DRESSMAKING.

Waipa Post, Volume 48, Issue 3468, 19 May 1934, Page 10

DRESSMAKING.

POINTS WORTH KNOWING

Do you know that a realy experienced dressmaker always uses about four times as many pins as appear necessary when she is pinning any part of a dress that is pulled or is likely to pull when tried on ? If you let your pins almost overlap, not only will they “ stqy put ” for some days, but they will keep the fullness firmly in place during a “ try-on.” Pins are bound to jump out when you least want them to if you put them in at two-inch spaces and then expect them to take a strain. Thiis point -is - especially important when, pinning in a sleeve, because sleeves are invariably slightly, larger than the arm-hole, and have to be eased in very carefully if they are to set nicely. Don’t forget that pressing is as important as the actu'al sewing or cutting out of a frock. Get into the habit of pi-essing- every seam as you go along, because if you finish your frock first there are bound to be one or two seams that cannot be reached by- the iron, and you will lose that professional touch that is so essential to chic. Whenever possible avoid French seams; it is always neater to press seams open and to pink or overcast the edges—you will rarely find a material that frays too badly for either of these methods. Tiny Frerich seams are lovely on undies, and are, of course, essential for any seam that is likely to show —the inside of a flared cuff, for instance — but frock seams, open, if you. pleasel Here is a word of advice about hems. A horrible fault of homemades is an uneven hem-line, but it can .fye easily remedied. Firstly, it it only happens if your skirt is cut on the cross, as in the case of a flare, arid,' secondly, the reason is because a bids always drops. You must be patient, and allow your frock, finished all but the hem,' to hang up on a coat-hanger for at least three days.— longer, if possible—to allow for the material, to drop as much as it wants to. If you don’t it will do this dropping when you have the dress on, and your carefully hemmed edge will look more like a scenic railway than a straight line. If your hem that is not a flare or cult on the cross is uneven, then you must remember that a second person is essential to the final '.try-on, to pin or mark your hem for you. Stand on a table for this operation, so that youv girl friend won’t have to creep about the floor on her hands and knees with her mouth full of pahs': ' You must wear the shoes you intend to wear with the dress, as heels make quite a difference to the hang and length of a skirt. Ask

your friend to use a ruler or a yardstick rather than a tape-measure from the floor up, putting in pins as she goes, oi’ marking a steady line with a . tailor’s chalk. Then, when you take the frock oil', all you have to do is to turn up the hem along the pins, allowing, of course, for any slight unevenness owing to the pins not being dead accurate.