With the upcoming costume season, AKA Halloween, some of you might be interested in a simple technique to sew sequins onto some of your projects.

Sewing machine I used: Brother Quattro
Stitch number: 2-07
Stitch width: 7.0 mm
Stitch length: 2.5 m

The photo above shows the back side of the fabric. The bulge is caused by the sequins on the right-side of the fabric. This is the bobbin thread, but the top thread looks the same (except for color). If your machine does not have this type of stitch, use a wide zig-zag stitch.

Presser foot:

The foot on the left is a standard presser foot, upside down. I prefer to use the ‘Pearl and Piping’ foot on the right. However, any foot  that has a tunnel on the bottom (like the foot on the right above) will allow the sequins to go under the foot smoothly. Check your owner’s manual as most machines have a foot that is recommended for use with a satin stitch and has some form of a tunnel on the bottom side.

Thread:

Thread your machine with invisible thread on top. Use thread that matches your fabric on the bobbin. Invisible thread is available in clear and smoke colors. When working with dark colored sequins use the smoke, and for light colors use the clear.

Instructions:

Place a string of sequins so they are laying in the direction you are sewing as shown by the top string in the photo. Think of a cats’ tail (or dog if you prefer), you want to pet it in the direction that the fur grows. As the sequins and fabric move from the front to the back of the presser foot, the sequins will compress easily, rather than catch on the bottom of the foot.
If your sequin design has curves, particularly sharp curves, reduce your stitch speed so that you can turn the fabric to keep the sequin line centered at the needle.  If you turn too sharply the sequins will catch on the edge of the channel at the back of the presser foot.

Stitch a sample using the type of fabric, the sequins, and typical curves, if any, you will be using in your project. Make any necessary adjustments to the stitch width and stitch length to get the look you want.  The photo above has yellow thread to show a typical top stitch – the stitch width and length will hold the sequins down, but the thread color is probably not the effect you want to achieve.

The Anita Goodesign Haunted House Tile Scene wall-hanging at the top of this article was made by Dianna Frohn. The black ’tile grout lines’ are lines of black sequins. They cover the seam lines between the individual fabric panels. Thanks, Dianna, for the great sample that inspired this blog’s topic.