Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Flickr Friends: Suzanne from Winter Wonderings, Wanderings & Whatnot

Today we have Suzanne joining us with great top stitching detail tutorial.  Thanks Suzanne for adding some great details to our blog!!

Hi all, I can't tell you how excited I am to have been invited to guest post here at Project Run and Play.  I think I am the new girl on the block - I only discovered PR&P a week or two prior to the open auditions for this season.  I started scouring the archives and discovered this world of phenomenal seamstresses and amazing moms.  I am so happy that I was able to sew along in the Flickr  group... I hope to get to know you all much better!!!

Oh yeah, and I'm Suzanne Winter- from Winter Wonderings, Wanderings, and Whatnot (http://winterwonderingswanderingswhatnot.blogspot.com)I know, that is a mouthful - so you can just say Winter Wonderings, or Winter W3, or that W obsessed lady.  I have three babies - twin boys A&B who are 20 months old and Baby girl who is 6 months old.  Yep, that is 3 babies 14 months apart.  Life is crazy to say the least, but I love it and I love them.
On to the Tutorial!

Decorative Top Stitching:


I received such amazing feedback on A's Blazer from the White sheet challenge week, and what people seemed to love the most was the top stitching I did on the back and the pockets. 

The method is simple, it is just a bit time consuming depending on how close you decide you want your lines to be. I went with a chevron effect, but you could do horizontal lines or vertical lines, curvy lines, criss crossed lines - the world is your oyster ;o)

Here we go....

You will need:
-Your cut out fabric pattern pieces
-Thread (in the color of your choosing)
-Tailors chalk or a disappearing fabric pen
-Clear ruler

Take your cut fabric pieces that you want to top stitch.

The pockets were the last pieces I did and therefor the easiest, so we'll start with them.



- Mark the center at the top and bottom of the pocket and draw a line from top to bottom
(*Sorry, I didn't take tons of pictures as I was working, so these not to scale diagrams will have to suffice)



- Find the bias line (I was using a square so I lined my ruler up corner to corner)


- Draw a line from the bottom corner up to the center line along the bias

- Using the ruler's guide lines, line your first marked line up with the 1/4 inch guide line and draw another line (if you want them spaced further apart just chose a different spacing).




- Keep going until that side is filled up
- flip to the other side. I like to start at the middle so that the lines stay as evenly matched up as possible (once again, line up corner to corner).





Tired of drawing lines? Ok, now it is time to sew...




You are going to stitch on top of every drawn on line. I like using a slighting longer straight stitch so that the thread really shows. Make sure your needle is set in the center and use a standard foot

-line up your foot with the vertical line the marks the middle from top to bottom, sew along the line

- next, move to the diagonal lines. Stitch from the outer corner toward the middle line

- when you hit the middle line, plant your needle, lift your foot, rotate your fabric until you are lined up with the opposite side's line. Set your foot back down and sew along the remainder of the line.

-Repeat, repeat, repeat.... setting the lines further apart means less repeating, but the close lines look so good.

Voila!


Now for the pieces of the pattern (like two back pieces that will be sewn together)




-Line up your two pieces side by side so that they are perfectly aligned

-Frame the area you want to have stitching. I wanted the stitching to create a yolk across the back, so I drew a line straight across the pieces from just bellow the bottom of the right armscy the the bottom of the left.




-Follow the same steps as above for drawing the diagonal lines (just skip the drawing the center vertical line part)


-I found that by having the pieces side by side, I was able to keep track of the mines matching up

-When sewing your lines, sew from the horizontal line up - this way you can back tac a few stitches at your horitontal line and keep them even.




-Once you have sewn all your lines on, pin the two pieces right sides together

*when placing your pin, pin through a line - if it goes through the line on the opposite piece of fabric your points will be practically perfect (I don't know that there is a 'perfect' perfect in the sewing world).

-Press your seam open


-Now you are going to sew along the horizontal line you drew first.. I stitched this 2x to give the line more weight.

Step back and admire your gorgeous creation!
(*After sewing the garment together that is ;op)


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8 comments :

  1. Awesome detailing, Suzanne! And so precise! Thank you for sharing this technique.

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  2. süper paylaşımlara bayılıyorum

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  3. just simply amazing!! just love the orange:)

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  4. I remember LOVING this jacket in the Flickr Pool - so happy to see Suzanne here! Well done!

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  5. This is such a great little jacket for boys. Love the details!

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  6. awww - thanks ladies - I am so happy to be here!!! (and a little star struck)

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  7. This was one of my favorites too! Love the look and the tutorial.

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