Faux Piping Trim

I recently made this coat which I've posted on Sew Passionista.



I thought I'd show you how I achieved the look of piping along the front openings.



It's simple really. When you press the facing of the garment , you roll a little out to show from the right side. Then you stitch in the ditch to fasten it permanently. It's that easy.




When sewing with faux leather like mine, it's necessary to use strips of tissue paper under the fabric on top of the feed dogs because it just won't budge otherwise.(see photo above) You then peel the tissue off and pick out any residue from the paper.



And that's all there is to it!

More another time from

Just a Word About Flat Felled Seams

Savannagal left a comment about flat felled seams in my last post. She said

My question is: I am wondering if this type of seam (flat felled) finish is commonly used on specific seam locations. Or if it can be used anywhere on a garment. I'm wondering because it appears that there are two lines of sewing on the outside of the garment wherever this technique is used.

Here's what I do.I usually use flat felled seams on seams that are straight like a shoulder seam , a side seam, or the under arm of a sleeve, etc. I believe you could use only one line of stitching if you wanted to. I usually use two because I love to top stitch as many of you know.Here are two photos. Unfortunately, they are both of light coloured garments.

This shows a side seam on this jacket



This one is a neckline and shoulder seam on this jacket



Having said that however, I've used flat felled seams on the seam joining the sleeve to the armhole with good results. It can be done on wool, linen and cottons that have some give to them. I doubt this would be successful on polyester though.Here's an example on a thick quilted cotton jacket I made a few years ago.



Savanna, I hope I answered your question. If not, please let me know.

Alternative for a Bust Dart on a Knit Garment

I don't know about you but I don't find a bust dart (especially for a D cup) attractive on a T-shirt. There's another way, thank goodness!

I usually add an inch to my front pattern piece to accomodate a bust dart. On knits, you can run a row of long stitches, ( I use 5.0 length of stitch) and pull up a little and then ease the front to the back at the side seams and it hardly shows at all.



This is what it looks like on the outside.



This is the finished top.



I hope I didn't over simplify but that's really all there is to it!

Happy sewing from