Shoutout to the local fabric store that finally got me to stop ignoring seam allowances

I used to just eyeball it for years, thinking a quarter inch here or there didn't matter. Then I tried to make a lined jacket from a Vogue pattern last month and the whole thing puckered because my pieces were all different sizes. The woman at Mill End Textiles showed me how using a consistent 5/8 inch allowance on every single piece is the only way to get things to match up right. It seems so basic, but I was skipping it to save time and fabric. Now I mark every pattern piece before I cut. Has anyone else had a simple step they ignored that ruined a bigger project?

3 comments

3 Comments

lisab322d ago

My grandma always said you can fudge a hem but never a seam allowance. She was right, I learned the hard way on a pair of trousers.

gray3142d ago

That's such a hard lesson to learn, sorry about the trousers.

kim_davis1d ago

Oh man, lisab32's grandma was onto something. It's like the whole project is built on that little strip of fabric. Skimp there and everything just falls apart, no matter how perfect your stitching is. I ruined a whole dress by being lazy with the allowance on the curved seams. They just would not lay flat. That tiny bit of extra fabric is what gives you room to make it right.