techniques of ,advanced, clothing comatruction

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Creative

techniques ofadvanced clothing construction

It’s challenging to try to improve the looks of garments made at home by employ-ing some of the sewing tricks of the professionals. Couturier houses use many of theseadvanced construction techniques which are not usually found on pattern guides. Infact, you can take a pattern design and make from it a garment that is individuallyyours by using some of these ideas. Happy sewing!

The Perfect Faced Facing

Neater Neckline FinishAll-In—One Facing for Collarless,Sleeveless Dresses

Neckline Notions

Out-of—Sight Buttons and ButtonholesLoops—Loops and Buttons

Quick and Easy Slot ButtonholesKeep Front Button-Closure DressesClosedBuck the Bulk—Sleeveless GarmentsAlmost Sleeveless Sleeves

Camisoles for Shift-No-More Skirts

Hemline Flare Removed the Easy Way

Darts for Decoration

Hide That Hook

That Superb Hang To Jackets

French Piping

Continuous Bias Strips

Beautiful Bias Binding

Mystery Out of Mitered CornersPointed Look for Points

Perfect Patch Pockets-Easy-Does—It Waistband ApplicationHems with Seamed PleatsSuperb Top-Stitching

Tie Threads

Removing Thread Markings on FabricsMagical Know-How with Chiffon

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Advanced

Construction Techniques

For lovely silk blouses, dresses madeof thin fabrics, or for any other garmentyou want to have that couturier finish,try this trick:

Construct garment using lining or un-derlining as necessary. Leave raw edgesexposed at neck and armholes.Then for that perfect faced facing, cut

the facing out of the garment fabric justas you usually do. Also cut a duplicatefacing out of the lining or underliningfabric. Next, join the underarm seams ofeach facing piece. Press seam open.Trim seam allowance. Fig. 1.

Fig. 1Facing cut Facing cutfrom fromlining garmentfabric fabric

Place facing and corresponding liningpiece together with right sides of fabrictogether. Machine stitch the unnotchededge forming a % inch seam. Fig. 2.Turn and press, keeping the seam rolledvery slightly under. Baste the notchededges together using a long runningstitch. Fig. 3.

Fig. 2

Machinestitchfacingand liningtogetherTrim. Turn.

Baste edgestogether

Fig. 3

Machine stitch the facing to garment inusual manner; right sides of garmentand fabric together. Match correspond-ing notches and seams. Fig. 4. Trimseam. Clip seam allowance from notch tonotch in underarm portion. Turn facingto inside of garment and press. Slip-stitch finished perfect faced facing edgeinvisibly to lining. Fig. 5.

Fig. 4

Fig. 5

One additional tip: This same methodof application could be used when facing-type decorative touches are used on theright side of garments around necklineand sleeves. This would involve stitchingthe facing on the wrong side of the fabricand then turning it to the right side ofthe garment.

It’s hard sometimes, especially whenfabric is bulky, to get the neckline flatand smooth at center back opening. Trythis method on your next blouse or dress.With or without a collar, this techniqueworks every time.

Prepare neck facing by sewing to-gether at shoulder seams and finishingunnotched edge. Trim and pressshoulder seams. (The facing may be pre-pared as discussed under The PerfectFaced Facing.)

On the overlap side of the back facing,turn under 11/8 inches. Press.

On the underlap side, turn under 1/2inch. Press. Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

Apply facing to garment necklinematching all notches and markings.Check to be sure facing is 1/2 inch fromedge of garment on underlap side, and11/8 inches from edge on overlap side.Stitch facing to garment. Trim seams asclose as possible; clip. Notice in the il-lustration that the neckline seam istrimmed starting 14 inch from foldededges of facing. Fig. 2. (A and B).

Fig. 2

Starting at about 1 inch from foldededges of facing, understitch the facing.Press neckline edge of facing in place, in-cluding the extensions of the garment towhich the facing is not sewed. Fig. 3.

Fig. 3

Inside ofgarment

Understitching

Machine baste the center back seam ofthe garment. The garment extensions towhich the facing is not sewed are turneddown and included in this stitching.Fig. 1;. Insert zipper by machine or bythe hand-sewn method. The overlap zip-per application must be used when put-ting the facing on by this method. Startzipper about 1A; inch to 1/2 inch downfrom top of garment neckline edge. Slantout the raw edges of tape at top of zipper,and hand tack in place. Turn both sidesof the facing into position over the zip-per and hand tack in place. Fig. 5.

Fig. 4

Extensionturneddown

Inside ofgarment

Centerbackseam

Inside ofgarment

Put the final touches on necklines byhand tacking the facing down atshoulder seams, pressing the necklineedge over a pressing ham and applyinga hook and eye at neckline edge abovezipper.

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The best way I know to finish theshoulders of a collarless, sleeveless dressis given here. Try it. You’ll like the re-sults.The facing for the neckline and sleeve-

line is cut in one. Finish the outer edgeof the facing in an acceptable method forthe fabric. Join the front and back fac-ings at underarm.When sewing up the dress, leave the

shoulder seams open. Now you are readyto apply the facing to the dress.With right sides of fabric together,

sew the facing to dress around necklineand sleeveline. Fig. 1. A tip worth re-membering is make the facing fromshoulder line to notches of armseyeabout 1/3 inch smaller. This forces theseamline to roll under and not showwhen the dress is completed. Trim andclip seams. Turn facing to inside of dressand press.

Leave shoulders\/ open XI

Working carefully, turn the rawedges of front shoulder seam to the in-side. Fig. 2. Then tuck the back shoulderextension inside the front. Fig. 3. Reachup under thefront facing and gently pullboth shoulders from underneath. Matchraw edges of shoulder seams and‘stitchtogether. Before stitching, make certainseamlines match correctly. Fig. 4. Fin-ger press seam open. Trim seam. Drawshoulder seam back into proper positionand press.

Tuck infront facing edge\/

Fig. 2

Tuck back facingend into front

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

Plunging necklines as well as wideones can present the wearer some em-barrassing situations if they are notfinished with the best known tricks ofthe professionals.For that dress with the deep V, anchor

the neckline with a short length offeatherboning. Cut a 3 inch strip offeatherboning. Round off the ends. Even,if the featherboning you buy is coveredin fabric, put another covering over itto color coordinate with your garment.Use seambinding to cover featherboning,turning in the raw edges when you ma-chine stitch binding in place. And nowfor the trick of the professionals: Sewone end of the featherboning to the neck-line facing IA inch below the deepestpoint of the V. The lower end is left freeto slip behind bra and permanently holdthis beautiful neckline in place. Fig. 1.

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Fig. 1

.1 Featherbonestayattachedat top only.

For that U shaped neckline, your se-curity strategy has to be a little differ-ent. Using a narrow ribbon or seam tape,cut four 8 inch long strips. Sew a stripon each bra. Fig. 2. Try on dress andmark with pins the location where stripshave been sewed on bra. Remove dressand sew strips at points marked ondress, attaching the strips to facing only.Fig. 3. When you wear the dress, youcan tie the neckline in place.

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

The wide square neckline can also pre-sent some problems of staying in posi—tion. Try this: Using featherboning, cuta strip 1 inch longer than the neck frontedge. Cover featherboning in hemmingtape of matching color. Sew into dress.Fig. 4.

Fig. 4

Sew on facing below neckline

Ever spoiled the looks of your lovelyoutfit by having an underwear strap topeep out? This can be prevented with astrap holder. Try on dress to determinecorrect position of strap holder. Markposition with pins. Make a chain stitch.Using a double thread, fasten securelyon shoulder seam closest to armhole.Make a loop by pulling needle throughfabric. Hold thread with needle in lefthand. Slip loop over thumb and first twofingers of right hand. With thumb andforefinger, pick'up needle thread; pullthrough first loop to form a new loop.Continue this process to form a chainlong enough for slip strap to go througheasily. To finish chain, slip needlethrough last loop and pull to make knot.(Illustrations for this can be found inmany sewing books.) Sew a snap on endof chain, attaching chain in only onehole of the snap. Sew other half of snapto shoulder seam of dress. The strapholder should always open toward theneck. Fig 5 .

Now for the cutest innovation of all—the zig-zag wire. Fig. 6. This wire can beused around necklines but it also canhelp you achieve that professional look atother places such as points of collars tokeep them from turning up and flat bowsto keep them flat and neat looking. Zig-zag wire is available at most notioncounters in several lengths. You canbend it, stretch it and twist it tighter.But once you have achieved the shapeyou want, it will stay that way. When us-ing it on a garment, place it under thefacing and hand stitch in place to theunderlining.

Fig. 6

Zig—zag wire

Fashionable closures come and go andthen return again with modifications.Concealed buttons and buttonholes areoften used on jackets, coats and dressesto give appearance of fluid unbrokenlines. Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

Transfer buttonhole markings to thefront facing using the bodice front asyour guide. Interface the garment asusual. Make bound or machine workedbuttonholes in the right front facing onthe outside of the fabric. Then apply thefacing in the usual manner. Fig. 2.

When selecting buttons to use on gar-ments with concealed openings, chooseflat ones.

Fig. 2E

E Bound buttonholesin right front facing

E

Self-fabric or contrasting loops canmake a smart closure down the front ofgarments or at the cuffs of long, fullsleeves.

One change must be made in cuttingout the garment since there is no overlapon a loop closing, except for the loopsthemselves. There’s only an underlap.On the side the loops will be attached,mark center front of pattern. Add 5/8inch for seam toward edge. Cut garmentand facing out. The loops are attached atthe center front.To prepare the loops, stitch and turn a

‘narrow strip of bias fabric. A secret inpreparing this bias strip is to stretchand press it before sewing so that thestitches will not break when the biasstrip is turned. Cut loops the lengthneeded to slip over the buttons easily.

Baste loops, evenly spaced, to a stripof tissue paper, keeping cut ends even.Hand baste paper, with attached loops,to outside of garment along the centerfront marking. Machine baste. Fig. 1.

Join facing to garment. Tear paperaway carefully. Finish facing in conven-tional manner.

F ° . 1lg Tissuepaper

Do you desire a designer’s look that isquick and easy? Try this. This methodwill produce buttonholes in a seamlineby leaving the seam unstitched wherebuttonholes are desired. Directions aregiven for bodice front but this type but-tonhole may be used at center back orside openings.

Cut out garment bodice front and fac-ing as pattern indicates. After applyinginterfacings, stitch facing to bodice on

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center front markings on the right sideonly, since this is the only side with but-tonholes. Trim seam allowance leaving itfrom V4 inch to 5/3 inch wide, gradingthe seam allowance to make a flat ap-pearance. Fig. 1. Open facing and seam,and press flat. Fig. 2.

/_Trim away excess

__Center frontstitching line

l Fig. 1

Press seamopen and facingflat

Fig. 2

Now to design the band that will be!applied and which will form the button-holes. The band may be in the same fab-ric as the garment or in a contrastingfabric such as leather, suede, grosgrainor satin. The band may be designed inplaids or stripes cut on the bias orstraight grain of the fabric. The width ofthe band will depend upon the size but-tons you wish to use. Generally, thewidth of the band is from 1A1 inch wide to3 inches wide finished. Cut band twicethe finished width desired, plus 1%inches to allow for two 5/3 inch seam al-lowances. The length of the band will bethe same length of the garment at seamsewed.To apply band, place right sides of fab-

ric together matching seamline on bandto center front seam of bodice. Mark theposition of buttonhole openings. Stitchband to front bodice, leaving open wherebuttonholes will be. Fig. 3.

Press band seam allowance towardband. Trim this seam allowance if bandwidth is less than 5/3 inch wide. Pressfront facing to its permanent position ongarment. Turn under raw edge of band5/8 inch and press. If finished width of

band is less than 5/8 inch, trim seam al-lowance. Slip-stitch band in place alonginside seamline, leaving open at button-hole locations. Fig. 1;. At buttonholeopenings, slip-stitch edges together.Your quick and easy slot buttonholes arenow ready to use. Try it. You will like it.

Pin band toright side offabric andstitch

Fig.3

Fig. 4

Slip-stitchband in place

This same method can be adapted andused to apply a band to a ribbon trimmedsweater. When adapting to sweater, omitfacings.

Have you ever noticed how dressesthat button down the front gap openwhen you sit down? You can quickly andeasily prevent this from happening. Trythis trick:

Sew snapsbetween

each button(

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Sew snaps half way between each but-ton. This holds front opening in perfectposition.

This imaginative idea can be usedwhen all of the following characteristicsare found in a garment: the garment issleeveless, the shoulder width is stand-ard, there is a separate armhole facingpattern piece and the fabric tends to-ward being bulky. To avoid bulk build-up at underarm seam, move the facingunderarm seam toward the back. Thissame technique can be used on sleevefacings when the fabric is bulky.To cut armhole facing, match and pin

or tape together seamlines or armholefacing at underarm. Measure from seam-line 1% inches toward back facing anddraw a line at this point parallel withthe original seamline or slightly slanted.Fig. 1. Cut pattern on pencil line. Add5/8 inch seam allowance to each side ofcut pattern. Fig. 2. Pattern is now readyto use. Finished facing is placed on gar-ment, the seam will be toward back andyou will have bucked the bulk at the un-derarm seam. Fig. 3.

Fig. 1

c’— Mark patternpiece and cut

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Add 5/8 inchseam allowance

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Finishedfacing ongarment

Almost Sleeveless Sleeve

Sleeveless dresses are sometimes invogue; at other times long sleeves orsome other length of sleeve is the mostfashionable. Ever heard of the almostsleeveless sleeve? This is a very, veryshort sleeve that gives you only a hint ofarm cover.

Cut around the top of sleeve using thesleeve pattern. Cut down the underarmseam of sleeve 1% inches. Then cutsleeve off straight across bottom. Cutlining for sleeve in same manner. Fig.1A. (Note: In lightweight fabrics, youmay wish to eliminate the seam acrossthe bottom of the sleeve. The dress fabricand lining fabric would be of the samefabric. Cut down the underarm seam ofsleeve 5/3 inch instead of 1% inches.Then turn pattern over at lower edge ofsleeve and cut the identical shape again.Fig. IB. Join both the lining and thedress sleeve at underarm seam. Fig. 2.Press seams open.

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1%", 1%"

Fig. 1B

H Fold5/8 line5/8"

Fig. 2

Join lining to sleeve at lower edge ofsleeve taking a true 5/8 inch seam allow-ance. Fig. 3. Trim seam allowance. Turnlining into sleeve and press. Fig. 1,. Thesleeve is now ready to set into the dressin the usual manner. When sleeve issewed into dress, take the usual 5/8 inchseam allowance. The seamline will cometo the very edge of the sleeve at the un-derarm sleeve seam. Result: a short,short sleeve that just about covers thetop of the arm. A worthwhile hint—ifyour arms are large or not very attrac-tive, do not use this style sleeve.

Fig. 3

Dress fabric

Lining fabric

Fig. 4

Stitching linewhen sleeve issewed intodress.

If you want a skirt that hangs beauti—fully and forever straight, try a camisoletop. An added feature is that it is com-fortable to wear. The camisole top isused on skirts of two-piece dresses.Here’s how it’s done.

Patterns for making cami-soles are included withsome patterns or you canmake your own from asheath dress pattern thatfeatures front and back bo-dice darts, is sleevelessand has a low scoopedneckline.

Pattern:

Fabric: Lightweight lining fabricis best.

Cutting: No seam allowance isneeded around necklineand armhole. Actually, itis best to make necklineand armholes about 1 inchdeeper than usual socami—sole top will not showwhen worn under dresstop.

Construction: Make same as dress topexcept just turn and stitchedges around armholesand neckline. Attach fin-ished camisole to skirt asyou would a one-piecedress. Zipper may be in-serted underarm or downthe back.

Fig. 1

Most skirts have at least a slightamount of flare. In order for the hemlineto be finished professionally, this flaremust be removed. Here’s the easy way toremove a slight amount of flare. Thistechnique can be applied when hemmingtape is not being attached during thesame sewing operation. This same skillcan be used to remove a slight amountof fullness at other places such as neck-lines.

To contract the top of a hem, hold aforefinger just behind the presser foot asyou sew the hem edge. While stitching,allow two or three inches of the edge tocrowd itself between the presser footand the finger. Stop. Lift the finger torelease the amount held there. Then putthe finger down again and continuesewing in the same manner.

Sometimes darts are stitched on theoutside as part of the decorative designof the outfit. Or you may create a designin a thin fabric and not wish to havethreads hanging out at the ends of dartsor tucks. There is a way to sew thesedarts or tucks so that strings and knotscan be eliminated. Here’s how.

Remove thread from top of sewing ma-chine. Put bobbin thread in place andthread sewing machine backwards us-ing the thread from the bobbin. Pull upabout 15 to 20 inches of thread and windit around an empty spool. You now haveone continuous thread running from thebobbin up to the spool on top of the ma-chine. You are now ready to sew. Be—ginning at the point of the dart, stitch.The point of the dart made in this man-ner has no loose threads to tie. Rethreadthe sewing machine for each dart ortuck you sew.

This type of dart can be used only ongarments when a seam crosses the largerend of the dart.

Perfect finishing details help you cre-ate fashionable looking garments. Sofor the ultimate in couturier sewing,hide that unsightly metal hook. To dothis: Open weave of fabric with bluntend of needle. Fig. 1. In firmly wovenfabrics, it may be necessary to make avery small slit with points of sharp scis-sors. Work the hook into the slit leavingonly the bill end exposed. Fig. 2. Sew inplace making stitches as invisible aspossible. Fig. 3.

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.5...5' _I‘ Fig. 1

Insert endof hook

Slip hookunderneathand sew

Fig. 3

And this is the way the couturiersmake the thread loops. Thread a needlewith a short thread, preferably silk orbuttonhole twist. Draw ends even form-ing a double thread and knot. Insertneedle from wrong to right side of fabricat bottom of where loop is desired. Insertneedle 1A1 inch above and bring out atfirst point of entry. Fig. 4. Wind threadclosely but not too tightly, around pointend of needle to a depth of 14 inch. Fig.5. And now for the trick. Pull needleand thread through the thread woundaround the needle. Draw tight. Fig. 6.Fasten thread by inserting needle backthrough fabric to wrong side and secur-mg.

Fig. 4

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Fig. 5

Fig. 6‘

A flat chain, designed expressly foruse in clothing, helps jackets have thehang of perfection. The chain is placed1/8 inch above the lower edge of the‘ jack-et and usually extends from front facingto front facing. Lightweight chains areused on cotton and linen jackets; me-dium weight on lightweight woolens;heavier chains for bulky fabrics. Thechain should be removed when thejacket is drycleaned.Sew chain in by hand catching every

other chain. The clear transparentmonofilament nylon thread is good touse.

Facing

Sew chain in alternate links to loweredge of jacket

French piping is used as a finish onraw edges of hems, necklines, and fac-

ings. An adaptation of it may be used onopenings where a facing is not desired.For the ultimate in beautiful detailwork, try this:

Cut bias strip 1% inches Wide andlong enough to fit edge to which it willbe applied. If being applied to woolens,cut bias strips from lightweight liningor underlining fabric such as silk or-ganza. For use on silk and other light-weight or sheer fabrics, use self fabric.Fold bias in half lengthwise, wrongsides together, and press lightly withgrain of fabric. Match raw edge of biasstrip to raw edge on outside of garmentbeing finished. Stitch 1A; inch from rawedge. Trim to 1/3 inch. Fig. 1. (Noticethat only a V4 inch seam allowance istaken. If pattern has allowed more, trimseam allowance to 1/1 inch before apply-ing piping.) Turn bias strip over rawedge to inside of fabric. Machine stitchin the welt of bias strip. Fig. 2. Usematching thread and stitches will notShow in finished product.

Outside of fabric Fig. 1

Trim to 1/3 inch

Inside of fabric

Fig. 3

Some professional seamstresses liketo reverse the stitching process statedabove. Sew bias strip to inside of gar-ment first; then turn and machine stitchor hand slip stitch on right side. Thismethod requires complete accuracy inall measurements. The finished productis shown in Fig. 4.

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Fig. 4

Need a lot of bias strips? Then here’show to make it by the yards and yards.In fact from one yard of 36 inch widefabric, you can make about 24 yards of1/2 inch bias strips.Cut a square of fabric. Fold fabric to

form 2 triangles and mark accuratelyon wrong side the center bias fold. Fig. 1.With yardstick, mark on each side of thecenter fold line rows of bias strips thedesired width. Fig. 2. Cut on center biasfold line to separate the two equal tri-angular sections. Place right sides offabric together, along lengthwise grain-line edges. Match marked lines. Stitch.Fig. 3. Press seam open.

Fig. 1

Cut here __) ///

IIli Fig. 2ll/

Crosswise graini

Fig. 3

Match the two crosswise grainlineedges to form a tube, slipping the fabricdown so that the cut raw edge matchesthe first marked line. Fig. 1;. Stitch seam.Press open.

Fig. 4

And now for the bias strips by theyards. Cut fabric on marked lines mak-ing one long continuous strip. Fig. 5.

There is a fail proof way to apply biasbinding to garments. Achieve the look ofperfection. Try this method.Around areas where bias binding is to

be applied, place facings on garmentmatching wrong sides of fabric together.Stitch facing on garment on seamline.Trim away the seam allowance. Thenstitch Va inch and 3/3 inch inside seam-line to hold grainline and give body.Fig. 1.

Trim

Threerows ofstitching

Wrong side

A

Cut bias strip 11/2 inches wide and thedesired length. Pin bias on garmentmatching cut edges, right sides of fabrictogether, and stretching bias strip a bitso it will fit edge over which it will roll.Stitch. Fig. 2.

Fig. 1

1'\

exactly the same except point W is onone side of the loop and point Y is on theother side. Remove bulk from corner ofbias strip by clipping in seam allowanceto points W and Y and then cutting diag-onally to the center of the folded edge ofthe loop. Fig. 2. Turn loop in bias bind-ing over seam allowance of garment sothat it lays as it will when finished.

F91d bias strip over to wrong side 0f Establish fold line of corner. Fig. 3.fabric: Turn in edge. Hem by hand along Press. Turn bias strip to wrong side andStltChmg .011. wrong Slde; Fig. 3. Thls machine stitch on press mark. Fig. 4.forms a fimShed bias binding 3/8 mCh Trim seam allowance to 1/8 inch. Turnwide. back over garment seam allowance andFold bias slip-stitch in place on wrong side ofstrip over; , garment.hem by hand ,-

Fig. 1 Stitching line. Wrong side starting at Y

Fig. 3 Outer edge is on other sideof garment of loop

On jackets or dresses with collarsjoining lapels, miter corners and turn inends of binding where collar and lapel Vjoin. Fig. 4.

Fig. 4 — Miter .corners Fig.2

Turn in endsof bindingon garments wherecollar and lapeljoin. Clip and

removecorner ofbinding

Turn andfinger pressin fold line

There are two methods of miteringcorners. One method is used when ap-

. plying a bias binding by the methodpreviously described. To miter outwardcorners, extend the bias strip in a loop,Fig. 1, so that the strip can be turnedback and mitered to fit the corner. Stitchfrom V to W (the exact point of the cor-

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ner) and backstitch. Remove garment Machinefrom sewing machine. Start at Y (the stitchexact point of the corner on the other on pressside of the loop) and continue stitching mark : } i)on the bias binding. Points W and Y are

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This method of mitering a corner can beused when applying any kind of dec-orative band to a garment with afinished edge.

Fig. 5Top-stitch alongfinished edgeon outsideof fabric.

Fig. 6‘Fold backupon itself andpress fold.

Fig. 7

Fold again towardedge to which itwill be applied. Press.

Fig. 8

Stitch along diagonalcrease underneath.

Fig. 9

Continue to apply trim,top—stitching both edgesin place.

Sew a slight curve to make a pro—fessional looking corner point.

You can achieve this

instead of this bulgy look.

Instead of stitching to a sharp point atthe corner of the. collars, pocket flaps ora lapel, round the stitches like

this

or take one or twosmall diagonalstitches like this.

Cutbulkout _______-of corners. ‘

Insert finger intothe corner.

Turn down seam allowances at corner asshown. Hold seam allowances firm andturn corner to right side.

Press on point presser.

Invisibly attached is this perfect patchpocket. It is for decorative use on yourfiner sport clothes and dressier clothes.Just between you and me, pockets onbetter clothes are really not meant to beused for carrying items or placing handsin them.

Cut pocket by the pattern allowing2 inch hem at top. Cut interfacing tostop at hemline. Cut a lining 4 inchesshorter than the pocket. Secure inter-facing to wrong side of pocket allowingit to come just to the hemline. Fig. 1.Place right sides of lining and outer fab-ric together at top of pocket and machinestitch taking a 5A; inch seam allowanceand leaving seam open 2 inches at centerto turn. Fig. 2. Fold pocket on hemlineso that the right side of lining fabric isagainst the right side of the outer fabric.Sew lining and outer fabrics together ontwo sides and bottom of pocket. Trimseams; cut out corners. Fig. 3.

Fig. 1Wrong side ofpocket fabric

Interfacing

_ Leave2 inch opening

""-‘"' Fig.2

3 " y ;_ Stitch lining toouter fabric

Turn pocket through 2 inch openingleft in seam shown in Fig. 2. Slip-stitchopening closed. Fig. 4.

Fig. 4 I

Sl ip-stitchtogether54,——

Pin pocket into position marked onthe garment. Baste. Fig. 5. Working nowfrom the inside of the garment, apply byhand stitching the pocket to the garmentso that no stitches show on right side offabric. Use a small back stitch. Fig. 6.

Fig. 5

Pin and bastepocket to dress.

__i___ Hand stitching: on wrong side

of fabric.

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A waistband 3%: inch wide finished isa figure flattering width. Try thismethod of cutting and stitching for theeasy-does-it waistband application.To cut: Cut waistband 21/8 inches wide

and the length of skirt waist plus 2%inches. Cut on lengthwise grain usingthe selvage of the fabric. Underlinewaistband, if necessary.To prepare: Fold waistband length-

wise with right sides of fabric together.Fold so selvage is 5/8 inch from cut edge.Fig. 1. Sew ends taking a 5/8 inch seamallowance. Trim seam allowance. Turnand press. To apply to skirt: Place rawedge of waistband to top of skirt. Sewtaking a 5/8 inch seam allowance. Fig. 2.The 1 inch extra fabric in the length ofthe waistband forms the underlap onleft back edge. Do not trim seam allow-ances on lightweight skirt fabrics; trimone seam allowance on medium andheavier weight skirt fabrics. The seamallowance acts as the interfacing andhelps hold the band in upright position.Turn waistband over seam allowance,and place selvage just covering thestitching line inside. Baste in place. Fig.3. From the right side, machine stitchalong waistband seam catching the sel—vage underneath. The zipper presserfoot may be used on heavier weight fab-rics. Force waistband back as you stitchso that you do not catch it. Top-stitchingwill be practically invisible when gar-ment is worn. Fig. 4.Note: For a smooth fitting, figure flat-

tering skirt, ease skirt on towaistband.

Fig. 1 Selvage

InsideW

Where seams and pleats meet, theproblem is to get the seam to lay flat.Many of our garments now feature hardpressed or soft rolled pleats. Here’s howto do this:Trim hem to even width. Turn up hem.

Clip seam allowance at top of pleat.Trim seam allowance in hem portion to% inch and press open. Fig. 1. Finishhemming to skirt. Fig. 2.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

You can give an important customlook to many garments by adding top-stitching. Silk buttonhole twist is thebest thread to use but two strands ofsilk or other type thread can also be usedeffectively. Thread sewing machine withthe-two strands of thread as if they wereone strand. When using silk buttonholetwist, use as top thread on your machine.If stitching will show on underside, usebuttonhole twist in the bobbin as well.To simulate saddle stitching, set ma-chine for 6 to 8 stitches per inch. Iffabric has a tendency to pucker or shift,stitch over tissue paper. Tear paperaway when completed. Where stitchingbegins and ends, leave threads longenough to be inserted by a needle intofabric and fastened. Top-stitch garmentfrom the right side whenever possible.

In order for top-stitching to be beau-tiful, it must be straight. To insurestraight stitching, use one of the follow—ing methods. (1) For edge top-stitching,use the distance marker on your sewingmachine. (2) Sharpen tailor’s chalk to afine point. Measure and mark a con-tinuous line where stitching will be.(3) For internal top-stitching, use amachine quilter foot. (4) For curved ordecorative lines, trace design on brownpaper. Cut out design. Pin or haste togarment. Stitch against the edge ofpaper.

Ever tried securing thread on thesewing machine? This is the quick andeasy way the skilled seamstresses do it.Practice several times, and you too canperfect this technique.

To do the sewing machine lockstitchleave needle in the fabric at the end ofthe stitching line. Raise the presser barvery slightly. Holding the fabric verysecurely so it will not move, take severalstitches right over the last stitch. In-stant magic—locked stitches.

On most fabrics, unless the fibers havebeen broken, thread markings can be re-moved. Try this:

With a very damp cloth, lightlymoisten area of fabric where stitchmarkings are to be removed. Using bothhands, gently pull the fabric on the bias.Keep working with the fabric pulling iton the bias until fibers return to theiroriginal position. Set fibers into placeby pressing using a damp steam cloth.

Cutting and stitching slippery fabricsbrings many expert home seamstressesto the hair pulling stage. But with thisspecial tip, you will be able to be themaster over the fabric.

Press fabric. Clip selvage. With awarm iron, press enough tissue paper toback the fabric. Pin tissue paper towrong side of fabric. You will now workwith the tissue paper and fabric as one.Lay pattern and cut. For garments notdouble fabric constructed, transfer pat-tern markings to paper with tailor’scarbon paper or transfer pattern mark-ings to fabric and paper with tailor’stacks. Remove pattern pieces. Withmatching thread and a fine machineneedle, staystitch all seamlines and

darts. After all staystitching has beencompleted, tear paper away. The stay-stitching will now help control the fabricfor you. Sometimes these slippery fab-rics will not move over the feed dogeasily. If this happens, slip a piece of tis-sue paper between machine feed dog andfabric.

It may be necessary to do some stitch-ing of seams and other work by hand.The hand sewing stitch to use is a smallfull back stitch. Did you know that manyof the couturier garments are completelyconstructed by hand sewing? In manycases, this insures greater accuracy.

And now just one final tip:A hand-rolled hem is usually used on

chiffon, marquisettes, and other softsheers. To do this, cut the length oneinch longer than it has been marked.Accurately machine stitch one-half inchabove the cut edge. Trim away the rawedge right at the stitching line. Hold thefabric with wrong side up. Moisten thefingers of the hand which will do the

Prepared by:Dorothy L Barrier, Extension Clothing Specialist

Published byTHE NORTH CAROLINA AGRICULTURAL

EXTENSION SERVICENorth Carolina State University at Raleigh, North Carolina Agriculturaland Technical State University at Greensboro, and the U. S. Depart-ment of Agriculture, Cooperating. State University Station, Raleigh,N. C., T. C. Blalock, Director. Distributed in furtherance of the Acts ofCongress of May 8 and June 30, 1914. The North CarolinaAgricultural Extension Service otters its programs to all eligible per-sons regardless of race, color, or national origin, and is an equal op-portunity employer.7-81-7M (Reprint) Home Economics 119

rolling. With the thumb and forefinger,roll fabric until machine stitching hasbeen rolled into the hem and is com-pletely out of sight. Take small stitchesin the rolled hem making the stitchesabout 5/8 inch apart. Roll and hem oneinch of fabric. Then pull stitches taut sothat the hem rolls a little more and mostof the hemming stitches will be hidden.This type of hem will show the stitcheson the outside of the fabric but this ispart of its appearance.

Stitches in garment before pulling taut

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