Saturday, June 5, 2010

Sewing projects

The piles of material are gradually decreasing. There is a lot of stretch knit that my mom gave me over the last few years. Stretch knit is not my fabric of choice. Frequently, the neckline ends up stretched out of shape or the hem doesn't hang right. To help use up the knit fabric and gain better sewing skills, I decided to make several tank tops. The kids can use them for sleeping if the shirts don't look just right.

Paige and Allie were my first guinea pigs for this project. (They are the least fashion conscious.) The first top was made following the directions from the pattern maker, to fold the edges over twice and straight stitch in place. The neckline stretched and didn't lay flat...one sleeping shirt completed.

The second shirt was made folding over the neckline and armholes twice and stitched using a zigzag stitch. The results were a little better, but not of "day wear" quality. Another sleeping shirt completed.

On the third shirt, I decided to only fold the neckline and armholes one time and stitch with a zigzag stitch. The results were good. Paige and Allie would wear the shirt outside without any problem. The older children thought that it looked like it was "made with loving hands at home". Not good enough.

For the fourth shirt, a single fold neckline and armhole using a straight stitch was used. Success!@!! The fabric lays perfectly flat, no stretching in the neckline. I did not finish the edges of the fabric because knit doesn't fray and I thought that the extra stitching would make the neckline and armholes too bulky.

After spending an evening working with stretch knits, a reward was in order. The next day, I made two pairs of Capri pants for Paige and Allie. The fabric is a light weight summer-slacks weight in a khaki color. There is some drape in the fabric. I used some leftover fabric from the girls short sets (made earlier in the week) for the waist band. They turned out so cute! The girls look great in them. It will be wonderful to have light-weight Capris for them to wear in the evening when the mosquitoes are biting!

1 comment:

Melinda said...

I'm glad you wrote about your experiment. I have the same problem with knits. Will try it your "new" way next time.