Couture Snippet!

Two {Couture Snippets} in one week!  Wow!  Don’t hold me to a schedule like that!!

I recently shortened some skirts and dresses for a couple friends.  I took some pictures of the process I used to share with you.  Just in case you need to shorten something here is a really simple way to do it.

Measure up from the bottom the number of inches you want to cut off and make a straight up and down cut that length.

Move your seam gauge down a couple of inches and make a horizontal cut starting at your vertical cut and cutting to the spot you have moved your seam gauge.  Your seam gauge should be at the same length as the first cut you made.

Now fold back the part you have started cutting so that the bottom hemmed edges line up and use this as your cutting guide.  Just cut along the edge of the amount you are cutting off and then keep folding it over with the hemmed edges even, cutting it off all the way around.  I leave my knits with raw edges a lot of the time but you can hem them too.  I serged the bottom of these, pressed it up twice so the serging was all enclosed and topstitched.

If you do not have serger thread to match what you are sewing here is a little tip for you.

Buy one spool of thread that matches your fabric.  No need to even buy a huge serger spool, one that you use on your sewing machine will work.

Run 2 or 3 bobbins of the thread.  I ran 3 because I forgot that rolled hems only need 3 threads instead of the 4 I use for regular serging.  I only used 2 of my bobbins and the spool of thread for the rolled hems on 2 skirts.

Your bobbins should fit on the serger just fine.

Please ignore the dust on my serger.  My cleaning lady has been MIA lately.

I had two skirts that needed shortened and then rehemmed  with a rolled hem/lettuce edge hem.  I cut them off to the desired finished length plus half an inch.  My serger does a better job if it cuts some off as it serges so the extra half inch came off with the serger.

Here is the green skirt, shortened and hemmed.

And the blue one.  Same technique used on this one 🙂

Don’t have a serger?  I can do this for you if you are in my area.  $10 per skirt and that includes the thread.

Have a blessed and safe holiday weekend.  Keep in mind what others have sacrificed and the price they have paid so that we can have freedom.