“Semi Industrial” vs Industrial Sewing Machines

Calculating the Power of a Sewing Machine

Very good article I came across analyzing sewing machine power.

I’m in a lot of various Facebook sewing groups and one thing I see posted all the time, particular those that have a lot of people sewing bags, is if someone should get a higher end domestic, “semi-industrial”, or industrial machine. I have one from each group: a computerized domestic (Janome Memory Craft 6500P), a semi industrial (Juki TL-2010Q), and industrial (Seiko STH-8BLD-3 compound walking foot). My point of this post is to give honest feedback from someone who is an experienced home sewer of 20+ years and has absolutely nothing to gain from someone buying one type or brand of sewing machine vs another.

I also want to add that my focus is on new machines, not vintage. Yes, vintage machines are often great but you’re often taking a chance on their condition, not to mention it can be hard to find exactly what you want depending on where you live and when you want to buy.

Domestic Machines

These are the machines everyone who is a home sewer is familiar with and I assume you already have, so I don’t need to elaborate much further. I just wanted to note here that my Janome Memory Craft 6500P, which was probably a midrange to higher end model at its time, can do about 1000 stitches a minute and the motor works out to about 1/10 horsepower. I’ve sewn some heavier stuff on this machine, but one occasion have also pushed it to its limits and knocked it out of time in the process of doing so. My mechanic was able to fix it, but it was still a pain to get repaired. Just because it can fit under the presser foot it doesn’t mean your machine can necessarily handle it without a lot of extra help in the form of jump jumpers, slow speed, or even just manually turning the wheel yourself. The higher end models are probably stronger, but are stupidly expensive (think $10-20k) and IMO you’re primarily paying for more capabilities (like the ability to embroider) and more throat space rather than strength. People make a big deal about having a free arm too, but I’ve never seen the use for one. (Haven’t they heard of turning it inside out and working from the inside??)

Semi Industrial Machines

The Juki TL series falls under this, along with the Janome HD-9. There is sometimes some controversy about the term “semi industrial” (particularly among the prior but I think it is a fairly accurate term. These machines retain the lighter weight and portability of domestics (along with creature comforts like automatic thread cutting) while taking some of the features of industrials like the reverse stitch lever (SUPER handy to not have to look for a button when wanting to backstitch) and ability to use industrial machine feet. Industrial machine feet can be found very cheap if you go generic and often perform better than domestic machine feet. I bought a bunch of compensating feet from Amazon and they just work so much better than the regular topstitching feet on my Janome.

Many of the semi industrials, like my Juki TL-2010Q, also have speed control. These machines tend to be a bit faster and able to better handle heavier projects. They do just one thing but they do it well. I LOVE sewing shirts on this machine.

The disadvantage is that unlike an ordinary domestic they are straight stitch only, and not as strong and durable as an actual industrial. You can technically do buttonholes on the TL series, but you need a separate attachment. Then official Juki buttonhole attachment is $500, which is why a lot of people end up buying a separate domestic just for buttonholes if they don’t already have one. Vintage Griest/Singer etc buttonhole attachments can be found much cheaper (under $50) but since you’re depending on the secondhand market, you never know about availability and if all the pieces are included. These vintage buttonholers also depend on separate metal templates so you’re also limited to whatever size you have on hand instead of being able to set whatever size you want, like with the Juki buttonhole attachment or a domestic.

After using it for a couple of months, I find that the Juki TL-2010Q is not as strong as some claim. It is stronger and faster for sure than my Janome, and I think the motor works out to 1/6 horsepower (vs the 1/10 of the Janome). But when I was sewing a tote bag made from a tightly woven medium weight 100% cotton twill and nylon webbing straps, it tripped up. When sewing the section where the strap goes over a lot of layers of the twill, it just stopped. It didn’t steady to struggle, it outright stalled and would not go. I had to do the hand wheel to get it through that particular section. I know my industrial would have gone through this section without all this extra effort. I’ve seen various videos of how the TL series can “sew through anything” and pretty much all of them are going slowly and you can hear the machine motor working harder. That doesn’t mean it isn’t strong, but I do feel like many people overstate its capabilities because they’re coming from having only used a domestic before.

I also feel like the Juki is not as solidly built as some claim. Sure it doesn’t have as much plastic, but some of the parts (like the thread guide) feel a little bit delicate. The good thing though is that these machines are generally more user serviceable than the domestics, and as you can see Juki Junkies sells a lot of replacement parts and has information on how to replace them yourself. You’d probably still need a mechanic for something like a timing issue, but at least some issues can be resolved yourself.

One last annoyance with the TL series is that you can’t stick a magnetic seam guide past the needle plate. With my industrial I can stick the seam guide anywhere on the machine.

While it has limitations my TL-2010Q is my favorite machine to sew on. I feel like I have the most control over it, and it feeds the fabric beautifully. I love the automatic needle position down and the ability to cut the thread from the foot pedal. It has a decent amount of speed and I have far less issues topstitching collar bands now. Even though I feel it is overrated for heavy projects, I can see why it has such a cult following. It is heavily marketers towards bag makers and quilters, but I also think it is a great machine for garment sewers in my position that want to step up their game but don’t have the room for an industrial.

Industrials

These machines are strong and powerful. They have a dedicated table (typically 48” x 20”) the machine head sits into, and the motor, which is around 1/2 horsepower, is bolted under the table on the side. I’m focusing on lockstitch machines (straight stitch) but there is also dedicated double needle, zig zag, etc industrials. They are not only for heavy materials! Plenty of them, like the Juki DDL-8700, are designed just for light to medium weight fabrics. (Think about it: the factories pushing out silk blouses and crisp buttondown shirts are using industrials, not domestic or Juki TLs.)

My Seiko STH-8BLD-3 is a compound walking foot machine. These machines are designed for medium to very heavy materials. The foot is actually a two section foot with a small inner foot and larger outer foot. The foot, needle, and bottom feed dogs all synchronize to feed the fabric through. It is awesome for thick layers and sewing things like canvas, multiple layers of foam, and cowhide leather. Unlike my Janome and Juki, I don’t have to baby it at all. It just sews through everything as fast as I want without needing hump jumpers or stopping and using the hand wheel. I’ve hemmed bull denim weight jeans for my dad with flat felled seams on this machine before and there was no need to slow down. It just punched right through even the flat felled section without any struggle at all. When I sewed my denim Jalie tote I was able to turn on a dime and fly through whatever section was being sewn without having to do anything special. I think it can do 2000-2500 stitches per minute, with that range depending on the stitch length.

While the Juki TL series maxes out at a size 18 needle, my Seiko can take up to a size 24 needle. I have to use at least 40 Tex weight thread (Gutermann Mara 70) because the tension simply isn’t made to handle lighter thread like Gutermann Mara 100/120. Unlike the Juki TL series or a domestic it excels at handling the really thick stuff like Gutermann Mara 30 (Tex 100 weight).

Another nice thing about industrials is that there’s none of the gatekeeping of domestics. You can tweak them however you want and can make it last a lifetime. My owners manual for the Seiko has sections on how to adjust the timing, adjust the height of the feed dogs (not just drop them but actually adjust how high they are), and all sorts of other stuff that a domestic manual would need, ever show you how to do. Check out the post by Wizcrafts for an example of just how much you can do to customize a machine like this for whatever it is you want to sew. There is a decent amount of information out there on maintaining and repairing industrials yourself, and parts are typically not difficult to get if you have one of the more common models.

My Seiko is around 14 years old now and uses the old fashioned clutch style motor. Clutch motors suck because speed control is difficult (though I’ve gotten better) and they are running whether you are sewing or not, which is noisy and energy consuming. I don’t think they even sell new machines with them anymore. Fortunately industrial motors are pretty easy to swap out. My plan in the next year or so is to swap out the current clutch motor for the Kinedyne 750SL. The Kinedyne 750SL, in addition to letting me sew more easily at a much slower pace while keeping the same torque, also has a needle position sensor option which would allow me to always stop with the needle up or down (a feature I love on my Juki and Janome).

As far as price, it depends on the type of machine you get but in general they are not that much more than the Juki TL series, especially considering the table is usually included. However shipping costs push it up another $200-300 because they tend to be drop shipped by freight. The flipside is that depending on your market you can find these used for much less. Look around for tailors that are retiring or sewing factories going out of business.

The main disadvantage to industrials is the size and lack of portability and versatility.

As I mentioned before, the machine head sits into a dedicated table. The table top is custom cut to fit the machine head and can only be used for that machine. While you can get casters to help with moving it around, this is not a situation like with the Juki TL series or a domestic where you can easily bring it up or down stairs or travel to a class with it. And with a 48×20” table, you’re going to need to have a decent amount of space to put it in. Not something you can tuck away when it’s not being used. The machine heads are also VERY heavy compared to a domestic. My Seiko STH-8BLD-3 machine head is somewhere around 65 pounds. It is entirely metal and feels like a tank. The table is another 50 pounds and the clutch motor is another 40 pounds or so (though the newer servo motors are much lighter). Not easy to transport to the sewing machine mechanic. You’re probably going to have to have one come to your house.

These machines are made for very specific purposes. When I sewed the bag lining of my tote I had to switch to a domestic because between the heavier feed dogs and immense pressure and tension, I simply wouldn’t have gotten acceptable results on the Seiko. It would result in a puckered fabric with thread about to snap. For lighter stuff like that you’d need something like the Juki DDL-8700. Which means another machine with a 48×20” table. Not something that works in my current lifestyle. But with the Juki TL series you can sew a lining on the same machine as you’re sewing the rest of the bag on.

One particular machine that someone specializing in bag making may want to look into is an industrial cylinder bed machine with a flatbed attachment. They make getting into really tight areas much easier (they are kind of like the free arm of the industrial world). This is what they sew shoes, little wallets, etc on commercially. The downside is that they are not nearly as good at sewing big flat panels, even with the flatbed attachment. But some bagmakers have them and love them.

Conclusion

While I am very happy with my Juki TL-2010Q, if I had the space I would have bought the Juki DDL-8700 instead.

I would say go with an industrial if you:

have the space
don’t need portability
want a true “buy it for life” machine
want the ability to repair and customize it yourself
want to quickly and effortlessly sew medium heavy materials and/or do upholstery projects in addition to bag making (this is more specific to compound walking foot machines)
have a good local market of used machines – you can find one used for 1/2 or even 1/4 the price of a new TL series

Look into the TL series if you:

have limited space and/or need to stash the machine away in a separate space between projects
want to travel with the machine
work primarily with light to medium weight fabrics and want something more powerful and refined than a regular domestic

New Machine: Juki TL-2010Q

Just got this baby delivered yesterday! I haven’t made a space for it in the sewing room yet so I set it up on my dining room table for now.

My primary sewing machine for the past 20 years has been a Janome Memory Craft 6500P. My mom bought it a year before I caught the sewing bug, and when she saw how much I fell in love with sewing she decided to give me her machine and bought another one for herself. It’s been a great machine and I can’t even tell you how many hours I have on it. However, it does have some quirks:

The automatic thread cutter sucks. It has sucked from Day One. It always leaves a big thread nest unless I use a leader cloth, and if I need to use a leader cloth all the time I feel like it’s quicker to just use the built in manual thread cutter and snip the threads afterwards
It sometimes it goes for another stitch or two after I stop stitching, especially with heavier weight materials. I’ve seen other people complain about this.
Regular buttonholes are super easy and good quality, but it struggled with making nicely rounded keyhole buttonholes, especially on heavier fabrics.

When Juki Junkies advertised last month that they were going to sell the Juki TL-2010Q floor models being used at Quilt Con at a discount, I decided to go for it. Right now this machine sells for around $1200. I got mine for $950 with shipping included. My husband didn’t really understand why I wanted it, but when I said it would take the place of birthday, Christmas, anniversary, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day etc gifts for the next two years he thought that was a pretty good deal 😂.

This machine is marketed for quilters and bag makers. Nearly everything I sew is a garment. Now why did I want a straight stitch only machine like this?

I have a compound walking foot industrial (the Seiko STH8-BLD-3). I don’t use it very often because it is for heavy materials, but I love how it is simple, super reliable and feeds everything through with ease. It does one thing, but it does it really well. It will never die and likely outlast me. I wanted this same experience with a machine that handles lighter fabrics. After going through two expensive sergers that performed beautifully but ultimately failed due to their complexity, I just wanted something simple and reliable.
If I had the space I would have probably gotten the Juki 8700 industrial; however, my sewing room is a small spare bedroom and between my four other machines (Janome 6500, Janome MyLock 204D serger, Janome 300e embroidery machine, Janome Coverpro 2000CPX coverstitch) and my cutting table, ironing board, etc I just don’t have the room. (As it is now I have to keep the Seiko in my basement.)
Speed! My Janome maxes out at 1000 stitches per minute. The Juki does 1500 stitches per minute.
The Juki allows you to use a lot of industrial sewing machine feet, which are often much cheaper and more effective than domestic sewing machine feet.
As I mentioned before, my current Janome is 20+ years old and being computerized, I have no idea how long it is going to last. I know that parts are getting harder to find for it.

My Juki Tl-2010Q just arrived a day ago so I haven’t had much time to sit down and play with it yet, but so far I am very happy with its performance. It feeds the fabric easily and I feel like the presser foot design makes it easier to topstitch, especially around corners, without a guide. The thread cutter also works GREAT!

The things I don’t like so far:

It doesn’t have a 3/8” seam allowance mark on the stitch plate, but a magnetic guide will take care of that.
The automatic threader sucks! My Janome is so much easier to use. Despite some practice I am just threading it by hand more often than not.
There’s a learning curve to the foot pedal. You have to be careful to not hit the back of it or else it activates the automatic thread cutter. I believe there’s a piece you can buy to prevent this from happening, but it’s another $20 added to the purchase price.

Now for the big test…buttonholes!

My mom recently gave me an old Singer branded buttonholer which was probably from the late 60s. My dad worked a bit back then as a machinist at the Griest buttonholer factory in New Haven, Connecticut. He ended up leaving the job less than a year later because it was mind numbingly dull, but while he was working there he brought home a Singer branded Greist buttonhole attachment with all the cams for my mom. She used it for a while but eventually switched to one of the first computerized Viking machines.

I wasn’t sure if it would work with my Juki since it is a high shank machine (and the high shank Greist buttonholers are apparently harder to find) but I can confirm that it does work. Maybe those photos will help those looking on the secondhand market for a vintage buttonholer to fit their Juki,

Here are some action photos, along with a video of me doing the second pass for the larger keyhole buttonhole. I used three layers of a midweight 100% linen and Gutermann Mara 120 thread.

Second pass of larger buttonhole

Now for some finished samples. I think they came out great!

Small vs larger keyhole. I used a wider stitch width for the larger one.

If you’ve never used one of these attachments before I found this tutorial very helpful. I don’t recall if the video tutorial mentions it or not, but make sure you drop your feed dogs before attaching the plate! It was late at night when I first tried using this attachment and I couldn’t figure out when I turned the hand wheel to test the action why the bottom plate wouldn’t stay in place 😂🤦‍♀️.

I hope to give this machine a better workout soon, but my time is more limited right now. My dad suffered a stroke last month. It was actually the same day that my husband ordered my Juki for me. Due to the disastrous experience he had at short term rehab, I decided to take him home with me to recover. It is definitely more work for me, especially since I am already the full time caregiver to my toddler son, but my son loves having him around and I no longer have the stress of wondering what was happening to him when we weren’t there to advocate. (Nights and weekends were particularly bad.) The good news is that he is much happier living with me right now, and we have a fantastic team of people from the local visiting nurse agency coming in helping out with various care and therapies. He was very active before this happened so he’s frustrated with his current condition and limitations, but I see a little bit more improvement every day.

Master the Coverstitch Machine

I am using my Janome Coverpro 2000CPX more than ever. My little guy and I wear a lot of knits and I had been wanting to improve my skills, particularly when it comes to binding necklines. Bound necklines have always been the bane of my existence. I felt like I spent so much time trying to make precise, professional looking bound necklines, often having to rip it out and start all over again because I was unhappy with the quality of my work. I was getting super frustrated because I don’t have the time I used to for sewing, and wanted to spend it producing wearable finished garments, not ripping out stitching!

I decided to start off by buying the book Master the Coverstitch Machine: The Complete Coverstitch Sewing Guide. I saw a video by the author on her website and was impressed with her attention to detail and experience. I prefer sticking to books more than ever now. There’s too many videos on YouTube made by clueless people that clearly have no idea what they are doing. Some of these videos are of people doing these things for the first time! They have such poor technique and camerawork and try to cover it up with clever little quips and editing. They just look really dumb to me, putting it bluntly. I feel like people don’t want to put in the time anymore it takes to really master something before immediately jumping into being an influencer about it. Even the author of the book, who is clearly an experienced seamstress, said it took about it eight hours of practice before she really got the hang of using a binder.

Along with the book I bought some attachments for my machine. I had held off on buying a binder for my coverstitch machine for a long, long time because honestly, the price of the Janome ones are eye watering (like over $250 now). I also held off because I read posts here and there by people claiming that binders are clunky and don’t work well, especially the off brand ones. I kept reading though in my Ottobre pattern instructions about using binders though, so I decided to just go for it. I bought a 1/2” finished width double fold binder, along with a clear binder presser foot. I chose this size because the Ottobre children patterns often recommend a neckline binding finished width of 15mm, which is around 1/2”.

The video I saw on the author’s website suggested using cotton rib knit when you’re just starting out, as it is easy to work with. I have a ton of cotton rib knit in my stash, so that’s what I used. I cut the strips 1 5/8” for this particular binder (the width you need to cut is listed on the binder) using a clear ruler and rotary cutter. I then set up the binder on my machine. I ended up using the video on the Janome product page to help because the binder that I bought had absolutely no instructions. I then loaded the binder up with the rib knit, using an awl and tweezers just as the author suggested to feed it through. It took some fiddling to get it actually folded correctly under the presser foot, but once I got it going I was able to start perfecting the settings of the binder and my machine. The author recommends using a long stitch length (4mm) and playing with the differential length and presser foot pressure. I also had to loosen the screws and slide the binder around a bit in order to get the angle it fed the fabric under the presser foot correct. Once I was satisfied I started feeding some fabric into the binder, which involved more tweaking and testing. But it was completely worth it. I couldn’t believe what a perfect finish I got without having to estimate how long the strip would need to be, stand by the ironing table folding, etc. I tried a few different fabrics and while I needed to adjust some settings, I found that generally it gave a perfectly finished neckline without puckering or being too stretched out, and it had a ton of stretch – a lot more stretch than when I did it by hand with a serger/regular machine then topstitching with the coverstitch. I have no idea how the binder gets it so perfect despite the variety of fabrics I used, but it does it really, really well and saves me SO much time.

Here’s a tshirt I made my son recently, with one of those envelope style necklines, using a cotton rib knit for both the binding and the shirt. Perfectly placed stitching with plenty of recovery and no stretching or puckering. Making little boy shirts is SO much more fun now!

Now here is a light to medium cotton/lycra jersey tshirt I made for myself. For this one I used a smaller 3/8” finished width binder. I also chose to use a chain stitch instead of a two needle narrow coverstitch. Partially because I wanted a more subtle finish, but also because I wanted to experiment. The neckline lays perfectly flat when worn. Again, no having to measure and estimate what amount of length I would need. You just cut a strip of binding as long as you can, and the attachment/machine does the rest of the work for you.

The author warns in her video that lightweight, stretchy knits like rayon/lycra jerseys are difficult to work with using a binder, and not really suitable. I don’t agree, it is definitely trickier but as you can see below I got pretty good results using the 3/8” finished binder on a scrap of lightweight, stretchy rayon/lycra jersey. It IS much harder to get it initially fed through the binder though, and you have less tolerance with the settings. Practice with a few scraps is essential!

At least for my Janome Coverpro 2000CPX these off brand binders work just fine and are all less than $30 each. They all include the attachment plate. The 1/2” finished width Janome branded binder is currently around $267 and doesn’t even include the attachment plate (another $40!) I’m sure the Janome branded one has a better build quality but I’m just pointing out that you can make yourself an entire set with the most commonly used widths for a lot less than one Janome branded binder.

I did splurge for the Janome Coverpro tape stand. The book said you can use a paper towel roll holder, but I wanted the flexibility of the height adjustment and something that wouldn’t be so bulky. Much like the binders, it is stupidly expensive for what it is. However I have found that using a stand is essential for helping feed the binding into the binder, especially when you’re working with a flimsy rayon/lycra jersey that wants to fold over itself before you even get it fed into the binder. I did take the tip from the book to roll the cut binding into an empty toilet paper roll.

Something else I wanted to experiment with was reverse coverstitching. I think the industrial machines that do this call it flatlocking. A lot of Ottobre knit patterns call for this stitch. You sew the seam on a regular machine using a straight stitch and then open it up, press ur, and then and topstitch from the back using the coverstitch machine. The newer model Janome Coverpro 3000CPX has five threads and can do it from the top, not the bottom, but I can’t afford to upgrade my machine at this time. The book explains very well how to make do with a four thread coverstitch machine like I have though.

I found reverse coverstitching over a seam very easy with the help of the Janome clear guide foot. You can buy the branded Janome one for $62, but Amazon has a generic one for $27.

Coverstitching something like a pocket however was far more difficult, and I ended up having to redo my work so many times. Since you’re working from the back you’re sewing completely blind. I used the marking paper with a tracing wheel but even so I had a lot of mistakes that needed to be redone. For this reason alone I wish I could upgrade to the 3000CPX.

Below is a sample of the Ottobre zip sweatshirt hoodie I made lately. It is a cotton/polyester sweatshirt fleece so a fairly heavy fabric with a heavier rib knit for the trim. The hem band was sewn using the coverstitch over the attachment seam, and the pockets and their trim were sewn directly on top of the fabric. Even though I had to keep redoing it I love how flat the pockets came out!

I did find I had an issue with skipped stitches where the rib knit meets the side seam, as the fabric is heavy and the seams very bulky (there’s an attachment seam where the front hem ribbing is sewn to the back hem ribbing, as well as the fleece side seam bulk). Despite my best efforts I couldn’t get it right, so I ended up just fudging it with some hand stitching.

Overall I highly recommend the Master the Coverstitch Machine book. It has great instructions, very clear and high quality photos, and the projects section shows in depth how to apply the techniques to your own projects. Pretty much anything you might want to do with a coverstitch is covered. As I mentioned before I also found the generic binders and feet from Amazon worked perfectly fine on my machine, so I highly recommend trying those out if you are hesitant to go all out and buy the official name brand binder.

Maxi-Lock Serger Real Thread Color Chart

If you’re looking for a real thread color chart and not one of the wildly inaccurate online ones for Maxi-Lock serger thread, someone on Facebook is selling them for $35. We are in the same state but since she’s not super close to me I asked if she would be willing to ship it to me. She charged very reasonable shipping and it arrived quickly. The swatch cards are sturdy and there’s a nice big ring to keep it all together. Her communication was excellent as well.

Here’s the listing if you’re interested: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3071557416334323&id=886555474834539

Sewing Corner, Angle, and Pointed Seams Tutorial

After sewing the Style Arc Victoria I thought I’d share the method I used to sew those tricky corner seams you see at the back and above the bust:

To follow my method you’re going to need small, very sharp scissors, pins, a pencil, ruler, and iron-on stabilizer. The stabilizer holds the shape of your fabric (silk georgette in this case) and will help you determine when to pivot. I’ve tried making corners without it before and found it much, much harder, especially on a lightweight fabric like this. Using stabilizer will make your life easier.

What you’re going to do first is make “stay” pieces from the stabilizer. Take the stabilizer and trace your pattern at the edges where the corners are. Then iron the stabilizer to the fabric. Take a pencil and mark your seam allowance on the stabilizer. In this case it is 3/8″. Create a stay for any piece where there’s a pivot point. Do it for both pieces of fabric that are going to be sewn together, not just the top one.

Next you’re going to pin the pieces together at the seamline and at the corner. Make sure they match up at the pivot point. Since you marked the seamline it is easy to know just where to place that pin.

Note: the basting stitches you see are just holding doubled-up layers of silk georgette together. They have nothing to do with this particular technique.

Now stitch your seam, using your paper as a guide. I find it best to sew with the corner (as opposed to the “pointed” piece”) on top. Keep your needle in the down position whenever you stop.

Decrease the stitch length when you are within 1/2″ of the corner. Stop EXACTLY at the corner. Very important: before lifting the presser foot, make sure your needle is in the down position!

Note: this photo was taken from another corner. The one I took of the corner I was working on was out of focus.

Now lift your presser foot, take your scissors and cut into that corner at a 45º angle. It is exactly like a welt pocket where you don’t want to cut into the stitching, but instead get as close as possible (barely 1/16″). Just like with a welt pocket, the closer you cut the sharper your corner will be. Just make sure not to cut into the stitching!

Now pivot and turn the fabric so the new seamline is in front of you. Take all of the fabric that’s bunched up and push it to the side and back, match up the seams and start sewing. It may take a minute to pivot and orient your fabric—just take your time! You’ll see a tiny fold right before the needle. Sew right over it. The more you cut into that corner the smaller the fold and the sharper your corner will be. That’s why it is important to cut as closely as possible. Once you are 1/2″ past the corner you can resume your normal stitch length.

When you are done with your seam you can tear away the stabilizer. With my delicate fabric I had the best results when I held the seam allowance between my fingers very close to the stitching, and gently tugged at the stabilizer. The needle creates a proforated edge along the stabilizer which makes it a little easier to tear away. After you tear away the stabilizer from the main body the stabilizer in the seam allowance usually just falls away.

Now all that’s left to do is press your corner. I also topstitched mine.