Denim Dress

[the_professors_assistantKeymaster]

I am building a dress using a light/medium weight denim (Butterick 5598A).  When I pre-washed the fabric, there was at least 1/2″ of significant fraying on the cut ends…which I dispatched neatly with a pinking shear.   But I’m wondering about the best way to finish the seams on this dress to avoid a post-construction eye-sore.  I don’t have one of those serger machines.  Should I finish edges with a tight zigzag stitch?  Do the edges need special attention before construction?

[the_professors_assistantKeymaster]

Hi Tom! I’m glad to hear that you’re working on your next project. You definitely seem like you already have the right idea. The pinking shears will help but you can finish the edges with a zigzag stitch or the stitch called the double overlock stitch. I’ve attached a picture below as an example and the double overlock stitch is the one that is a number 8, in this case. It’s a zigzag stitch that has a straight stitch on each side and you’d sew it on the edge of the fabric. Hopefully, your machine has it and I, personally, like it a little better than a normal zigzag stitch.  If you want to get all the finishing part out of the way first, you can do this stitch around your pieces right after cutting them out.  Then when you start piecing your garment together, you can just do your seams as normal and it’s already been finished for you.   I can’t wait to see how this one turns out! 🙂

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