For me, preparing fabric to stitch on is just as crucial as stitching the patterns themselves. The work I do getting the material ready impacts how fast and easy the stitching goes. The first thing I do is measure and cut my fabric, and I recommend adding two inches to the sides at a minimum but no more than three inches. That means if your pattern is 8 inches across, you cut 12 inches of fabric. It allows you room to work but also, if you mount and frame your work, it gives you plenty of allowances to work. Remember that you can always cut off excess, but you cannot put more back.
The next step that I do is securing the edges. First, I do a zig-zag stitch around the edges of the fabric. This stitch secures a large section of thread without putting tension on them, and it also prevents those edges of the material from fraying as quickly. Your borders will still fray some with just this stitch.
The next thing that I do is secure the edges from fraying around the zig-zag stitch. Various products exist for this purpose, and my favorite is Fray Check. It works well, but the downside of this product is that it does smell strong. The other alternative is that lovely white glue we all used in school, and I use this, and it is cheaper and more readily available. The thing to remember with any product out there is that it alters your fabric, so use caution. If you get it on your stitch area, it may ruin the entire piece of fabric. Also, as time passes, these products can yellow or change the material's color. I try to only use these products in areas I know will be cut off later and use as little as possible. If you look at the photo, I only use a small bead of glue that I paint on with a paintbrush. The smallest amount I use is only enough to secure the edges. Once this is dried, I continue with prepping the fabric.
The next thing I do is locate the middle of the fabric mark the spot with a water-soluble pen. I base the grid off of this mark. It helps to make sure that you start in a place that will leave enough room for the rest of the pattern, and there will be equal amounts of fabric on the edges to aid with mounting. Since the material in the photos is 14ct Aida. That means each inch has 14 squares in it. I could 14 squares from the center line and mark my grid out.
Once fully drawn out, I take regular sewing thread and stitch every other square. I do this because if my work gets wet or the humidity is high, the water-soluble pen can fade. I use a neutral color for several reasons. Using black or red thread may bleed into the fabric if it gets wet and ruins a piece. I also choose a neutral color since these threads may get caught in your stitching, and you don't want a bright color you can't remove sticking out. When I finish a pattern, these threads get removed.
It takes a lot of work to prepare material for a pattern, and the larger the piece, the more work it takes to prep. However, I find that putting in all of this work at the beginning saves me time and frustration in the long run. It is much like life. If you put in the work initially, it helps frame the rest of your time. It becomes second nature and no longer feels like work when you know how much it helps. I find this most helpful when dealing with my mental health. If something helps keep my mental health well, I try to do it even when difficult. I do it because it benefits me and helps me maintain my well-being. So often, we neglect ourselves, and it is easy to do. When life is difficult, small and simple things can be important and hard to do. Having a framework I maintain helps catch me in those moments.
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