Aug 10, 2011

Sewing on Rusted Fabric

I bought this great piece of rusted fabric and now I am finding out how hard it is to sew through on my machine.  I researched online ( I know, should have done that first)  and am getting the impression I should forget it especially if 
I plan on adding even more fabric on top of it.  It appears to me this is not suitable for machine sewing???

I have changed all my setting numerou times, used microtex and sharps and jeans needles and still get breakage using Superior King Tut thread.

What scared me more is one person said the chemicals in the rusting may damage your machine if you machine sew it????

Should I scrap this piece and use something more quiltable?
Does someone know something that could help me here?
Thanks.

6 comments:

Beverly said...

I found out the same thing. I rusted some raw silk, and did manage to make a jacket out of it. I used the largest topstitch needle, and had stabilizer on both the top and bottom of the fabric- some that I could rip off. I've worn the jacket once, and noticed that the fabric is already ripping next to a seam. I won't sew rusted fabric again, which means I will probably use what I have in collage with gel medium. But I think I am done rusting fabric, what good is it if I can't sew with it??

WoolenSails said...

Love that material, but I can imagine trying to sew with it. I have no idea what I can sew through on my machine, still need lessons, but that will have to wait till the fall.

Debbie

Libby Fife said...

If it were me, I would abandon ship. There are so many batiks and hand dyes that represent beautifully rusted fabrics. I would just try and make my life a lot easier by looking for those instead. Just my two cents:)

Kay said...

I'm with Libby, I think. Rusting pretty much ruins the fabric for any real fabric use. Even if you use glue or gel medium it will deteriorate quickly. That's just the way the chemical reaction works.

Barbara Strobel Lardon said...

Well if nothing else, I have learned a lot about rusted fabric.

I have abandoned ship with this one and moved on to another project this morning. I will shop for the right fabric for this one another day.

Thank you all for the help. I was hoping for some miracle solution but I have found out there is none.

Stephanie Newman said...

I do know some people who sew on rusted fabric but find it is difficult, will only be a temporary piece with accelerated deterioration, and they absolutely use an old mechanical machine that they don't care about because of those rust particles. We all know that thread, fabric and batting lint ends up in a machine so you'd want to protect your lovely 440 investment- if you ever do want to sew I'd try a heavier poly thread that is stronger, an old machine you pick up specially for the task and don't expect to last long (v. cheap!)
Its an interesting piece of fabric though- what about printing or stamping something over it and mounting on a frame to hang on the wall to enjoy that way>?

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