Welcome to the first day of the Brynn Sewalong. Today will be our biggest day of the sewalong and we will be tackling sleeves, sleevebands, and side seams.
I will be sewing three versions of the Brynn during the sewalong (and all three sleeve views) so be aware that you wiil see me jumping between the following three fabrics as I sew.
Before you start, I do recommend practicing your stretch stitch on your sewing machine. A good starting point is a zigzag stitch with a length of 2.5mm and a width of 0.5mm and then adjust from there. I will be using my sewing machine on the entire garment, but you can use a serger for most of the construction and then your stretch stitch for the topstitching elements.
ALL VIEWS / LENGTHS
Step 1 - Before starting, make sure you have transferred all notches from your pattern pieces to your fabric. I usually just make a little clip with my scissors into the notches. Keep in mind that the seam allowance is 3/8" so make sure that your clips are shorter than that.
DRESS LENGTH ONLY
FOR TOP LENGTHS, SKIP TO STEP 3
Step 2 - I don't have a photo of this step because I am sewing up the top lengths only during the sewalong, but the dress lengths have a center back seam to give some extra shaping. This needs to be sewn up before we continue with the sewalong. So, with right sides touching, pin the Back pieces together along the center back edges. Stitch at a normal 3/8” seam allowance using a stretch stitch orr serging. Press seam allowances open or toward one side. Please note that the center back seam will not be shown in future steps because we are showing the top views only during the sewalong.
ALL VIEWS / LENGTHS
Step 3 - With right sides touching, pin the Front sections to the Back at the shoulder seams, matching notches.
Stitch by either serging or using a stretch stitch.
Press the seam allowances open or toward the Back (if serging).
OPTIONAL: If your fabric is very stretchy, you may want to add a strip of clear elastic to stabilize the shoulder seam and keep it from stretching out.
To sew clear elastic, arrange the elastic on top of the seam allowance, centering it over the 3/8” seam line, and pin.
Serge or sew the seam, with the elastic on top, catching it in the line of stitching. Do not stretch the elastic as you sew.
Trim the ends of the elastic even with the armhole and neckline edges as needed.
VIEWS B & C (SLEEVED VIEWS) ONLY
FOR VIEW A (SLEEVELESS), SKIP TO STEP 7
Step 4 - With right sides touching, pin one Sleeve to the coordinating armhole edge of the garment, matching notches. Match the shoulder notch to the shoulder seam.
Serge or sew the armhole seam with a stretch stitch in a 3/8” seam allowance.
Press seam allowances toward the Sleeve. Repeat for the other sleeve.
Step 5 - With right sides touching, pin the Front to the Back at the sides, continuing to pin the Sleeve underarm edges together. Make sure the lower edges of the garment and Sleeve align, and that the underarm seams match up.
Stitch from the bottom of the Sleeve to the garment hem in one continuous seam.
Press the seam allowances open or toward the back.
Step 6 - Fold up the bottom of the Sleeve by 5/8”, wrong sides touching, and press. Pin in place.
NOTE: If your fabric is very stretchy, you may want to consider using fusible knit tape like SoftStretch to stabilize the hem before stitching.
Using a stretch stitch, topstitch at 1/2” from the folded edge to secure.
VIEW A (SLEEVELESS) ONLY
FOR VIEWS B & C, SKIP TO STEP 12 (DAY 2 OF THE SEWALONG)
Step 7 - With right sides touching, pin the Front to the Back at the sides. Make sure the upper and lower edges of the garment align.
Serge or sew the side seams with a stretch stitch in a 3/8” seam allowance.
Press seam allowances open or toward the back.
Step 8 - With right sides touching, pin the short ends of each Armband together.
Serge or sew them together using a stretch stitch.
Press seam allowances open or toward the back.
Step 9 - With wrong sides touching, fold each Armband in half, lengthwise. Press.
Step 10 - With right sides touching, pin the folded Armband to the coordinating armhole edge of the garment, keeping the raw edges even. Match the front and back armhole notches, the side seam to the armhole seam, and the middle notch to the shoulder seam. You will need to stretch the Armband to fit between the notches and add additional pins as necessary.
Serge or sew the armhole seam with a stretch stitch. While sewing, slightly stretch the Armband to fit. Be careful not to stretch the armhole as you sew.
NOTE: Stretch and recovery vary greatly with knit fabrics. To get the optimal fit, we recommend basting this seam first and adjusting the size of the Armband if needed.
Step 11 - Press seam allowances away from the Armband and toward the garment.
OPTIONAL: Stitch 1/16” inside of the garment, catching the seam allowances underneath.
That is it for today. Come back tomorrow where we hem our Brynn and add the Neckband.