How To Use Elastic Thread

Shirring fabric with elastic thread creates lovely gathering. Find out how to sew with elastic thread with this DIY video.

How to sew elastic thread - How to shirr woven fabrics using elastic thread - Melly Sews

Hey y'all, today I'thousand going to show you lot how to sew elastic thread to brand shirring. I'll be sewing this like shooting fish in a barrel skirt as an example, just there are many means you can use shirring as a design detail. In fact, I'll share more projects that contain shirring with elastic at the end of this post.

Love this - easy to sew - Make a stretch waist skirt from woven fabric with elastic thread shirring - Melly Sews

Shirring is a technique that combines elastic thread with regular thread to get together cloth on your sewing auto. When you shirr woven fabric information technology becomes stretchy in the shirred areas. This makes it useful for waistbands, sleeve cuffs, neckbands, ankle bands, hem bands, and any other place y'all might want to sure-fire in the textile. The word shirring is sometimes used interchangeably with smocking, but smocking isn't always stretchy.

A spool and a bobbin wound with elastic thread for shirring

How to Sew with Elastic Thread

Now that we know what shirring is, allow's meet how to do it!

This mail contains chapter links. Every bit an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. All affiliate links are identified with (affiliate link) after the link or a commissions earned statement to a higher place the link(due south).

Materials

I generally use this Dritz elastic thread (affiliate link).I've also heard good things nearly the Gutermann brand elastic thread, but I haven't personally used it. When you buy elastic thread, buy more you lot call up you'll need. This volition give you extra to practise with. It's also important to annotation that the corporeality of elastic thread on a spool is many fewer yards than what comes on a spool of sewing thread, and you'll got through a lot of the elastic thread in a project.

You'll as well demand textile to shirr. This technique works best with lightweight fabrics. I like to employ it with cottons like cotton voile and backyard or other lightweight fabrics like rayon challis.

Setting Upwardly Your Machine

To shirr with elastic, commencement by loading your bobbin with elastic thread. Many tutorials tell y'all to hand wind the rubberband thread onto the bobbin, however I've e'er had meliorate results on my drop in bobbin car by using the automobile to air current the elastic. Some say that side loading bobbin cases are the ones that should exist hand wound, and that may be the difference from my top-loading bobbin motorcar. Once once again I'd suggest winding several bobbins worth because you'll go through them chop-chop since each bobbin holds fewer yards of the thicker elastic thread than it would of regular thread.

Adjacent, when you load your bobbin in your motorcar, y'all desire to make sure you've pulled the bobbin thread upwardly through the pharynx plate. To do this, hold the upper thread in one hand and hand creepo the machine. Sweep a pair of pair of scissors under the presser foot if your manus won't fit.

Hand crank machine to thread - How to sew elastic thread - How to shirr woven fabrics using elastic thread - Melly Sews

Your top thread will exist the regular thread you use, and it should lucifer your fabric since you'll be sewing right side up.

Finally, lengthen your stitch to the longest stitch length your machine will do. This may be a basting run up if your auto has a specific programmed basting stitch similar mine does. Leave your motorcar tension set to normal to showtime with; yous may desire to adjust this later on y'all sew some samples.

Start Shirring

Of import NOTE:This is a technique I really encourage you to practice on a chip before attempting information technology on a garment. You'll want to know which winding method works ameliorate for your machine, and likewise how much your textile will shrink when steamed. Then I would advise cut a 10 inch wide scrap and practicing the sew, then steaming and re-measuring to figure out how much information technology volition shrink. If you demand to adjust your car tension, do this from the top; only touch the bobbin tension as a last resort. More on that here.

Put your material in your machine correct side up and start sewing. You may not find much gathering as yous sew the first row of shirring. That's OK, as y'all sew more rows of stitches you'll beginning to see the textile gather more. If your fabric is a loop (like the skirt project below) and then equally you lot consummate each row, elevator your presser foot and pull the thread to start the next row. If you are stitching a apartment piece of textile instead of a loop, you'll put your presser foot up at the edge of the fabric then pull the thread and move down to the adjacent row to showtime stitching again.

As your fabric starts to gather, make certain to stretch it flat as information technology goes under the needle. You don't desire to sew pleats into the cloth, you want the elastic thread to do the work.

You can mark your lines on the fabric with chalk or another marking tool and a ruler, but I prefer to just line the edge of my presser foot up with the previous line of shirring.

Keep an eye on your bobbin and end stitching well earlier you get to the finish of the bobbin. Exit long thread tails to tie them on the dorsum side of the textile. Necktie off the thread before cutting it and starting a new bobbin. I don't recommend backstitches with elastic thread – it will make a tangled mess.

Finally, concord a steam fe barely over your shirred rubberband and steam information technology. You'll see it shrink upwardly; you lot can see this in the video of the project below.

In one case you lot're an rubberband thread master, try out this easy skirt!

Make an Easy Shirred Waist Brim

Make a stretch waist skirt from woven fabric with elastic thread shirring - Melly Sews

This project is awesome because it's piece of cake, yous tin can make information technology in whatever size or length, and you only need 2 supplies – your cloth (I used Tree Fleur Voile by Francis Newcombe) and elastic thread (affiliate link). A note on material – you don't want to use anything too heavy for this – the elastic won't be able to gather or shirr heavy or potent fabric plenty to concur it up.

Must make - Make a stretch waist skirt from woven fabric with elastic thread shirring - Melly Sews

I've got a video tutorial on how to do this below. If you adopt the written tutorial just ringlet on by the video. And if for some reason the video won't play, you tin also picket information technology on YouTube here.

So first sew together your console into a loop with the circumference equal to 1.5 times your waist measurement. You may use one panel folded in one-half or two panels sewn together at the sides, depending on the length/width you need. Finish these seams. And then fold the top edge of the skirt 1/4 inch to the incorrect side twice to form a very narrow hem. Printing and stitch the hem in place.

Make a skirt with elastic thread - How to sew elastic thread - How to shirr woven fabrics using elastic thread - Melly Sews

Then all you have to do is sew shirring lines for about 3-5 inches from the meridian edge. Overlap each line a few stitches and so pick upwards the needle and presser foot and move the fabric over to stitch the adjacent row. I utilise the edge of my presser foot as a guide to line up each row.