Trimming seams

S R Glickman thoughtfully penned:

I can answer the last one. It's only on home patterns that seams are so wide, In the industry, any area that a home sewer ends up having to trim has a seam allowance that's only 1/4" to 3/8's inch ( inside collars, facings etc) Factory sewists don't have time to trim.

Penny S

Re: Trimming seams

Hi Susan

You have the seam allowances wide in the first place so that the feed dogs and feet can get hold of the fabric properly; so that you can sew a seam and then decide to finish it in the way you want to; and so that, if you want, you can pin in the seam allowance (Joy's tip?) rather than into the garment body. A bit of leeway never hurts, either - you can always cut more fabric off but it's hard to add more if you find you're too short.

As for trimming - well, that's kind of up to you - whatever works for you. If you can, it doesn't hurt to leave a nice wide seam allowance in case you ever need to let the item out. But if you trim, how much, and why, is going to vary according to the effect you want and the fabric you're using. For example, for the inner edge of a flat fell seam, I usually trim to about 3mm and don't trim the wrapping edge at all, unless it needs straightening. But you wouldn't trim this close with a ravelly fabric, unless you stay-stitched first. You might not trim a seam allowance at all if you're going to bind it, as you might on the inside of an unlined jacket.

So I suppose the answer is, beware of hard and fast rules, have a play about and do what works best for you. And whenever you make a garment, always make sure you've got a spare bit of fabric on which you can try different seams, different stitches, test interfacing, make a buttonhole, etc. Saves trial and error on your actual garment.

:) Trish

That makes sense.

Trouble is I don't know enough about what I'm doing to know what to do

- if you see what I mean :) I'm afraid I just follow what the pattern says and the results are not always good - then I don't know if it's me or them!!

Would you trim in layers or not? How close together do you place the clips?

Thanks,

Susan

I tend to clip curved seams to make them lie flat. You make a small cut from the edge of the fabric toward the seam line - be careful not to snip the stitching! On tight curves, the clips will be closer together.

A flat fell seam is the one on your jeans that is wrapped on itself and top stitched Laura

Thanks

Susan

Is that one snip or do you cut out a wedge shape? How close would you cut them? And how close is closer?

You probably do it by eye but I don't know what it's supposed to look like :)

Thanks

Susan

clipping curves depends on how tight the curve is. 1/2" apart is standard, up to an inch for really mild curves and removing wedge shapes on really tight curves. On American patterns there are sewing tips and definitions on the instruction page in every pattern package, I'm guessing it's the same in the UK. As to how close to the seam, within 1/8" then turn the piece right side out and if it's still lumpy looking clip either closer to the seam or more often. Lucky for us all, sewing is not rocket science or brain surgery. Nobody has ever died from an under-clipped curve. (Although when I was a teen, my mother tried to convince me that it could kill you) ;^)

Just start with cheap fabric, even old bedsheets, until you get the hang of it, and then progress to the $30/yard silk. Laura

Grear - some figures!

I think they're actually the same patterns. They do do this but they don't tell you how much or how often in my experience. Unless I've missed something.

OK. I'll try that next time. Do you press before top stitching? Or only after?

That's a good idea.

I think I'll pass on this one ! :))

Thanks

Susan

On curves where the flaps of fabric will overlap once the curve is pressed, snip V's. On flaps that will spread apart, there is no need.

The snips need not be even - you do them where necessary. On tight curves they may be a third of an inch apart, on shallow ones much closer to two inches - it all depends.

One tip I picked up a while ago was to snip each layer separately, and offset the snips. That way you get a more even curve, instead of the

It's the folded-over-and-double-stitched seam on blue jeans.

What's the difference between flat fell and French seams?

--Heidi

I use sharp-pointed scissors or a sharp seam ripper and snip from the stitching toward the edge of the fabric. That way I can be sure I won't cut farther than I meant to.

When I snip out wedges, I fold the fabric and, again, snip toward the edge of the fabric. This is quicker than making two snips, and doesn't leave a tear-starting snip at the bottom of the wedge.

Joy Beeson

Kate - that is a really good tip, and one I never heard before. I guess if you're using thick fabric, it also helps it to lie more evenly too, especially on areas like neckline facings. Thanks for posting that.

:) Trish

My home ec teacher (who was awesome) always said to clip "to, but not through" the seam allowance.

And the clip will form a wedge when it's turned, so no need to make an actual wedge.

You'll know you've clipped enough when you turn the curved seam and it no longer pulls or has wrinkles.

Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

OR-- you can eliminate this whole step by not using a

Easier too, I reckon. And you can stretch or tighten the neckline slightly by using bias edging, if you want to. I also find it useful when I'm a bit short of fabric - you can use contrast bias on neckline and armholes, or sleeve edges. Very pretty, and helps tie together disparate items, too. I use it quite a bit to tart up boring RTW stuff.

:) Trish

Could you do this with pinking shears?

OK.

It probably would if I had the actual pieces in front of me - I'm not too good at visualising I'm afraid :))

I have this book and it was from this description and the accompanying picture that I finally understood what layering meant - despite diagrams in pattern instructions ! But I still didn't know how much to cut off.

Right - so now I know that grading and layering mean the same thing - I probably saw both terms together before but forgot they were the same. My memory isn't too good I'm afraid.

Thanks for your help

Susan

Is that always the case?

Yes, that makes sense. I'm beginning to see why there's no hard and fast rules. Trial and error seem to be the order of the day - starting with a little 'cos you can always cut more but you can't put it back ! :))

Thanks

Susan