Helpful Sewing Tips & How-To's...
Episode 01: Seams from Pandemica Apparel on Vimeo.
Episode 02: Zippers from Pandemica Apparel on Vimeo.
Shirring...
This is sewing
using an elastic thread on your bobbin, and regular top
thread. It's used to make the material scrunch up, like in
these scrunchy
scarves, on a gathered neckline,
or on sundresses. Here are some tips:
- Use fresh, good quality elastic thread (not some that's been in the drawer for years)
- You'll find the thread at the store near the elastic, not near the thread!
- Thin fabrics work better than thick fabrics. Try cottons, t-shirt knits, & crinkle gauze.
- Hand-wind the elastic thread onto your bobbin, don't use your machine! Wind it with only a little bit of tension... if you wind it tightly it'll break when sewing.
- If your bobbin sits in a removable case like mine, you'll probably have to loosen the little screw on the bobbin case to allow the elastic thread to be pulled through easier.
- Turn off "automatic tension control" on your sewing machine. On my machine, this means turning the tension knob to "zero."
- Use a long stitch length. I use the longest one on my machine, which is a 4.
- You can use a straight or a zig-zag stitch.
- Always sew on some scrap fabric first, to be sure your settings are right. If it looks strange, you have some adjusting to do. It should scrunch up the fabric as you sew, and the back side should look nice and clean, not loopy.
- If you're sewing quite a few lines close together, like for a sundress, the width of your presser foot makes a great guide. Also, when you get to the end of your line, don't cut your threads, just pull some slack then scoot down to your next line.
- If you run out of thread part way through, back up and overlap about an inch or so before the break, and if you want to be on the safe side, tie the ends of your threads together afterwards.
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