Tips for Handsewing

[Greyhaunt]

I think I mentioned this under sewing pleather, but it is great for any fabric:

When you are folding a hem or seam that is too small for you to easily use pins - use plastic coated paperclips! When sewing pleather at any size they are awesome as they won't poke holes and if used carefully will not leave any permanent marks!

Tiny binder clips will also work extremely well (though they are heavier) but only on fabrics that will not "remember" the pressure areas (in other words, don't use on pleather!).

[OkamiKodomo]

Eyelets: If you use an awl (long pointy thing) to poke the hole instead of cutting it, the eyelet will be much more secure. It's also good to sandwich a bit of leather or pleather under the fabric to support them.

I use a bead reamer, since I had it on hand lol...

[Alopecia No Hime]

When your sewing try as strange as it sounds go for the smallest needle you can because it'll leave the stitches smaller and on things like doll clothes you don't want that to show up.

[iron_dog]

I second the satin ribbon as a finishing method. I buy mine from the dollar store and its a much better deal money wise than bias tape and comes in a lot more colours and even patterns. I'll fold and pin the entire length of ribbon (usually about 6 feet worth from one spool) and iron it for a nice crisp edge.

I make a good number of things reversible and edging with the satin ribbon gives it a nice clean finish as well as accent. One of my dolls also likes kimonos with empress sleeves and I line the insides of the sleeves with either the same or a contrasting/complimentary fabric and the ribbon finishes the edges nicely especially when the fabric has a tendency to fray.

The fabric I used here is a satin-like material that tends to fray although not as badly as actual satin I've worked with. I used 5/8" wide dark burgundy ribbon folded in half to trim the outfit. I think I ended up using almost all of the 6 feet or so of ribbon that was on the spool to do this one.

[bombaykitty]

If you have to use a woven fabric for something small, cut it a little bit bigger and go over the very edge with clear nail polish. This will prevent fraying. It does show, so fold it in or trim it off after when it's time to do the hem. Or, you can just cover it with a lovely ribbon or trim and no one's the wiser!

That's an awesome idea!! Just a quick question though, can nail polish go in the washing machine? My dollies clothes don't usually get dirty but just in case...

[Shinku_Rhapsody]

I usually just handwash doll clothes just to be safe. Especially if they're delicate.

[bombaykitty]

I usually just handwash doll clothes just to be safe. Especially if they're delicate.

That's true, but the nail polish wouldn't get dissolved with water/soap? I guess since we wash our hands after putting on nail polish it should be ok...I'll have to try out this method on some of the fabrics I have as it'll save me so much headache over fraying and such