I Take it Back

I've complained before about sewing with knits.  Now, I'd like to officially declare that I was wrong.  Knits are not evil or even awful; they're actually pretty fun and forgiving.  I really just needed a few tricks. 

First, here's what was most infuriating to me about knit fabrics: necklines.  Okay, so when you're sewing up side seams, it's nice that knit is stretchy enough to adjust if you've made some cutting mistakes.  But what if you want your neckline to stretch slightly without being stretched out?  You can't use a straight stitch-- it'll just hold tight and snap under too much tension.  And knits don't hold pressing from an iron as well, so you have to fiddle with them.  Early on, I tried zig-zag stitching, but I don't like how it looks all that much.  Plus, you have to be careful not to pull on the fabric too much or you get stretched seams.  Boo on all counts.

But like I said, I'm converted to a knit lover.  I'm thinking that most of my transformation is actually due to practice, but I also discovered a new stitch that I'm in love with.  It's number 20 on my machine, and here's the best picture I have of it:

It's kind of like a double straight stitch with a zig-zag in between, like what a serger does.  Does that make sense?  I'm sure it has some kind of cool, official name.

And with a little practice, I realized that I don't even need to press the fabric over to finish off an edge.  As long as I'm careful, I can keep it pretty consistent by just pushing the fabric into place with my fingers and going at a reasonable pace. 

And look what I've got to show for it!  These are, by far, my most successful knit creations, both using ribbed knit fabrics that I got in the Red Tag section at Jo-Ann's (Yay!  Bargain shopping!)

Noelle is sporting her two-toned long-sleeved top.  (I'll have to talk about my overcoming of the sleeve fear later.)  It's basic, but you'll see from the picture above that it has a pretty cute keyhole on the back with a ribbon flower as a "button."  

And it's orange month at Riley's preschool, so I thought she needed an orange top.  Plus, she's going to be a butterfly for Halloween, and I decided to buy the 60%-off wings instead of making them.  (It gets harder and harder to sew when you're 8 months pregnant!  And, honestly, I just didn't want to mess with interfacing.)  But I couldn't let her be completely homemade-free, costume-wise.  Plus, it's just a hippy-dippy type dress when you take the wings off.   And I do love a good ruffle or two. :)

She has some bell sleeves (because I still wanted them to be a little wing-like). 

Her neck ruffle just goes around the front, but the hem ruffle extends to the back.  

And yes, I think the wings are technically fairy wings.  Shhhh!  Don't tell her!  She'll be getting an antennae headband soon, so there'll be no mistaking her. :)