Originally Posted by
Dalronix
I've only been quilting since July but I remember reading early on the trick of never looking at the needle only at the fabric, the guide or whatever. Thankfully it was a habit I picked up early. I find that if my eye does wander to the needle, I become sort of hypnotised and mistakes happen then.
I have been sewing all my life--well, since age 4 or so.
I made my own clothes and my kids' clothes, pieced a few quilts, made pillows and...you get the picture. I took a few years off from sewing, then decided to take up quilting again. When I read that tip about not watching the needle, I literally laughed and said out loud, "Who in the world would watch their needle?" The next time I sat down to sew it suddenly occurred to me that I was doing just that! Instead of focusing on my guide, I was trying to watch both my guide AND MY NEEDLE! I have two eyes, but they cannot focus on two things at once--and since realizing what I was trying to do, I have been able, with practice, to break (mostly) this habit. It sounds like a silly tip, but it isn't--Don't watch your needle; it only goes up and down. Focus on your guide.