Hi sewing friends, you know that I like to share with you anything that I find useful, and today I will show you the process of sewing a bust dart with what I call a fake French seam. Why would you sew a fake French seam Monika if you can sew the real deal??? You may wonder! I tell you….because it never crossed my mind and after I was too scared! If you still confused you can check out my other blog post where I share my thoughts on making a Sew Over It Bonnie blouse.
In general I think French seams look beautiful and contrary to popular belief they do not take longer to do than your regular seam. Some may say that it is time consuming because you need to sew the same seam twice, but if you think about it…you do it anyway! Unless you are keeping your seam allowance raw, which is not the best idea ( not including knit fabrics here). Normally you would stitch your fabric pieces together following with other stitch to overcast the seam, by sewing a zig zag stitch or using an overlocker to stop fabric edges from fraying….so you see, you ARE sewing the seam twice! Why not make it more beautiful by finishing it with a French seam???? Anyway….I’m drifting away from what I want to show you.
Faux French seam
Once you stitch your dart in a regular way, like me, you may find that your fabric is a little sheer and your bust dart looks unappealing or you simply want to reduce the size of the bust dart because you don’t want to much bulk. To create a faux French seam on any dart draw a parallel line about 2-3 cm away from the stitching.
Don’t be afraid and cut the excess fabric on the marked line.
Now fold the raw edges inside the dart and pin or baste in place.
Using a slip stitch close the dart seam and press.
That is it! You created your faux French seam!
~Hope this little trick will help you make these bust darts less visible on the outside and more beautiful on the inside!~
Monika xxx
