Make: Neck Tie

Sometimes I have really unproductive Saturday mornings, when I find myself still in PJs at midday. Today would appear to be one such day (and it's actually 1pm as I write this...in my PJs...), however appearances can be deceiving! For this morning, I made a tie!

We're going to a fancy dress murder mystery later, for which the Boyf needs a white tie. I can't face dealing with Saturday shopping crowds, so I thought I'd rustle one up while Boyf went to the dentist.

Using an old dust sheet, I cut out an exaggerated tie shape. In theory, you should probably make a pattern and make sure it's the same on both sides... But I just cut it out, cos it's quicker and I'm feeling lazy.

Then, I got out some iron-on interfacing. This is a kind of web-like material which thickens, ergo strengthens, fabric. The iron-on stuff is amazingly easy to attach, as it has some kind of magic shiny stuff on one side, that bonds to fabric with heat.

I cut two pieces of interfacing and ironed them to each of the pointy ends of the tie shape. These will help keep the tie looking pointy and sharp.

Counterintuitively, the next stage in getting a crisp point... is to cut it off.

Then, I went about making what should be a narrow, rolled hem. This is easier with shiny fabrics like silk, and not great for cotton (which my dust sheet is). My rolled hem ended up being a bit wider than would be ideal - not that it matters hugely, as long as it's neat.

I folded then ironed the edges, before getting the tie on the sewing machine and doing some straight top-stitching along each edge. This should be as neat as possible, as the reverse is actually the front of the tie so it will be visible. (Check out the weave of the fabric, going straight across! Whoop!)

Next, it's time to sew the long centred seam. Anyone who has read my other sewing posts should know how I feel about tacking (yawn) so I just pinned it, and sewed it with more straight stitch.

I would normally overlock my seams, however a tie should sit flat, and an overlooked centre seam would leave a bump. While it was still the wrong side out, I ironed it flat, spreading the halves of the seam so they also sit flat.

To turn it the right way out, I put a safety pin on the small end, and used that to pull it out the right way. Hard to describe, but it works a treat.

Another swift iron to flatten it out again (now the right side out) and voilà, a tie! And it only took an hour, so now I can get back to my lazy PJ day...

 

Make: Curtain Wall (2)

Black fabric: I’m using a black cotton fabric with a lined pattern and approx. 1.5m width.

Red fabric: This is almost linen-like in its creasability (real word?) and plain red, approx. 2m width

 

Cut a section of black fabric across the whole width that is 30cm longer than the drop you are looking for – I cut at 280cm for a 250cm drop.

 

TOP HEM

 

At one end, fold 2cm of the raw edge and iron in place. From the new, folded edge, fold again at 6.5cm and iron in place. This will form the top hem. I will call the very edge the “top edge” and the edge of the hem (at 6.5cm) the “hem edge”)

 

 

With matching thread in the spool and bobbin on the machine (for me, black), position the curtain front-side down, with the hem under the needle. Sew a line of straight stitch along the hem edge to hold the it in place – this will be at c.6cm from the top edge. Sew straight across from one side to the other.

 

Flip the curtain over and sew a second line of straight stitch just inside the first one, at c.5.5cm from the top edge. This will hold it firmly in place.

 

 

SIDE HEM

 

The sides of your curtain will currently be the “selvedge”, which does not fray, unravel or curl. The following should be repeated for both sides.

 

 

Fold the selvedge at 1.5cm and iron from top to bottom. Fold and iron again at 2cm, to create a 2cm side hem.

 

As with the top hem, position the curtain front-side down and sew along the hem edge, to hold it in place.

 

 

Flip the curtain over and sew a second line of stitching inside the first, to secure the hem… securely J

 

Tie-off and hide all loose ends. I used the same method as I did on my orange curtains, here.

 

TAB TOPS

 

Cut out ten pieces of tab-sized fabric, two per tab

 

Pin the right-sides together and sew on three sides, leaving one short-side open. Cut the corners diagonally, making sure not to catch the stitches.

 

Turn the tab the right way out. Use a knitting needle, skewer or similar, poke out the corners. Now iron the tab flat.

 

Fold the open end under, so all fraying ends are hidden inside. Iron this flat, then machine it closed using straight stitch.

 

 

Button holes

 

My sewing machine comes with a button-hole foot and stitch settings, which makes it much easier to make button holes. You will need one button hole in each tab. This is what a button-hole foot looks like: -

 

 

Position the foot where you want the button hole to be, and work your way through the different stitch types until you have gone all the way round.

 

For a more detailed depiction of button-hole creation, look here.

 

Tie-off and hide all loose ends.

 

 

BUTTONS

 

Position the buttons evenly across the top hem on the right-side of the fabric. Start with the edge buttons, then do the central one, then the final ones.

 

Method? Sew the button firmly onto the top edge of the curtain. After several stitches through the button holes, bring the thread to the right-side of the fabric, but under the button hole. Now wind the thread around the stitches (between the button and the fabric) several times. Pull it through to the wrong side and knot firmly.

 

BACK TO TAB TOPS

 

 

To attach the tab tops to the top edge of the curtain, position them in line with the buttons, but against the wrong-side of the top edge. Pin them in place (tack if you like!)

 

Sew in a square around the edge, concealing the stitches from the buttons.

 

Tie-off and hide all loose ends.

 

BOTTOM EDGE

 

Before hemming the curtains at the appropriate length, you should always wash them. This is because they will shrink with the first wash, and you don’t want to end up with final curtains that are too short for the gap! To give you an idea, mine shrank approx. 20cm in the wash.

 

Mark where you want the bottom edge to sit. Measure an additional 12cm from that line and cut off any excess fabric. This can be less than 12cm, if you prefer a thinner hem – I favour a deep hem at the bottom, as it adds a bit of weight to the curtains and can help them hang better.

 

Fold the fabric at 2cm and iron in place. Fold and iron again at 10cm. The final bottom edge should be at the level marked above.

 

Sew the usual two lines of stitching across, but this time include a short line of stitching down the side hem, to prevent anything slipping inside the hem. Tie off all the loose ends.

 

Et voilà, you have a finished curtain! All the raw edges have been hemmed and hidden, the tabs are at the top, and they can be hung from a curtain pole!

 

Now it’s just time for me to make four more…