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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Slippery templates and rulers?

I thought the quilters reading my blog might want to see more helpful hints for quilting. I wanted to come up with a catchy phrase like other blogs have. I've seen some like Tool Time Tuesday or Design Wall Monday. Lots of good ones out there. I just couldn't come up with one for me.

Since I hadn't been quilting (or anything else) for several days it was difficult to come up with a new hint for you. Well, the floors are done except for the bathroom / laundry room. Most of my things for the studio are moved back in. At least enough so I can function. I had also gotten side tracked with several other frugal living tips.

Let me ask you.... Have you ever gotten aggravated when you are cutting fabric with your rotary cutter and your ruler slips a bit? Have you used a plastic template for machine quilting and it just doesn't want to stay perfectly lined up? There is a plastic film you can purchase.... hmm, I can't remember what it's called... but it's clear and you cut it to fit the template or ruler. It keeps them from slipping.

Hmm.... I've bought that plastic film before and it didn't want to stay put either. Way too much money for something that only works part of the time. So here's a cheaper alternative. Rubber cement. This one is acid free, photo safe, and costs about $1 a bottle. One bottle goes a long, long way.




Simply coat the back of your template or ruler and allow to dry overnight. It dries clear enough you can see the lines and numbers. It won't harm the plastic and it can be easily removed by rubbing with your finger. It's a temporary fix for slipping. It will eventually rub off with use. When using this on your template or ruler just be sure to pick them up to move instead of sliding. Sliding will roll the rubber cement right off. Oops!
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If you are putting this on very large rulers or templates it's best to put the cement in spots rather than all over. Put in just enough places to keep the ruler from slipping. Rubber cement doesn't dry completely. There's a stickiness to it even when dry. This helps with the slipping too.

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