Sewing pattern weights Alpha

Are you just like me who uses everything with weight in your vicinity when it's time to draw out sewing patterns to make sure the paper is in place? Here, everything from scissors, metal rulers or why not a completely ordinary drinking glass can be used if it happens to be nearby. There are always too few things, or too big things that often get in the way when I'm drawing. A lot of time is therefore spent moving things around that shouldn't be used as pattern weights.

I really can't believe how many years I've been able to work this way, especially when you can sew your own pattern weights so quickly. The funny thing is that pattern weights are not particularly complicated to make and they are very quick to sew. One weight takes about 15-20 minutes to sew with cutting time, so in less than an hour you can have 4-5 weights ready to use. Furthermore, it is perfect to use small pieces of fabric that you have left over from other projects for this very purpose and that makes it a really good recycling project. I found a number of pieces of linen fabric lying around in my storage box and it felt like they were really just waiting to become pattern weights.

What you need specifically for this project is a piece of fabric measuring approximately 15x15 cm per pattern weight and rice to fill the weight with.

Download the pattern for free here and print it before continuing with the next steps. It is advantageous to use the printed paper pattern as it is a bit thicker and more robust than pattern paper, which is required later in this tutorial. Place your cut-out pattern on your quilt piece on the wrong side and pin it in place. Don't forget to add your desired seam allowance before cutting out your triangle.

In this case I chose to use the scissor magnets and thus be able to cut directly without marking out the seam allowance first. The scissor magnets are available for a seam allowance of 1cm and 8mm which you can find on the respective links. Now it's time to fold and iron to mark out all the triangles. Fold each triangle and iron so that the marker is clearly visible on the fabric. Then it's time to fold the next one and do the same. Once you've marked all the edges, it's now time to pin the entire seam allowance together. Still leave the paper pattern on the fabric. Now line up triangles and start pinning the edges. Do this with all edges. When all sides are pinned, it is time to remove the paper pattern.

This is what it should look like now (from above) when all the edges are pinned. Now it's time to sew. Depending on your choice of fabric, you need to choose a suitable stitch. In this case, I have chosen a woven linen fabric and a straight stitch works perfectly. If you have chosen jersey or some other stretchy fabric, you may need to choose a stitch that is adapted for it, e.g. a zigzag or an overlock stitch.

Sew two of the sides from the bottom up. When you are ready to sew the last side, it is easiest to sew a piece from the tip of the triangle and a few cm down. Then leave a small gap of 2.5 cm and sew the last part of the edge again. This is so that you can turn it inside out and fill the fold. Now I have sewn everything except a small pocket on one side (in the middle). Since I have a seam allowance here of about 1cm and it easily becomes bulky when you turn the fabric inside out, I need to trim my seam allowance down a bit. In this case, I leave about 0.5 cm all around except where I will turn the fold, where I have the entire seam allowance. This is what it should look like when you have cut all the way around except for the opening you left. Now it's time to turn inside out. Be sure to poke all corners properly when turning the pattern piece inside out. You may need a small tool to poke with, but be careful not to poke holes in the fabric. Now it is ready to be filled with rice. To make it as easy as possible, it can be a good idea to use some kind of funnel, otherwise there is a risk of rice getting everywhere. If you don't have a funnel, you can roll a makeshift funnel out of a piece of paper. Fill as much as you can using the funnel. However, at the end it is difficult to get more in without removing the funnel and then it is easiest to fill carefully with a teaspoon. Once you have tucked the fold in as much as possible, it is time to close the opening with a small pin. However, make sure that the seam allowance is folded down.

Permanently close the opening by hand sewing. I use what is called an “English stitch”. You sew it by sewing the needle through the fabric at a slight angle. Then you go in with the needle behind the thread on the opposite side (in the middle between the previous stitch and the one you just made) and sew diagonally through just in front of the previous stitch. If you have trouble understanding the technique, take a look at this here the video (2:07 into the video the seam is shown) . You can of course use any type of hand stitch you want, but this stitch is very strong and super easy to do.

Once you have sewn the opening closed, it is time to fasten and cut the threads. Now you have finished your first pattern weight and it is ready to use.

I have sewn five so far, but you can of course sew as many as you want and need.