Stretch lace tee tutorial

Did you ever consider that stretch lace could be used to sew up a simple tee shirt?  It just takes the right pattern and a few small sewing modifications!   Here, I've used this lovely stretch lace in "Naughty Navy".

When choosing a pattern for a stretch lace tee, here are a few guidelines:

• Keep the number of pattern pieces to a minimum--a style with just front, back and sleeve pieces will work better than one with many style lines.
• Bust darts are okay!
• A jewel or boatneck would work best, but you can also modify a favorite pattern to have the neckline of your choosing. 
• Look for a style without closures.   
• A semi-fitted style would be most appropriate.

For my version, I used Vogue 8151 pattern, (apparently out of print, but I found it in the store) but here are some others that might work well, too:

• Sewaholic's Renfrew top (omitting the waist and sleeve bands, and maybe raising the neckline)
• Colette's Mesa top (via Seamwork), made as a dress or shortened to a top.
• Vogue 9205
• Burda 6749 or 6820
• New Look 6150 (View D)
• McCalls 6927
• Butterick 5215

In addition to the stretch lace fabric, you will also need about 3/4 yd of lining fabric, in a lightweight knit (such as lightweight cotton, rayon, or bamboo knit).  Choose a contrast or matching color; here I went with this peachy knit fabric to highlight the design in the lace.

Step 1: Cut your pattern pieces (front, back, sleeves) from lace.  I made some fit adjustments and widened the neckline, but otherwise stuck pretty close to the size Small for this pattern.

Step 2: Cut the front and back pieces from your lining fabric.  No need to line the sleeves!

Step 3:  If your pattern has bust darts, sew them now in both the lace and lining.

Step 4: Sew the shoulder seams of the front/ back pieces in lace.  Then, sew the shoulder seams of the lining fabric.  I did not include 1/4" clear elastic at the shoulder seams, but it would be useful.  If you choose to apply clear elastic, sew it into either the lace or the lining (not both).

 Step 5: With right sides facing, line up the necklines of the lace and lining fabric.  Sew using a stretch stitch or overlock.  Lightly press on the lining side.

Step 6.  Now, treat the lining like an underlining.  Baste the lining and lace together along the both sides and the armhole to keep the layers together.  I used a simple straight stitch, but you can use a 3-thread overlock and then trim it off as you overlock the side seams together later.  

Step 7: Sew in the sleeves, easing the curve if needed.

Step 8: Sew the side seam, from wrist to hem, trimming off your basting stitches as you go.

Step 9: Hem the sleeves and top using a stretch stitch, double needle, or coverstitch machine.  

Step 10: Wear your beautiful creation, dressed up with wool pants or a pencil skirt, or dressed down with jeans.   Easy!

Many thanks to Britex for providing the fun lace fabric!  

Tutorial: Super-easy two-tone infinity scarf

Who says you can't wear linen in the winter?  Using some amazing linen knit fabric from Britex, I sewed up a beautiful and warm color-blocked infinity scarf, perfect for the colder months.  For my version, I chose two different colors--turquoise and navy--but this tutorial would work equally well if you wanted to go with a single color of fabric.   Here's what to do.

Above is a photo of the end product, so you can see the big picture at the start.  In a nutshell, I cut two long rectangles of fabric, which I sewed together along the long edges to create a tube.  The tube ends were then sewn together to create a closed loop.  Okay, now that you know where you're going, cut your fabric!

For my scarf, I used the entire selvage-to-selvage width of the fabric (about 60") as the long edge.  To make it easier to cut, I folded the fabric in half lengthwise and cut a 14" strip of each fabric.  You can make your scarf wider or narrower as you like, but I found this to be just right--not too bulky, but still wide enough to feel cozy.

Placing the two 14"x60" fabric strips right sides facing, even out the ends to make sure both strips are exactly the same length.  (In the image above, the strips are folded in half length wise).

Keeping the strips facing, overlock the entire long edge of one side of the rectangle (the top side, in the diagram below).  Overlock the other long edge, keeping 2" on both ends were left unstitched (the bottom edge in the diagram).   This unstitched area allows you to sew the ends together later on.  At this point, you can turn the tube inside out to press the seams, but that's not necessary.

At this point, you should have a long tube, open at both ends.  To connect the open ends of the tube, with right sides and same colors facing, line up the the raw edges.  In the image below, the edges of the aqua fabric are lined up (right sides facing), with the navy fabric pushed out of the way for the moment.

Begin sewing at the side of the tube with the unfinished long edge.  Sew across the raw edge and other seam, adjusting the fabric as you go.  Continue the seam along the raw edge of the other color, finishing at the other side of the tube.  As you get to the end of the seam, it may take some work to keep the raw edges even.  Go slowly and maneuver the fabric around the rest of the scarf, which will emerge through the small opening when you are done.  

Pull the scarf right side out; the two ends will be connected, with a small hole on the edge.

Sew the hole closed with tiny invisible stitches, matching up the center seam.

Done!  Here, I've looped the scarf twice around my neck.

It can also be worn as a hood/scarf combination for those cold and windy days in the bay area!

  Or, the scarf can even be worn with one end looped through the other.  So versatile!

Many thanks to Britex for providing the fabric for this quick and fun project!  

Tutorial: Covering snaps with thick fabric

I'm making a jacket which calls for non-functional buttons over snaps and since the garment will be worn such that the male side of the snaps may show, I really wanted to cover them.  I couldn't use the standard method for applying the self fabric (gathering the fabric behind the snap with a running stitch) because my fabric (heavyweight water-resistant twill) is way too thick.  As a matter of fact, the fabric was so thick that I couldn't cover both halves of the snap pair, so I opted to leave the female side uncovered, since it wasn't going to show anyhow.   Here's a clean and easy way to cover the male part of a snap if you have some heavy-weight fabric.

So first off, trace the snap half on the back of a fabric scrap.

Use a small punch to create a tiny hole right in the center of the circle, as a place to start cutting with tiny scissors.

Carefully cut around the starting circle to expand it to just smaller than the "male" part of the male snap. This might take a trial or two--you don't want it too big, and too small is no good either.

Apply Fray-Check liberally to the back and front side of the hole edge keeps it from fraying to bits. 

Then, cut around the original drawn circle.  The amount to cut beyond the drawn circle will vary a bit, based on the size of the snap.  A good place to start is about half the diameter of the snap.  This snap is a bit less than 1" and I extended the circle by about 3/8".

The male part of the snap can then be pushed through the hole, even before the Fray-Check dries, since Fray-Check stiffens the fabric.

Flip the snap over and begin cutting triangles out of the edge of the circle, stopping 1/8" from your drawn circle.  More triangles means a smoother edge around your snap when you draw the fabric underneath, so don't be quick to finish!

Apply Fray-Check around all the cut edges of your little gear :)

Once the Fray-Check dries, begin sewing the fabric underneath the snap.  Start by inserting your needle into one "gear tooth" from the underside.  Then, insert the needle through a gear tooth on the opposite side of the snap.  

Continue going from one side to the other drawing the teeth together (kind of like a corset), pulling the threads tightly as you go.

Done!

This method is more time-consuming for sure, but results in a beautiful finished snap, without a huge amount of bulk underneath.  As I mentioned, I didn't cover the female side of the snap, but a similar method could be used.

Thanks for stopping by!  In the next few days, I'll reveal my lovely green jacket with half-covered snaps!  

P.S.  I wanted to share one of my Christmas gifts--an adorable punch felted pin cushion from Foxtail Creek Studio.  How sweet is that?  Those trees remind of the truffula trees from The Lorax! Thank you to my family for finding such a gorgeous addition to my sewing room!  

Tutorial: Insertion lace along the hem band

Okay, now for how I sewed insertion lace around the bottom (check out my previous Tutorial, for how to sew lace on a curved seam, such as those princess seams above).  The hem band of the Hayden top is a folded, bias cut piece.  To insert the lace within that seam, I first sewed the lace directly onto the bottom of the blouse, using the edge of the blouse as a guideline.  In the image below, I sewed the top edge of the lace, farthest from the raw edge of the bodice fabric, sewing right over the lace that was already inserted.

The fabric was pressed open, zig-zag stitched and pressed close to the seam.  (Sorry, no photos!)  To attach the bias band, I positioned the fabric right side up, underneath the lace, attempting to have an equal seam allowance all around.  Below is what it looks like from the right side, and then what it looks like from the wrong side.  Back on the right side, I used a straight stitch to attach the lace to the band.

I pressed the fabric open, but did not zig-zag the seam before trimming the seam allowance to 1/4", see below. (The zig-zag stitch will happen later.)

To avoid additional stretch, especially while pressing the seam allowance, I sewed a basting stitch along the unsewn side of the bias hem band.  Then, I used that line to guide pressing of the seam allowance.  

Finally, I folded the hem band in half lengthwise, carefully lining up the edge of the hem band with the edge of the lace, pinning all the way.  

Finally, on the right side, I zig-zagged through all the layers.

Unfortunately, this method had some problems.  First off, I couldn't sew everything with a perfectly even seam allowance .  This isn't a huge deal, but it made me feel uneasy (and a bit grumpy).  Second, the bias stretched a bit with all the handling.  Perhaps this could have been solved by more basting stitches?   

Perhaps the best way to do it would have been to mimic what I did with the curved seams; sew the first seam as instructed with basting stitches, apply the lace, remove the basting stitches, and then fold up the hem band to attach to the lace edge.  

At the end of the day, I still adore the look of the insertion lace in this top.  The edges are frayed a bit on the inside, but hey, there are worse things!