Good Morning to All,

I'm looking for safety ideas for a Quilt Camp. We invite the public, this is open to anyone from 8 to 80+ and both men and women. I need safety ideas such as the good old No running with scissors, hair should be tied back (mine was very long and the thought of getting it caught in a machine or ironing it again, oops, not so good), no bare feet... now I'm looking for the real experts ideas, that would be all of you on this board!
Thanks in advance!!

For those who know that I have a supply of older machines, I have 14 new homes for them, five will be going to college. The rest are to ladies who never had the chance to learn to sew as a child, now they know how and will have a machine to start with.

Of course, close the rotary cutter!

Keep the safety on rotary cutter when not using - they are VERY sharp- if you drop it- let it fall don't try to grab it and move you feet out of the way

I would like to see the answers. Watching!

Measure twice, cut once

Please pick up the pins you drop or see on the floor.

How nice of you to share your machines. I know (hope) that the new owners will treasure them.

Probably not much to do with safety, but LABEL everything that is yours.

(I know that's a bit hard to do with pins and needles - I wonder if someone was obsessive if they could put a dab of nail polish on each one?)

A lot of people "talk with their hands" - don't have the rotary cutter in one of them while doing so.

Turn the iron off after every use.

Keep beverages capped/covered/lidded - spilled hot coffee or tea could be unpleasant (and messy)

Use a safety guard on your ruler...or a klutz glove.

Use the surge protector.

Keep your fingers away from the needle. Use a stylus or some kind of stick to hold fabric close to the needle.

Take your foot completely off the pedal when not sewing. ( I don't and accidentally my foot relaxes and starts the machine.)

I think I'd let the adults do all the rotary cutting. How about having precut kits for the kids.

It would be so easy for a child to be pressing down real hard on either the ruler or the cutter and end up with seriously cut fingers. I've had the ruler slip on me and I'm 200 lbs.

NO pins in the mouth!!!!!!!

I always place dull sewing machine needles, bent pins etc into an old prescription bottle that is clearly labeled 'Old Needles'. Much safer for you and anyone handling trash such as Refuge workers.

I always place dull sewing machine needles, bent pins etc into an old prescription bottle that is clearly labeled 'Old Needles'. Much safer for you and anyone handling trash such as Refuge workers.

When I worked in a fabric store we were not allowed to wear sandals.

Magnets cannot be used around computers. For all other machines, keeping a refrigerator business card magnet is handy for pins. A magnet is also useful for finding pins on the floor.

Use an iron with an automatic turn off.

Make sure you have the manuals and all the bits for all those machines. you can often download PDFs of old machine manuals from the web.

Keep and eye on where the cables are running for everything. If you have to train a cable across a through route, it needs to be taped down. Use wide tape and ensure it really is well stick down on both sides.

If you need to trail a cable across somewhere, make a "table" over it. I often place an ironing borad across where a cable is running so it doesn't become a throughfare.

Know where the fuse box is and the caretakers mobile/ cell number... I had a rather stickly moment one night when we tripped the fuses and all the sockets went down. fortunately the caretaker arrived just in time so the learners could use thier machines rather than me reverting to plan B ( which was EPP!)

Really really really emphasie that rotary cutters must only be "open" as you approach to cut, are cutting and have just finished a cut. This is the one thing I nag, tut tut and scold ( yes scold) my learners about. It is so important. If you are providing the equipment the self closing ones are best as they close as you release the handle but make sure you tell people NEVER to lock them open.

Face irons away from people. but remember you may have left and right handed people.

I keep a little old 35mm film pot for broken needles/ bent pins. Make sure everyone knows where it is.

If a machine needle gets broken, make sure you have all the parts of it. stray bits can get everywhere, ijure someone later on and can damage a sewing machine.

Makesure bags/purses etc are tucked under the tables where people will not trip on them or thier handles.

Tell your student to label everything with thier own name, that way if it does go astray or wander round the room ( as equipment often does) it can find its way back to the owner.

Have the students bring some pillows ( cushions) so they can sit a bit higher at thier machine.

I alway wear slip on shoes when I teach or do workshops. I was taught to sew in socked feet (for control onthe pedal) but you need to put your shoe back on before you move about the room.

Think about using travel irons and pads on the tables for a few students to share rather than ironing bords and big irons. This keep people sitting down rather than wandering.

When you talk to the class stand at the edge of the room, so everyone can see you and no one is listening to your back.

Identify if anyone has any special needs, such as physical difficulties, hearing loss etc. I have a lady I teach from time to time who has one hand. Her husband does her rotary cutting for her so she apreciates the cutting instructions ahead of time. On occasions where I demonstrate how to make a template she is the happy recipient of the product of the demo. These are often something she would have to ask another student to help her with or get her husband to do for her. I have one lady who lip reads, so I have to make sure she is looking at me when I address the class mid session.

I LOVE kiddies drinks mugs. the ones which have the no spill tops. Even if they do spill a few drops, it is just a few drops. I have several quilts that have been saved by the tommy tippe mug! Encourage people to usewater bottles with sports tops, again even if they are left open they don't have the spill capacity.

I like glass headed pins as they are far easier to spot when spilled. Have a magnet handy for sweeping if you get a spill.

Have a package of band aids ( both normal and non alergic types) and basic first aid kit and know who the first aider is and how to contact them.

Check your sewing machine feet. If you have any that have a single hole ( as most 1/4" feet do) make sure you tell the individual using that machine not to try and zig zag withthtat foot on. Also watch the computerised machines which re-set thier needle position automatically when you turn them back on.

Always turn off the sewing machine when changing the needle, or dismantleing to remove lint/ needle fragments etc. If you are helping someone with thier machine turn it off or make sure they do not press the presser foot. Ie move it out of the way of thier foot and tell them why you are doing it. Have a mini flashlight in your pocket in case you need the light but need the machine off.

There's quite a list there and the students are not going to remember everything so you could do a little mock up in the corner of an unsafe area and ask them to spot the hazards.
That makes it fun and more memorable.

For the people helping the students--make sure their foot is off the petal before putting your fingers in danger's way. You don't want your fingers as part of the quilt--ouch.
Sue

I'd add two more bits:

Only water in closed top containers anywhere in the fabric/sewing areas. It would be a pity if someone's cola or coffee spilled on another's fabric.

Also NO MOVING the tables! Some women in one of my groups just moved the table my machine was at ... by pushing on the table. Guess what? My machine slid right off as the legs folded up. I wasn't a happy camper and they didn't even apologize.

ali

Fire Hazzard!! Check your machine cords both to the plug in and to the presser foot before you begin each sewing session. If you get in the habit of unplugging your machine when you finish a sewing session it's much easier to remember to check the cords when you start up. Cords are prone to cracking and fraying over time and you won' t even notice that it happened until it's too late if you don't check regularly.

I have a tip that I use at home every day. I have a little stretchy bracelet that I hang on my iron. I put it on my right arm when I turn the iron on and put it back on the iron when I turn it off. I learned the hard way when I left the iron on and threw down a quilt top that I was working on. I happened to fall over the tip of the iron and burned a few squares. Fortunately,it only charred it badly. I had to replace 3 squares. Could have set the place on fire. Now I use that bracelet religiously!

I just use address labels on my stuff that has a flat surface.

I use one of those large tubs from the gum containers to put my Old Rotary blades in. It keeps them off the table and safety for the refuse workers too.

Have proper lighting is always importat too!

Sounds like you will be having fun helping all these ladies! Good Luck.

wear shoes. dropping a pair of scissors on bare feet is not good!. ask me how i know.

I recommend some kind of eye protection. I had a machine needle snap one day and hit my glasses. Thank goodness I had them on. Safety glasses are pretty cheap (and comfortable) nowadays, compared to the cost of losing an eye.

The hair tying back is good, got mine caught in my bobbin winding mechanism, not fun

Another good tip for remembering to turn off your iron is: I have my iron plugged into a surge protector strip. I also have a task light plugged in that is always turned on. When I turn on the surge strip the iron and lamp comes on. I know that if the lamp is on, my iron is on.

I do that too. However My mian reason for the surge protector strip is I had a embroidery sewing machine get fried by a surge after a power cut. It cos quite a bit of money to get it fixed, not to mention I was in the middle of a project with a deadline! At college when teaching I don't have my light but I do have a surge strip with individual on off stip[s so I can switch off the iron but not my computer or machine.

Something my dad always did... label your plugs. They all look the same so label them. In the Uk our plugs are big enough to lable the actual plug, in the US you may need to wrap a label round the cable and write on it with a sharpie.

Dad used to paint black ( and white) plugs with tipex ( correctionfluid) to write on. Save you un plugging something you don't want to. that's a great home tip too!!!

Have a safe place to put scissors and rotary cutters, WELL away from the edge of a surface. Too easy to push them off while moving fabric.

Unplug iron at the end of the day.

Have two people handle large lengths of fabric. Too easy to trip over it if it is draped on the ground at your feet.

Sturdy surfaces. Make sure that machine tables, ironing and cutting surfaces are sturdy and stable.

All of my quilting supplies are marked either with a hot pink ribbon (scissors, etc.) or hot pink nail polish. (So are all of the "in the house" tools) Keeps me from having to search his shed for my tools.

Me, too!

We used to have to pay a 25 cent fine on the spot if we laid an open cutter down.

You might have a colorful large flat basket to use to hold rotary cutters when they are both being used and not being used.
Mark the handles with colorful tape to identify them.
JP

This is not really safety but, encourage the students to drink water during class, in covered cups of course. I read somewhere that one of the first indications of dehydration is getting sleepy.
My first quilt camp teacher would stop the class occasionally and pass around a basket of small wrapped pieces of chocolate. Really helped with concentration.
Getting up and moving around occasionally also helps with muscle aches and pains associated with sitting in one place for too long.

This statement got my attention. Since my little 6 lb. puppy (5 yr old Peke Abby) likes to sit at my feet. I couldn't figure why my machine was going crazy a few times. Then I found that she was sitting against the pedal which made it run. Now I have to take my foot & push her aside. Good thing my fingers weren't close to the needle.

Keep magnifiers away from the sun. You might not need this for what you are doing, however, I have a Ott light with a arm that has a magnifier and it was pointed to a south window in Arizona where we have bright sun all the time. I had a leather chair in front of the machine under the window and the magnifier burned a place in the leather chair. I was not home and am lucky it did not burn the house down.

Great tips and ideas. Along with getting up and moving occassionally, how about posture while at the machine. I am terrible and knew if I would sit up straight would have less problems with my back and sholders. My chiropractor always remindes me, to think of a string through you head, neck, back to your tail bone.

Thanks for doing all this for your students.

measure twice, cut once, close the safety mechanism on rotary cutter ANY time you are not cutting with it, watch where your pins are, no running with scissors or rotary cutters, keep fingers away from the edge of the iron on smaller pieces, relax and enjoy yourselves

Quilters,
Many of these are new ideas, common sense and some that we tend to forget since we've been sewing for sew long. Thank to all of you for the great comments.
Keep them coming!
I will be compiling these into a brief talk and hand out/ posters for around our space.
Again THANKS TO ALL of YOU!!!