Why is it when I have everything lined up, a foot that has markings on it that I follow rather than the needle I still can't sew in a straight line? What is wrong with me? It's extremely annoying.

Have you tried uncrossing your eyes???? (just kidding...)

I have the same trouble, so don't feel like you are alone. It does seem to help when I slow down though.

JOin the party. Maybe better glasses? If you find the mark you want to sew on, I will put some blue painters tape down so it is straight, then another on top of it and maybe a third. It makes it thicker so you can pratically line the fabric up with the tape and feel the border. Might help you too.

put some painters tape down the front of the foot onto the arm of the machine and table (if necessry) to help you guide. This helps keep it straight going under the foot.

staring at the needle or even at a foot close to the needle tends to result in crooked lines.....try marking the base of the machine a couple of inches ahead of your needle and use that as your guide for the edge of your fabric and see if it helps...If us use that as your primary check, you can spot check periodically to see that the edge of the fabric hear the needle is where you want it to be.

Think of driving down the road and focusing on a spot just ahead of your hood...you end up (usually) over compensating and the car moves back and forth a lot, even tho it may be small moves. If you focus on the road several yards ahead of the car, your turns are less jerky, the ride is smoother, and the path of the car is a straighter line.

I love this advice! From now on, I'll be driving my Machine down painter's tape alley. Thank you for the vivid imagery.

one way that helped me start sewing straighter was to take a moment and draw the seam lines on my fabric with a pencil, it only takes a moment and makes a huge difference. i don't have to anymore, somehow just doing it for a couple projects helped me get the hang of keeping everything straight. i still always draw the lines for hand piecing but sew nice and straight with the machine now.

I have found that if I line myself up with the center of the needle and not the center of the machine I sew a much straighter line.

I'd like to expand on this and suggest placing a FULL small Post-it note (glued edge of notes) smack up against the right side of your presser foot with the majority of it extending in front of the foot. Then the front edge of the Post-it note becomes your eyeball site, and the raised edge of the note becomes your guide to keep the fabric aligned.

Two issues, the sticky back on the Post-it Note does NOT adhere to most throat plates more than a minute -- I use a fat, thick rubber band around the free-arm portion of MY Bernina 1031 to hold it in place. Or a long piece of scotch tape. Both are easily repositioned for changing bobbins or sewing other seams.

Also, if your feed dogs extend outside the width of your presser foot, this technique becomes more difficult. Try learning to sew with a changed needle position to create your 1/4" seam allowance.

This little tip has saved me literally countless hours of pokey driving like a little old lady eyeballing right off the hood of her car! I now sew a perfectly straight seam with the pedal to the metal!

Jan in VA

I "wave" sometimes too! I usually fix it. Watch out for leaning left or right at the end of a seam.

I've used the cheap shoe inserts from Walmart and masking tape. Cost $1.00. Works great for me.

(OK, maybe I had to give up the glass or two of wine to help me out too??? :lol: )

These are all wonderful suggestions :D:D:D

I cheat and use an attatchment to my sewing machine. It is from an older machine that screws to the throat of the machine. I now can say I sew a straight line.

Done by me to give me more confidence... worth a try.

I have noticed that when I set the machine slower the seams are better.

this probably sounds silly, but what really helped me a lot was the advice I saw on youtube from Holice Turnbow (Horice Burntoe.........???? dont remember the name)
You cant sew a straight line unless sitting right in front of the machine!

Getting up ironing and sitting down again I did often not take the time to sit straight in front of the machine.
Also as already said: dont look at the needle, look where you go.
Granny

I think I am always the odd man out(or woman out), I watch the side of my presserfoot, and I also sit right in front of the machine. I use an office chair which may make it easier to sit in the correct position easily because it rolls.

You can also use mole skin. It's thicker and the fabric can be lined up with it.

Kyia

same problem here, I tend to zone out while sewing and suddenly I am not sewing so straight.

I just blame it on my drunken sewing machine.....

I put a short stack of sticky notes on the line I want to sew on and butt the fabric up against it. Got that tip from Lynette Jennings How to Quilt book. Works really well.

I have a 1/4" foot that helps but still weave off at the beginning and end. These are all great ideas.

I find it hard when sewing along the diagonal line of a square to keep the sewing line straight to the end. I tend to end with a curve ! The end of the corner is delicate so ripping out sometimes takes fabric as well as thread..

Sometimes the fabric is up to tight against the blade when we start, then as we finish, we tend to relax,and the fabric comes away from the blade. measure the seam allowance at the start and finish, and see if it is smaller at the start and bigger at the end. this is what was happening to me when i first started.

there are alot of aids out there you can use to help keep the fabric straight. free ones,(like mole skin and post it notes) and ones you pay for..(ther is a magnetic guide,a screw in guide, a plactic one too) use what works for you.
i also painted the front ot the blade tip white when i first started..so i could see it easier..(i used white out..lol)

i watch the guide or the edge of the foot/fabric, never the needle.

I use Dr Scholls moleskin....which is basically adhesive backed felt but with much better adhesive than the usual adhesive backed felt. Stack 2-3 pieces and stick them together then cut a straight piece about 1" x 3" and stick it exactly 1/4" away from your needle. Snuggle your pieces up against the edge of the moleskin and sew. Guarantees good seams every time!

I have painter's tape in my sewing drawer for that exact purpose. It works also. I run it all the way across the machine in case I have a rectangle square (got that one?) or a strip and then I am better able to keep track of my fabric. Like I am going to lose a piece of fabric on the sewing machine. I have been known to do that too! Edie

I use painter's tape on the diagonal line of the square to line up my stitches. Same thing for quilting lines. Follow that tape!

Keep your eye on the foot not the needle. That has helped me. I always used to sew crooked too.

Thank you all so much. These are all great suggestions and easy to do. I like the idea of making sure I'm sitting straight at the machine. The painter's tape is a good idea, plus marking the line. I have a Sewline marker, which is fabulous for things like this. In fact, all of the suggestions are useful. I could try every single one of them, and then I can see which one works best for me. Thank you again.

A couple of things helped me new glasses with antiglare and a 1/4 in foot

Love the idea of using WhiteOut. I'll have to try it.

I would like to add just a few suggestions to the advice given so far (all excellent suggestions!)
1. Before you cut, spray starch your fabrics. I like MaryEllen's Best Press, but you may use any spray starch you like, even if you make your own solution. Just use it.
Try to make your fabrics feel like the weight of construction paper, and then cut them. That's how stiff they should be. I know it sounds like a lot, but I learned that suggestion from Debra Wagner, who is an award winning quilter, and she is right. So much easier to cut the fabrics, and to stack them together and piece.
2. If you feel like you need to draw a seam line (probably not necessary, but if you need "training wheels" until you get the feel of things, ok), place your fabric on a sandpaper covered mat, cardboard, whatever, and then draw lightly with a fine mechanical pencil so as not to stretch the fabrics out of shape.
3. I have used this technique when teaching kids to sew, and some adults can benefit from it as well....
when you are getting ready to place your fabric pieces Right Sides Together (RST), put a tiny drop of elmers school glue (or applique glue...whatever you have) in the seam allowance.
When i say tiny, i mean tiny...like the size of a quilt pin head, or bead.
Do it in a few places along the seam allowance of the right side of one of the fabrics. Then put your next piece of fabric on top to make your little fabric sandwich that needs to be sewn RST. Heat set the glue by pressing the fabrics with your iron. This eliminates the need for any pins.
You can assembly line sew these pieces - just stand at your ironing mat for a bit and glue and heat set a whole bunch, then feed them into the machine and cut threads after they come out the other side of your needle - typical "chain piecing".
You should have accurate 1/4" seams, and the pieces should be exactly one on top of the other with edges aligned.
4. Lastly, it's my opinion...(i'm not a machine tech, so i could be wrong, but i swear this is the case) that some machines "kick" the fabrics out of alignment. It's as if the feed dogs are mis-aligned. I can sew on some of my students machines and i can't sew straight either, then sit down at my machine and i am fine. sometimes it is not the sewer but the machine. if all else fails, get yours checked out, and/or try sewing on some other machines to see if there is a difference.
Hope this helps. Love all the suggestions here!!

Oh, i forgot the last one...
5. use a stilletto - or whatever object you have to keep your fabrics feeding through the machine right until the end of the patch you are sewing...
I like to use a bamboo skewer from the kitchen supply store or supermarket most of the time. This helps to keep your fabrics sewing on that 1/4" seam line right until the last stitch, rather than getting a "bowed" appearance to the seam line. If you always have quilt tops which are "hourglass shaped" (fatter on the outside edges than in the middle) this technique should solve that problem, or at least help to manage it.

You may want to try a sewing aid called "The Angler" which you place on your machine that has lines you look at while you're sewing that will keep your work nice & straight.

winia

I had that problem also when I first started. Someone asked me if I was sitting directly in front of the needle, meaning sitting in my chair was I straight on with the needle? I was not, and since I pay attention now I hardly look, just butt the fabric up to the foot and it sews straight on.

Good Luck

Suzy

I watched a tutorial recently and he stressed sitting straight in your chair and center your body with the work you are doing.

I watched a tutorial recently and he stressed sitting straight in your chair and center your body with the work you are doing.

I like the painters tape because if you line it up right and inch or two before you get to the needle it just follows through to the needle like it should. Take it from someone who had to do the same thing. Gail

To keep the ends from wandering and curving, use the purple thang or any pointed stick..an orange stick a wooden screwer to hold the fabric in place.

I like this idea. I always get wavy so this might help me.