Sunday, July 05, 2009

Chiffon gathers


Hmm, Just found this dress which is by Maggy London the same designer as the pattern I'm using and is very similar to the pattern I'm using, the midriff part is just thinner.





But how did they get the gathers so small!! Mine are kinda chunky :(

My first method, used on the neckline, was to sew two rows of stitching, both inside the 1.5cm seam allowance and then pull the top threads to create the gathers. But on the midriff I sewed the lines of stitching either side of the seam line (and then pulled out the threads after sewing the seams) and this produced a better result but still not as tiny as these gathers ... poo.

Anyone know?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Maybe it was the type of fabric you used? Some chiffony types are thicker than others. A really delicate silk chiffon would gather in smaller.

EmilyKate said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
EmilyKate said...

Sorry, that's me that made and then deleted a comment, had typos!
Are the bodice front pieces cut on the bias? Bias-cut fabric tends to ruche up tighter, so that might be part of it... but yes, the fabric used for the Maggy London dress in the blue, seems to be a much sheerer chiffon than what you are using for your version.
I like the level of ruchiness you have achieved, I don't think you need to get it any ruchier, and it's prpbably not worth recutting on the bias if it isn;t already, I donlt think it would make THAT much of a difference... You're a saint for offering to make it too by the way- don't you know you should never tell anyone you can sew ;o)

MildlyCrafty said...

Thanks for your comments. Perhaps you're right and a sheerer chiffon would make thinner gathers, makes sense. The midriff is cut on the bias but the bodice pieces aren't, I wondered why they weren't because I think you'd be able to stretch the fabric a bit so they sit flat instead of being a bit boofy. This is actually only test fabric so I could have another go at doing it on the bias and see what happens.