I love wearing knits! The sewing adventure continues...

Wow is it HOT here in the Bay Area! This is the time when I love to wear knit fabrics.  In spite of the comfort factor of wearing a rayon knit garment, a lot of home seamstresses are intimidated with sewing on a knit. Because there is "stretchiness" to the material itself, people worry about seams that won’t drape properly and edges that may roll, and ultimately, what it will look like when it comes out of the dryer.

Actually, knit fabrics are very forgiving – you need not be an expert to sew an attractive knit garment. We chose a simple knit skirt with a side slit to demonstrate a few tips and tricks for sewing knits.  The pattern we used is KWIK SEW #3139.

This long skirt has an elastic waist and a hemline slit on one side. We chose a pretty blue rayon knit fabric. One of the secrets of working with rayon knits is to pre-wash and dry your fabric.  This process not only pre-shrinks the fabric but also allows you to lay the pattern out on the straight grain of the fabric. Just remember not to use too hot of a dryer as the lycra can melt and the fabric will hold up better.

We serged our side edges prior to sewing the seams, rather than serge the seams together, but either method is fine.  If your machine has a pre-set knit stitch, that’s great, but even a narrow zigzag stitch works just as well. The important thing to remember is that knit fabrics s-t-r-e-t-c-h and so should your seams.

We also reinforced the top end of the slit with a small triangle of bias tape – there’s nothing worse than watching your side or back hemline slit start giving way during a brisk Salsa at the club.

We machine hemmed our skirt with two rows of stitching to add a little detail.

Put a little t-shirt with this long skirt and Voila! you have great look for shopping, dinner, whatever! Try making it in other knits too, such as a luxurious ponte knit for a dressier version. Whichever knit fabric you choose and depending on your skill level, you can polish this skirt off in an afternoon.

Casual rayon jersey knit 

Dressy Ponte knit - 90% Polyester, 5% Rayon and 5% Spandex

Don't believe us? You can make this EXACT skirt in Stonemoutain's Sewing on Knit Fabric - Knit Know How Project class. Its only 3 hours and you can leave with your own finished beauty.

We have more goodies coming up next week. Keep sewing!

Vogue 8636 by Marcy Tilton

Here's my finished outfit - it went straight to the mannequin for display! I need to take this home so I can wear it next week!  This is so much fun having Laurel sew these amazing garments. We are both blogging about it and getting so motivated by each other. What more is possible? I hope that you are inspired by watching this process. We would love to hear from you.

Blessings, Suzan

P.S. Uh oh, Laurel. I think I lost another inch or so in my hips and waist from my whole9 nutrition 30 day reset - I am on day 18 and this is amazing! So much energy and it's great to watch my problem belly shrink before my eyes. Wow I didn't think this was possible, but it truly all Starts with Food!

Sew It! Reverse It!

Many things in life are not as expected and full of surprises. Here is a fun way to surprise yourself - make two garments in one! Great for trips and when you want a little change. Jump in and reverse your point of view!

Surprisingly enough, a reversible pattern is actually a hard thing to find. There are several vintage patterns available through the internet, but next to none in the current pattern world. The best thing to do is take an existing pattern and make it reversible. This requires little to no changes to the actual pattern, only the way in which you construct it. The patterns below are ones that we recommend and are available at Stonemountain. Pattern - Burda - T-Shirt  - 8220  Patterns that work best for this are blouses without buttons or zipper closures. Also, it is best to use boxier cuts or patterns without darts, as to cut down on any bulk. Dupioni and Habotai are natural together! Tip Using Dupioni and Habotai together makes the garment less prone to wrinkles!  Buy the suggested amount of fabric in two different fabrics. Make sure to buy similar types of fabric (knits with knits, cotton woven with cotton woven). You can use two different types of fabric (for example: charmeuse with rayon) but they should be similar in drape and weight. Pattern - Burda - Top - 7509 These silks would be nice to pair for the Burda Top. When you construct the blouse, you sew the shoulder, sleeves, and sides for each fabric then, with the right sides of the two different fabrics together, sew the necklines, front and back. Pattern - New Look - 6025 - Misses' Tunic or Top Rayon Challis Rayon challis can be paired with our  rayon bamboo, rayon crepe, and rayon linen, and cotton silk. The rayon challis is so pretty - flowers are in! Rayon linen pairs well with cottons, cotton silk, medium weight silks and rayon bamboo and rayon crepe.  Rayon Bamboo and Rayon Crepe  It is best to trim the seam allowance, again, to cut down on bulk. Turn it right side out, then finish/hem the sleeves together (you can turn the seam allowance in on each and hem or slip-stitch them together by hand. Pattern - New Look 6816 - Easy two hour Skirt, Pant, and Knit Top Or trim on 1/4 " shorter than the other, fold the longer one over the shorter, then fold once more and sew it down, creating a bit of trim/boarder on one side of the fabric. Or you can bind them close with bias tape or lace. The same can be done for the bottom hem.

Fabric Care Tips Always treat the fabric before hand as you will the finished garment or project (for example - if you plan to put the finished garment in the dryer, wash and put the fabric in the dryer before you cut) When in doubt dry clean all silk, wool, rayon, linen, decorator fabrics, and certain imported cottons whose dye is unstable to keep it looking it's best. If you choose to dry clean, certain fabrics need to be pre-shrunk by steaming before you cut into your project.  Some dry cleaners can steam press your fabric before you cut. Exception: Some fabric with metallic threads may not be suitable for dry cleaning and will need special care. Look for more fabric care tips in upcoming Stonemountain e-newsletters!

Follow us on Pinterest! A great new place to share customer projects, staff picks, and the latest trunk shows in the store! Go to our Pinterest page - Scissors and Thread to learn to make this cool sewing machine cover! Our Scissors and Thread board has lots of great ideas for your sewing room!