Currency

  • Home
  • Patterns
  • Blog
  • About
  • Cart (0)
  • Checkout
Forget-me-not Patterns logo
  • Home
  • Patterns 
    • All Patterns
    • Dress Patterns
    • Skirt Patterns
    • Top Patterns 
      • Blouse patterns
      • Knit top patterns
    • Outerwear Patterns
    • Free patterns
    • Pattern expansions
    • Projector Patterns
    • Accessory Patterns
  • Blog
  • About 
    • About Forget-me-not
    • Sizing guide
  • Currency

8 tips for prepping to sew with sheer fabrics

8 tips for prepping to sew with sheer fabrics

Home   The Forget-me-not Patterns Blog   8 tips for prepping to sew with sheer fabrics
Ella sheers tips

September 16, 2024

Do you have an attraction to sheer fabrics, like me? I know they are extra tricky in a multitude of ways, so here is a sprinkling of tips I wish I’d known about when I started sewing with sheer fabrics. Some examples of sheers I like to sew with are chiffon, georgette, gauze, and some lightweight cottons such as voile. I've also found lightweight linens can be quite sheer as well!

This is going to be a selection of small tips that I've learned over time that have helped me improve my relationship with sheer fabric. If you're interested in a more in-depth tutorial on any of these, do let me know! And if you have any questions or tips of your own, add them in the comments!

Tips for sewing sheer fabrics

How do I add French seams to my project?

Now, I’m not going to go over how to sew French seams here as there are many tutorials available online (although I won’t rule out making my own tutorial at some point!). French seams enclose the seam allowance edges within the seam by sewing it twice. This is much easier with a decent sized seam allowance. I would recommend a 1.5cm (⅝”) seam allowance.

So, check your pattern before you cut it out! Different pattern companies have different seam allowances. Here at Forget-me-not, I have designed custom seam allowances into each pattern, so it can vary from pattern to pattern (and seam to seam within the pattern).

In fact, for example, the Helmi blouse has 1.5cm (⅝”) seam allowances on specific seams just for the purpose of allowing for French seams. Those seams are the shoulders, side seams, and underarm seams. Other places like the neckline should not be French seamed, so do not need chunky 1.5cm seams, so it only has 1cm (⅜”) seams. 

The Helmi blouse is a great canvas for sheers. (This sample is made up in a non-sheer viscose but I'm planning a sheer version soon.)

 

Helmi blouse french seams in viscose
Even though this version is not sheer, I used French seams on the inside anyway!

 

When it comes to the Ella skirt, all the seam allowances are 1cm (⅜”). So when I made my sheer silk Ella skirt, I increased the seam allowance on the side seams to 1.5cm (⅝”) (I will share more about my sheer Ella skirt soon).

Sheer silk georgette Ella skirt
This sheer silk georgette Ella skirt was a perfect match for French seams.

 

I like to physically add the extra seam allowance onto the pattern, rather than trusting myself to remember to add more as I cut. All it takes is one scatterbrained moment (and I have plenty of them) and I'll cut along the pattern edge without thinking!

How do I plan a sheer project?

Consider construction before you start; it’s good to think about what impact the sheer fabric will have on your project ahead of time. Here’s a selection of things to think about.

  • Will you be adding a lining? Will that change the construction?
  • Do you need to sample any techniques you’re not too sure about? 
  • Does the garment style work well with a flowy, drapey fabric (or whatever the properties of your fabric may be)?
  • What kind of closures work well for your project?

It’s also a great idea to look at existing garments in stores and your wardrobe to gain inspiration and understanding for what techniques to choose.

How should I finish the seams on sheer fabric?

There are of course many ways to finish the seams inside the garment. The top 3 I would suggest are:

  • French seam (a great multi-purpose technique).
Sheer chiffon blouse in window
You can see the fully-enclosed French seams in this Lola blouse when held up to the light.
  • A narrow double folded hem along each raw edge of the seam allowance (good for seams that will be pressed open, but I would recommend reserving this technique for straight edges rather than curves).
Sheer silk mesh centre back seam from the inside
Here, I finished each side of the centre back seam with its own narrow hem. The centre back is on the straight grain, making it much easier.
  • An overlocked/serged edge (good for curvy seams and seams that will be pressed open)
Here you can see on the left side of the seam that I have overlocked the edge of the fabric with a four thread overlock. On the other side of the seam, I have been able to use the selvage of the fabric as the finished edge!


Each of these has its own pros and cons.

How much seam allowance should I use for French seams?

I would recommend a minimum of 1.5cm (⅝”) for French seams.

You can get away with 1cm (⅜”) seam allowances for French seams. I have done this in the past when I’ve forgotten to add extra allowance (oops!). I wouldn’t recommend doing this on purpose though! It’s very fiddly because you have to sew extra narrow seams, and you risk losing some of your seam allowance to fraying quite quickly! 

Can you French seam an armhole seam?

Yes, you can - I have seen people do it (and I also tried it, a long time ago). Now, I prefer not to, personally, as I don’t enjoy the idea of sewing those tricky curves in that way. Sleeves are generally eased in, and the risk of puckers increases when sewing the sleeve in a tricky way. If you still want a pretty finish to your armhole seam, you could bind the seam with self fabric (although that does add a bit of bulk). I usually keep it simple and use an overlocker to finish (with both edges together). Which brings me to my next question… 

Can you overlock (serge) sheer fabrics?

Yes, you can overlock (serge) sheer fabrics! Of course, French seams can’t be beaten in terms of elegance, but overlocking has its place. You may be worried about the thread showing through to the right side of the garment, but you may be surprised at how unnoticeable it is. That said, I would avoid overlocking in areas that are focal points of the garment such as the neckline area. 

Sheer fabric can be tricky though - it’s already finicky enough with a straight stitch, so you may find some extra challenges when putting it through an overlocker. 

I'm planning to share some more tips specifically for overlocking or zig zagging the edges of your sheer fabrics in the future.

Can you zig zag sheer fabrics?

Yes, you can. This is pretty much the same answer as the above answer for overlocking/serging, although I do find that zig zag stitching tends to “eat” the edges of fabric more aggressively. But hey, not everyone has an overlocker! I would personally try to avoid zig zag on a single layer of fabric - it’ll likely go poorly as it easily gets sucked into the throat plate. Try it on a double layer of fabric and (I hate to say it), sample first!

I'm planning to share some more tips specifically for overlocking or zig zagging the edges of your sheer fabrics in the future.

How do you stop sheer fabric shifting when you cut it?

Oftentimes, sheers double your pain by also being slippery! 

Currently my go-to tip for cutting is to lay down an old flannelette sheet on my cutting table. Yes, an old bedsheet! Using an old bedsheet is a great way to reuse textiles, which is more sustainable than buying virgin textiles (and it’s frugal as well). 

The texture of the fluffy sheet is slightly “grabby”, which stops the slippery fabric from moving around so freely. I have an old sheet cut to the size of my table which I just keep on hand for when I need it, and I can reuse it over and over since I don’t cut into the sheet; I only cut through the top layer (my fashion fabric).

Photo of sheer silk on flannelette sheet
Here is my silk laid out on the flannelette sheet. Not glamorous, but it works! I don’t know why I hacked the edges so ragged when I first cut the sheet, but there we have it!

Using this method, I cut my project out with my usual sewing shears. 

Now, if you plan to use a rotary cutter, using a sheet obviously isn’t great, as you will cut through the sheet at the same time and thus have to discard it, which is wasteful. 

If you prefer a rotary cutter, I’ve heard some people use tissue paper underneath their fabric, which is slightly less wasteful to discard than fabric at least.

Now to be quite honest, as I started writing this article, many more thoughts and tips came to mind, so decided I had to follow up with yet another article on sheers. What can I say, I just love those challenging babies because they are so beautiful! You can read the second article here. I hope you’ve found this helpful and you can eye up your sheer stash with a few extra techniques in your toolkit. 💗



Tweet Share Pin It Email



Also in The Forget-me-not Patterns Blog

Welcome The Xenta Tote bag!
Pattern release tote
Welcome The Xenta Tote bag!

April 30, 2025 0 Comments

We're so excited to introduce our newest sewing pattern, the Xenta Tote! Xenta combines our love of dramatic details, adventurous sewing, and practical utility.

Continue Reading

A few more tips for sewing sheer fabrics
sheers tips
A few more tips for sewing sheer fabrics

September 24, 2024 0 Comments

Jo here, back with more tips for sheers. I got on a roll while writing the last one and felt the need to do a second! You can view the first blog post here; it deals with tips for prepping your project. Now let's move onto the actual sewing!

Continue Reading

She's here! The Kelly shirt dress
Customer makes Kelly Pattern release
She's here! The Kelly shirt dress

June 21, 2024 0 Comments

The Kelly shirt dress sewing pattern is finally here, and she's been a long time in the making! Kelly is a fun spin on the classic A-line shirt dress. The stand collar and puff sleeves are fun additions to the traditional darted bodice and lightly gathered skirt. The real stunner though, are the triangluar inserts at the neck and shoulder! Kelly comes with three bust fits across the full 28-56 size range (32.5-30.5" hip) with fully illustrated instructions to help make your sewing as enjoyable as can be!

Continue Reading

+Categories

  • Adeline
  • April
  • clementine
  • Customer makes
  • Ella
  • errata
  • FBA
  • fitting
  • free pattern
  • Gemma
  • hacks
  • Helmi
  • Iris
  • Kelly
  • Kirsi
  • Lola
  • Maker
  • Natalie
  • Pattern expansion
  • Pattern release
  • pattern update
  • patternmaking
  • Rosalie
  • sabrina
  • Sew-along
  • sheers
  • Sylvie
  • tips
  • tote
  • tutorial
  • Valerie
  • Vera
  • Viola
MORE INFORMATION
  • Search
  • About Forget-me-not
  • Contact
  • Sizing guide
  • Errata

Sign up to get the latest on sales, new releases and more…


© 2025 Forget-me-not Patterns. Powered by Shopify