DIY Alterations – 17 typical clothing problems & what to do about them
What do you need to alter clothes? If you know how to alter clothes, there’s nothing you can’t do to make them wearable and beautiful.
1. The dress is too tight
If your clothes have shrunk in the wash, you may need to let out seams or darts. The most common solution is to loosen the side seam and restitch, but if there is no seam allowance to let out, you may need to add an extra fabric piece.
2. Dress/pant/skirt is too short
You’ll need to lengthen hemlines, which you can do in a variety of ways, including adding ruffles to the hems or making a slip extender to wear under the clothing to give it length. For more information, see our post on How To Lengthen A Skirt.
4. The Bodice is loose
If the problem occurs when a person stands straight while taking body measurements but then slumps, see if the problem can be solved with a tuck straight across the chest area or in the area below the bust if it appears to bulge.
5. Dress is too long
If you want an invisible hem, try one of these four methods: shortening the length of a dress, skirt, top, pants, or jeans, cutting out the extra portion, and sewing the hemline again.
7. Add/replace lining in jackets and dresses
You will have to let out the seams and restitch or add it as an underlining. You can use slip stitches to sew a lining to your garment very unobtrusively. This is a lot of trouble if you ask me, but it is sometimes necessary.
8. Altering a neckline that is too big
A neckline that is too wide will gape and expose too much of what you don’t want to be seen; there are many solutions to this problem; see How to fix a neckline that gapes for these reasons for more information.
How do you fix a buttonhole?
Start at the good end of the buttonhole and sew over any remaining stitches. Knot the thread and push the needle through the stitches from the wrong side of the buttonhole. Push the needle down through the buttonhole and up through the material near the end of the buttonhole.
How do you size a button hole?
Test the size before making any buttonholes on your garment (Figure 1). The length of your test buttonhole should be equal to half the circumference plus 1/8 inch; if your button is very thick, you may need to increase the size a little more.
How do you keep shirt buttons from coming undone?
You could try hand stitching the button holes for those two buttons a little tighter to make them more difficult to undo; simply buy some sturdy thread in a color that matches the dress and do some loop stitches, but make sure the buttons still fit through!
Can you use a sewing machine to sew on a button?
Yes, you can sew buttons on with a sewing machine. Any sewing machine with a zig-zag stitch and a button sew-on foot can have a button back in place in minutes. Sewing machine manufacturers have had feet to sew on buttons since the first zig-zag stitch was invented.
How do you sew a button with one hole?
Place your button in the center of the button hole and thread your needle and thread through the underside of the fabric until it reaches the knot. Pass the needle through one button hole, the diagonally opposite hole, and then back through the fabric.
How can I sew faster?
They can sew more quickly, as evidenced by the following fifteen:
- Reduce your seam allowances to 14u201d on enclosed seams.
- Mark your notches with 1/8u201d nips.
- Cut cleanly.
- Cut your pattern to the cutting line.
- Don’t pin the pattern to the fabric.
- Block your work.
- Cut and mark pieces all at once.
- Sew continuously.
How do I fix the button on my jeans?
HOW TO INSTALL BUTTONS AND RIVETS ON JEANS
- Make a hole in your fabric just big enough for the button/rivet tack to fit through with your awl or nail.
- Push the tack through from the back of the garment to the front.
- FOR RIVETS ONLY.
- Place your button/rivet face down on your metal surface.
- Lightly hammer the back of the tack.