This is from Easy Guide to Sewing Linings and is suggested for
hems on coats, or generally hems for heavy fabrics. Without the
interfacing, the heavy fabric can pull down on itself and make a lumpy
hem.
Use interfacing that is cut on the bias or has crosswise stretch. Cut
interfacing strips about 1 1/2" wider than the hem depth and as long
as you need to go around the hem. You can piece several strips if
necessary. Fuse or sew the interfacing so that it extends 1/2" below
the marked hemline on the garment. There will be 1" of interfacing
that will show above the top of the hem. The rest of the interfacing
will be behind the hem allowance, with 1/2" folded up at the bottom,
when you press up the hem. Sew the hem up by hand, through the
interfacing and the outer fabric, using a blind catchstitch. You can
also catchstitch the top edge of the interfacing if you like, but it
isn't always necessary, especially if it is a fusible. |
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Margaret, thanks for posting. I've printed up this helpful tip. Barbara
12/8/02 4:07 PM
For a light- to medium-weight unlined jacket, cut the interfacing so that it is the width of the hem allowance plus 1/2". Pink the long edges so they don't create a ridge. Machine-stitch one edge to the fashion fabric raw edge, and then catch-stitch the other edge where it meets the hemline. Now you have a lovely soft, supported hem edge without any interfacing showing on the inside.
4/14/11 0:40 AM
BexInMD, thanks for adding the tip about unlined jackets. The way I do this now is the same as the tip above, except that I make the interfacing only 1/2" wider than the hem depth. Then I would blind-catchstitch the hem together just below the top of the finished (formerly raw, cut) hem edge. If I've understood the method you are describing correctly, it seems to me that with this method it might also be possible to use the interfacing to "face" the raw hem edge, provided the hem is fairly straight and without much flare.
4/14/11 12:58 PM