Experimenting: Singleton Button Making - Learning Precision

Most of my recreation time right now is going into my Moulage/French Pattern Drafting class. I don't have a lot to blog about in that regards this week, because there's a lot of repetition in my homework. I'm working on creating a sloper this week, but it looks an awful lot like the moulage!

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For a little fun between muslin sewing and pattern drafting, I've been playing around, learning to create Singleton Buttons.

These are my attempts at Singleton Buttons to date.

Since I'm not yet there when it comes to getting a clean, precise edge, I'm not yet concerning myself with creating the thread shanks with which I would fasten them to a garment.

Clockwise from top left
The button with more yellow flowers has a piece of thin fused quilt batting, cut the same size as the full pattern
The pink flower has no interfacing
The purple flower has a piece of paper, cut about the same dimensions as the metal ring

I've mentioned many times that I'm working on learning to be more precise.Playing with creating my own Singleton Buttons, looks like a good way to get some practice in. There's something about the way I need to learn to hold things and work with the needle when it comes to getting that precise edge I'm after.

My favorite so far, is the top left button. I used a thin piece of quilt batting in that one.

Next, I'll experiment with rings of a slightly larger diameter. I think that might make those tight, precise, edges more achievable.

~ Basic Techniques~

- I made a pattern circle, 2 and a half times the diameter of the metal ring.  I scored some welded metal rings at my local hardware store. I'm sure you could buy something at a fabric store that's actually intended for this purpose.

I've tried different kinds of inside bits.
In this attempt, I simply used a piece of paper.
That wouldn't actually wash well ,but I wanted to see how the edge worked.

 - Then I ran a basting stitch about 1/8 inch away from the edge of my circle, tightened it up, and stitched back and forth to cover the edges.

- The 'X' on the front of this button was basting stitches, to hold that piece of interfacing paper in place

- After I stitched the back closed, I stitched around the inside edge of the metal ring.

- At this point, in the future,  I'll stitch up a thread shank -  I'll be doing that once I'm happier with the way the buttons are starting to look.

Seams to Fit Part 3: More Power to Interlining! (Technicos)

Using  stitching marks on my interlining pieces to define the stitching lines on the fashion fabric it's backing.              

Previously

Seams To Fit Part 1: A Little Less Laxity 

Seams To Fit Part 2: Making My Mark 

I figured out how to take advantage of my interlining, to help match the seams on my bustier project.

What is interlining?
Interlining is like a piece of backing for a garment's fashion fabric. In this bustier project, my fashion fabric is denim. My interlining is a piece of plaid 100% cotton flannel. You will never see the interlining once the garment is done, even on the inside. That's because this garment will have a second shell that includes lining. The interlining will be sandwiched in between the lining and the garment fabric.

I cut the interlining just like I cut the fashion fabric.

The interlining is just sewn on underneath the piece it backs.  I treat the two pieces of material as though they are just one piece of fabric. The back/wrong side of the interlining is sewn to the back of the fashion fabric.

Why did I used interlining in this garment?
Typically interlining is used to make a fashion fabric more stable and give a little less. For example you might use interlining with linen to make it crisper. (In which case you might cut the interlining just a little more narrow - a good trick, eh?)

In this case, I used interlining as a layer of extra protection because of the bones/stays that are in the next layer below it. It helps avoid the chance that these bones will slip out and poke into the outer/fashion fabric layer.

How I took advantage of my interlining, to help match the seams on my bustier project.

Because this bustier has really small pieces, and is really fitted, I marked, then sewed through, the stitching lines all the way around on my interlining pieces. I just sewed through that one layer, to make the seam/stitching lines really clear. 

I also marked all the stitching lines on the inside of my fashion fabric. I could have basted those lines, then matched up the stitched lines to ensure that my seams are precise.

But I really don't like having to take all those basting threads out of the fashion fabric. Also, sometimes they're hard to remove, especially if I sew over them.

Since I have the stitched lines on the interlining and the marked lines on the fashion fabric, I was able to slip pins through from the interlining into the marked line and pin the interlining layer to the fashion fabric layer all the way around the piece. I could easily check on the fashion fabric layer to see that the stitched line above was marrying up right with the marks all the way around.

I repeated this process with the adjoining piece - both on the fashion fabric and the interlining fabric - then joined the seams of the two pieces together, slipping the pins from one seam line marking into the one below. I was able to constantly check my pinned stitching lines, to make sure that the seam line below was matching up properly with the seam line on the top.

Figuring out how to sew narrow garment pieces together precisely, and save time removing basting stitches later on, is the kind of technique that keeps me....

Enchanted by Sewing.

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Web Resources

Boning Up On Bustiers: http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2014/03/ench-by-sew-018-boning-up-on-bustiers.html

My Pinterest  Bustiers Board