for the longest time i have wanted to try shirring fabric so that i could make myself some cute little sundresses (jordan doesn't like the way the elastic feels so i wasn't planning on making any of these type dresses for her). so after checking out a few websites and watching a couple youtube videos, i figured i was well enough prepared to tackle my first project. i had some nice amy butler fabric that i needed to make something with and a dress seemed like a logical choice. since making that dress on monday, i have made 2 others with plans to make several more over the coming weeks...i will be essentially living in these dresses this summer so i need a good variety on hand! so, here are my lessons learned and tips for making shirred undresses or tops.
first of all it's a good idea to wind several bobbins with the elastic thread...hand wind them, of course, and not too tightly since you're not trying to get as much on as you can. i didn't do this with the first dress and had to re-wind the bobbin after every third row. so, having the bobbins preloaded is a huge time saver once you get the project started!
filled bobbins, ready for the next project
lesson/tip #2: you may not need as much fabric as you think you do...meaning you don't need twice your measurement since the fabric "shrinks up", but not that much (at least not in my case)
hard to see, but there's a blue line down the fabric. all the fabric on the left of the line was cut off.
the line is a little clearer here
i ended up cutting off a little more than 14" from the side of the dress after sewing it together. i could have gotten away with 56" of material (a little more than a yard & half) instead of the 72" that i thought i needed. it wasn't a huge deal since i had the fabric already, but it helped to know so that next time i can save a little money & not buy too much fabric.
lesson/tip #3: if the fabric is too thick, it won't shirr. the first dress i made was supposed to have a bigger top band, but the two layers of fabric would not shirr no matter what i tried so i gave up and made it into a smaller 1/2" band...only after lots of frustrations and switching to my non-computerized machine, that is.
the top band before adding elastic
lesson/tip #4: always mark and sew your top and bottom hems first, it's so much easier than having to go back. you could probably hold off on the bottom hem, but i like to sew it when it's a straight line rather than a circle (that's the lazy side of me, though).
lesson/tip #5: i add elastic to the top band after shirring the fabric. meaning that when i fold over the top hem i leave enough room to put in a 1/4"-1/2" piece of elastic to help pull the top in. that's just my preference though, you may want the top more ruffle-y, but i found that since i wasn't adding straps of any kind, adding elastic to the top band made it fit better.
lesson/tip #6: the first row is gonna be the loosest row and it may not look right, but as long as the fabric is gathered some, it'll all work out fine the more rows you add
hard to tell, but there is one row of shirring under the top band
four rows here and it's tightening up
there's about 10 rows here
here's what the elastic/wrong side looks like
and the finished dress with about 22 rows of shirring and 1/2" elastic in the top band
and this was the first dress with about 24 rows of shirring and 1/4" elastic top band
lesson/tip #7: you can use either a computerized or non-computerized machine, just be sure to set your tension on the highest level and your stitch length to the longest. the dress above was made on my older non-computerized machine and the one above that was made on my computerized one. both of them did just fine so whatever kind you have should work.
lesson/tip #8: you can steam the fabric after sewing it to pull the elastic in more...don't iron or press it, just hold your iron a little bit above the fabric and press the steam button on your iron.
lesson/tip #9: you can use your pressor foot as a guide when sewing the lines. i keep my lines about 1/4" apart, but you can do whatever you feel comfortable with. my lines aren't perfect, but since they are so close together you can't really tell!
just a couple more: thinner fabric works best, regular thread in the top (through the needle) with the elastic in the bobbin, and sew with the right side of the fabric facing up.
i'm sure i'm forgetting something, i always do, so feel free to leave a comment and i'll answer it! it really has gotten easier the more i do it, the dress i made last night took about 3 hours from start to finish with ironing, pinning the hems and casing, sewing and putting the elastic in the top.
my next dress attempt is going to be with just back shirring and some kind of halter or other bodice...i'm still iffy with zippers so i'm going to alter a pattern or 2 that i have. hope i've helped at least a little...i really enjoy shirring and hope you will, too!
my favorite dress, so far!
