hey everyone Sarah with sewing parts online.com and today we are going to learn how to master a flannel so if you've tried sewing flannel before and you're having some problems it's okay it's deceptively tricky it the fabric shifts in kind of ways that you wouldn't expect to woven to so it can be a little frustrating but there are some tips to really tackle it and do a better job sewing the first thing you want to know is that when you're going to the store to buy your flannel buy more because usually comes in a plaid so you're going to have to get a little creative with putting your patterns together so you need more space for that and because the edges fray so much you need extra seam allowance to make sure you know nothing pokes out of your out of your seams on your sewing also there's two different kinds of flannel that you can buy you can buy the really nice flannel that looks the same on both sides or you can buy printed Faneuil prison flannel is also real is nice especially for like kids clothes and stuff but it doesn't have the pattern on the back so you're going to have issues with grain with this kind of fabric so if you're making some structured clothes you need to have the flannel that's the same on both sides so just remember that because this kind of flannel is going to go off grade another trick for flannel is to pre wash by pre and wash I mean pre wash and dry and do it twice if you want to because the flannel is going to seriously shrink so make sure you go home wash it real quick and then take it to your iron when you're ironing you don't want to do any of the round circular or pushing motions you need a lift press lift press to prevent the flannel from warping out of shape that's kind of the trick the flannel does is it warps so easily so I like to use best press this is going to be your best friend flip your fabric to the wrong sides up spray some best press and press your iron press your iron press your iron like I said before cutting has its own challenges when you're buying flannel that has a nice plaid design on both sides and it's the same you're pretty good just cutting along the lines in fact when you buy your fabric make sure when they're cutting it they cut along the design lines and you can usually get a good get your fabric really well on grain by following that now if you have printed flannel just know that this might not be printed and likely is it going to be printed right on grain so you're going to have to put this on grain and it might warp the lines a little bit it's not like I said this isn't really good for items that require precision these are great for like pajama pans pillowcases stuff like that otherwise get the flannel that has it on both sides when you're cutting this and you get it on grain just know that you're going to need more fabric to match the lines up and that's really really important to know that your lines are going to be matched up also know that it's going to create a little bit of a mess we've got lots of fraying here you know no matter what quality fabric you get with flannel it's going to fray a lot and make a little bit of a mess but that's okay okay so you've done everything right you've pre-washed your fabric you've starched it you've pressed it you've cut it perfectly and it's nice and on grain now what do you do when you get to the machine well first make sure you either have a 116 Universal needle or a 90 14 Universal for thin lightweight flannel generally you'll get longer use out of the 100 16 because flannel tends to really wear down your needle you can use a general-purpose foot or even like a straight stitch foot and a straight stitch plate but if your feed dogs aren't doing so well or you're finding that your fabric is shifting definitely use a walking foot and definitely pin a lot especially when you're going to be doing the line work and you need your pattern lines to match up you need a pin and hand based speaking of hand basting when you go around curves any kind of curve where the where the fabric is cut along the bias you want to stay stitch because flannels sometimes thinks it's a knit and it wants to stretch and move on you so by stay stitching curves arms and stuff like that armholes you're really going to get a better end product so what about thread your best bet for flannel is to use a polyester even though even if you have like a cotton flannel use the polyester it's going to withstand the weight of the flannel better and it's going to be able to give a little bit of give with your flannel fabric when you're at the machine increase your stitch length to three millimeters I have a lot of luck with that reduce your tension a smidge and if you have a presser gauge pressure gauge reduce it a little bit so you give your unique your flannel room to move too much pressure is going to stretch it and pause pulling of the fabric and look real wavy and weird so how are you going to finish your seams well it's going to be really really free so if you have a serger that is a great great great great way to finish your seams however not everybody has a serger so you can use an overcast stitch that's a great way to to keep the fray under control and then apply some fray check on top you can also get creative with your seams and do like a French seam you can do a flat felled seam those are great ways to hide the fray without having to use like a zig zag or an overcast and if you don't have a serger it's a great great option and it looks nice and tailored so I hope that this was helpful if you have any comments or questions be sure to leave them in the comments section below if you want to come and hang out with our sewing community be sure to visit us on sewing parts online.com on facebook at facebook.com/sewingpartsonline twitter @sewingparts Google+ Pinterest Instagram we are everywhere and be sure to subscribe by clicking that button below for more sewing videos