AIBU to tie a knot at the end of the thread when repairing clothes?

[OctoberNovemberDecember]

I know this is the most first world problem ever, but I was just thinking about this while repairing something.

Whenever I do things like sewing on a button or sewing part of a seam that's come undone, I always tie a knot at the end of my thread and then start sewing.

However, I remember people from my childhood who always said you should never tie a knot, and that the "proper" way to do things was to make a couple of repeat stitches on top of each other so that it holds. I remember when we did embroidery at school with that binca stuff, there were at least two people who were horrified that I tied a knot to start.

Well, sod those people. I'll tie a knot if I fucking want to.

@JoannaMccarthysthumb

I’m still stuck in the sewing machine 🙁

Repeat stitches are smoother - if you knot you’ll have a little bobble, then when you wear the clothes you’ll have an annoying little bobble irritating you. 😬

It could end up like the Princess and the Pea

I don't know, because too many times I have pulled the knot through, and if you do a bigger knot to prevent that, then it won't lie flat. Most of the sewing I do is hand sewing, including replacing the header tape on curtains. Miles and miles of header tape. Still, I got there in the end, and the curtains are hanging much better as a result.

My mother was a seamstress many, many years ago and I learned to sew from her.

She taught me that in order to make sure things 'hold' you tie a little knot and then do two or three stitches over the top of one another.

Surely if you just do the stitches without a knot they will just unravel.

I always tie a knot too

Snitches get stitches @JadeTrinket. Just ask @JoanneMcCarthy
(Anyway it was ABH.)

Also team knot!

I knot. I also do knots instead of casting on and off knitting. It works for me 🤣.

(I genuinely thought my knitting thing was right until fairly recently)

@herestoyoucolinrobinson: puzzling about your knitting cast on (and even more cast off) with knots. Do you do a series of knots around the needle to start? If so, it might not be far from a backwards loop cast on. I can't imagine how the cast off would work, though. Very daring of you, given that even knotting two ends of yarn within the knitting is much frowned on by the knitting police (the knots are said to work their way through to the front of the garment)!

@JadeTrinket

Yes, our sewing nun told us it was uncouth too. But then Joanne McCarthy sewed right through her thumb with the sewing machine and was carted off gushing blood, so I’ve just gone on tying knots if I feel like it. Joanne was a ringing bitch as twelve year olds go, and everyone hoped she got gangrene.

I can't NOT hear this in the voice of Michelle from Derry Girls

This thread has made my morning.....

DH not only ties a knot at the end of the thread... he ties a knot around the needle so it doesn't come off.

I can't work out if he's a heathen or a genius.

On the other hand, he also managed to not only sew both sides of a sleeve together, but also to sew the item onto his trousers he was wearing. So probably not the best person to take needlework tips from.

The stitches they’re talking about are basically a knot, you’re just pre-emoting it but putting the knot in at the start (whispers ‘I do it too’)

Pre-empting*

Not read the full thread but the issue with a knot is that it could come undone over time and washing, and then your stitches will come out. So sewing a few stitches to start and finish is more secure.
Based on that I've voted YABU.

@DeepaBeesKit

I do this too OP. I've tried the thing doing a couple of stitches and it does not hold.

I do a knit and a few stitches over the top to be sure !

Do you do the tailors knot? - you take your needle wrap the bottom of thread around twice then pull it all the way down to the bottom of the tread. Makes you feel like a pro. And creates a little knot.

My grandmother taught me to knot my thread. But it doesn’t sound like knots you here speak of. You wet your finger, roll the thread around a bit and tug. It produces a sizeable snarl, which no way is going to pull through. I also have crochet blankets of hers with honking big knots and dangling ends scattered about. Upon reflection, she may have been a shortcut kind of gal.

I used to teach knots like that. The classes used to call them ‘spit knots’🤢

A tailors knot sounds very like a French knot to me.

Thank you so much for all your comments and solidarity! I feel a lot less alone now.

@Schrodingerskitty just the one knot at each end. I won't lie, I can only knit rectangles so never actually attempted to wear anything! I'm more of a repairer than a maker unfortunately.

@murmuration

My grandmother taught me to knot my thread. But it doesn’t sound like knots you here speak of. You wet your finger, roll the thread around a bit and tug. It produces a sizeable snarl, which no way is going to pull through. I also have crochet blankets of hers with honking big knots and dangling ends scattered about. Upon reflection, she may have been a shortcut kind of gal.

My mum used to do this sometimes