Sewing Lessons & FAQ

[ohairas]

Lining is what makes me NOT want to learn to sew. It totally confuses me.
Nikki

 

[hotrod_elf]

I hear ya! I have Vogue 2902 and they want a darn liner in the thing. I'm going to try it without...

I made that dress. Thats where I figures out how do some lining. I like how it came out.

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I made the straps twice.

 

[Lady Day]

I line just about everything I make. In fact, I feel strange if I dont line it. Depending on the pattern, some garments have lining pieces already cut out for it (jackets/coats etc). I tend to add an inch at the sleeves and hem, so I can have some wiggle room when I stitch the lining in the shell.

I tend to just cut out the same pieces as the shell of the garment and make it up then just pin it inside (I match up seams, especially beneath the arm and at the collar) and hand stitch the entire thing in place. There is no easy way around it. I hand stitch it all.

I love the look of a lined garment, it cant be beat. so I reccomend doing it. Youll lear a lot too.

Good luck!!

LD

 

[hotrod_elf]

Thank you LD

Thats what I wanted to hear. After I made some shirts that weren't not lined and then that dress, I like the finished look of things lined. I did have the right idea.

 

[Josephine]

I made that dress. Thats where I figures out how do some lining. I like how it came out.

I made the straps twice.

Very nice! So you did the lining? What kind of material did you use? Do you think I really need to? :S

After I made some shirts that weren't not lined and then that dress, I like the finished look of things lined. I did have the right idea.

Erg. Ok. I still want to know what you lined it with.

 

[Snookie]

I have question: I want to make a lining for this coat. I think I know how to do it, but want reassurance before I cut everything. Here is what I think I'm suppose to do. Cut the lining same as the pattern and follow the direction. with the coat inside out and the lining right side in figure out how the attach them together. Am I far off or do I have the right idea?


LD I know you have wonderful experience with linnings and coats, any hints?


The Lime green cordrouy is the outside shell and the blk/red/white is the lining.

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Good advice from that dressmaking book - make sure to read the section on how to make your front lining pattern, as it has to be smaller than the jacket front b/c of the inside facing. (open up any man's jacket to see what I mean)

You should also combine the back jacket and yoke pieces for the lining - you don't want a lining yoke seam with those gathers.

Boxy jackets like yours aren't usually lined, but I think it's a great idea - they tend to swing open and reveal the inside, so you might as well put your extra effort into a lining insead of finishing all your seams. If a full lining is too intimidating, you could also use your contrast for just the inside yoke. ooh, I'm getting inspired....

 

[Snookie]

Okay, so I looked at one of my jackets that I thought was unlined, and I was wrong. So here's some visual aid pics - hope you can see everything okay...

Jacket Front:

Inside Front Lining: Note how the lining is substantially smaller because the facing takes up a good third of the front. Check out the bottom hem, too (sorry it's cut off)- the facing goes to the edge, the lining stops about a 1/2" higher.

Inside Back Lining: My jacket has a back neck facing below the collar/above the lining, but you don't have to have that. Just wanted to show the CB pleat.

 

[Miss 1929]

I will bravely attempt this dress:

And I will let you all know what happens! It is a copy of a 30s pattern, available from Decades of Fashion. I am not much of a seamstress...and my hip to bust ratio means I have to adjust every pattern a lot. Wish me luck!

 

[Lady Day]

Great pics Snookie!

Hotrod-elf,

Here are a few of my hand sewn linings.

You can see along the top my stitch.

Here as well.

If I paid attention more I would have used a better color thread, but black was handy

These both were fitted jackets, so I did a blind hem stitch around the bottom as well. It took me about 2 hrs to sew in the lining for each jacket. That aint too bad, but its two hours! lol

LD

 

[ssubialdea]

I would love to see pics of how this turned out! I have a few dresses I would like to try this on as well.
Besides, you talked about how cute the trim was and we wanna see!
Nikki

I'll try and posts pics of this tonight, I've been a bit sick lately and I haven't wanted to do much!

 

[KittyT]

Notes on bias tape/seam binding

Here are a few things I've discovered recently that have made seam binding a breeze! I'm working on Butterick 4790 right now and not only have they made the seam bindings a total breeze, but they've made them virtually the easiest part of this dress.

* A tip I got from patternreview.com that works like a charm! When using binding on curves edges, open binding and press flat, working tape into a circle as you press. This will press a nice curve into your bias tape and will make it a lot easier to pin tape around curves such as necklines and armholes.

* Use a blind hem foot on your sewing machine when stitching seam binding. This allows you to get really close to the edge of the tape and sew a perfectly straight and evenly spaced row of stitching, without ever having to worry about sewing off the edge.

 

[hotrod_elf]

Very nice! So you did the lining? What kind of material did you use? Do you think I really need to? :S



Erg. Ok. I still want to know what you lined it with.

I used a lighter color green that match, normal garmet lining. I wanted something that was smooth and would not stick the linen on the outside. I can post pictures if you like.

Thank you LD and Snookie both of those were very helpful

 

[Josephine]

I used a lighter color green that match, normal garmet lining.

Shows how much I know, I didn't know there was such a thing as garment lining.

 

[Ada Veen]

Wowzer, what a great dress!

 

[ssubialdea]

Quote:
Originally Posted by ohairas
I would love to see pics of how this turned out! I have a few dresses I would like to try this on as well.
Besides, you talked about how cute the trim was and we wanna see!
Nikki
I'll try and posts pics of this tonight, I've been a bit sick lately and I haven't wanted to do much!


Ok, so here are a few pictures of the dress and what I did to take it in. As I said before it was a bit big overall so I ended up making one large dart in the back of the dress. (I also ended up taking in the two small waist darts at the front for a better fit). The first pic is just of the dress, the second shows where the seam was made (blue line) and the third pic shows the seam (blue line) and the outline of the extra fabric (green line) This can be cut off, but I figured I'd leave it in for future use in case I grow a bit, although I'm not planning to Anyways I hope this helps ohairas!

 

[ohairas]

Ssubialdea thank you! This is exactly what I had in mind doing myself. I'm so glad it worked! What a GREAT dress! I'm so glad you got it to fit you. :eusa_clap

Kitty, thanks for the binding tip. I was gonna try and skip the binding but maybe I'll give it a go now.
NIkki

 

[Ada Veen]

yeah, kitty, that binding tip is great, thanks so much.

 

[KittyT]

I've also discovered that sewing binding is much easier if you tack the folded under ends by hand before machine sewing. Helps eliminate shifting, and those bias tape folds are just impossible to pin through!

 

[hotrod_elf]

The International System for pattern making

Has anyone heard or use this system?

I took a class at Hancock Fabrics and this guy was showing us how to use this pattern making system with your own measurements and mini sized patterns.

It really made it seem easy to make your own and change commercial patterns to fit you. You just had to buy their tools.

 

[dakotanorth]

great resource- hope it helps!

I don't know if everyone has seen this website or not:

http://www.vintagesewing.info/

and correct- there is no .com at the end.
They scanned a bunch of old sewing/tailoring/pressing books so you can read the books online. GREAT references! :eusa_clap
The laundering section has a few lost secrets too- I actually bought a bottle of "Mrs. Stewart's Bluing" after I read about it.

Hotrod Elf: What parts did you line on the jacket?