# The New Dressmaker/Chapter 28

CHAPTER 28
APPLIED TRIMMING—Part II
Gathering—Shirring—Tuctc Shirrings—Cord Shirrings—Scalloped or Snail Shirrings—Simple Ruche—Three-Tuck Ruche—Box-Plaited or Gathered Ruches—Single Ruche with One Cord Shirring—Double Ruche with One Cord Shirring—Double Ruche with Two Cord Shirrings—Puff Ruche—Corded Puff Trimming—Variation of Plain Puffings with Cords—Box Plaiting with Corded Piping—Quilling or Side-Plaited Trimmings
FOR the shirred trimmings given in these chapters the softest materials should be used.
Plaited trimmings may be made of very soft materials or of materials with more body.
Any of the materials may be cut double.
Soft ribbons requiring no finish at the edges may be used effectively for these trimmings.
Most materials for the ruchings and puffings may be cut bias or straight.
Chiffon should always be cut lengthwise or crosswise, never bias.
Silks and satins lie in softer folds if they are cut bias or crosswise.
If the edges are to be frayed, the materials must be cut lengthwise or crosswise. Crosswise is preferable, for the threads are closer and make a thicker fringe.
If net is to be used with raw edges, it should be cut on the line of the straight threads which run lengthwise, or bias. You can easily determine the direction of these threads on the piece you are using by stretching the net a little in different directions. Net is more easily hemmed if cut as above, but for a double ruche it may be cut lengthwise, crosswise or bias.
Different materials require different amounts of fulness for shirred ruches. A soft fabric such as chiffon requires three times the length of the finished ruche. Taffeta, messaline and such materials which have a little more body require only about twice the finished length.
THE WIDTH OF RUCHES—On the single ruches you must allow from one-quarter to one-half inch for each cord, the amount depending on the size of the cord. If the edges are to be hemmed or rolled, sufficient allowance should be made for that finish.
For a double ruche calculate the width of a single ruche and double the amount.
CLEAN EVEN EDGES are important, especially if the ruche is to be frayed. The best way to get a good edge for strips cut crosswise or lengthwise is to pull a thread of the material.
THE EDGES OF SINGLE RUCHES may be finished in different ways, depending on the material. Taffeta may be frayed (Ill. 331), pinked (Ill. 338), picoted (Chapter 25, page 119) or finished with tiny hems.
Messaline and crêpe de Chine can be frayed, picoted or hemmed.
Chiffon may have its edges picoted, or rolled, and whipped tightly with fine stitches in the same or contrasting color (Chapter 25. page 123.)
Net may be picoted, hemmed with a same or contrasting color, or if it is a fine mesh, it can be cut in such a way that the edge needs no finish.
STRIPS should be joined as neatly as possible. Some nets can be seamed with an ​Ill. 321. Gathering over-and-over stitch, using No. 150 cotton; the joining can scarcely be detected. If this is not practical for the net you are using, make a plain seam and trim the edges down to within one-eighth of an inch of the stitching. Roll the seam edges down to the stitching and whip them closely.
Non-transparent materials may be joined in a plain seam for a double ruche. For a single ruche they should be joined with a tiny French seam. (Chapter 17, page 86.) This can be trimmed away under a frayed edge so that the frayed edge appears continuous. This work must be done very carefully.
In cutting, plan the strips so that as few joinings as possible are required. (The directions for cutting bias strips are given in Chapter 2, page 15.)
Ill. 322. Position of Needle in Stroking Gathers FOR GATHERINGS, make a row of small running stitches. The stitches may be the same length as the spaces, or the spaces may be twice the length of the stitches. Always begin by inserting the needle from the wrong side to conceal the knot. It is better to slip the stitches along on the needle and not remove it from the material.
Ill. 323. Two Rows of Gathers When the gathering is completed, remove the needle and draw the gatherings up tight. Place a pin vertically, close to the last stitch, and wind the thread several times around the pin in the form of an 8 (Ill. 321.) This holds the gathers firmly together.
IN STROKING OR LAYING GATHERS the work is held between the thumb and fingers of the left hand, with the thumb below the gathering thread. Put the side of the needle well above the gathering thread and press the little plait under the thumb, drawing the needle down. (Ill. 322.)
Ill. 324. Gaging or French Gathers Do not use the point of the needle, as it scratches and weakens the material. Continue entirely across the gathers, putting the needle under each stitch and holding the plait firmly with the thumb. Stroke the material above the gathering thread as well as below it to make the gathers firm and even.
TWO ROWS OF GATHERS are often used in dressmaking and do not need stroking. A skirt joined to a band, a sleeve set in a cuff or sewed into the armhole, ​Ill. 325. Simple Shirring should be gathered twice so that the gathers will stay in the proper place.
The second row is made with the stitches directly in line with those of the first row and one-quarter or three-eighths of an inch below them. (Ill. 323.) If there is much fulness to be gathered, the spaces between the stitches may be lengthened.
GAGING OR FRENCH GATHERS is a style of shirring generally used where a quantity of material must be adjusted to a comparatively small space. (Ill. 324.) The stitches in this case are made evenly: long ones on the right side and short ones on the under side of the material. Each successive row of gathers has its long and short stitches parallel, respectively, with those of the preceding row. The threads are all drawn up evenly, and fastened at the ends. Ill. 326. Tuck Shirrings
SHIRRING is made of successive rows of gatherings. It is used as a trimming. There are several different kinds of shirring, the use of which must be determined somewhat by the character of the material and the style of the garment. Before beginning, it is best to mark the sewing lines with a colored thread to be sure to get the rows even. This thread can be drawn out when the shirring is finished.
Ill. 327. Scallop Shirrings A SIMPLE SHIRRING is shown in Illustration 325. The top edge is turned in and the first row shirred in close to the edge. The thread should be amply strong, with a good big knot at the end; for if the thread is weak and breaks, or the knot pulls through, the shirring will progress slowly, and the material will suffer unnecessarily in the working.
Shirring can also be done very successfully on the machine by using the gathering
Ill. 328. Cord Shirring
attachment. In that case it is especially necessary to mark the sewing lines before beginning, as the machine does the work so rapidly that one is more apt to get an irregular line.
Ill. 330. Three-Tuck Ruche TUCK SHIRRINGS are prettiest made on the bias of the material. Shirr along the sewing lines of the tucks through both thicknesses of the material and draw up the fulness. (Ill. 326.)
SCALLOPS OR SNAIL SHIRRINGS are meant to be used as a band trimming. Make a narrow fold of the material, and run the shirring thread zigzag across from edge to edge. (Ill. 327.) As the work progresses, draw up the thread when the fold will acquire a scallop edge on both sides. If a wider fold is used, two threads may be run in close together. This will produce a more even trimming and one that will be less perishable. Ill. 331. Ruche of Frayed Taffeta CORD SHIRRING (Ill. 328) is made much like the tuck shirring. Tiny tucks are sewed in with a cord enclosed from the under side (See Ill. 295, page 130), and when the entire number of threads have been run in, draw up the fulness.
Ill. 332. Double Ruche with One Cording A SIMPLE RUCHE can be made from strips of the material. Cut off the selvedge, for the selvedge is stiff and would prevent the material from making a soft ruche. Join as many strips of material as are necessary to make the ruche the desired length. Turn under one raw edge of the strip and fold the strip so that it will be double, with the seam at the center of the under side. (Ill. 329.) Gather the ruche through the center just inside the fold edge. (Ill. 329.)
Ill. 333. Fluffy Double Ruche with Two Cord Shirrings A THREE-TUCK RUCHE is used when more fulness is desired than is given by a simple ruche. This is made by cutting the strips about seven inches wide. After joining the strips as before, fold them in thirds, bringing the two raw edges together three-eighths of an inch from the folds. Run a gathering thread through all the layers at one time. (Ill. 330.)
| Ill. 334. A Puff Ruche of Soft Satin Ribbon | Ill. 335. A Puff Trimming |
A RUCHE OF FRAYED TAFFETA is shown is Illustration 331. The silk is cut single and there is one cord shirring.
A DOUBLE RUCHE WITH ONE CORDING. The edges of the material are folded over until they just meet at the center of the strip and are basted in place. The strip is then folded lengthwise through the center and a line of fine running stitches forms a tuck. (Ill. 332.) The cord may be inserted while making the tuck. (Ill. 332.)
For two cordings the sewing of each tuck should be about one-eighth of an inch from the center. If larger cords are used, the sewing of the tucks should be a little farther apart so as not to crowd them.
A FLUFFY DOUBLE RUCHE WITH TWO CORD SHIRRINGS is shown in Illustration 333. To make this ruche perky, catch the material to the cord, along the back of the cordings, tacking it to the cordings. The sewing should be made by putting the needle in the material a little to one side of the tuck sewing, catching the cord and bringing it out on the opposite side. Take these stitches from one-quarter to one-half an inch apart. Very soft materials require less tacking than those having more weight and body.
A PUFF RUCHE OF SOFT SATIN RIBBON is shown in Illustration 334. This is an effective ruche and may also be made of soft materials as well as ribbon. Cut the material enough wider than the width desired for the finished ruche so that when the edges are turned over the raw edge will be included in the tuck sewing.
A PUFF TRIMMING (III. 335) is attractive made of any soft material. It may be corded with as many cords as you like.
A VARIATION OF PLAIN PUFFING is shown in Illustration 336. Two sizes of cords and two widths of puffings make a very attractive trimming. In cutting your strips of material for this puffing allow for the cords and for a seam along each edge. The strips
Ill. 336. Variation of Plain Puffing
of material for the puffing may be cut straight or bias as you prefer. Tack the inner cords along the back to the puffing material. The outer cords will adjust themselves. Different arrangements in the number and spacing of the cordings may be used. Puffings of this kind make most delightful trimmings.
A PUFF RUFFLE is made of strips of chiffon, etc., double the width of the ruffle desired, plus the two inches required for the heading at the top. Fold the chiffon double, bringing the two raw edges together on a line one inch below the edge that will be the upper edge of the ruffle. Turn under the upper raw edge and run in the gathering thread, using small stitches. (Ill. 337.)
A BOX-PLAITED RUCHE is shown in the process of making in Illustration 338. The strips for the ruche may be cut bias or straight and in any width desired. The edges could be picoted or pinked. This ruche requires a little less than three times the finished length.
Ill. 338. A Box-Plaited Ruche
The plaits should be basted (Ill. 338) and then machine-stitched through the center. (Ill. 338.) They should not be pressed flat but should be left to stand out from the stitching.
A BOX-PLAITED TRIMMING JOINED TO A GARMENT WITH A CORD PIPING is shown in Illustration 339. The strips for the plaiting may be cut bias or straight. The outer edge of the plaiting may be pinked, picoted or finished with a very narrow hem.
The cord piping and the unfinished edge of the plaiting are joined together in a plain seam. (Ill. 339.) The seam is then turned down flatly under the plaits and the plaits are pressed.
A QUILLING OR SIMPLE SIDE-PLAITED TRIMMING is shown in Illustration 340. The strips of material may be cut bias or straight and should be three times as long as the finished trimming. The outer edge of the quilling may be picoted, hemmed or pinked, or the quilling may be made double.
The garment edge which the plaiting is to finish should be turned under the seam width and basted. (Ill. 340.) The plaiting is basted under this edge and sewed in position according to the material and finish of the garment. (Ill. 340.)
| Ill. 339. A Box-Plaited Trimming with a Cord Piping | Ill. 340. A Quilling or Side-Plaited Trimming |