Originally Posted by kmohan
I must be crazy. What is a leader?
A leader is just a small piece of fabric, folded over, that is used when you first start sewing and after you are done sewing a unit or piece together. Instead of pulling your thread waaaay out and clipping it, which ends up wasting a lot of thread, you just run a little leader through and this helps keep both the thread use down (thread's expensive & saving an inch here and there really adds up!). It also helps keep the tension in the machine so that when you start sewing a new piece you don't get a bird's nest on the back when you first start sewing. You leave the leader in when you are done sewing, needle down, and when you begin sewing again, everything is perfectly ready. Works great!
Clear as mud? :lol: If it doesn't make any sense, I'll just head downstairs and take a picture, or I will once I get my grandson's quilt sandwiched. Right now I've got everything shoved over to the walls and I've got the backing laid out on the floor. Once I finish sandwiching it I will be able to reach my machine again.