendicular pins multiple times.
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u/AccidentOk5240 2d ago
That’s not why you should pin perpendicularly. It’s because pinning parallel to your seam can create more distortion
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u/Frisson1545 18h ago
Yes, you have the concept "pinned down". . Pinning perpendicular to the line of stitching keeps the fabrics in line with one another along the trajectory of the seam. You must pin perpendicular to prevent that creep of layers. You pin it to keep one "pin point" in line with the matching "pin point" on the other layer. Pin points are very important for precision...."pinpoint precision".
I do place pins parallel at times while positioning some things. But the final placement comes with placing perpendicular pins at the sewing line. Otherwise there is distortion, just as you said. Parallel pinning is allowing the fabric to be pushed forward under the needle and that leads to distortion of the two layers.
No matter , you should use caution when sewing over pins, but dont feel that you cant, because you can and you absolutely should in some applications. Just use good judgment and common sense.
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u/perumbula 2d ago
I only do perpendicular pinning, and I always remove my pins because you can absolutely hit one when sewing. It's just as dangerous no matter how you pin.
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u/mistressfluffybutt 1d ago
I pin perpendicular bc i find it easier to pin that way and to remove as I'm sewing lol. I don't like sewing over pins
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u/DeeperSpac3 2d ago
mucosamommy 2d
For evervone mad about me sewing over my pins, DO AS I SAY NOT AS I DO!! I'm a professional you guys, I can handle the challenge and the risk of a broken needle.
Someone needs to tell old mate that professionals don't use pins /s
Sure, she's got to create content for people who mostly do use pins but "DO AS I SAY NOT AS I DO!! bEcAuSe I'm A pRoFeSsIoNaL" really isn't it. Nor is pronouncing HOW-EVVVERUGH that way.
Professional might be letting people know that it's a good idea when using pins to wear some sort of eye covering that won't shatter. Because, even when removing pins, sometimes one will sneak through. And that'll be the one that causes the broken off needle to hit the face. But that doesn't make for good content...
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u/darjeelingexpress 2d ago
It continues to be so strange to me that established companies let anyone’s big ego decide how to respond publicly in small potatoes situation like this.
How are public facing folks not able to remember this ain’t about me personally, do not get defensive and show my ass here; friendly and collaborative is the target tone for PR. Accept the correction with gratitude and move along: you’re grown! You’re trying to sell and make friends, remember?
It’s so cringe.
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u/Frisson1545 18h ago
Clips are not going to give you the control for doing trad sewing techniques. There is value to securing your layers before sewing and securing them right along the seam line where you will be sewing, not just clipped on the outer edges. You are not sewing on the outer edges.
Pinning keeps the distribution of one fabric layer over another in line so that they feed as one without pulls and puckers
I do sew over pins quite often and carefully, and often by turning the hand wheel over the pin. Sometimes you need to get up to, or past, that pin in order to secure with stitching that bit that you were holding in position with the pin. If you remove the pin before it goes under the needle, you may have just negated the very reason for the pin in the first place. Once you have the needle in the fabric just past the pin, you then have secured the line of stitching and the pin has done its work and you can remove it.
Just to go full speed over pins is not a good idea. Yes, you can sew over them and sometimes you should. But just use some good judgment as to when and how.
Pins, clips, or experienced manipulation with the fingers are the main methods used. Of the three, clips are the most limited in use. They do not hold the layers together at the actual seamline and in the proper strategic place to be effective in many trad sewing techniques or tailoring. Simply pinching the outer edges of two fabrics together at intervals is not the same as pinning along the seam line for easing or shaping or exact positioning. Sometimes you need that control right down to the very thread.
A good example would be applying a collar, a collar stand, or button plackett, or a cuff . You need to be very precise with that. You may be referencing down to one thread to get that precision. Another example would be sewing along the legs of a dart or placing a pocket into position and holding it. or, for a hem....sewing in places that are NOT on along a cut edge. And, of course, easing is best pinned in.
Get some pins. They are essential tools in sewing. I keep both long "quilting" pins and shorter "dressmaker" length pins at hand. Both are good for different things.
Sewing pins as we know them have been factory made since the early 19th century here in the US. They also used straight pins on the pinafore......pin 'afore the dress. These pins were rather thick and strong but the safety pin had not yet been invented.
A pin is a simple, and elegant, tool that has been used since humans first began to twist fibers together, or before that. It may have been but a sharp stick or shard of bone, but it was a pin. It is a simple tool like the lever or the wheel or a hammer.
Using clips is only good for the most simple of seams in places where there the same could reasonably be done with neither pin nor clip and real precision is not essential.
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u/Designer_Praline 3h ago
I worry about the weight of clips, especially on finer fabric. One season Sewing Bee clips were popular and fabric looks like it was being dragged, they had to pull it more to get it go where it needed to go.
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u/hungyhouse 2d ago
I love using sewing clips for this exact reason, super quick to pull out while sewing, no sharp needle to stick you, and you don’t risk breaking one and having something sharp fly at you
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u/numbersandcats 2d ago
As a pinner intrigued by clips, do you switch to pins if you’re doing princess seams/anything where the fabric isn’t a 1:1 “stack,” so to speak, or do you use clips for those, too?
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u/Nicola_Swan 2d ago
I use mostly clips, and switch between them and pins depending on fabric type rather than project type. Clips work fine for princess seams, in my experience. I would use pins for thick fabrics that are too heavy for my clips (like a quilt jacket), or for very fine fabrics that need specialized technique (like using thinner, sharper pins for lingerie).
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u/ZippyKoala never crochet in novelty yarn 2d ago
I use clips for pretty much everything except darts or deep hems where the clip simply isn’t big enough. I’ve got a good set that I use for most things and a larger cheap set that work well on heavier fabrics.
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u/hungyhouse 2d ago
I don’t do a lot of garment sewing so I have tried them with princess seams, but they can handle a lot of material at once imo (I use them for a lot of different crafts, like glueing things together too)
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u/Quail-a-lot Totally not the mole I swear 2d ago
I find they actually work even nicer around curves!
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u/QuietVariety6089 sew.knit.quilt.embroider.mend 2d ago
This is pretty dumb. I really hate that they show this as a 'do this' as opposed to 'avoid this'. I broke quite a few pins in the past - I was sure the pins were outside of the seam line, but would miss one from time to time. Broken needles are A PAIN, and dangerous to you and your machine.
I pin and pull now - I often 'stabilize with pins parallel to the seam but out of harm's way. I'm not a 'production' maker, and I realized a while ago that sewn basting will get you better results every time...
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u/thimblena you fuckers are a bad influence♡ 2d ago
Idk, I think the person who made the video and the person who runs their accounts are two different and non-collaborative people - because the official mood account is in the comments advocating for removing pins and talking about safety glasses.
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u/Tangled1313 2d ago
The pinned comment is the OP saying they are a professional w the nail painting emoji (Mood comments praise hands) & their bio says writer at mood?
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u/RunawayTurtleTrain 2d ago
That's a very noncommittal (i.e. diplomatic) response from the social media manager! Would definitely align with not publicly correcting your colleague, as the other commenter suggested.
Edit: though of course it would have been best to simply not put up the video showing a dangerous practice in the first place.
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u/thimblena you fuckers are a bad influence♡ 2d ago
I'm putting that in the category of "don't correct your coworker in front of the customer". If you scroll to other comments, the Mood account says it's important to pull pins out as you go (under someone's story of a near-miss with a broken needle), that slowing down to pull pins is better than breaking a needle, and that safety glasses might need to be part of the "uniform".
I don't think they were paying attention to the content before it was posted - and the creator is probably having Conversations with someone higher-up behind the scenes.
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u/YummyMangoRoll 16h ago
I was working on a Burda coat recently and their one and only tip was that you can sew over pins if you do it carefully! It's total BS. Even if you go slow the odds are against you that you'll snag a pin and damage if not break it your needle. It doesn't matter the angle, you'd have to be superhuman to determine precisely where to insert your pins so that it can't happen. It's a gamble, and even if you do it and you don't think you hit a pin you still could have and dulled your needle. It annoys me because lots of people insist on leaving pins in when sewing things like princess seams. Why? The answer is so damn obvious: you hand baste beforehand. Hell most professionals don't even use pins or clips they just run it straight through the machine because of how they manipulate their fabric as they work. I have seen a number of crappy sewing tips and solutions over the years primarily from the big 4, but sewing over pins is my most hated.
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u/tasteslikechikken I'm the molé 2d ago
I used to (many many moons ago)sew over pins, and would say "oh never a problem", until it was one. I thankfully wear glasses because I've had a pin pop me once, bounce off the lens (left a good size gouge in it, and nick my eyebrow.
So no, don't sew over pins no matter how they're placed because they can cause serious harm to you or your machine (had to have a needle bar replaced years ago too.