Smocking Pleaters supplied by House of Smocking

contact Chris Slade e: chris@smocking.co.uk

The Smocking Pleater gathers the fabric into perfect pleats in preparation for smocking.  The Pleater Feeder acts as a thread dispenser with 24 spindles holding bobbins for each needle. The Amanda Jane has 24 needles space 1cm apart and with the facility for 23 half cm spaced rows. It is similar to the Super Amanda (pictured right), having black side brackets (in place of the Super Amanda's red brackets). The Super Amanda is the same length as the Amanda Jane but has half cm spacing for the full length of the pleater, offering 47 half cm rows including 47 needles.   It is ideal for pleating material which does not hold a pleat successfully when needles are spaced 1cm apart such as fabric with a high wool content.		The Super Amanda Smocking Pleater
The Read 32 row Pleater has 32 needles spaced at 1cm apart with 0.5cm spacing for half its length (33 half spaced rows). It has handles at each end, which can be used individually or together. The new design has a removable pin at either end to change a needle. This feature is also found in the Read Regular. The 32 row Read is the only pleater of this length available.		The Read 32 row Pleater (completely redesigned under new ownership)
The Read Regular 24 row Pleater		The Read Regular 24 row Pleater has 24 needles spaced 1cm apart with half cm spaces for half the length of the rollers. The Read Maxi has 0.5cm spaces the full length of the Pleater. The Read Regular and Maxi supplied by House of Smocking have only one handle on the right, leaving space on the left to adjust fabric direction to keep it straight as it passes through the rollers.
The Sally Stanley Smocking Pleater	The Sally Stanley has 24 needles spaced 1cm apart with the facility for 15 half cm spaced rows.  It is robust and copes with more challenging fabric.
Threaded Sally Stanley Pleater with Pleater Feeder	How to operate the Smocking Pleater Thread required number of needles with strong thread Cut off selvage edge before rolling fabric onto a rod Feed fabric between back two rollers from the rod and turn handle to roll the fabric through to the front of the pleater Ease fabric off the needles and onto the threads as it feeds through the rollers

Which Pleater is right for you?

1. Both the Sally Stanley and the Amanda-Jane have 24 needles spaced 1cm apart and perform extremely well, producing perfect pleats.  Needles can be spaced 0.5cm apart for half spacing.
2. The Amanda Jane has a larger turning handle.
3. The Amanda-Jane offers 23 half space rows and the Sally Stanley offers 15 rows.
4. The Super Amanda and Read Maxi have half cm spaced needles the full length of the rollers, having 47 needles. They are the same length as the above Pleaters with 24 rows at 1cm spacing.
5. The technique for changing a needle differs.  To remove the top roller, thus exposing the needles, a screw is released at either end of the rollers on the Sally Stanley (screw driver provided), while the Amanda-Jane, Super Amanda and Read Pleaters have a locating pin at either end of the rollers, which is pulled out to allow the top roller to be removed.  
6. The 32 row Read is the only pleater with the facility for 32 rows of gathers spaced 1cm apart. It is useful for pleating larger areas.
7. The Read Pleaters have a large, heavier base plate.

Your choice of Pleater will depend upon which of the above features suit your needs.

The Pleater Feeder

The Pleater Feeder (a House of Smocking design) can be attached to the base of the pleater and acts as a thread dispenser, making it possible to thread the needles directly from bobbins.

The Pleater Feeder

Advantages No need to precut threads Several lengths of fabric can be thread at a time Ideal for circular yokes, where thread length increases with each successive row.  No calculations required, simply thread needles, pleat, fan out the pleats to 'bishop' shape and cut threads to exact lengths required. No wasted threads

There are separate Pleater Feeders available to integrate perfectly with the Sally Stanley, Amanda-Jane and Read smocking Pleaters.  Bobbins are not included and can be ordered separately.
 

Magnetic Pleating Rod (35 cm long)

The magnetic rod is used to assist with feeding fabric into the Pleater rollers. It is split lengthways into 2 halves. The fabric edge is placed on the bottom half of the rod, then the other half is placed on top. The magnet holds the 2 halves together and the fabric is kept in place firmly and straight on the rod.

Fabric Covered Pleating Rod (12" long)

The fabric covered rod is used to assist with feeding fabric into the Pleater rollers. It is non slip, so the material does not slide around when it is on the rod.

Pleater Prices

Please note  Postage charges shown are for UK customers - extra for elsewhere, to be advised on receipt of order.

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