Sweet Springtime: Day 4 (Last Day!)

Okay, wow, I am officially the worst EVER at keeping up with this blog! My apologies! Really, I didn't think anyone was reading it, so why keep spending so much time posting? Then I decided today to take a peek, and it turns out over 100 people have looked at it! Apparently it made it onto Pinterest! Who knew? They are all probably wondering where on earth the rest of this dress is! I decided to finally break the suspense and add the skirt part of this dress. Once again, sorry for the delay. Now that I know people care, I'll try to be better about posting! First step, gather up your remaining pieces, 4 strips for the ruffle and one large rectangle for the main part of the skirt.

You are going to sew each of the 4 strips, right sides together, end to end. Then zig zag stitch them also so that they don't fray. When you are finished, you should have a really long strip.

Now time to fire up the iron. Fold down and press 1" along one of the edges of your long strip, and then fold it under and press again. Essentially, you are making a double fold for a hem, just as you pressed the neck and sleeves of the bodice. This time though, you don't have to worry about making it wide enough for elastic, it is only a hem, not a casing. Since your ruffle strip is so very long, you might want to consider using pins to keep it in place as you work your way down the fabric.

Next, you are going to sew the ric rac along the bottom border while sewing up the hem you just pressed. So turn your fabric right side up and lay your ric rac along the edge (which is the outer side of the folds you pressed for that hem) and line up your needle so that you will be sewing through both the ric rac and the folded hem. Sew down the length of the strip.

Now we are going to learn how to make a "gathering stitch" better known in my world as a ruffle. They sell some different feet for sewing machines that will gather or ruffle the fabric for you so that this step is much faster, but they are most certainly not needed. First thing you will need to do is change the setting on your sewing machine to the longest straight stitch setting. Mine is a "5" but all machines are different. Now adjust your tread tension dial to the highest number, mine is a "9." The most important thing to remember when sewing a ruffle is NOT to backstitch at EITHER end! These stitches are NOT meant to be permanent and you do NOT want them to be stuck in place with a backstitch.

Now that we cleared that up, turn your long strip around (still right side facing up)to sew along the edge opposite the hem you just finished. Remember, DO NOT BACKSTITCH! Line up your presser foot with the edge of the fabric and sew straight down the line, when you get to the end DO NOT BACKSTITCH! But pull out the thread nice and long before you cut it free. Don't panic if your fabric bunches or "ruffles" just a bit as you sew, that is what we are going for! But also, don't panic if it doesn't ruffle, we are just warming up for the real ruffles!

After you have sewn the length of the strip, carefully separate the top thread from the bobbin thread and take hold of the top thread. If you sewed your fabric strip with the right side facing up, then your top thread is coming up out of the right side of the fabric. To make your ruffles, you are going to gently tug on the top thread in one hand, while pushing the fabric down the thread with the other hand. Be careful not to pull too hard and break the thread, or to tug on the bobbin thread, which will tighten it up and make it hard to pull the fabric down. You can work from both sides of the strip, pushing your fabric ruffles towards the middle. Try to make them evenly spaced.

 

When your strip is totally ruffled, you will want it to be the same length as the fabric that will make up the main part of the skirt (mine is the floral fabric). Here, pins are essential. Pin the ruffled strip right along the edge of the main skirt fabric, right sides together. Make sure your ruffled strip goes right from end to end of the main skirt and that your ruffles are pretty evenly spaced.

Before moving on, you'll need to change back the settings of your sewing machine to a normal stitch length and a normal thread tension. Now, with the ruffled fabric facing up, you are going to sew these two pieces together, right over the top of the bunched up ruffled fabric. Now it is appropriate to use a backstitch again, this seam is a keeper. Be sure to go slowly, keeping a nice straight line along the edge of the fabric with your presser foot and checking that your presser foot is going OVER the top of the ruffles rather than trying to flatten them out as it glides along. After you sew a straight stitch, go back and trim any stray strings, then zig zag along the seam to finish the edge. 

Unpin, lay it flat and check out your super cute little ruffle! Press the back so that it hangs down flat.

Next, fold the skirt in half aligning the raw edges, right sides together. You are basically sewing a straight  piece of fabric into a circle (or a skirt!). If your fabric does not line up just right, keep in mind that is more important to line up the bottom of the dress because you still have time to fix the top part before attaching it to the bodice. Make sure to zig zag stitch this seam too.

Almost done! Just in case you were wanting or needing more practice, we are going to do a repeat of the gathering stitch to ruffle the skirt a bit too. If you want to go back and read the details again, go for it, I am just going to do a quick refresher. Change the settings on your sewing machine: longest stitch, highest number thread tension. Sew along the top, unfinished edge, of your skirt starting as close to the seam you just finished. Follow all along the circle until you get back to the seam again. Remember, DO NOT backstitch! Also, don't let your ending stitches cross over your beginning stitches; you will want both ends loose to tug your ruffles. For this step, I kept the wrong side of the fabric face up, so my top thread was actually coming up from the wrong side this time. Gather up your ruffles and space them evenly along your skirt.

Grab your bodice that has been waiting in the wings. This part can be a little tricky, just take your time and you'll be fine. Keeping your skirt inside out, push your bodice down into the skirt part, neck and shoulders facing the bottom of the dress so that the right sides are together. That is just about as clear as mud, I know, so try and figure it out from the picture. Align the seam on the skirt with the center of the back of the bodice and pin along the raw edges where they meet. Then, use the top threads from your gathering stitches to tighten or loosen the skirt ruffles enough to fit the bodice and pin all around into place.

Switch your sewing machine back to it's normal settings, then sew the skirt and bodice together, over the face-up ruffles, beginning and ending at the seam on the skirt. Just before you make a full circle back to the seam, you can tighten or loosen your ruffles again to ensure a perfect fit to the bodice. Make sure the whole thing gets sewn on without any gaps or holes. Go back and finish this seam with a zig zag stitch.

Lastly, fold down the ruffled skirt and press the seam to keep it from flying up, and you are done! Go grab that little one and let her twirl around in her new ruffled dress, hand made with love, just for her.

Sweet Springtime: Day 3

Day 3! Today we will finish the bodice part of the dress, making it ready to add the skirt part on tomorrow. If you have been following these posts in real time, waiting expectantly for day 3, sorry about the delay! Both my girls are battling RSV, one needs breathing treatments every 4 hours, and the other is potty training too. So, I have had my hands full! I am realizing now that it takes longer for me to write the blog posts than it does to sew the dress! Hopefully it is just because I am a beginner, I'll get it all figured out in no time(hopefully!). Anyway, let's move right along to day 3.

First, we are going to press a hem into the sleeves. We will be putting 3/8" elastic through these, so leave enough room. If you have a serger, you can serge the edges, and press it up. If you, like me, do not have a serger, you will need to press it up , fold under, and press again (a traditional hem). Just make sure you leave enough room to fit your elastic through! About 1/2" clearance is great.



Now, while your iron is hot, go ahead and press the same type of hem, also leaving room for elastic, around the neck hole of your bodice. Keep in mind that you will be turning under part of your ruffle on the front of our bodice, which will be thick and difficult to press, but it will turn out fine when it gets sewn in place. If you are big on pins, go ahead and pin it as you press. I am a bigger fan of starch, but for new cotton fabric, you can get away with nothing but a hot iron to keep your hem in place.
When you finish your pressing, your bodice should look something like this:



Okay, now that you have a beautifully pressed bodice, we are going to go ahead and completely ignore those beautiful seams that you just made as we sew shut the sleeves. You will want to open the hem up and sew the fabric flat. That way it will be shaped to fold back up when you actually do hem it, but it will make a continuous space for your elastic to pass through. Use the picture below as a reference for what I am talking about. After you sew shut the arm holes, go back and serge the raw edges. If you are like me and do not have a serger, this is when you rub your lucky penny and wish for one as you zig zag stitch the raw edge... okay, maybe not the penny part, you'll need both hands to operate your sewing machine ;) If you missed the day 2 post about zig zag stitching to seal the raw edges, read it here.



Now that the sleeves are sewn shut, go ahead and sew around the neck hole and arm holes that you already hemmed. Make sure you sew right up on the edge of your hem to allow room for your elastic to pass through. Also, leave a small opening, about a half inch, to insert the elastic. I like to start near a seam (ie the underarm area of the sleeve, the shoulder area of the neckline) and sew in a continuous seam until I see where I began, then stop short about 1/2 inch from there...does that make sense?





When you finish sewing up the hem around the neck and sleeves, your bodice should look something like this:



Now you will need to get out that 3/8 inch elastic that I keep talking about. Measure around your child's arms (or a shirt that fits well) and add 2 inches to that measurement, then cut. You will need 2 pieces that length, one for each arm. Then measure about how wide you want the neck hole to be, this measurement can vary. Some people like their peasant dresses really cinched up tight, while others leave them looser. You can always cut a long piece of elastic (for a loose neckline) and cinch it in more later when you see how it looks altogether. Okay, moving on. Fasten a small/medium sized safety pin to the end of one of your elastic pieces.



Push the end of your safety pin into the hole that you left open in the hem of your bodice, and start feeding it through, pulling the fabric down the elastic as you go. Make sure to hold onto the opposite end of your elastic so that it doesn't get lost inside the hem.



Your fabric should start bunching up around the elastic as you pull it through. When you come full circle, lead the safety pin out of the same hole that you started in. Pull both ends of elastic and tie them in a square knot, leaving about 1" on each tail to help pull it tightly.



Last step for the day! Once you have your knots tied tightly you can trim the tails, then go back and stitch up the small holes in your hem.



Now you have finished the top half, and more difficult part, of your peasant dress! It should look something like this, however, yours should have the ric rac covering the ruffle on the front. I had forgotten to add that part when I made my bodice and had to go back and put it on later.

Sweet Springtime: Day 2

It's Day 2 of the Sweet Springtime Dress and we are going to get the bodice half way done today.

First things first, press bodice pieces, sleeve pieces, and those two little 3x10 strips nice and flat. Then take one of the bodice pieces, fold it in half, and press a sharp crease down the center. You will use this crease as a guide later to lay your ruffle on. We want to make it centered!

Let me take a minute to go over my sewing ground rules before we fire up that machine! I will not say these every time, but they need to be done unless otherwise noted.
1. Always leave a 3/8" seam allowance (about the width of your presser foot)
2. Always backstitch at the beginning and end of a seam to hold it in place.
***The only time you DO NOT backstitch is when sewing a gathering stitch.
3. I am always using a straight stitch, unless you are sealing an edge with a zig-zag, or otherwise noted.
4. I am always using a basic foot (or sometimes a walking foot) unless otherwise noted.
5. Always follow up a stitched seam by pressing with a hot iron. It makes it look so much nicer!

Now, let's get busy! Put those two strips right sides together and stitch down both of the 10" sides leaving the 3" sides open.



Flip the whole thing inside out, so the right sides face out and press it flat.



Fold in a little bit (1/4 to 1/2 inch or so) on one side of the strip and press. Sew it shut. You only need to do this on one side, the other side will get shut when we sew the skirt part on.



Now we are going to sew the first of many GATHERING STITCHES. Here's the play by play:
1. Set a long stitch length on your sewing machine (4.5 to 5.0)
2. DO NOT BACKSTICH at the beginning OR the end of this seam.
3. Make sure you have a little extra thread through the needle and the bobbin before beginning your stitch (4 inches or so)
4. Align your needle right down the center of your strip and sew a straight line down from the very top to the very bottom.
5. Pull out the fabric from the machine leaving a long tail of thread hanging from the fabric (about 4 inches.
6. MAKE SURE YOU REMEMBER which thread came from the needle (top thread) and which came from the bobbin (bottom thread). You'll want to keep a firm grip on that top thread.


Now, holding firmly to your top thread in your right hand (try not to pull on your bottom thread if at all possible), start to slowly tug the top thread to the right, while pushing the fabric to the left. The fabric should start to gather up. You can pull your top thread from both ends to gather your strip.


Next, set your sewing machine back to regular stitch length (2.0/2.5ish).
Get the front bodice piece that you pressed a crease into earlier. Lay your gathered strip down that crease and adjust the gathers as needed to fit the length of the crease. Pin the enclosed end of the gathered strip down about 3/4 inch from the bodice neckline. You will need to leave that part open for the elastic encasement tomorrow. Following the gathering stitch seam, sew the strip down the crease of the bodice.


Lastly, cut a piece of ric rac the length of the ruffle and briefly run a lighter flame over the cut edges to seal them. Using matching thread, sew your ric rac right down the center, hiding the ruffle seam. While making my dress, I forgot about this little step and had to go back and do it later. That is why my pictures might not look exactly like your project at this point, so don't worry.


Next we will attach the sleeves to the bodice. Lay out the piece of the bodice that you just added the ruffle to, and lay one of the contrasting sleeve pieces on it, right sides facing, so that the arm holes align. Pin, and sew the two together along the arm holes.


Open up that sleeve to pull it out of the way and align the second sleeve with the other side of the bodice and stitch along the arm hole.


Don't forget to press your seams!

Now get the other bodice piece, the back. Align it, right sides together, with the sleeves, one at a time, and sew along the arm holes.


When you finish both sides, it should look like this:


Almost done! Hang in there! Lastly, we need to seal up the frayed edges of the fabric on the seams that we just sewed so it doesn't start to unravel and look messy. If you have a serger, lucky you, just serge the seams. If you do not have a serger, like me, you will need to use a zig zag stitch to seal them, like this:


If you have never used a zig zag stitch to seal up the edges of a seam, you are in luck, I will teach you right now! It isn't too terribly difficult really, but it is necessary for making your projects clean and pretty.

Start by setting your sewing machine to a zig zag stitch, and if you can figure it out, set your stitch length pretty short (0.6-0.9) and your stitch width fairly wide (4.5-5.0). Some sewing machines are computerized and you can select these numbers by pushing a button. Other machines are mechanical and you may need to use the screwdriver that came with your machine to turn a little knob. If in doubt, check your owners manual. If you don't have the manual, there is always Google! It would be advantageous to figure it out one way or another, it is a very useful stitch.

Moving forward, you are going to start at the top, backstitch like usual, and sew along the outside of the seam that you already made. Your needle will first "zig" to hit the fabric outside of the seam previously sewed, and then it will "zag." Ideally, you want the "zag" to hit just off of the fabric so that it will seal the raw edge. As you are sewing, you may even see the fabric folding up under itself inside the zig zag stitch. Great! It is sealing well.


Once you have all 4 of the arm hole seams sealed up you are done for today! Yay! You are on your way to a cute new dress for your sweet girl! I hope you will be back tomorrow for day 3, bodice part two.

P.S. I am still very new at this, so if there is something that is not clear to you, please leave a comment and I'll try and answer your questions as best as I can!

Sweet Springtime : Day 1

This is my "Sweet Springtime" peasant style dress. Cute, right? It is an intermediate level project. I'll divide it up into 5 days. Let's get started!

Day 1, gathering materials and cutting.
I made this in a size 2T, so you might need to adjust a bit for a different size. I bought 1 yard of the colored flowered fabric for the main part of the dress (but I had a bit left over, you could easily get by with 3/4 yd), and 1/2 yard of the green for the sleeves and ruffles. I also used 2 1/2 yards of jumbo rick rack (1 package).
Now for the cutting. For this part, I find it helpful to use a regular shirt that fits your child well (or is the size that you want your dress to be). My daughter is in a 24mos, but I want this dress to fit this summer, so I used a 2T shirt to help with the size.

Lay out your main fabric, folded in half like it comes off the bolt from the store. Fold your child's shirt in half and lay it up next to the foldline. With a fabric pencil (or a plain old #2) trace from the fold up around the neck hole to the shoulder, down a little below the arm hole at the shoulder, and a few inches down the side seam, then across to the fold again. I drew black lines on this photo to show you the shape that you want to trace. Once you have it drawn and it looks good, cut it out. Then use that piece to trace a second one on the fold. You will need two of these pieces, one for the front, one for the back.





Now you are going to cut a straight piece from the fold to the selvage that will make up the main part of the skirt. For my 2T, I cut this piece 13 inches long, allowing that there will be added length from the ruffle at the bottom.



Now for the green fabric! Open up this fabric all the way flat and cut along the foldline crease. We will use one half to make the ruffle at the bottom of the dress. Take that half and fold it in half (for all the teachers out there, hot dog style)so that the selvage edges are together at one side and the raw edges are together on the other side. Press with a hot iron, and cut down the foldline crease. Now do the same thing again with each of these two pieces. Fold them in half (hot dog style), press with iron, cut along foldline. Now you should have 4 strips of nearly equal size with the fabric grain going the same direction on each. (Sorry this picture is overexposed!)



With the other piece of the green fabric we are going to make the sleeves and the ruffle on the bodice. For the sleeves, you will want to cut two rectangles on the fold. Mine are about 9"x6", with the fold along the 9" side.



Align your two sleeve pieces on top of one another. Now lay your previously cut bodice piece on top of your sleeve pieces so that the tops align and the arm hole in the bodice piece meets up with the selvage side of the sleeve pieces. Trace the arm hole and cut it out of the sleeves (note that this is on the selvage, not the folded side). Leaving the pieces aligned, cut the sleeve pieces along the bottom edge of the bodice also. Here are step by step pictures:



Yay! Day 1 done! Come back tomorrow for the first part of the bodice tutorial.





Now you should have just a bit of green fabric left. Cut out two rectangular strips, mine were about 3"x10". All your fabric is cut! Here is a picture of all my pieces together, note that two of my 4 long green strips are hiding underneath the two that are showing. You should have 4 altogether.



Yay! You finished Day 1! I'll be back tomorrow with the first part of our bodice tutorial.