I'm in the process of making a dress for New Years eve and have got as = far as the sleeves.=20
The pattern tells me to "machine baste between the notches." I've = googled to see why I have to do this, and how, and have come up with the = conclusion that it is so I can gather the sleeve cap so that it is = easier to ease into the seam.=20
Now my problem. I've only ever done this bit by hand before, using very = small running stitches. Does machine basting give a better finish, or is = it just a preference whether I want to hand sew of machine sew?
And you still have several days to go! This is not in the best tradition of stitching until five minutes before you leave.
If you can hand sew small and even stitches it doesn't matter which you do, but machine stitching is faster. Turn the needle thread tension down a little and increase the stitch length to at least 6mm if you can. From the right side of the fabric, stitch one line of stitches 1/8" inside the seam allowance and another line 1/8" outside the seam allowance - so now you have two rows of stitching 1/4" apart. The two rows give you better control of the gathering. When you pin the sleeve into the bodice the bobbin thread will be uppermost and it will slide easily when you pull it gently, thanks to the lowered needle thread tension.
Don't forget to turn the needle thread tension back to normal before you sew the rest of the dress!
It's easier to do this step before you sew the underarm seam as you're working on a flat piece of fabric rather than a tube.
see why I have to do this, and how, and have come up with the conclusion that it is so I can gather the sleeve cap so that it is easier to ease into the seam.
running stitches. Does machine basting give a better finish, or is it just a preference whether I want to hand sew of machine sew?
I always hand baste this sort of thing: it's easier to remove afterwards!
I know, I know. I'm out of practise. I can remember in the past = finishing off the hem of a dress on the way to a party. I am well versed = in leaving it til the last minute :o) =20
Aha! Thankyou. I did a good search for it on google, but to no avail. = I've basted it by hand now because I imagined it to go wildly wrong and = have to start again on the dress. However, when it's done I'm going to = have a practise on some scraps and see how it all works, so your = guidelines aren't wasted at all, especially if it save time in the = future :o)
I've never managed to pull the thead before without it breaking so the = tension ideas will really come in handy. =20 Cheers!
see why I have to do this, and how, and have come up with the conclusion that it is so I can gather the sleeve cap so that it is easier to ease into the seam.
running stitches. Does machine basting give a better finish, or is it just a preference whether I want to hand sew of machine sew?
Machine basting is faster. If you hand-sew like I do, it's also more consistent. My old Singer Athena had a great basting stitch, but on other machines, I just set the stitch length to the maximum and work with that. I should look at my Pfaff 1475 to see if it has a basting stitch - it seems to have everything else...
I just prefer to do as much as possible with the machine, and I have always used the machine for basting. YMMV
Is this a dropped shoulder seam or a seam at the point of your shoulder (fitted armscye)? I'm assuming this is a plain sleeve, not one that has gathering at the shoulder.
If it's a dropped shoulder seam, take your pattern and draw in the exact seamlines for the sleeve, then measure them on both the sleeve and the bodice. If they're the same, or the sleeve seam is only a half cm or so longer than the bodice seamline, you don't have to ease (though the pattern instructions often do so). Pin the sleeve to the bodice (flat construction; lengthwise sleeve seam and side seams of bodice unsewn) and match the notches and the dot. Put the sleeve against the feed dogs, bodice against the presser foot, and sew with a longish stitch. 99.5% of the time, it'll drop right in, no more fuss. The feed dogs cram a tiny bit of extra fabric into each stitch compared to the fabric on top... this is why when you're sewing two long strips together lengthwise, the one on the bottom always comes out shorter unless you carefully control the fabric.
If you've got more than half a cm or so to ease, try "crowding" or "ease plus stitching"... this can be done on either type of sleeve. Sew from notch to notch, just to the seam allowance side, of the sleeve's seam -- just the sleeve, not sleeve and bodice. But instead of just sewing this, park your thumb or forefinger (I always use my left thumb) right behind the presser foot, and start stitching. The object is to keep the fabric piling up against your thumb, and not feeding through as the machine's designers intended. When you reach the other notch, quit stitching, and break your thread. Try pinning it into the bodice. You may have to add another row of "crowding" to get enough taken up, or you may have to pull the bobbin thread to gather it a bit more, but if crowding works, it's fast and easy, and you've lost nothing compared to the standard method given in the patterns.
Crowding can be done either with dropped shoulder sleeves or fitted armscyes.
Again, when you sew the sleeve to the bodice, keep the sleeve side against the feed dogs. It's absolutely contrary to the way I want to do it (I want to keep an eye out for puckers!), but I've learned that if I just hold my breath and have faith and put the sleeve side against the feed dogs, it works out just fine. If I do it the other way, sleeve against the presser foot, I get puckers and wind up ripping the sleeve out half a dozen times.
And of course you can do it by hand! Keep your stitches small and even, and you'll do fine.
PS: Though you've not said anything about it, I remember my early days of sewing vividly... I used to use tiny, tiny stitches so it wouldn't come apart when I was done. I also couldn't rip out mistakes without much swearing and gnashing of teeth. Not to mention that the seams were pretty rigid, instead of fluid. 2.5 mm is about right for blouseweight fabrics... up to about 4 mm for heavy denims, etc.
I put a double thread in the bobbin when gathering or easing
-- this makes the bobbin tension tighter, so I don't have to loosen the top tension, and it's twice as strong as a single thread.
Some use silk or nylon thread because it's stronger and easier to pull out, but I like a thread that isn't quite so slick, because the puckers stay where I put them. A doubled thread is strong enough even though I'm using up cheap thread that I bought by mistake.
InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.