We love sewing and designing lingerie. We create top-notch lingerie patterns.
We love sewing and designing lingerie. We create top-notch lingerie patterns.
I think a little introduction about needed stuff before actual bra sewing is in order. There are some requirements to be able to sew stretch fabric, some are optional – I will be mentioning this for each one.
First on the table is the sewing machine needle. For this kind of bra, we are using stretch fabrics. It is mandatory to use a special type of needle. You can use a stretch needle or a ballpoint.
A normal needle may not work with stretch fabrics. I recommend you take a test. Take a scrap of your stretch fabric and try to sew it on your sewing machine with a stretch or ballpoint needle. Usually, sewing machines accept almost all types of stretch fabric when using a special needle. However, the worst-case scenario is when the fabric is not accepted by your machine no matter what. In this case, the easiest solution is to give up the fabric.
Sewing machines have a standard set of presser feet. Mine has these two. The first is my standard foot. Yours may be a bit different. We’ll be using it a lot and it is mandatory.
The second is a special foot. In my machine’s manual, it is used for invisible hemstitch. However, I found it very useful for a lot of other jobs. It has a small piece right in the middle that is a perfect guide when stitching.
Be careful to use it when using a normal zig-zag stitch or the straight stitch with needle position to the left, NOT in the middle. However, don’t worry if you do not have this exact foot, because it is optional. You can replace this one with a foot that has a guide right in the middle and can be used with a normal zig-zag.
And very important – sewing machine stitches. I will be using these three:
- straight stitch
- normal zig-zag (one step zig-zag)
- three-step zig-zag
Here I marked them on my machine – Brother Innovis.
Here is the rule: to sew bras using stretch fabric it is mandatory to have straight stitch and one-step zig-zag. If you do NOT have one-step zig-zag, you can’t sew this kind of bra. Straight stitch simply is not enough.Quote title
As for the three-step zig-zag, this one is optional. If your machine does not have it, we simply replace it with a one-step zig-zag. Make sure to check all from above, because in the next post we finally start to assemble the cup.
This article is part of a series of articles about How to sew a bra.