Skipped Stitches When Sewing Through Many Layers

[Claire C.]

Recently, I decided to make oven mitts for my co-workers for Christmas. The pattern was simple, and I thought, "No problem!" The pattern calls for two layers of batting - one of cotton batting, one of insulated batting. I used Insul-Bright. All was well until I tried to sew the back and front of the first mitt together. My machine was skipping more stitches than it actually sewed! I was using a Top Stitch 90/14 needle and King Tut thread. I tried a jeans needle, a quilting needle, rethreading, all to no avail. Any ideas? Thanks in advance. Christmas is closing in! :shock:

[Margo C.]

Claire, with that many layers you may do better with a larger needle. Do you have anything in a size 100/16? Hopefully a topstitch?
http://www.superiorthreads.com/shop/...perior-100-16/

[Claire C.]

Margo, I will try that. I can't remember what size the jeans needle was, but it looked pretty danged big. I'm thinking that the needle is getting hung up somehow in the two layers of insulated batting, since it has that "plasticky" coating.

[Margo C.]

Maybe a larger needle poking a bigger hole will let the thread catch on the bobbin hook. Let us know if you figure it out!

[Norma H.]

Strange that this question came up today. Yesterday I experienced the same when I tried quilting with my BSR foot. It happened when I came to a place a little thicker (where there was a seam) and I was nearly going crazy. Finally I gave up and changed to my darning foot no 9 and then the problem was solved. This foot holds down the fabric and that is the problem with the BSR, because that one allowed the fabric to go up with the needle and stitches were lost. But I don't think this is your problem.
My guess is that your foot is balancing on the edge and then can't work properly. Try to lay something similar thickness beside your item and see if that helps. Bernina has a foot for sewing thick to thin, no 38. I have used that in cases like yours, but it doesn't help, if your machine is not a Bernina. They, too, provide some small teflon items to put under the foot in cases like yours. They came with the machine. I hope this gives you an idea to solve the problem.

[Margo C.]

Good point, Zarah! I think that accessory is called a "Jeans jumper" or a "hump jumper". It was designed to help you sew over the thick seams in jeans, like if you were putting a hem in the leg, to get over the bulk. It works by keeping the presser foot level with the throat plate, and I've actually used a couple of Popsicle sticks to achieve the same purpose when I couldn't locate my jean's jumper! You just need to use something to keep the front and the back of the foot at the same height while you are stitching over bulky areas.

I hope that Claire lets us know what she finds that works on this project.

[Claire C.]

I actually haven't been able to try out any of the solutions since I've been working so much this week, but I will be sure to let you know what happens!

[Claire C.]

I've tried all the suggestions here and in the quilting advice forum, and none of them has worked. However, taking another look at the pattern, I think the idea was that the Insulbright was supposed to be cut a bit smaller than the fabric or the cotton batting, so that when the back and front of the mitt were sewn together, the stitches would be going through four layers of fabric and two of cotton batting, but not through the Insulbright. Kind of a "duh" moment, but we all have them, right? ops: