Simply Sewing - UK (2020-04)

WHATISABRETONSTRIPE?
Traditionallyspeaking,a trueBretonstripe
hailsfromtheBrittany(orBretagne)regionof
NorthernFrance,andshouldconsistof
horizontallinesinnavyblueandwhite.These
days,however,thetermis usedtodescribean
arrayofdifferentcoloursandstylesofstripe

• butalmostalwaysit'smadefromjerseyor
  anotherknitfabric.

ALWAYSUSEZIGZAG
Inanidealworld,we'dallhaveoverlockers
whenworkingwithknitfabrics,butmany
homesewistsdon'thaveaccesstothesehandy
machines.Recreatethelookandfeelof
overlockedseamswitha regularzigzagstitch
instead.Zigzagallowsthethreadsoftheseam
togentlystretchalongwiththefabric.

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STRETCHFACTOR

Todeterminethestretchofyourfabric,first

takea lookatthefibrecontent– thehigherthe

percentageofelastic,thestretchierit willbe.

Togeta truemeasure,layyourfabricdown

andplaceonepinthroughit,2.5cminfromthe

edge.Measureandplaceanotherpin10cm

acrossfromthefirst.Pullthefabricgentlyuntil

it can'tcomfortablystretchanymore,and

measurethenewdistancebetweenthepins.

Then,usethefollowingequation:(amount

fabricstretched/startingmeasurement)x 100.

STABILISETHOSESEAMS

Theregularwearandtearofknit

garmentscansometimesleavethemat

riskofstretchingoutandlosingshape.To

protectthemagainstthis,you'llneedto

stabilisethem.Attacha stripofribbonor

hemmingtape,stitchednexttotheseam

linealongtheedgeofthefabric,toadd

hiddenstrengthwithintheseam

allowanceofshoulderseams.

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Jersey is such a forgiving fabric to wear, but can feel tricky to work with at

first. Get great results every time using these tips and tricks.

WEIGHT MATTERS

Another thing to take into consideration

when choosing a jersey is its weight. Jerseys

and knits can vary wildly in thickness. Thinner

jersey normally has slightly less stretch and

will curl up around the edges. It can be difficult

to work with due to its slippery, fluid nature.

Thicker jersey will often be double-layered

and have a higher stretch – it's also normally

easier to cut and work with, due to its more

structural nature.

20 WWW.GATHERED.HOW/SIMPLYSEWING

Tis & tiS