Bree123

Wow! So I saw this cute little "super easy" sailor top on CreativeBug.com that I wanted to make for my trip to San Diego this Thursday. First problem, I haven't sewn clothing in close to 20 years. Second problem, I decided it would be fun to try a new overcast foot for my Bernina because I don't have room for an entire serger & really, I mostly quilt anyways. Third problem, there is no such thing as "super easy".

After a small snafu with sewing the sleeve facing on upside down (it's batik -- easy enough to do because there's no right or wrong side ... sort of), I was zooming along with my new overcast foot. I finished in no time & stopped to admire my handiwork & realized I had only checked 5 of the 6 seams (must've checked one of them twice and missed another). I had sewn a pleat into my seam! Oh, the horror!

No worries, I just grabbed my trusty scissors. I'm sure you all know what happened next... yep, you guessed it, a gaping hole that is literally the size of the Grand Canyon right at the top of my sleeve! Disclaimer: I've never actually seen the Grand Canyon, but I'm sure the hole in my shirt sleeve is reflective of its actual size.

So now I'm ripping out all those teeny back & forth double overcast stitches (why oh why did I feel to need to make the seam so secure?!!!). No more scissors for me. I'd throw them out the window, but with my luck today, I'd probably hit a policeman & be locked up in Quilter's Jail ... or real jail, whichever is worse. Plus, I need them to cut a replacement sleeve once I finish seam ripping 3 hours from now. Honestly, has anyone here ever had to rip out double overcast stitches set a 1.2mm? If there is any shortcut, please send it to me at the Quilter's Jail (I'm pretty sure cutting into your fabric because I was using scissors as a seam ripper is a violation of some law & the quilting police are on their way to pick me up).

No seriously, ideas?

quiltingcandy

Isn't it always the way, the seams you need to un-do are the ones you used tighter stitches or back stitched at the beginning and the end?

Someone here said not to be cheap with seam rippers - buy good sharp rippers and keep one by each machine you use, one with your sewing basket and still one more in the supplies for when you misplace one. (Yes, I have 5 different seam rippers because I have also grabbed the closest sharp item and lived to regret it.)

jjs56

When you sew the new sleeve in, use a regular old straight stitch then go back over the raw edges of the seam with the overcast stitch once you're sure the seam is correct. I have a serger and I still use a straight stitch for sewing sleeves and other tricky seams.

DOTTYMO

I feel your frustration. An easy job always seems to be a nightmare. Good luck.

Jane Quilter

super easy means they left out 3/4 of the instructions.

ManiacQuilter2

That is why I don't sew any more. Enjoy your trip to SD. If you are actually going to be near the coast, looks like cooler temperatures:
https://weather.com/weather/5day/l/USCA0982:1:US
Father inland you go, the higher the temperatures will be.

bearisgray

I hope you checked the pattern measurements against your measurements before you started it.

Ready-to-wear sizing is sometimes different from pattern-sizing.

Unpicking small stitches can be frustrating.

romanojg

this is so true, even though clothing makers make clothes with smaller sizes to make egos feel better, the pattern makers did not follow along with them. You really have to take your measurements these days, I use a product call do sew, its like a light weight interfacing but really cheap and make a test pattern so that I can change any thing that doesn't fit right before I use my main fabric.

tlpa

Got a good chuckle out of your post! Been there, done that!

BCM

Thanks for a humorous reflection of your incident!