Monday, October 5, 2009

Serging like a Newbie

My sewing skills are rusty, but my serging skills are just plain "New".
*update: "Define serger" ok! Click here!

I made the first little dress for Gracie and then I made a pinafore dress and bloomers for Libby, a sundress for Libby, and the two Snow White dresses. I also serged up some tears in my favorite worn out jammie pants and I sewed patches on Lexie's jeans. That was on the sewing machine though.

I've been able to find little snippets of time to get in my sewing room and spent some quality time (that's using the word loosely!) with my machines and patterns and scissors and fabric... love it! I love the room. It's too dark in there at night, I need a better lamp. But otherwise I just love the room!

I finished the Snow White dresses just in the nick of time! I decided Snow White's sleeves were too hard to mess with, so I incorporated a red ribbon at the waistline to give the dress that bit of red that it needed to make it authentic. I omitted the white collar and didn't make a red cape either. Gracie said she needed a red cape, but I told her it's ok, Snow White doesn't wear her cape except when she goes in the woods and we weren't going to the woods.

I made them from a light glitter infused satin. Satin is hard to sew! It frays so badly. Both girls' dresses had issues with fraying. Gracie's dress frayed right through the threads and got a hole in the shoulder seam. I was at Disneyland and kept focusing on that hole. It drove me insane! And Libby had a spot right on the front neckline that wanted to fray out. That'll teach me not to topstitch!

I wonder about my serger knife. It doesn't cut well with gathers and thicker seams. If there is a spot where the fabric is doubled, it seems fine, but if there are more than two layers of fabric, the knife often times does not complete the cut, making the seam absorb the excess and sew a big lump.

I need to learn how to use the differential feed.

Here are the dresses. I did receive several compliments and comments on them, but best of all, the girls loved wearing the dresses!




5 comments:

Shelley said...

Those dresses are precious! You are a talented woman. My mom can also sew anything, and I can barely use a needle and thread for a wayward button. I am in awe right now. What the heck is serging?

Kallee said...

They are beautiful, Mary! You did a fabulous job! Glad you're getting to spend "quality" time with your serger!! Keep serging away :)

Michelle said...

You may be a serger newbie, but you realize that some of us (ok me) still haven't figured out even after reading the other post if a serger is a whole separate machine or something you add on to your existing machine. I think you're doing a great job!

Mary said...

The serger is a separate machine. It can't replace the sewing machine since it doesn't do topstitching, zippers or buttonholes. And it doesn't replace the sewing machine when I'm doing tiny seams such as sleeve caps. But it is an amazing machine that works wonders on inside seams and soon I will learn the rolled hem and some other fun tricks!

Living With Cavemen said...

I will hopefully get you my bridesmaid dress mailed to you sometime this month. =)