This was a really good tutorial. You're obviously a great seamstress but you didn't pretend it's effortless like alot of youtubers do. You actually showed how you addressed all the difficult little things. Appreciate it.
Thank you. The thought of hemming my daughter's graduation dress, 2 layers of chiffon and a liner, was completely nerve wracking. This video saved me! Especially the starch and "Do NOT cut yet."!
Thank you so much! I love that you left the troubleshooting solutions in for those of us that always seem to run into trouble. I am hemming a chiffon dress for my granddaughter, and I felt that it was a daunting task until I watched your video!
That altered hem looks beautiful! I have two chiffon dresses I’ve never worn because they’re ridiculously long on me. I’d been afraid that I’d butcher the material trying to hem them, but this has really helped me visualize what I need to do. I didn’t realize how much of a difference the right needle could make, so I’ll definitely check what’s in my machine. Thanks for this helpful video!
Thank you for this!! I bought a gorgeous dress for my cousin's wedding, and figured since I have some sewing experience I could shorten it myself. But I began doubting if I could do it and fearing I'd ruin it. Your video really soothed my nerves!
I can not thank you enough for this tutorial..I had my daughter's Matron of Honors gown to hem..My Beloved Mom was a professional seamstress, she passed this past December at the young age of 94..So our go to Mom was not here to help..this is where your tutorial came in to play..I so know my Mom sent me to this..You are amazing and made this hemming so much easier..Thank you again..Happy Sewing..My computer is down..I am using my husbands..No he did not sew..LOL..Sincerely Alice Terribile.
*hugs* to you on the loss of your Mother. Mine passed when I was 14, and she was 42. I have outlived her... and greatly appreciate every single day I'm alive.
Thank you so much for your great tutorial! I had to hem a layered bridesmaid's dress (the most complex thing I've ever hemmed) and your tutorial helped me a lot. I would probably have made a mess of it without your tips, especially about the ruler! Your help was an answer to prayer. :) Thanks again!
The starch tip is awesome! I’m working with a silk that wouldn’t cooperate. This made it stiff enough to work with. Perfect! Just cornstarch and water, nothing fancy. 😀
Thank you, good suggestions and demo! I have been sewing forever but I was having trouble hemming a bridesmaid dress with chiffon Your suggestions helped a great deal.
A long time ago after several sloppy hems, I started pressing before stitching and stitching before trimming!!! Stability is everything! :-) You give great instructions about WHEN to spray stitch. Thanks!
Thank you for your video! I am an amateur sewer, I did one term of lessons at a community college, and even so pretty much everything I have learned has been from RU-vid and your video was so well explained and in a nice calm voice. I liked that you showed where you went wrong and how to fix it! I will be coming back to your channel for sure!! Ps watching this as I foolishly agreed to hem a formal dress for my daughter’s friend and haven’t slept much since! Feeling so much better now and I’m off to my sewing room with your video
Good luck, I hope it turns out well. I too have volunteered to do things then later realized I was in over my head! Sometimes that's the best way to learn : )
@@TheBusyBeeSews after finally getting the tension/stitch lengths right the actual hemming thanks to your video went quite well. There were three layers, two liners and then the outer chiffon, it felt like there was miles of fabric! The owner of the dress is happy and I feel ready to try some other “out of my depth” type projects. As you said jumping in like that can be a good way to learn on the go. Thanks Again!!
Thank you thank you thank you for all your help. The right needle the spray starch and the correct way of marking it made my first time project go absolutely smoothly. I can't thank you enough!
Thank you so much for that hack. I have to hem a chiffon gown for a friend. I haven't done it in years and was dreading it. Exhale. Now I can proceed with confidence. Thank you!!!!
Brilliant! I so wish I had watched this before I started hemming my daughter's Homecoming dress. Never occurred to me that I should do that first round of stitches before cutting off the excess hem! Next time I will get it right! Thanks!
I had a pair of those wide leg, two layered evening pants to hem and your video was exactly what I needed. I would never have thought to use starch and my iron on georgette-type fabric but it worked perfectly. And the ‘don’t cut yet’ and ‘cut close to the seam’ tips were oh so right. Thanks a ton!
I too have to hem my daughter's bride's maids' dresses. I am so nervous!!! I will be watching this tutorial CONTINUOUSLY throughout the process!!! Wish me luck! :'( :O :'(
This is my go to method for rolled hems on all formalwear. However the slinkier the fabric the narrower the hem needs to be. If your sewing as close to the folded edge as possible you set yourself up for a perfect result. Sew 1/8” from the folded edge, cut the excess (carefully) then fold that super skinny 1/8 over, sew and voila perfect narrow rolled hem completely free of wavy puckers. The narrower the better. Also when fitting the dress, pin at the floor instead of relying on the factory hem being even. They are not, even on high priced designer gowns. The factory hem can vary a lot, high and low spots will be transferred to your final hem if you measure from the bottom edge of the original hem. I pin right at the floor all around the dress. Then fold 1/4” longer than the horizontal pin, place the pin vertically (ready to sew) and there is no need for ironing the hem fold twice. Works every time.
Thank you so much for this tutorial. So so glad i watched on how to sew chiffon before sewing it . I was really scared I would mess it up. And i probably would have if it were not for your video. I can't Thank You enough. :)
@@teresathayn5170 good luck, have fun. I made a few scarves, and a floaty kaftan and palazzo pants! Actually I use one of the scarves as a 'face cover' when I go in shops if covering is mandatory. Much less suffocating than a mask.
Thank you so much for this!!! I have watched several videos and I love this one! I'm going to be in my daughter's wedding and I can't find anyone to hem my dress. I have the underskirt done but the outer layer is scaring me. I'm so glad that you showed how to do it without cutting it first that's what was worrying me. When you get fabric like this it wants to fray I'm scared enough getting it even. Lol
Good luck, when I first hemmed a prom dress it was so uneven I had to completely do it over. It ended up more tea length then floor length. Luckily the young lady wearing it didn't care and since she is a little unsteady walking it was probably for the best : )
@@TheBusyBeeSews That reminds me I bought my daughter a prom dress that was on sale anyway and then I found out that the zipper was broken on it and it was the only one in her size. Not only did I get it for $25 which was a real bonus but then I didn't feel so bad putting a zipper in something so expensive. Lol I did agonize over it for over a month I had it hanging up and I looked at it everyday and finally I did it and it turned out perfect and I was so proud. I had did things in the past for the theater guild. And made several costumes but costumes and things you're wearing in real life are different. Lol So this dress I actually looked it up and it was worth about $129 when it was first introduced to the public in 2015. So I got it for $41 and that included about $11 shipping. The underskirt doesn't look perfect but I don't think it was straight anyway. To do the outer skirt I'm going to get the neighbor to help me because my Annie no butt as we call my mannequin isn't exactly my size. I have a little bit more but then she does and she has too much ribs for me. I can't even get it zipped up on her.lol
@@kathey1981 alterations are always an adventure! I started doing them for Night to Shine and those beautiful women are never shaped like a dress form. I had to rehem a dress once because I made the hem level side to side but she had one leg slighty longer then the other.🤔
Thank you so much for this video!! It was perfect in helping me hem a bridesmaid’s dress for my daughter that I was terrified of touching because of the chiffon and layers!!
Awesome tutorial! Such a great help In hemming special fabrics. ☺️ BTW I really like your pin cushion for organizing needles. I cannot find one anywhere. Any idea where I might purchase one?
I bough the needle cushion at Hancock Fabrics when they were going out of business. I haven't noticed the starch permanently discoloring the fabric. Some fabrics look a different color when hot and/or wet but when cool and dry look fine.
Please tell me where you got your pincushion. It is a great one, as I'm aware of the machine needles differences and it would help my girls learn and keep track of what is in the machine. I've searched online after seeing this and haven't found it.
@@KiMoKo9787 ,I had the very idea when I went to fabric store to get some other notions. I bought a great green on and have my micron pen all ready to make my own👍
I would suggest marking, with chalk or straight pins, the hem needed when the dress is on the client. Manufactured dress hems are rarely even and bodies of clients are NEVER the same. Marking a hem like you have done may cause the center back to be too short. Think about how the fabric must drapes over the hips and bottom of a person. Not everyone has the same 'fluffy' therefore the hem may be too long or short.
It's all about what we know at the time. I used to just mark the hem at the front and take that measurement all around - just like this video. I never thought of spray starch on chiffon. However, over many many years I have learned better, as us human beings are not symmetrical and starch can and most likely, will stain. And it all depends on your atmosphere - are you in a production setting or a hobbyist? In production, we use chalk (measured from the floor every 6 inches), run a 1/16th hem right under the chalk mark, then another 1/16th right at the chalk mark.
I would probably iron the bottom edge flat first. Just a little bit above where your stitches will be. Then when done hemming press the pleats back in.
@@TheBusyBeeSews I'm afraid to ruin it but I will try. I don't know what's the name of that finishing, there's no a real hem, the stitching is at the end. Is there a way to communicate other than here so I can send you a picture please
May I ask what were all the settings of your machine? I know you said the tension was at 3 but what about the length of the stitch? Also what kind of thread did you use, like type and weight? I'm a new sewer and I have so much trouble with these questions ❤️ new subscriber!
The spray starch is genius and I used it successfully to narrow hem a bridesmaid dress, but now there is a starch 'stain' all along the hem area. How do I get that out? It is a light spray starch.
I haven't had that problem. I would try rinsing just that part with water. Then pat dry with a towel and use a blow dryer on it so you don't get water spots. Good luck and sorry.
@@KelleyEnglish whew, that's a relief. I recently steamed a chiffon dress to get the wrinkles out. The steamer went a little haywire and left some wet spots. Without thinking I walked away and let it air dry. I ended up with water spots : ( I had to rewet all the spots and blow dry them! Took a few tries with the more stubborn spots but it worked : )
Shouldn't make much difference, you might want to starch it before you mark it. That will help add some stability which will help since you're so far from the hem.
NEVER, EVER, EVER, use spray starch on Chiffon. I got a "water stain" on the chiffon and satin. I have to take it to a dry cleaner to get water stain off. The directions on hemming are good, but never use spray starch of any kind.
I am not discounting your recommendation, but for other viewers I wanted to let them know I used light spray starch multiple times to help make good creases in the sage green chiffon layer on my wife's bridesmaid dress so I could do a hem like in the video, and it not only worked great, but I had no issues with stains. I gently hand-soaked the bottom 8-10 inches of the chiffon layer in warm water with woolite and some oxy clean, rinsed in cold, and it came out like brand new. Another top tip: I couldn't use my chalk pencil on the chiffon fabric, so I used my wife's small crayola washable markers to mark the hem line and it washed out great too with the above method.
@@ivyhernandez2526 Thank you for your response. Unfortunately it was not on the video that dry clean only should not use it, Fortunately the hem line is not seen in the photos, stiff and water stained.
So the inside lining is not b by the same length as the chiffon outer layer and in some places, the outside chiffon is longer than the liner. How do I find the true length so I can cut straight?
You can make them the same if that's easier for you. I just like to have the lining a little shorter so it doesn't show when walking or sitting. Hang the dress up, pin layers together at seams to see how much needs to be removed. The front of the dress is usually the shortest part so I use that to determine how much of the lining to take off. Measure up that far from the original hem all the way around. Hope this helps...
I measured the distance between the inner layer and outer layer before I started working on it and knew that the inner layer was an inch shorter than the outer layer at the beginning so hemmed the outer layer and then went back and measured the inside layer hem to make it one inch above my newly hemmed outer layer. Hope that makes sense.
Some good tips here with the double stitching hemming method but why did you not START the sewing with the correct and new sharp needle? Very important to use new sharp appropriate needle and test first on an old piece of chiffon. I save bits of chiffon from projects to use as test pieces. Would not want to snag an important dress.
@@TheBusyBeeSews I feel this question was so inappropriate. Helps to show us “not so perfect sewest” that not everyone is “perfect” Thank you for your video. Off to hem a bridesmaid dress for my daughter’s friend.
A I For 1. Most dresses are not perfect even, in many cases are badly off, For 2. The body shape of people are so different, could have big butt that makes it shorter in the back, or a bigger belly makes it shorter in the front, or one hip bigger than other due to surgery or other health issues, and 3. It will take flipping forever to cut carefully close to the seam without pinching the fabric, then sew again all around the dress. Makes me wonder how many hundreds of $ would cost to hem a dress this way 😕. I cut the fabric, roll the hem and sew it once, then iron and turns out perfect flat fabric, you just need to know how stretch/not stretch the fabric while rolling, it’s not easy job I admit, but doable and has a nice look in the end.