Posted on 19/08/202419/08/2024 by mavenpatterns

How to Sew Gathers

Gathering Fabric – Technique & tips

Learn how to sew gathers in fabric with a sewing machine with our easy gathering tutorial. You’ll be able to create beautiful soft gathers for any garment. Gathering is a great way to add fullness and volume and is often used for gathered skirts like our upcoming Bloom Skirt sewing pattern or on a neckline like The Wendy Smock.

How to gather fabric

Learning how to sew gathers is a basic sewing technique that isn’t too hard to master. For this tutorial I’m concentrating on the traditional way of how to sew gathers with rows of gathering stitches and it is perfect for light to medium weight woven fabrics. Not sure if it’s the right method for your fabric? Just do a little test sample, the fabric will soon let you know!

Gathering Ratios

A gathering ratio is just the amount of fabric that you will gather onto a flat area like a gathered skirt onto a waistband or bodice. Or you might have a smaller area as a design detail such as the sleeve head of The Kitty Dress or on the back of the Joy Dress.

You may not need to worry about gathering ratios, usually how much gathering you have in a garment will already be decided by the pattern. But it’s good to have an understanding should you want or need to add more or less gathering.

There is no set gathering ratio. Generally speaking, finer fabrics look good with a higher ratio of gathering but heavier fabrics can look too bulky. Do a test sample of gathering on your fabric and if you like it and it works for your fabric then it’s right!

Examples of gathering ratios

1.5:1 ratio
3 rows of gathering stitches

The above samples are all made of cotton poplin and show how different gathering ratios can look. And also shows the difference in gathering with 2 versus 3 rows of gathering threads (explained later in the tutorial).

A ratio of 2:1 means the piece being gathered is twice as long as the flat section it is being gathered onto.
E.G if you had a 30cm flat section, the total fabric to gather into it would be 60cm.
1.5:1 means 1½ times as long
2.5:1 means 2 ½ times as long
3:1 means 3 times as long and so on.

Note / Not all fabrics gather well using this method, heavier fabrics might look better pleated. Or you can use a zig zag stitch over a cord (that’s a tutorial for a different day). For stretch fabrics you may need a different technique. For the cuff of The Somerset t-shirt I use shirring elastic to create gathers as that helps retain the stretch of the fabric.

Machine settings

These can vary depending on your fabric and sewing machine.

Do a test first, you may need to experiment to find the best settings for your fabric and machine.
Set your stitch length to the LONGEST possible stitch length for your machine. Fine and lightweight fabrics can be gathered using a shorter stitch. You may find it gives you more control over your gathers but they can be harder to pull.
Tension – if necessary loosen your top tension so the threads pull easily.
Use a quality thread, you are going to be pulling the thread and we do not want the thread to snap.
Take care not to snap your gathering threads because that is very, very annoying!

How to Sew Gathers

For this example I’m working with a 1.5cm seam allowance and the stitch line is marked in blue pen.
Decide how many rows of gathering you want to do. You can do 2 or 3 rows of stitching. (Images below)
Work In Sections. If you have a large area to be gathered, dividing the area into sections makes it much easier to handle. To gather a skirt onto a waistband, I would divide it into 4 equal sections but you can do more if you wish.
To reduce bulk at seam junctions, lift the seam allowances out of the way and stitch up to the seamlines. The exception being if you are working with a very fine fabric then you could stitch across pressed open seam allowances.
Start with the first section (or between the notches to show where your gathering will start and finish) and stitch with Right Side of the Fabric Facing Up.
Gathering rows must not cross each other.
Do not back stitch at each end but leave long ends to the threads.
Work in sections and just repeat for each section.

2 rows of gathering stitches

Learn How to sew gathers step by step with our easy to follow free
Sewing gathers Tutorial for beginners.
Sew with 2 or 3 rows of gathering threads

Stitch 2 rows in the seam allowance parallel to each other. The first about 3-5mm away above the stitchline, and the second 3-5mm above that.

TIP / Your machine may have the option to just move your needle across.

3 rows of gathering stitches

Stitch 3 rows of gathering stitches, with the 3rd row on the body of the garment.

As before, stitch 2 rows in the seam allowance parallel to each other, the first about 3-5mm away above the stitchline, and the second 3-5mm above that. Stitch the 3rd Row 3-5mm below the stitchline on the garment.

TIP / Your machine may have the option to just move your needle across.

The advantage of the 3rd row is that it does make nicer gathers as they are easier to control. The disadvantage is the 3rd row will be removed and the stitching could potentially leave a mark on your garment. So test on your fabric first!

Time to gather!

Again working one section at a time; pull up the bobbin threads, sliding the fabric along the thread to create gathers to roughly the desired length.

Match the seams/notches and pin the 2 fabrics with Right Sides Together and fine tune gathering to fit. Take your time and distribute the gathering evenly.

Tie off your threads by wrapping them around a pin. Learn How to sew gathers step by step with our easy to follow free
Sewing gathers Tutorial for beginners.
Sew with 2 or 3 rows of gathering threads.

Once you have finished one section, wrap the long threads around a pin in a figure of 8 to hold everything in place and move onto the next section of gathering.

When all the sections have been gathered, unwrap the threads from the pins and either tie them off in a secure knot or stitch them by hand to fix your gathers.

Set your machine stitch length back to your normal stitch length

Sew your seam with the correct seam allowance to join the fabrics together.

I always sew with the gathers facing upwards so I can see what they are up to and I can avoid any uneven and unsightly tucks. If you do get any areas with tucks that you don’t like, you can just unpick that little area and re-sew.

Neaten the seam allowances together, which will give you a stronger seam. Unless it’s an enclosed by a waistband and then no need to neaten!

How to Press Gathers

Don’t press directly on or across the gathering as you will squash your gathers. We do not want to flatten the fullness you’ve just created!

On the Wrong Side, with the tip of your iron, just press the stitchline and seam allowance. Then press the seam away from the gathers towards the flat/ungathered side.

With the tip of the iron facing towards the seamline, press in between the gathers and up to the seam but not over it. Be sure the fabric is flat under the iron at all times so you don’t iron in creases and squash the gathers.

And don’t forget to remove the 3rd row of gathering if applicable.

All done and now you know How To sew Gathers!

Happy gathering! Mrs M x

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Posted on 07/08/202408/08/2024 by mavenpatterns

How to sew an invisible (concealed) zip

How to sew an invisible zip. An easy invisible or concealed zip tutorial

How to easily sew an Invisible zip

Inserting a zip can be a bit daunting and an invisible zip (sometimes called concealed zips) even more so. But honestly fear not, here’s an easy way to insert invisible zips without a load of fuss. Invisible zips are actually my favourite zip to use because when they’re closed they are, well, almost invisible.

If you are new to invisible zips, don’t panic. I don’t always get it right first time – and I still unpick sometimes. Practise makes perfect or so they say, and if not perfect, practise at least makes you familiar with the process. So, round up some scraps of fabric and do a few tests before jumping into your garment. It’s also much easier to insert a zip in a stable fabric such as cotton poplin than a shifty, slippery satin or chiffon!

This is a simplified version of a post I originally shared for The Barcelona pattern, which explains how to stripe match, seam match and shorten an invisible zip. It’s a little bit more advanced due to the nature of the matchy – matchy process but you can see that invisible zip tutorial HERE.

This method closes the seam before you insert the zip rather than after. My normal method of invisible zip insertion (stitch down each side of zip, stitch up from the bottom to close the seam) was fine and dandy (and if you prefer/are happy with that method, carry on – we’re not doing brain surgery here) but I felt this one was just easier and better to help avoid the dreaded bump at the base of the zip situation.

For this example I am inserting an 20cm (8″) invisible zip and placing it into a 17cm (6¾”) opening in a centre back seam of a skirt that has a 1.5cm (5/8″) seam allowances.

INVISIBLE ZIP TIPS

An invisible zip is always stitched from the top down to the bottom.
Invisible zips are placed RS of zip to RS of garment.
The coil (teeth) sits right on the CB line.
You never get to use the entire length of an invisible zip. You lose around 2.5-3cm (1″) as you can’t stitch right to the bottom because the zip puller is in the way. If you have a 20.5cm (8”) zip the finished length will be about 17cm (7”)
Invisible zips are very easy to shorten. I often shorten an invisible zip after it I have sewn it in and always with the zip closed. You could do it before hand but remember it must be longer than your actual opening. If in doubt insert the zip and ~~chop it off~~ carefully shorten after. (Tips on how to shorten an Invisible zip HERE)

TOOLS

Invisible zip (Also called a concealed zipper)
Invisible zipper foot
Regular zipper foot
Usual machine presser foot
Fabric marking pen/chalk implement of choice
The usual sewing stuff; iron, thread, pins, scissors, sewing machine

ABBREVIATIONS

WSU: wrong side up / WS: wrong side / RSU: right side up / RS: right side / SA: seam allowance / CB: centre back

How to sew an Invisible zip

1. SPOT FUSE the seam allowance to stabilise the area.

Apply a strip of lightweight fusible interfacing along the seam where you will be inserting the zip. I make mine twice as wide as the SA (seam allowance) and 3cm (1″ or so) longer than the finished zip length.

2. Press the zip.

Open the zip and lay on the ironing board with WSU. With a cool iron press the coils (the teeth) flat to uncurl them so they are easier to sew. WARNING! If your iron is too hot, the teeth will melt. Close the zip.

3. Close the seam.

With RST pin the seam together from hem to the notch at the base of the zip opening.

Start at the hem and stitch the seam closed with 1.5cm SA, using your normal machine foot, stopping at the zip notch with a backstitch.

Neaten the raw seam edges.

Press the seam open.

Gently press the seam allowance of the zip opening which will give you a guideline to help place your zip.

4. Place the zip.

It’s really easy to get an invisible zip twisted as you pin it in place. The RS of the zip will be facing the RS of the garment.

I find the best way is to lay the garment with WSU facing you, and then fold and pin the SA into place.

Place the zip FACE down onto the garment, so WS of the zip is facing you.

Open the zip a couple of inches and pin the zip tape to the SA on each side of the opening with one pin.

This is just to place the zip without twisting it, we will pin the zip accurately to stitch in the following steps.

NOTE – The zip tape will be narrower than the 1.5cm SA.

Open the zip so the puller is all the way to the bottom.

Start on one side of the zip (it doesn’t matter which side) and place the top stop on the stitch line. In this case it would be 1.5cm from the top edges as we have a 1.5cm SA at the waist edge (I’ve marked the waist stichline with a red pen line) and pin the tape to the SA.

Keep the zip coil positioned ON the pressed CB seam line.

Once you have pinned one side of the zip in place, tack next to the teeth coil to hold in place.

On the zip tape, mark the base of the opening so you know where to stop stitching.

5. Change to an invisible zip foot.

Take a look at your zip foot and you will see 2 grooves or channels on the bottom of your invisible zip foot – yours may not look exactly mine but you’ll get the idea.

The coils of the zip will sit in one of these channels depending on which side you are stitching. Choose the groove furthest away from the SA and so that you are stitching through the zip tape right next to the coil.

Start with a backstitch at the top of the zip and stitch close to the zip coil. Roll the coil away from the needle with your fingers as you stitch so it sits perpendicular to the zip tape as you sew.

You need to stitch as close to the coil teeth as possible but do not stitch on the coil as your zip will not close!

Stop with a backstitch when you get to your mark at the base of the zip opening.

*I prefer to use an invisible zip foot but many makers like to use an ordinary zip foot.

Now to repeat with the other side of the zip.

Make sure you line up the top stops on each side of the zip or it will look uneven and stepped at the top when it is closed.

Pin and tack into place. Starting at the top with a backstitch, stitch the other side of the zip using the other groove of your machine foot, again stopping with a backstitch at your mark at the base of the opening.

Close the zip to check puller will run up and down smoothly and all looks good before continuing. Getting the puller to the right side can be a little bit fiddly sometimes, but I just remove any tacking that’s in the way and get the pointy, end bit of the puller to poke through to the right side first.

If you have stitched on the teeth of the zip it won’t close so you’ll need unpick that section and re-stitch. But please remember that there is no such thing as the sewing police – if you’re happy to wear it, it’s good enough!

6. Anchor the zip to the seam allowance

(If you need to shorten your zip, do that first – see the other Invisible Zip tutorial here)

The point of securing the zip is to reduce the strain on the zip and also to stop the tape flapping about. Make sure you are only stitching zip tape to SA and you are not stitching through the actual garment.

Change to an ordinary zip foot (sometimes called a half foot). There’s two ways to do this step, it’s mostly personal preference but Option 1 is probably the stronger of the 2.

OPTION 1 / Anchor the full length of the zip tape to the seam allowance. Start at the top and machine stitch the tape and SA together.

OPTION 2 / Anchor the zip tape to the seam allowance at the base of the zip for just a few centimetres. You can do this bit by hand if you prefer.

Press

Give your zip a gentle final press.

NOTES / I discovered the original version of this technique a while ago, when it popped up in my Instagram feed from Threads Magazine. The YouTube video is demonstrated by the delightful Kenneth D King. I’ve adapted the original technique a little bit to help with stripe matching, I only close the CB seam to the bottom of the zip opening. The original method also closes the zip opening using a machine basting stitch. I also prefer to use an invisible zip foot, it’s just what I’m used to, but Mr King uses a generic adjustable zipper foot. The original video can be viewed here: YouTube LINK: Imperceptible Zipper by Kenneth D. King.

SHOP Sewing Patterns

Posted on 10/07/202210/07/2022 by mavenpatterns

How To Sew The Perfect V-neck

I made Eve this V-neck version of The Joy dress. The brief was a shorter Joy with a V-neck and in black. Mission accomplished! The centre back length of New Joy is 69cm (27”) and we used the Mr.M’s organic black cotton poplin, which gathers beautifully for a frill!

You may have met Eve at one of the shows, she’s our eldest daughter and head of the studio here. I actually made this last summer (you know me, never like to rush into anything, the Queen of procrasination), anyway I thought now would be a good time to share how I did it as the UK is having a heatwave and I’ve actually taken my cardi off!

This is a good little tutorial to have in your sewing kit and not just suitable for The Joy Dress as this is a good way of stitching any V-neckline finished with a facing.

I changed the front neckline but there’s no reason why you couldn’t add a sassy little V in the back too!

For the purposes of this tutorial I’ve just made a sample of the neckline to show the process of how to sew a v-neck, I haven’t made the bust darts so the neckline lays flat in a photo but you should follow the Joy Maker instructions and pop over here for the neckline sewing bit.

How To sew the perfect V-neckline.

The Pattern

First, you’ll need to alter the pattern. As always when altering a pattern trace off a copy so your original stays intact (if you have the PDF version you can always print another). You will only need to trace the front body and the front facing.

On the pattern draw in the SA (seam allowances) I’ve marked the original ones in red.

Decide how low you’d like your V to finish and mark on the pattern. I lowered Joy 4cm (marked on my pattern with the arrow).

Redraw your new neckline, my new lines are in green. I used part of the original neckline and used a slightly curved line to join to the lowered point.

You could draw a perfectly straight line if you wanted to but, and it is a personal choice, I always feel that a V-neck with a slight curve to it looks nicer and less harsh.

Add the 1cm SA( ⅜”) on and cut away the excess pattern.

Repeat for the facing. Just lay the facing and body pattern together, aligned at the top and Centre Front, and trace your new neck shape. You may know that facings should be a slightly different shape to the main body to allow for ‘turn of cloth’ but in this case, because of the straps, we are going to ignore that and keep them the exactly same neckline shape.

The Interfacing

Follow the Joy instructions (steps 1 and 2) and apply fusible stay tape to the wrong side the body at neckline and armhole. I haven’t added any to the facing but if you have a soft or drapey fabric that you would like to give a little more support to, apply interfacing tape to both the body and the facing.

Sew!

Follow the Joy instructions until you get to step 19.

At this stage you will have the straps in place. The body and facing are made and placed with right side together, and stitched together across the back and around armhole with just the neckline left to stitch.

Tips for sewing a V-neckline

Make life easier and mark in the SA with a suitable fabric marker – i.e. one that is not going to leave a permanent mark!

Nothing looks worse than an off centre V (that’s probably an exageration, but you know what I mean). I’ve marked the Centre Front line on the facing just so you can see it, you may want to mark yours.

Stitch with care so you don’t stretch the neckline.

Here’s the clever trick with stitching a ‘V’.

Using 1cm S/A( ⅜”), start at the strap and stitch towards the point. Start with your normal stitch length, and about 3cm (1½”) up from base of “V” change to a smaller stitch length.

At the ‘V’ base, rather than stitching to a point, pivot (by keeping your needle in the fabric) and stitch HORIZONTALLY across one stitch and then pivot again to continue stitching back up the other side of the neckline.

Stitch for about 3cm (1½”) with the smaller stitch length and then change back to a normal stitch length. Press the stitchline.

Snip very carefully into the SA at base of the ‘V’, right up to but not through the stitch line. It won’t turn cleanly to the right side if you don’t clip in far enough but it will fray if you cut too far!.

Trim the excess SA to 6mm (¼”) so it will turn to the right side cleanly. I rarely use the ‘clipping’ seam allowance method, trimming the SA down to 6mm gives a much smoother curve and is quicker!