Sewing 101: Shirring
My poor sewing machine was totally and utterly neglected over the holidays. My crafty projects just seemed to call for a hammer and nail or glue gun instead. I even thought I heard my “Brother” crying during those eight hours of working on my No-Sew Christmas tree skirt.
Let’s just say I had some making up to do.
Yesterday, I pulled my Bro out of the closet, sat him on the table, asked for forgiveness, and declared my commitment to getting back in the swing of sewing in this new year. Onwards and upwards! We dove right into the next Sewing 101 lesson on the docket: shirring.
(For those who don’t know, I’m slowly but surely working my way through Raechel Myers’ free Sewing 101 course as I attempt to learn the basics of sewing and prepare to make my very own Market Bag. I highly recommend it if you’re a beginner like I am or looking for a refresher.)
So, back to shirring (pronounced sure-ing). Some call it shirring, some call it smocking. I call it shocking! (Get it? I combined the two words into one new word to be funny…but if you have to explain a joke, it sorta loses its punch, doesn’t it? Blast.)
[Update: shirring and smocking are similar looking, but are not the same thing. To learn the difference, check out the comments below by Nancy and Debbie. Thanks, ladies, for clarifying!]
If anyone was as mystified as I was at the term “shirring,” let me show you a photo of one of my favorite shirred dresses as an example:
And this is not my only shirred dress; in fact, most of my summer dresses have shirring at the top. Because the bottom stitch of shirring is done with elastic thread, the fabric has such a nice give to it. My shirred dresses fit like a glove and are my most comfortable wears, no diggity. And even better, I picked most of them up for a song at our favorite thrift store in C’Bus, Rag-O-Rama.
So, of course, I was eager to take this lesson on…until I realized I had to take apart my machine! Dun, dun, dunnnnnnn! I was sure I was going to break something and ruin my Bro forever. You see, in order to shirr with a Brother top-loader machine, you have to remove the bobbin casing and tighten a teeny tiny green screw. See?
Thankfully, Raechel’s video tutorial helped me through it. I also had a few issues getting the elastic thread to feed up through the needle plate, but eventually, after some tongue-biting, we made it. From there on, shirring was easy, breezy.
Here is my newest journal page with my completed swatch of shirring:
You can bet I went to sleep last night with visions of shirred sundresses dancing in my head!
To my sewist friends: do you use shirring much? Any tips or tricks of the trade to offer to use newbies?
Also, if you’d like to head back to some of my earlier Sewing 101 posts, here they all are in chronological order:
Have a shirrific day!
Oh, man. I took my sewing machine out of the closet the other day. After getting everything set up to go, the bottom feet was no longer feeding the fabric through. The machine was a hand-me-down and never really worked very good, so I decided to get rid of it. I have a couple bags full of fabric. I used to work at Seattle Fabrics (lots and lots of outdoor and recreational fabric. you would love their canvas and burlap supply!), so I brought home fabric with the intent to learn how to sew. I made a fleece jacket, but it was too wide for me and didn’t really like the pattern (the pockets were in the wrong spot!). I also made a couple purses (one fell apart on me though!). I really want to try again, but it is a much larger commitment then jewelry making! Haha! I really envy your progress! I’m going to have to bookmark Rachel’s sewing 101 in case I ever decide to try again. 🙂
Oh, man, I would totally go crazy with a couple of bags of fabric remnants! Especially the canvas and burlap that you mention. There’s just something about fabric that gets me giddy as all get-out. I have to really restrain myself whenever I’m at Jo-Ann’s to only buy what I need and not bolts and bolts of pretty fabric! How cool that you got to take home some of those remnants!
I’m super impressed that you were able to create a fleece jacket and purses, even if they weren’t perfect. Those are achievements in and of themselves!
I’m really excited about getting to the market bag that is sort of the culminating project at the end of the course. I’ll keep y’all posted on my progress, but yes, I highly recommend the course if you’re wanting to brush up on those basics – – though it sounds like you may not need it. Just might new sewing machine!
I’m such a tactile person. When I go into stores, I want to touch everything! Fabric stores are like candy shops for the senses. I never had formal training. So brushing up with some actual tutorials would be nice. A new machine is a first though. I’ve been thinking about it in the back of my head. I know I want to, but I have so many other things I want too. I’m sure it will eventually happen. Maybe sooner if I get to see all your wonderful progress! I’m excited for you!
I love that line, “Fabric stores are like candy shops for the senses.” Can I quote you on that? (Well, I guess I just did. Tee hee.) I couldn’t agree more!
And I think it’s great that you’re pouring more of your energies into jewelry making this year; there’s real value to being more focused and not necessarily having ten pots on the stove! So, I think, enjoy what you’re doing now and if that sewing itch ever hits you real strong, you can return to it!
Good for you, you brave girl!
Thanks, chica! It makes me sit a little higher in my seat to hear the phrase “brave girl.” Striving for that. 🙂
The photo of your sad sewing machine made me laugh! 🙂 And YAY that you’re sewing now! 🙂
Glad to keep you laughing, Katherine! 😉 I’ve got sewing friends like you that motivate me to get back in the trenches with my Brother. Looking forward to really growing as a sewist in 2013.
Ok… You have me a little excited. Reading that you have a Brother sewing machine. I’ve tried shirring multiple times and failed miserably. I have been sewing for a good 5+ years but still consider myself a beginner. Maybe I need to give this free sewing class a try. ANd then maybe I’ll finally be able to shir!!!
Don’t give up! It’s definitely do-able. I know that every machine is different, but if your Brother is a top-loader, then you should definitely check out Raechel’s video as it walks you through each step to prep your machine to shirr. Once I finally got mine set-up, shirring was so much fun! And easy, too. I think my lines could be straighter, but for a first timer, I’m pretty proud of myself. 😉
Ok you’ve inspired me to try again!
Hooray!
Good for you! You make it look relatively easy. I look forward to seeing what you make using this technique. I remember one of your first pretty little dresses (around 18 months) had smocking but it seemed to stretch a bit, too. It was from “Uncle” Bill. I’ll have to check the attic one of these days and see if I saved it!
It’s a fun technique; I’m sure I’ll definitely use it! And the dress you speak of, was it the one in the home video of me at Uncle Bill’s house? Where I’m trying to take it off the entire time!? Lol.
Haha! I remember that vids…too cute!
Well done, figuring out to shirr (or should I say shock?lol) on your Brother! I’ve heard that it can be really tricky.
That means a lot coming from you, Cindy! I almost gave up at one point – – I just couldn’t get that elastic thread to make its way up through the needle plate. Once it made it through, though, I was determined not to lose it down there again. And I didn’t! Just had enough elastic thread on that bobbin to finish that swatch. Phew.
Lauren: I’m so impressed how you’ve really dug in and learned the innerds of that sewing machine. I looked at the manual and it is complex. Let’s put it this way: when you open the cover the first BOLD word is “DANGER”! Anyways, can’t wait to see what you make next!
I appreciate that, Markus. Thank you for making it all possible by sharing your teeny tiny flat-head screwdriver with me. I always know I can count on you to provide assistance with the tools! Now, hopefully I don’t need your medical tools to perform surgery on a broken machine….
Can’t wait to see what you shir, I mean smock,I mean shock! Sadly, I have not tried shirring although I’m thinking it would be particularly cute for my daughter. I’ll wait to see how your’s goes before I try! That’s funny how you refer to your machine. I’ve always thought of mine as a “she”, but seeing as I also sew on a Brother, I guess it’s a he!
Oh yes, I can see the mother-daughter shirred dresses now! I think you’re much savvier with a sewing machine than I am (just look at you whipping out those pillows), so I don’t think you’d have any problem at all. And regarding the gender of my machine, here’s the post I wrote when my machine arrived on my doorstep. It’s called, “The Brother I Never Had.”
Hi Lauren! This is such a cute post. So glad to see people are still learning how to sew these days. I’ve been on a first name basis with my machine since I was 9 years old. I’m so thankful to my mother for having taught me. I made an Anthropologie bedding knockoff last year that used a modified shirring method. And please don’t think me mean, (honest, I’m not trying to be!) but shirring isn’t the same as smocking. Having smocked many, many dresses for my girls when they were little, I can tell you that while they look similar, they’re actually two very different things. Shirring is what you’re doing, where you use elastic in the bobbin to pleat the fabric. Smocking is where you use embroidery thread to stitch designs into pleated fabric. Just do a Google image search for smocking to see what I mean. In any case, just wanted to clarify that. Have fun sewing! 🙂
Debbie
Wow, I can only imagine your skills if you’ve been sewing since age 9! That’s awesome. I figure, better late than never! (I did do a wee bit of sewing as a child and then again in college, but never enough to where I could do it on my own. So, now, I’m trying to do it right and learn the basics so I can really be independent on my Brother.) I’ll have to hop over to your blog to check out this Anthro bedding knockoff you speak of. Sounds loverly (and much more in my price range!).
I appreciate the clarification on smocking; no offense taken! Nancy pointed the difference out, too. I’ll go back in the post and make a slight edit, so I don’t lead people astray thinking they’re synonymous.
Thanks, Debbie!
Thanks Lauren for the challenge. I just might see if my machine will do that! One clarification, smocking looks like shirring but it does not stretch. It was traditionally done on by hand, often on a fabric with a very repetitive pattern, like gingham. It was used as trim on the front yoke of a dress but not all the way around. Some of that may be because elastic thread had not been invented yet 😉 Guess I’m dating myself! Keep it coming – I love your ideas!
Fun facts from Nancy! Thanks for sharing that. I really appreciate that elastic string now knowing it wasn’t always around. And I can’t imagine how long it must have taken to do by hand. No wonder it was just used as trim! And depending on your machine, you might not have to adjust the screw. You can adjust the tension on some machines – – apparently, it’s much easier with front-loaders.
Hurray for you! That’s something I’ve never done but always loved the look. Way back when Jodi wore a ‘younger girls dress’, the biggest treat was to find a lovely Polly Flinders dress on sale! They were quite the ‘smockiest’ (and priciest) little dresses in town and a treat to find. So, good for you!! I expect to see great things to come!
I had to do a google search to see those Polly Flinders dresses you spoke of, and they are DARLING. I can see why it was so fun to find a sale on one. It reminds me of the dresses I had on some of my dolls growing up. Love the collar, too. We might have to make Jodi a grown-up Polly Flinders dress at our next sewing party! 🙂
cool, I will look at these soon as i have neglected my machine too- mainly due to tricky bobbin issues – i am needing to make the kids a tent thingy so im dusting it off as we speak! thanks
That bobbin can be tricksy, can’t it? Can’t wait to see this tent thingy, though. You have me very intrigued…. Hope your machine starts working again, so you can create it and post about it!