How to Make Pattern Weights

Pattern weights are a great alternative to pins, depending on the type of fabric you're using. Whether that's a lightweight or sheer fabric that you don't want to create runs in the fabric using pins, maybe it's a lace that you would have a hard time actually putting pins in, or it's some kind of faux leather or vinyl or something where pins are going to permanently mar that surface. Using pattern weights to hold your pattern pieces in place can be a much better option than putting pins in or using some kind of tape or other adhesive. Now you can find pattern weights at some craft and fabric stores and available online, but you can really easily make your own. So these are washers. These are the largest washers that I could find at my local hardware store. And they're fairly heavy. They've got some weight to them so they themselves are great pattern weights. You can use multiple in all of the corners or in certain sections of your pattern piece to hold things down so you can cut them. If you find that this is too much weight you can even go with smaller sizes, or if your pattern pieces are smaller sizes you can use these smaller washers. They do not have as much weight to them. So if you want the smaller size, but maybe you want the heavier weight, or even if you want this larger size but want more weight to them, you can combine them together and make your own pattern weights in sort of a fun, little, pattern weight bundle. So here's a little bundle. It has two of our smaller washers inside. So it's double the weight of one and it's in this nice little fabric bundle that makes it really easy to pick up rather than having to grab multiple. And if you're worried at all about anything rubbing off from your washer, maybe if you found these out in the garage, you want to make sure they're protected. You definitely want to cover them in some fabric. So a really easy way to do this is to essentially create a yo-yo around your washers. So you want to start by cutting a circle of fabric that is larger than the washer you want to cover. So in this case, this is more than enough fabric to cover this one washer, but if I'm going to be covering one, I might as well put a couple in a bundle. So I have one that's extra heavy. So if I'm going to be stacking multiple washers on top I just want to make sure that my circle is large enough that I can gather in those edges and either completely bring them together like this or have just a small opening in the middle. So just roughly cut out your circle. One thing about making yo-yos is that they do not have to be perfect. You can use a bowl, a cup. Whatever you have, trace as a template. And then all we're going to do is some hand stitching around the outside edge to gather it in. I want to fold over about 1/4". I'm going to insert my needle from the inside going to the outside, and then bring it back in. I'm doing a running stitch around the outside edge, so I have my needle back to the inside of the yo-yo. I'm going to go back out and back in. I can do it probably one more time with my longer needle. Back out, back in. I can go ahead and load as many stitches as I possibly can on my needle before I pull my thread through and then just continue on, going in and out all the way around. Like so, and again I'm folding over that about 1/4" as I go and then just loading those stitches onto my needle. And I would continue doing this all the way around the perimeter of my circle, all the way around the outside edge. And it's going to look like this. It's going to start gathering as you go and that is fine. You're essentially going to gather it in anyway. You just want to make sure that you still have enough of an opening in your yo-yo that you can put your weights inside. On your last stitch, I like to end with my thread coming to the inside of our yo-yo, right about where my knot was from the start. Go ahead and drop in however many pattern weights or washers you want to use. And then just pull on this thread to gather them all together. Now, if you're gathering it up and you find that maybe your circle is not coming together all the way in the center and you wanted it to, maybe use your smaller sized washer or even if the opposite happens and you have extra room go ahead and add in a couple more washers for extra weight. But once you've gathered it in a sufficient amount you want to pull it as tight as it will go. Go ahead and hold it with one hand. And then you're just going to take and tie a little knot. So I have looped my needle through my edge of my yo-yo. I have a loop of thread here. I'm going to bring my needle through that loop of thread and go ahead and pull tight. Right like so. Just do a couple knots to hold it and your little pattern weight is secure. If you want to completely bring all of your edges together after you have gathered your yo-yo center before you clip your threads, you want to go across your opening to bring the edges together. So I could go directly across to over here and pull this fabric tight and it will pull the center in. I can tie a knot, then go back and forth this way, and this way until I have brought all of my centers together. But having it cinched together like this, tied with a knot is more than enough to hold your washers together. You can put as many washers in a little pattern weight as you want, and then have lots of fun, colorful little pattern weights to hold down your pattern pieces next time you're working with fabric that doesn't take well to pins.