Creating new fabric with decorative stitches on the PFAFF creative icon 2

Yesterday we took a quick look at how the projector helps me with my quilting on the PFAFF creative icon 2!

Today I want to introduce you to the many stitches and stitch possibilities we have on our creative icon 2 and how they help me add some creative elements to my quilting projects.

Specialty stitches

There are so many beautiful decorative stitches on the PFAFF creative icon 2 that it’s hard to sometimes find the right one for our project. The creative icon 2 has the stitches divided into categories; you can find the categories on the inside of the lid of your machine. There are basic stitches, a whole category devoted to quilting stitches and then, there are lots of decorative stitches – 806 stitches in total ranging in width from 9mm to 52mm.

Now I know some of you are thinking why do I need decorative stitches when I’m quilting? Well, sometimes I have a hard time finding the perfect fabric to tie into the main fabric for my project. When that happens, I like to create my fabric using the decorative stitches on my machine. I might not be able to find the perfect match of fabric, but I can always find the perfect match in the thread!

Remember this block from yesterday?

The creative icon 2 has a stitch category #8 called Techniques and in sub-category 5, you find the floating stitches. I used stitch 8.5.5 to sew my blocks together. When the fabric is opened, the stitches appear to be floating on the fabric. The joining stitches stay behind the fabric. I really love using the floating stitches!!! If you touch the ‘?’ at the top of the screen and then select a floating stitch, it gives you step-by-step directions on how to sew the floating stitches.

Stitch Creator

Did I mention how many stitches are built into the PFAFF creative icon 2? There are 806 stitches built into the machine and the decorative stitches range in width from 9mm up to 52 mm wide. Wow – that’s a lot of creative possibilities but did you know you can also modify and create your stitches? The creative icon 2 has a program called Stitch Creator that allows you to edit or create your own 9mm wide stitch. So, theoretically, our machine has unlimited stitch possibilities! You can access parts of an already existing stitch, delete parts, bring in a different stitch into the middle of an already existing stitch, or simply create your stitch.

Specialty stitch techniques

The PFAFF creative icon 2 has some specialty sewing techniques built into the machine to make our sewing so much easier.

Tapering stitches

Many stitches allow you to taper the beginning and/or end of the stitch, as well as remember the length you want it to be. You can also choose between 30, 45 or 60-degree angles for both beginning and/or end of your stitch. To activate the end taper, simply touch the reverse button. A great way to personalize your quilt label or fabric.

Stitch repeat/Patchwork program

When you want to sew a lot of squares together that are the same size, you can use the Patchwork program which allows you to set the number of stitches you need to sew the blocks – it even gives you the length of your row of stitches.

Sequencing stitches and letters

A great way to enhance your quilt labels is to use Sequence Creator. You can combine lettering and decorative stitches to create your label.

In Sequence Creator, use the built-in machine fonts to program what you want to say. You can program up to 20” (50 cm) and the length is shown in the program field. You can easily combine lettering with decorative stitches.

On the piece of fabric shown in yesterday’s post, I typed the phrase: Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you! I stitched it over and over, using the projector guide to help me keep the rows straight. I filled one entire block.

And one to use with a half-square triangle block.

I love to personalize any project with decorative stitches and to create my unique fabric using the many creative stitch possibilities on my PFAFF creative icon 2.

Join me tomorrow when we explore the free motion capabilities on the PFAFF creative icon 2.

This is part 4 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 3: Using the projector on the PFAFF creative icon 2: Perfect for quilting