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Free-Motion for Beginners – Quilting Session
FREE-MOTION FOR BEGINNERS Drop those feed dogs and join us for a free-motion journey! This on-demand Session activates March 12, 2024. Reserve your spot today! With this extensive Session, you’ll tackle your free-motion fear and finish your own quilts and quilty projects with decorative thread painting, stippling, meandering and more. You’ll learn how to use your home sewing machine and set it up for successful stitching in order to accommodate larger pieces and quilt thicknesses. Learn the differences between thread weights and types so you can choose the right one for your project. Plus, get expert instruction on how to begin and end a stitching line, maintain consistent stitch length and much, much more. Plus, Ellen March will take you through…
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Lounge & Learn Guild-Only Events Just for YOU
Lounge & Learn with Us in 2022! NEW Interactive Workshops Exclusively for Guilds How fun would it be to attend a guild event with thousands of other guild members? Well, that possibility just got real! Guilds will join together to learn and laugh at Sulky’s Spectacular Virtual Lounge & Learn Guild Events. There will be workshops with instructions for exclusive fun projects with live chats during the events and an online community for members to ask questions. Each guild registers for the event and receives an exclusive code for its membership. All registrants are eligible for door prizes from Sulky and our exciting sponsors, virtual goodies and access to the…
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Clean Your Sewing Machine – the Dos and Don’ts
How to Clean Your Sewing Machine Today is National Sewing Machine Day! Let’s celebrate our precious babies and learn how to clean them in order to keep them in tip-top shape. Cleanings should be done frequently if you’re a frequent sewer, in addition to a yearly “spa day” with your machine dealer. Here’s how to clean your sewing machine and favorite notions to ensure a smooth sewing experience every time. Eric Drexler, Sulky educator and sewing machine mechanic, weighs in. Q: How often should I clean my sewing machine? A: How often to clean your sewing machine depends on how much you use your machine daily, weekly or monthly. Generally…
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Free-Motion Quilting FAQs with Eric Drexler
Free-Motion Quilting FAQs Eric Drexler takes the fear out of free-motion quilting! Free-motion quilting may seem intimidating, but Sulky educator Eric Drexler makes it easy to attempt and even easier to enjoy with his “Fearless Free-Motion” Sulky courses. We asked Eric to answer the FAQs of FMQ (free-motion quilting) to inspire you to try it for yourself. Read on and kick off National Quilting Month with us. TAKE ME TO ERIC’S COURSES> THREAD FOR FREE-MOTION QUILTING Q: Do I have to use the same thread in the top and bobbin for FMQ? A: Not at all. You are “allowed” to use different types of thread in the needle and bobbin,…
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Sewing Machine Maintenance – a Sewing Spa Day
Sewing Machine Maintenance A Sewing Spa Day Sewing machine maintenance is an essential part of sewing. Eric Drexler, National Sulky Educator and sewing machine technician, shares his recommendations for sewing machine maintenance and why we should get our machines in tip-top shape for all of our 2021 makes. from Eric: I have been repairing sewing machines for over 35 years and I’ve seen a lot of crazy things. A sewing machine is in fact, a machine. Machines need to be serviced. More often is better. Not only do they need to be cleaned and oiled on the inside, but also inspected for damage and to make mechanical adjustments. The following…
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Easter Egg Quilt Block + Free Stitching Templates
An Easter Egg Quilt Block is a great addition to a pillow set, table runner or quilt (of course!). You could also bind the quilt block and use it as a potholder or decorative place mat for Easter. Combine free-motion stitching with paints and learn from Eric Drexler how to create your own Easter Egg Quilt Block work of art. This Easter Egg Quilt Block combines free-motion stitching with custom paints for a truly unique block. If you’re new to free-motion stitching or need a refresher, Eric takes takes you through the process in his video course, Fearless Free Motion. If you want to learn more and have virtual hands-on…
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It’s Back! Fearless Free-Motion Stitching II
Free-Motion Stitching with Eric Drexler In just six 15-45 minute segments, you can learn from Eric Drexler, the Master of Free-Motion, how to easily move beyond the basics of Free-Motion Stitching so you can enjoy more intricate Thread Painting, Quilting, Print Embellishment, Turned or Raw Edge Appliqué, and much, much more! Eric introduced you to the basics in “Fearless Free-Motion Stitching I – For Beginners”: It was an incredible success and we thank you. He covers some of the basics again in this course (so you do not necessarily have to take the first course before this one); and we include a free, 26-page hand-out from the basic course to…
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Sulky’s 30th Anniversary: Looking Back
Sulky’s 30th Anniversary Looking Back: Hurricane Andrew We spoke with Fred and Joyce Drexler once again to discuss another one of their most memorable moments with Sulky. Here’s what Fred had to say… One of my fondest memories has to do with Sulky’s involvement in the 10-month “Operation Mend” hurricane relief project that I spearheaded in 1992 – 1993. I carried it out with the help of 60 Port Charlotte, FL Rotarians and their families, along with the Miami chapter of the American Sewing Guild and a local church in Homestead, FL. Many of you may recall that in August 1992, Hurricane Andrew devastated the Homestead area below Miami with…
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Congratulations Eric Drexler! Your Quilt Will Be in the Arizona AQS Show
It’s the kind of letter every quilter dreams of receiving. The one that starts with, “Congratulations! The jury has accepted your quilt in the 2016 QuiltWeek® Contest in Phoenix, Arizona February 11-14, 2016 at the Phoenix Convention Center.” That is the news that Sulky National Educator and Free-Motion Guru Eric Drexler received recently and he was over-the-moon excited. “This was such great news, especially since this particular quilt has been such a joy to complete. I am thrilled that I can share it with other quilters this year at the show,” he said. Eric has been chosen to display the quilt, I BELIEVE IN DRAGONS, along with 161 others in this AQS…
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Top 10 Notions from Eric Drexler, Sulky Educator
Eric Drexler’s Top 10 Notions If I was on a deserted island with power and my sewing machine, these are the 10 notions I would need, and why: Collins Sewer’s Aid: It is a silicone lubricant that helps with some speciality threads, and fabrics. What I like the most is it keeps the adhesive off my needle when using any sticky-back product (including fusible webs). Simply put a drop on your finger and rub on the needle. Reapply as you start to see a build up again. Sew Steady Table: Since I first laid eyes on this extension table, I knew I was in love. The square inches of extra work area…
