Maternity or Not Frock : Neckline & Shoulder Seams

Neckline:

Now that our main pieces and neckline are cut out we are going to go ahead and finish the neckline off.

1- Cut a section of bias tape that will cover the length of the neck hole for one rectangle (add a bit of extra to make sure you have enough).

2- Open the tape at the center fold and place one of your rectangle's fabric's neck edge right into the center fold of the bias tape.

3- Pin the neckline with the bias tape in place.

4- Sew in place. Move your needle all the way to the left. Keep the right edge of the bias tape even with the right edge of your presser foot. Stitch all the way around the neck hole for one rectangle. (It should create a stitch line about 1/2" from the inside edge).


5- Fold the bias tape to the inside of the fabric (you should not see the tape on the right side of your fabric). Pin in place and iron.

6- Stitch in place on the right side of the fabric. I like to do a double stitch because I feel like it looks more professional, but you could just do one stitch line if you want.
- First, place your necks edge against the right side of your presser foot. Move your needle to the furthest right position creating an edgestitch at about 1/4".

Now move the needle to the most left position, keeping the neck edge along the right edge of the presser foot, stitch another line parallel to the first on the top of your fabric.

The finished neckline should look like this:


7- Repeat for the other rectangle (back piece).

8-Take your two rectangles with finished necklines and pin right sides together at shoulder seams.

9- Stitch at a 5/8" seam allowance. Use pincking shears to keep edges from raveling (optional). Press seam open.
10- In order to keep the seam right at the inside edge of the neck flat (it has a tendancy to flip up because of the bulkiness of the bias tape) you are going to make a small stitch line 1" long right where the shoulder seams come together at the base of the neck.
This is what it should look like once it is done:


OK, the neckline and shoulder seams should be finished. In a couple of days we will make the kimono sleeves and the side seams.

Maternity or Not Frock : ideas

Here are a few examples of similar tunic tops/dresses that you may want to use for inspiration as you are getting your materials together for your maternity or not frock.

Maternity or Not Frock : Cutting

You are going to need to cut out two matching rectangles to be the main body of your top/dress. One will be for the front and one will be for the back. To determine how big to make these rectangles take measurements of the following:

bust
hips
waist (esp. if you are pregnant)
approximate length

Whichever one is the largest will be used to determine the width of your rectangles.

For instance. Let's pretend that my hips are the widest portion of my body and by measuring all the way around the widest part of my hips (front and back) it came to 40". I would add 3" for seam allowance and 2" for ease making my total 45". Now I would divide that by 2 (half for front and half for back) so that each of my rectangles would be 22 1/2" wide.

To determine the length of the two rectangles use your measuring tape to measure from the nape of your neck to wherever you want it to end and then add on about 5 inches to make sure that you have plenty of extra fabric to hem etc...

Here is a pic of my two rectangles folded in half. My belly was the widest portion and I wanted the length to end a little above my knees so my finished measurements went as follows:
waist = 47" circumference + 3" seam allowance + 2" ease = 52" / 2 = 26" width for each rectangle

length = about 35" desired + 5" = 40"

so I cut 2 identical rectangles at 26" x 40".


Now it's time to cut the neckline:
Depending on whether you want a boatneck, or deep neckline you can adjust accordingly, but here are my measurements.


First fold both of your rectangles in half length wise. Now measure and mark 4 1/2" across and 3 1/2" down. Draw a sloping line like the photo above and cut creating a half circle when unfolded. (These measurements give me a least 1" of ease around my head when pulling it on and off. My head circumference measures 22". If yours is a lot bigger than that you may want to add another inch to one of the measurements to give you a little more room.)

You should have quite a bit of extra fabric at this time. Keep this fabric as you will be using it to make the ruffles and the waist tie if you decide to do those.

*check back in a couple of days and we will finish up the neckline.

Maternity or Not Frock : Materials

I am excited for everyone to use my free tutorial to make the Maternity or Not Frock during the month of March. I will be posting step by step instructions for the first 3 weeks of the month and then talk about other ideas for embellishments for the last week. So, if you are going to follow along with me during March this is what you are going to need to have:

Materials:
Fabric - 3 yards for 45" fabric or 1 1/2 yards of 60" fabric
1/4 inch elastic (enough to fit around your rib cage or waistline comfortably
1 pkg coordinating bias tape
matching thread
scissors
sewing machine
measuring tape

Some tips:
- When shopping for fabric I would suggest getting something that has some flow to it. For this one I went with a cotton shirting and it working out really well. I think a rayon blend would also work really nicely if you are daring enough to use something slippery (esp. if you have a serger). I would also recommend a thin linen.

-Make sure you wash and dry your fabric before you start to prevent future shrinking after the garment is made.