How to Sew a French Seam

Hello friends!!

I just wanted to share with you this great video tutorial I found in YouTube from Howcast about how to sew a french seam. It is simple and very easy to understand.

Enjoy!

Pre-Shrinking your fabric

It has happened to all of us, you buy a garment that fits perfectly then you wash it and it shrinks. Well that is why I am bringing this topic, to talk to you about the importance of pre-shrinking the fabric before you start working on your sewing project.

It is important to preshrink your fabric, especially when using natural fiber fabrics and blends because they tend to shrink when washed and dried regardless of the temperature used in the washer and dryer. This process will allow you to understand how the fabric behaves regarding shrinking, color running, wrinkling among other things.

What I have learned from multiple sources (books, websites) is that the guideline to pre-shrink your fabric is to use the same method you expect to use for washing and pressing the finished garment. In another words, if you expect to wash your garment in hot water, use the high heat in the dryer and use a medium temperature when pressing it, then you should do the same with or without detergent for the fabric. If it is dry cleaning then have the fabric dry cleaned before you start your project.

When drying, if you are not using a drier machine, lay the fabric flat when drying, this will prevent the fabric from stretching of its own weight when hanged.

Pre-washing woven fabric can cause your fabric to get frayed on the raw edges resulting in a messy mix of knots and strings. To avoid this you can sew a length rolled hem on the two raw edges or fold the fabric and put it in a lingerie bag as well.

Do you have any good tips on preshrinking fabric? Feel free to comment!

Understanding the Grainline

Before you start laying out your pattern on fabric, it is important to understand the concept of the grainline. The way you lay your pattern pieces on fabric will have a direct impact on the garment construction.

Grainline is a term used in the textile industry that refers to the position or the orientation of the yarns in woven fabric.

Selvages: These are the finished edges where the fabric comes off the looms; the selvages are parallel to the lengthwise grain.

Lengthwise grain or grain line: The grain line runs the length of the fabric, parallel to the selvages. The lengthwise grain is usually the most stable and less stretchy than the crosswise grain.

Crosswise grain: This grain runs across the width of the fabric, from selvage to selvage and perpendicular to the lengthwise. Usually the Crosswise grain has most of the stretch.

Bias: 45 degrees between the crosswise and lengthwise grains. The bias is very stretchy and malleable. This is used for trims and bias tape because it is easily shaped to follow a curved edge.

Now that you have an idea of how to identify the grainline, you need to know that when you are laying your pattern on fabric, the arrows in the patterns must be in parallel with the fabric grainline. This way you ensure the fabric is being used appropriately when constructing your garment.

Extend the life of your commercial patterns!

Problem: You got that awesome pattern that you want to use over and over again but after the second use you noticed is hard to keep the pattern in a reusable state. After pinning and tracing multiple times the patterns paper has become a wreck and you will not be able to reuse it.

Solution: Go to a local medical supplies store and buy an exam table paper roll. What is that? The piece of paper they spread across the exam table at your doctor's office every time a new patient lays down in it. The good thing about this paper is that you can use it for making your own patterns but also for tracing your commercial pattern.

This way you can reuse as many times as you want your commercial pattern without damaging it with all the pinning and tracing. Also if you use the commercial pattern to sew for someone other than you, you can trace individual sets for each pattern size.

I paid about seven dollars for one roll so it is pretty cheap.
Do you have any other ideas? Let me know by posting a comment!

Found a great book!

I do like to get books when  I am in self learning process. I found this great book from Singer full of photos with everything you need to know about sewing! I highly recommend it not only if you are a newbie like me but also for experienced people who wants to learn helpful techniques or to improve theirs.

Here the information:

• Title: Singer Complete Photo Guide to Sewing - Revised + Expanded Edition: 1200 Full-Color How-To Photo


• Paperback: 352 pages


• Publisher: Creative Publishing int'l; Original edition (January 1, 2009)


• Language: English


• ISBN-10: 1589234340


• ISBN-13: 978-1589234345

Knowing your pattern size

Hello!

One of the problems I encountered when I tried sewing my first blouse was choosing the correct pattern size. After almost done with my first disaster (I meant blouse) I realized that the armholes and the chest section was too big for me.

I thought the way to pick the pattern size was for your size overall and I always picked the one that matched my hips size. I know it sounds silly picking a size for a blouse based on the hips size but to be honest at that moment was not obvious for me.

Please see this awesome free guide provided by Simplicity, I assure you it will be very helpful.

http://www.simplicity.com/Classroom/Tools/TT14_SimplicityFitBrochure.pdf

Check it out and let me know your thoughts!

Hello world!

Hello World!!

As a kid I always loved to do crafts. When I took my Home Economics class at junior high I loved when we covered the sewing topics. I was able to do my own tote bag and a dress that I personally designed. Then life continued to happen and I focused all my energies on my studies. Never considered arts as a career. Maybe because the message around me was that arts is for fun and hobbies and not for making a living. So I developed my career based on Sciences and Technology which I so much love to do. But always felt like a little part of me has been missing.

When I started dating my husband he gave me a sewing machine on my first birthday together as a couple. I was so touched I even cried. He told me that he remembered in one of our conversations that I wanted to learn how to sew. Is funny how as an adult I was still feeling that emptiness of having something creative to do in my daily life. After so many years I decided last year that I will learn how to sew my own clothes.

One thing I want you to know about myself, when it comes about learning something new, I need to understand why things are done and where are coming from. I need to understand the methodology, the “why are we doing this”, etc…I have tried to take sewing classes in a school and personalized ones,  but being myself an exempt employee  for an IT Consulting Company is challenging to not to miss some classes. After some time I had to stop taking them. Since then,  I have been trying to learn by myself. So I have been on and off and even though I am so passionate about this, due to different things on my "busy" life, I was not able to commit to stick to a discipline of spending the amount of time needed every week to be able to learn this the right way.

Now, here is this blog!! To share all information I am finding that will be helpful to become an official seamstress (or maybe more! let’s see how it goes). But more important, to help me to keep the commitment I have done with myself.  I hope you can share your experiences and any helpful tips you may have.

Thanks for stopping by!