Merrily We Roll Along

My 1940s blouse is really beginning to test my patience. I've probably got at least an hours hand sewing left to do, some of which is of my own choosing.

Although I've overlocked all the seams, I needed a tidy way to finish off the ties so I decided it was high time I gave the rolled hem a go. It's a technique I've seen many other sewers use and it creates a lovely, professional looking finish, but I've always been afraid to give it a go. Turns out, my fears were completely unfounded.

First, I folded the edges up roughly 1/8th of an inch, then folded it again and pinned it to make the nice, flat edge you can see above.

The next step is to lower the needle into the fabric, lower the foot and sew a couple of stitches to anchor the thread. Keeping the needle through the fabric, lift the foot and insert the folded portion into the curl of the hemmer foot. Lower the foot and sew, lifting the edge of the fabric to keep it feeding smoothly and evenly. Too easy!

I was so pleased with myself, I went crazy and sewed a rolled hem on all the visible edges. Unfortunately, I didn't take into account how much fabric was going into the hem and it ended up eating up most of the fluffiness out of my bow.

The pattern envelope suggests the bow should be 'as feminine as a sigh', mine now looked more like a wheeze. The lovely, puffy bow was the main thing that drew me to this blouse, that and the unusual slanted yoke, and now it was too thin. Time to do some unpicking.

This project hasn't been all bad though, I've managed to conquer another sewing technique during the process. I've always hated having to use the 'slash' method to make back neck or sleeve openings, simply because I could never get it nice and flat. Not so anymore...

The problem was, once I had sewn the reinforcing V-shape and cut down into it, I wasn't cutting far enough. I was so afraid of cutting right through the end and ruining it that I stopped short. This time, I found myself a small pair of embroidery scissors and snipped right down into the point, leaving only a couple of threads intact. I then folded the facing piece inside, and would you look at that? It worked!!

 Huzzah!! That's two new sewing skills to add to my repertoire.

Now, back to my hand stitching...

- Tamara