This week's video tutorial teaches how to sew gathers. I've heard that sewists are sometimes intimidated by gathers, so I'm sharing my favorite methods for sewing stress-free, evenly spaced gathers.
Gathers are a common design detail found in a variety of garments. Most often, you’ll find them in skirts or sleeves. For my Miri dress hack, I made a simple gathered skirt using rectangles of fabric. It's a really easy way to add a skirt or peplum and is zero-waste friendly.
I’m sharing the traditional method of sewing lines of basting stitches with thread. There are other ways to do it but I’ve always had success with my tried-and-true methods. Scroll on to watch the video and read the written instructions. Happy sewing!
If the video above is not working, you can also watch on YouTube.
Note: In this tutorial, I'm sewing a gathered skirt to a bodice. The same principles apply to other garments.
HOW TO SEW GATHERS
Step 1: Sew two lines of basting stitches on either side of the seam allowance. You may even want to sew three lines for extra control. I'm using a 5/8" seam allowance and stitched lines at 3/8" and approximately 7/8".
TIP: Do not sew the basting stitches through the side seams. It will be too challenging to pull the basting threads and get good gathers near the seams if the seam allowance is stitched down by the basting.
Step 2: Mark the center front and backs of the bodice and skirt. With right sides together, pin the skirt to the bodice, matching the center front, center back and side seams. Tip: For extra control, mark and pin the 1/8 points of the skirt and bodice as well.
Gently pull the basting threads to gather the skirt. Push the fabric along the thread evenly. Pin and adjust as needed.
Step 3: Baste the skirt to the bodice. I usually do this with the bodice side up. Do what works best for you. Check that the gathers are even, seams are going the right direction and there aren't any unwanted folds or tucks.
Step 4: Stitch the skirt to the bodice. Now that the gathers are under control with the basting, I like to do this stitching with the skirt side up. Finish the seams and gently press the seam allowance toward the skirt.
I hope that you found this video helpful. You can check out my blog post about this dress hack right here. If you’re interested in the Miri Tank top pattern, you can find it in the shop here. And, if you’d like to support this free content, I invite you to visit the pattern shop here. Happy sewing!
