Thank you so much! I've been sewing for over 60 years and taking classes in sewing and fashion for over three years, and I've already learned four new useful tips from your video today. These tips will make sewing prom dresses so much easier to deal with.
I always iron out wrinkles before cutting out the pattern. Rule of thumb is to PRESS your pieces, but you can iron uncut fabric, finished garments, and stay-stitched pieces. The difference between pressing and ironing is whether you move the iron on the fabric or press it down and lift it up in a manner that does not distort the weave. When fabric is not supported by selvages, you must PRESS only--no sliding or gliding, not even under a pressing cloth. Happy stitching!
That's really handy to know- 👍 do you have to let it cool before moving the fabric, you know, before letting it hang over the side of the ironing board and doing the next section?
Thank you so much for this lesson. I really appreciate it. I have lots of silk and satin from wedding gown and prom dresses that I purchased from Salvation Army at 75% off. I bought them all. Now I need to learn how to quilt with them.
In practice, holding tight doesn't work most of the time because the seams are not always on straight grain. I usually back with paper and tear away after stitching.
With knits, I definitely use a rotary cutter to cut out my pieces, to prevent any unwanted stretching. If your pattern has a lot of curves to it, I would invest in a smaller rotary blade. The big blades work great though if you're just doing straight lines. Be sure to do it on a self-healing mat so you don't damage any surfaces. And if you don't want to invest in fabric weights, you can just use canned goods to hold everything in place. good luck!
Thanks so much. I am making a really great dress out of slinky fabric and honestly have not worked with this type of fabric before. This will be fun and I'm sure I'll have fewer issues. Great video, well done.
Thanks for sharing this. I'm going to be making a dress for my daughter out of crepe backed satin and will be adding some tissue paper to my list of supplies!
Your videos are always so good - very detailed and with perfect camera angles where we can see everything going on. So helpful for beginners! If you're not already, you should be an instructor at a design school.
This is a GREAT channel - I love how you are able to magnify the image of the needle/machine. It even looks high definition. Thank you so much for offering this help! I will check in often! Suzy
I use these techniques with all fabric that's slippery and hard to work with. If you're making something for the first time, make a muslin. This means use a cheap fabric like muslin so you can work through the process and test the fit before using your nicer fabric.
Thank you for fast replay! I do have small rotary cutter. Just didn't think of using it! Thank you. For the weights I use a few simple round rocks. I crocheted over them and they look pretty cool.
Your video contains great tips and valuable information. I really like how you demonstrate attaching tissue paper to silk fabric! What a fantastic idea!
I would definitely use the tissue paper trick when sewing the seams. It'll keep it from stretching as you sew and should help with the puckering. Just rip it off when your seam is done. If your fabric can handle the heat, it might be better to use steam to iron it out.
@Virgina bliss i wouldn't because newspaper is pretty dirty and the ink could stain your fabric. I can usually pick up a pack of tissue paper from the 99cent store.
Oh these are great tips. I'm making an 1870's formal ball gown for a musical I'm in, and the bustled part in the back is black silk. This should make it much easier to work with. Thanks so much.
Thanks alot.....your video is very detailed and very good tips to stitch with silk fabrics, as i am already working with the silk fabric......was very helpfull for me.Great...
Thanks for the video! before I start working with silk what material do you recommend me to start with. to practice and which exercises with a stitch sewing machine? Thank you
Help! My seams pucker like you show at the end of the video - holding it tight is a great tip, but what if the fabric was cut on the bias? I have so much trouble making my seams look neat when I sew slippery fabrics on the bias, and I can't find any resources online that help with this!
Hi! I would like to ask that how do I know how "heavy" my fabric is? I'm going to work with a 100% polyester silk like fabric. Thank you so much for the anwer!
Thank you for: 1. talking slowly and focusing the camera :) 2. breaking everything down to step-by-step slowly 3. the scotch tape trick 4. showing me how to thread the machine. I had actually figured out the holding the cloth part but the tension was off (your other video shows how to adjust that, i put it on 3.5). The fabrics I am using are all very thin and all very shiny, like silk, they are all from lessemf. can you help me figure out how to design & sew a cloth cpap mask?
You can totally prevent your fabric from being "sucked down into that hole" by simply using a throat plate made for just the single needle (most manufacturers make one). And using a foot that is also made to accommodate a needle width only. No need to mess with tape. 😊
Thank you for this video, it is so informative and helpful :) ! I do have a question, with regards to fabric puckering. Could adjusting tension also help fix that?
Thank you for this. I just bought some material for a costume and it's a silk-like material. I'm terrified I'm going to mess up. This video makes me a little less nervous about tackling this project. :D
+Jennifer Powers practice on some scraps to gain some confidence. :) I think the sewing isn't so bad, it's the cutting that can be the trickiest with slippy fabric. You can do it!
Jennifer Powers yea, I just bought LOADS of poly satin for a costume and I've only ever sewn cotton and canvas. I'm freaking terrified, but I figured I've gotta start sometimes so better sooner than later.
Linda Johnson it varies according the fabric so you just want to practice on scraps. Usually I loosen the thread tension a bit and put my foot pressure at a higher number.
Thanks a lot :D In mexico fabric stores don't have tags on their fabrics, just the ones with prices (at least the ones I know). I'm just starting to learn how to sew. Are there specific situation where knowing this characteristics are necessary?
Thanks for the wonderful tips and instruction! Should I use tissue paper alterations? I want to make some tucks in a Off the Rack blouse that is made of a poly crepe.
Does your machine just seem to get stuck in position? I hate when that happens! I find that the tissue paper trick seems to work well. So on the wrong side of your fabric you should have interfacing covering the buttonhole are. On the right side, lay a strip of tissue paper over the area you're going to do a buttonhole. Transfer your buttonhole mark to the tissue paper. You may want to pin your tissue paper to the fabric to hold it. Stitch buttonholes, tear off tissue paper. voila!
Thank you so much for your satin videos! Do you have any suggestion on the tension setting for bridal satin? It feels a lot heavier to me than the usual silky satin stuff I've seen. I bought 80/20 needles. Do you think that will do the trick? I also bought Coats & Clark Dual Duty XP extra fine thread, but now I am wondering if it's going to be too thin for the material I have. I'm so nervous! I am making my own wedding dress for the reception.
A Schwengler omg, that reminds me when my mom made my bridesmaid dress, years and years ago. The bride choose satin and all the seams in my dress were rippling. It had that "homemade" touch. haha. I think you'll be fine with 80/20 needles and I'd use just regular all purpose thread (or if the satin is actually silk satin, you can use a silk thread). If you have a walking foot, it would probably help, but definitely use the tissue paper trick. And practice on scraps until you have nice looking seams. You can do it! :)
oh no! That's exactly what I am afraid of! I want to make sure I do it right, and I won't wear it if it looks terribly homemade! :/ Haha. Yes, I have many presser feet and a walking foot is one of my favorites! I will make note and do that! Thank you! I read somewhere that Coats and Clark Dual Duty XP Extra fine was good for satin, but my satin is heavier weight. I suppose I may just need to try it on a swatch of fabric! Thank you for your input!
+Vai Mardti I would say it depends on how slippery the fabric is. If it doesn't slip around much, then I would say you're probably fine but maybe use a rotary cutter to get a more accurate piece. If it's really slippery, I would take the time to cut on a single layer. This means for pieces on a fold, you need to place it on the fabric, use chalk to trace it, then flip the piece, lining up the center front and draw the other side, and then cut it all out.
Hii, id like to make a silky prom dress ( looking like the one from vampire diaries miss mystic falls) and I don't have a lot of money, what royal blue silky fabric is a good option for me without it looking too flimsy and what should I just underneath the top layer? Thanks so much in advance
If you have a chain fabric store near you, like JoAnn's, download their app. These stores typically have coupons for 40 or 50% off one single cut of fabric so you can save money on your fabric. Then just walk around the apparel section until you see a fabric that you like.
You dont mention needle size, tension or stich lenth. Also, if im making some type of dress or shirt with silk and it has all this small wrinkles it would ruin my project...
I'm trying to sew a chiffon onto a silk charmeuse at the hemline. I washed the chiffon and now i'm wondering if I should iron the material before i cut out the pattern. The finished chiffon will be ironed but it stretches a lot when I do that. I don't want the seems to pucker when the customer washes the dress.
oh no! you can look online for information on fabric burn tests. It's a scientific method you can do at home (but be careful) to at least try and figure out the content of the fabric yourself. If you can at least know if your fabric is synthetic or natural fibers it'll give you a big clue on if you can use fusible or non fusible interfacing. With lining, you just want to use something that's a lighter weight than your main fabric. Hope that helps.
Thank you so much! I've been sewing for over 60 years and taking classes in sewing and fashion for over three years, and I've already learned four new useful tips from your video today. These tips will make sewing prom dresses so much easier to deal with.
I'm so glad you found our tutorial helpful :)
Me too.
I always iron out wrinkles before cutting out the pattern. Rule of thumb is to PRESS your pieces, but you can iron uncut fabric, finished garments, and stay-stitched pieces. The difference between pressing and ironing is whether you move the iron on the fabric or press it down and lift it up in a manner that does not distort the weave. When fabric is not supported by selvages, you must PRESS only--no sliding or gliding, not even under a pressing cloth. Happy stitching!
Great tip. Thank you
That's really handy to know- 👍
do you have to let it cool before moving the fabric, you know, before letting it hang over the side of the ironing board and doing the next section?
Thank you so much for this lesson. I really appreciate it. I have lots of silk and satin from wedding gown and prom dresses that I purchased from Salvation Army at 75% off. I bought them all. Now I need to learn how to quilt with them.
In practice, holding tight doesn't work most of the time because the seams are not always on straight grain. I usually back with paper and tear away after stitching.
How? ;(
@@sassyk.5173 Same as sandwiching except omitting the top layer of paper. If you have an even-feed foot attachment, even better.
Thank you! I'm relatively new to sewing, but need to make three pieces out of silk-like fabric. You just saved my life!
With knits, I definitely use a rotary cutter to cut out my pieces, to prevent any unwanted stretching. If your pattern has a lot of curves to it, I would invest in a smaller rotary blade. The big blades work great though if you're just doing straight lines. Be sure to do it on a self-healing mat so you don't damage any surfaces. And if you don't want to invest in fabric weights, you can just use canned goods to hold everything in place. good luck!
I have the worst luck with rotary cutters
This is right on time!!😁😊........ where were you when I started two years ago😯😌
Thanks so much. I am making a really great dress out of slinky fabric and honestly have not worked with this type of fabric before. This will be fun and I'm sure I'll have fewer issues. Great video, well done.
This is a life saving video! I was in desperate need for these tips. Thanks so much!
Thanks for sharing this. I'm going to be making a dress for my daughter out of crepe backed satin and will be adding some tissue paper to my list of supplies!
It really does make a difference :)
Thank You! I really like that you made short and simple. I've been forgetting the easy steps and reminders. ;)
Thank you! That was really helpful! I was also wondering about any tension adjustment needed but will set it to mid-range (around 3).
Your videos are always so good - very detailed and with perfect camera angles where we can see everything going on. So helpful for beginners! If you're not already, you should be an instructor at a design school.
Susan El Otmani thanks so much for the kind words :)
This is a GREAT channel - I love how you are able to magnify the image of the needle/machine. It even looks high definition. Thank you so much for offering this help! I will check in often! Suzy
We try our best to make our tutorials in high quality. Thanks for your kind words. :)
Thanks! Glad you found our tips handy. Have a nice day.
this is exactly what I needed to know for a project a friend of mine has me doing--brilliant and thank you.
I use these techniques with all fabric that's slippery and hard to work with. If you're making something for the first time, make a muslin. This means use a cheap fabric like muslin so you can work through the process and test the fit before using your nicer fabric.
Thank you for fast replay!
I do have small rotary cutter. Just didn't think of using it! Thank you.
For the weights I use a few simple round rocks. I crocheted over them and they look pretty cool.
Using the tape is a new one for me. Very helpful.
Great tips! Slippery and flimsy fabrics can be a nightmare!
Your video contains great tips and valuable information. I really like how you demonstrate attaching tissue paper to silk fabric! What a fantastic idea!
I would definitely use the tissue paper trick when sewing the seams. It'll keep it from stretching as you sew and should help with the puckering. Just rip it off when your seam is done. If your fabric can handle the heat, it might be better to use steam to iron it out.
What tension you used?
Great tips. Most people don't mention these things. Thank you.
Thank you! I'm sewing an "Elsa" costume for my daughter, and will try the tissue trick when sewing the areas with Chiffon.
Thanks for the helpful tips as I can't stop myself from sewing a silk duvet!
Thank you for taking the time to teach me!
I'm glad you enjoyed our tutorial :)
of course. :) Our tip is just to help out in those cases where you still a little.
Thank you. This is just the information I've been looking for.
Someone Somewhere I'm so glad you found our tutorial helpful :)
Really great videos! So clear & precise. I have no trouble understanding this & I am a very new beginner to sewing!
Rachel Clo I'm so glad you found our tutorials helpful! You can do it :)
@Virgina bliss i wouldn't because newspaper is pretty dirty and the ink could stain your fabric. I can usually pick up a pack of tissue paper from the 99cent store.
this is an awesome vid with great tips! Thank you. It covers everything I was looking for
Oh these are great tips. I'm making an 1870's formal ball gown for a musical I'm in, and the bustled part in the back is black silk. This should make it much easier to work with. Thanks so much.
Brilliant 🌟 trick with the taping of the needle hole 🕳️ !!!!
Thank you for your kind words. :)
Much Love, Appreciation AND&AND Admiration!!
💃🏼💨
This video was so helpful. Thanks for all of the great tips.
Thanks alot.....your video is very detailed and very good tips to stitch with silk fabrics, as i am already working with the silk fabric......was very helpfull for me.Great...
Your tutorials are just brilliant thank you
Thank you Mme , i'm impressed by the amount of information and detailing I had from this video , thank you
You're very welcome!
Thank you for these great tips.❤
Thanks for the video!
before I start working with silk
what material do you recommend me to start with. to practice
and which exercises with a stitch sewing machine?
Thank you
Help! My seams pucker like you show at the end of the video - holding it tight is a great tip, but what if the fabric was cut on the bias? I have so much trouble making my seams look neat when I sew slippery fabrics on the bias, and I can't find any resources online that help with this!
Shorten stitch length, reduce the thread tension (top and bottom), and use a sacrificial tissue layer. Or a walking foot.
Clear , succinct and informative. I love it when you show the differences. Great tip. Subscribe!!!!!.
+Karen Yau thanks so much for subscribing! :)
Hi! I would like to ask that how do I know how "heavy" my fabric is? I'm going to work with a 100% polyester silk like fabric. Thank you so much for the anwer!
Thank you for: 1. talking slowly and focusing the camera :) 2. breaking everything down to step-by-step slowly 3. the scotch tape trick 4. showing me how to thread the machine.
I had actually figured out the holding the cloth part but the tension was off (your other video shows how to adjust that, i put it on 3.5). The fabrics I am using are all very thin and all very shiny, like silk, they are all from lessemf.
can you help me figure out how to design & sew a cloth cpap mask?
You can totally prevent your fabric from being "sucked down into that hole" by simply using a throat plate made for just the single needle (most manufacturers make one). And using a foot that is also made to accommodate a needle width only. No need to mess with tape. 😊
I can only find them for newer, high end machines unfortunately. 🤷♂️
I’m always wondering how come store clothing has no pucker at all ?:(( how do they do that ??
Thank you for this video, it is so informative and helpful :) ! I do have a question, with regards to fabric puckering. Could adjusting tension also help fix that?
thank you for sharing your tips and techniques, i've learned a lot
yay! glad we were able to help :)
Thank you for this. I just bought some material for a costume and it's a silk-like material. I'm terrified I'm going to mess up. This video makes me a little less nervous about tackling this project. :D
+Jennifer Powers practice on some scraps to gain some confidence. :) I think the sewing isn't so bad, it's the cutting that can be the trickiest with slippy fabric. You can do it!
Jennifer Powers yea, I just bought LOADS of poly satin for a costume and I've only ever sewn cotton and canvas. I'm freaking terrified, but I figured I've gotta start sometimes so better sooner than later.
It was just my regular presser foot, nothing fancy.
Very helpful thank you soo much i should have watched it because i sewed my satin jacket!
Tension also makes the stitches lay flat. Sew samples with different tension and stitch length
Once again thank you for your videos! I get so fraustrated when my fabrics get jammed in the machine.
Thank you so much for your information!!! It will be very helpful. Also, one thing I wondered, do you adjust you tension at all?
Linda Johnson it varies according the fabric so you just want to practice on scraps. Usually I loosen the thread tension a bit and put my foot pressure at a higher number.
Thanks a lot :D In mexico fabric stores don't have tags on their fabrics, just the ones with prices (at least the ones I know). I'm just starting to learn how to sew. Are there specific situation where knowing this characteristics are necessary?
Thanks for the wonderful tips and instruction! Should I use tissue paper alterations? I want to make some tucks in a Off the Rack blouse that is made of a poly crepe.
yup, I use tissue paper a lot when I sew.
Thanks for sharing, very useful tips here. Hope you will share more on sewing jersey knits :)
***** Thanks for the suggestion. I'll add it to the list
Great advice! Just what I needed! Thank you!
I would say size 11 sharp should be ok
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THESE! I LEARNED SO MUCH! You saved my life! LOL and it answered a LOT of my questions~! ~u have a new subscriber
thank you for subscribing!
When uding the paper lsyers what Scissors would you use?? 😮
What is the thinnest silk with a dull side along with a silk side? 100% silk preferably stretchy maybe even a mixture of silk and elastic
Does your machine just seem to get stuck in position? I hate when that happens! I find that the tissue paper trick seems to work well. So on the wrong side of your fabric you should have interfacing covering the buttonhole are. On the right side, lay a strip of tissue paper over the area you're going to do a buttonhole. Transfer your buttonhole mark to the tissue paper. You may want to pin your tissue paper to the fabric to hold it. Stitch buttonholes, tear off tissue paper. voila!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge 😎👍
Thank you so much for your satin videos! Do you have any suggestion on the tension setting for bridal satin? It feels a lot heavier to me than the usual silky satin stuff I've seen. I bought 80/20 needles. Do you think that will do the trick? I also bought Coats & Clark Dual Duty XP extra fine thread, but now I am wondering if it's going to be too thin for the material I have. I'm so nervous! I am making my own wedding dress for the reception.
A Schwengler omg, that reminds me when my mom made my bridesmaid dress, years and years ago. The bride choose satin and all the seams in my dress were rippling. It had that "homemade" touch. haha. I think you'll be fine with 80/20 needles and I'd use just regular all purpose thread (or if the satin is actually silk satin, you can use a silk thread). If you have a walking foot, it would probably help, but definitely use the tissue paper trick. And practice on scraps until you have nice looking seams. You can do it! :)
oh no! That's exactly what I am afraid of! I want to make sure I do it right, and I won't wear it if it looks terribly homemade! :/ Haha. Yes, I have many presser feet and a walking foot is one of my favorites! I will make note and do that! Thank you! I read somewhere that Coats and Clark Dual Duty XP Extra fine was good for satin, but my satin is heavier weight. I suppose I may just need to try it on a swatch of fabric! Thank you for your input!
Thanks for the kind words :)
what presser foot do u use? great tips for silk
Hi! I have seen people tearing satin before stitching why do they do this? Can you explain it?
Thank you, the tape idea over the hole helped a lot!!! 8D
Learned a lot with this tutorial THANK YOU VERY much :) Is sewing charmeuse done the same way?
I would say it would be similar, yes
Very helpful !!! Thank you soooo much !
Thank You so much!!!
I love your videos so much. :) I was wondering if it's safe to cut silk fabrics on the fold?
+Vai Mardti I would say it depends on how slippery the fabric is. If it doesn't slip around much, then I would say you're probably fine but maybe use a rotary cutter to get a more accurate piece. If it's really slippery, I would take the time to cut on a single layer. This means for pieces on a fold, you need to place it on the fabric, use chalk to trace it, then flip the piece, lining up the center front and draw the other side, and then cut it all out.
thank you.
please make a video How to make traditional chains dress
Excellent guidance, thank you!
What about the best tension degree, and the bottom teeth, is better they are high or going down?
Thank you ma
I wonder if sewing with a walking foot would prevent some of the puckering...?
sometimes it does help :)
so helpful. thank you.
Thanks! Very good tips
amazing video, thanks!!
I love your videos; Can I use organza on all very light polyester and or silk fabric?
Jean Dudley yes, that should be fine :)
Thanks and Ilove your videos, makes a bunch of sense....
Very helpful video.. Thanks a million for this..
Thanks for really useful tips.
Rukhsana Shabir You're welcome. So glad you found it helpful :)
Thanks so much! Where do you get the tissue paper? Is it like a special paper to use for fabrics?
hellokittykatt5 I just used regular gift tissue paper that I picked up at the dollar store
Beautiful, thank you so much!
great video - love the tape tip!
patricia ray I'm glad you found it helpful :)
VERY HELPFUL!!!!!!
Excellent video, thanks!
I have a question: If your are sewing by hand what needles would you use?
Hii, id like to make a silky prom dress ( looking like the one from vampire diaries miss mystic falls) and I don't have a lot of money, what royal blue silky fabric is a good option for me without it looking too flimsy and what should I just underneath the top layer?
Thanks so much in advance
If you have a chain fabric store near you, like JoAnn's, download their app. These stores typically have coupons for 40 or 50% off one single cut of fabric so you can save money on your fabric. Then just walk around the apparel section until you see a fabric that you like.
You dont mention needle size, tension or stich lenth. Also, if im making some type of dress or shirt with silk and it has all this small wrinkles it would ruin my project...
She did mention size 70 or 80.
Also, using less tension may also help, sometimes zig zag or satin stich helps too.
Thank you 💖
I'm trying to sew a chiffon onto a silk charmeuse at the hemline. I washed the chiffon and now i'm wondering if I should iron the material before i cut out the pattern. The finished chiffon will be ironed but it stretches a lot when I do that. I don't want the seems to pucker when the customer washes the dress.
I like the tissue paper the best, ty
What do you recommend if I neglected to get the bolt information? I'm unsure of which lining or stabilizer to use.
oh no! you can look online for information on fabric burn tests. It's a scientific method you can do at home (but be careful) to at least try and figure out the content of the fabric yourself. If you can at least know if your fabric is synthetic or natural fibers it'll give you a big clue on if you can use fusible or non fusible interfacing. With lining, you just want to use something that's a lighter weight than your main fabric. Hope that helps.
Thank you
Thank you very much, this was helpful.