Tips and Techniques

– Week 5 – Tips and Techniques

Welcome to the Last Week of Our BERNINA Serge-Along, WEEK 5!

As in the previous weeks, you will want to go back and review the Important Info and all of the Tips and Techniques from the past weeks and as before, we will be adding new ones this week. Last week, you accomplished plenty! You embellished your yoke, added piping and a ruffle to the front yoke and piping to the back yoke. You inserted a placket into the top center of the skirt back, gath- ered both the skirt back and front and attached the skirts to the yokes, all on your serger. Now you have two complete units to your gown—the front and the back. This week, you will finish the gown construction by attaching the neck binding, gathering and attaching the sleeves and adding a decorative elastic casing/ruffle to the sleeve ends. You will also serge the sides/sleeves making sure all the seams are matched perfectly, hem the skirt and tack in those hanging serger tails! That does sound like a lot but if you are doing it all or even most of it by serger, these tasks will be completed in a jiffy-flash!

WEEK 1 WEEK 3 • Important Info • Technique: Finishing The End Of Piping Read Your Serger Manual • Technique: Attaching Piping To A Curve Additional Serger Feet And Attachments • Technique: Hemming With The Serger Serging Terms To Know • Tip: Using Fusible Thread In Your Serger Serger Seam Allowances • Sewing And Serging With Plaids WEEK 4 • Tip: Matching Trim Patterns In Heirloom Trims WEEK 2 • Technique: Heirloom Serging—Bridging To Fabric • Using Pins, Sewing Glue & Quilt Clips • Technique: Heirloom Serging—Serger Pintucks • Using Wonder Tape To Match Seams • Technique: Gathering With The Serger • Technique: What To Do With Serger Tails • Technique: Continuous Lap Placket By Serger • Technique: Removing Misplaced Seams • Technique: Creating Piping WEEK 5 • Technique: Removing Bulk In Piped Seams • Technique: Bias Bound Neckline • Tip: Serging An Inside Curve • Technique: Decorative Elastic Sleeve Casing/Ruffle • Technique: Serging A Circle

1. The width of the neck binding is cut to 1-3/4". The Front length of the binding is usually cut longer than the Folded Neck measurement around the garment neck plus 3/4". Binding Once the binding is pinned in place with 3/8" extend- ing at both back edges, any excess can be trimmed away. So, it’s better to cut the neck binding longer than to cut it too short. Back Back 2. Fold the width of the bias neck binding in half to 1 measure 7/8" and press. Then shape and press into a Figure 1 3/8" curve to match the curve of the neck (photo 1). 3. Pin the center of the binding to the center of the neckline with the three cut edges aligned and right sides together. Continue pinning the binding to the neck allowing 3/8" to extend beyond edges of the yoke backs (fig 1). Trim away any extra binding beyond the 3/8" extensions. 4. Set the serger as follows: 3-thread narrow overlock 2 4 Stitch length = 2.5-3.0 3 Blade cutting width = 6.5 Foot: Standard 5. Serge the binding to neckline, with the right needle 1/4" from the original cut edge. You will be trimming off a scant 1/8" with your serger blade. NOTE: You are taking a 1/4" seam because your outer needle (the right needle) is 1/4" from the original cut edge. On our BERNINA L 850, to serge a 1/4" seam when only the right needle is in the serger, align the edge of the 5 6 fabrics with the inner edge of the "wall" on the foot (photos 2 and 3). 6. Flip the binding away from the yoke and the seam allowance toward the binding (photo 4). 7. Fold the 3/8" back extensions to the inside (photo 5). 8. Fold the binding to the inside of the yoke with the folded edge of the binding just past the threads of the seam allowance. The binding should encase the seam allowance (photo 6). Glue and pin the binding in place. Our preferred pinning method, whether stitching in 7 place by hand or by sewing machine, is to stick the pins into the fabric layers from the right side, aligned with the "ditch" (where the neck binding meets the yoke) and catching the folded edge of the binding on the wrong side (photo 7). When using this pinning method, determine the sewing direction and have the points of the pins pointing toward the machine and the heads of the pins pointing toward you. This will make pin removal easy, especially if you are stitching 8 the binding in place by sewing machine. 9. Stitch the bias binding in place by hand or by sewing machine. If by sewing machine, stitch in the ditch of the binding/yoke from the right side, catching the folded edge of the binding on the wrong side (photo 8).

Supplies Needed: • Two 1" contrasting fabric strips for the casing the width of the lower sleeve • Two fabric scalloped edging strips for the ruffle the width of the lower sleeve • 1/4" elastic • Small safety pin TIP: Attach the sleeves to the arm opening before adding the elastic casing/ruffle. Once the sleeve is attached to the garment, the right and wrong side of the sleeve is unmistakable, even if the fabric is the same on both sides. 1. Set the serger as follows: 3-thread narrow overlock 1 Stitch length = 3.0 Blade cutting width = 6.0 Foot: Standard 2. Clean finish one long edge of each casing strip. Set aside. 3. Set the serger as follows: 4-thread overlock Stitch length = 2.5-3.0 2 Blade cutting width = 6.0 Foot: Standard 4. Find the edging strips. If the upper cut edge of the edging strip is scalloped, trim straight (photo 1). 5. Place the wrong side of edging to the wrong side of the sleeve. Place the wrong side and cut edge of the casing strip on top of the edging with the three edges aligned (sleeve, edging, casing strip). Serge at a 1/4" seam (photo 2). 6. Flip the edging and the casing to the right side. 3 4 Press the casing toward the sleeve over the seam allowance (see photo 3). 7. Turn the upper edge (3-thread overlock stitch) to the wrong side and press (photo 3). 8. Using the sewing machine, topstitch the upper edge of the casing in place with a straight stitch (L=2.5). This will enclose all of the serged seams (photo 4). 9. Cut two pieces of 1/4" elastic to the measure- 5 ment given in the instructions. TIP: We like to cut the elastic 1" longer than the measurement and allow 1/2" to extend beyond the edges of the casing, just to be on the safe side. It’s so easy to lose the elastic end inside the casing. 10. Using a small safety pin, insert the elastic into the casing. Secure the elastic along the seam line (for our gown it will be 1/4") at each end of the casing using the sewing machine and a straight stitch. Stitch back and forth several times through the elastic and the casing (photo 5). If you allowed for extra elastic to extend beyond the casing, trim the elastic even with the sides of the casing. Cute and Easy!