OT: stretch seams

You are probably expecting this answer, Hanne, but 'it depends'. It depends on the fabric and the purpose of the garment. You may only need to use the neat stitch that does 4 or 5 straight stitches and then swings over for one zig. That gives a very nice seam with just a little give to it. The triple zig is a great one for serious stretch. Think about what thread to use too. Some will tolerate a stretch; some will not. And yes. As always. Test. Polly

Hanne wrote...

This is going to sound strange from one who doesn't sew himself (though I've been around it as far back as I can remember), but I believe you've answered your question *with* your question.

I'd research what I could about the fabric threads, and the available stitches - their advantages & pitfalls - then run your final list of samples. It might not hurt to wash the samples, dry, iron, etc. to see how they react. As Polly suggests, think about the garment, its use, the wearer's habits, cleaning, etc. and pick the one that seems most suitable.

We go through a similar process with each new different project we try.

Doc

Thanks for the advice so far.

I've got the fabric (it is a rayon/viscose jersey) and also some poly thread (I read online that for stretch this is better than cotton, because it has a little give). Also, quite a few web sites/people seem to indicate that I should "ignore the built-in stretch stitches" and just use a narrow zigzag.

It is for a dress (emami style, see

- obviously the seam joining the skirt and the body parts need to be stretchy, the other ones less so.

I'm going to wash the fabric, then do some tests, both for stretchy and less stretchy seams. Also, the seam down the back need to be flat (as in non-wavy) more than stretchy, so that is something else to look for.

Thanks, Hanne > This is going to sound strange from one who doesn't sew himself

If you will practice using the narrow zig zag and open the seam to the front, it will look like it was a straight stitched seam. HTH Barbara

Way back in the day (70's), I took the basic Ann Person Stretch'n'Sew sewing course---if you can find the book to that on eBay, that would help. It's definitely a straight stitch technique.

So will this:

The other point I don't know if they mention there but really matters with knits is this: use ball point needles. You want the needle to slip between threads with knits, not cut them, and non-ball point needles have a tendency to cut threads and provide potential ravel issues. (Knit fabrics tend to be made with much thinner threads than woven fabrics; I presume that's why the cutting-by-needle is an issue.)

(ebay search on "stretch and sew book" shows three copies (varying vintages) of the book for that course, ranging in price from 99 cents to $10.)

--pig

I forgot to say: I also got needles. They are stretch needles, medium ball point (schmetz code H-S), I am not sure how they differ from the ball points needles (schmetz code H SUK), but they are ball point, so hopefully they will work.

Ebay'ing a book at this point (being in Europe) is not really going to work - maybe if I decide this is something I want to do again :-)

Thanks! Hanne > Way back in the day (70's), I took the basic Ann Person Stretch'n'Sew sew= ing