Tonights Tip - Sewing Small Items, and a new addition to my shop

Tonight's tip - sewing small things!   I use this technique a lot - for mama cloth, felt playfood, some types of applique, pockets and pocket flaps, stuffed toys, etc.   

With small items like these, any time you get the tiniest little bit off of your stitching line, it changes the look of the finished item.   Little things can also be tricky to manuver, so its even harder to keep your seam allowance perfect!   

So this is how I do it... 

Tonight I made some panty liners. The inner pad is contoured and fiddly to sew, especially when I'm using OVB (organic bamboo velour) for one of the layers, that stuff likes to curl up and slip all over the place.  

1. If you pattern piece has seam allowances on it, cut them off.   Roughly cut your fabric out bigger than your pattern piece.   Then layer your fabric right sides together and put a pin or two to hold the layers together.   Place your pattern on top.  

2.  Now trace all the way around,  add more pins to the inside of your shape if needed.  

3.   Next you are going to sew, all or most of the way around.  For this particular project, I am sewing the pad to the liner, so I can snip a hole in the center to turn this right side out.   For any project where you are going to sew the whole shape down when you are done, you will just sew all the way around without leaving any openings, snip someplace in the middle, turn it right side out and then stitch the whole thing down hiding the sniped hole.     For most applications though, you will want to leave a hole for turning this right side out when you are done.   Be sure to backstitch at each end of your stitch-line, and leave your opening along a straight portion of your pattern.  

4.   Now cut out your piece.  I like to use pinking shears, especially when there are curves involved, but you can trim with a seam allowance suitable for your project and fabric.  For most things you can trim pretty close, but if you are using something that likes to shred like flannel, you may want to leave a bit more room.    

5.   Turn right side out and finish your project!  


Here is mine:

Panty liners can now be found in my shop.  They are an environmentally friendly, cost effective alliterative to disposable products.     And much more comfortable too!