Sewing a Peasant Blouse

Sewing a Peasant Blouse
with shirred sleeves and ruffle neckline
by: sewingmel
Free Patterns,Ideas and Inspirations
All compliments of SewingMamas.com
Materials:
-Peasant Blouse pattern
-Fabric
-Elastic thread
-¼” elastic
-Safety pin
-Wooly nylon (optional)
-Serger (highly suggested)**
-Sewing machine
**If you do not have a serger, you can often purchase a rolled hem foot for your sewing
machine to make the rolled hems.
When the instructions say to serge, you will need to sew a straight stitch with ½” seam
allowance. Then, sew a zig-zag stitch close to the raw edge. You could also pink that edge
with pinking shears. Make sure not to cut your sewn edge.
Step 1: Print out and tape together Peasant Blouse Pattern. Match symbols (hearts and
diamonds on this one) as needed. You will need a sleeve and bodice pattern piece. (You
can also use another pattern.)
The seam allowance for my peasant blouse pattern is 1/4” making it easy to sew with a
serger.
You could probably sew up to a 5/8” seam allowance with this pattern. Just make sure that
you use the same seam allowance throughout the entire pattern.
Step 2: Make sure the fold line/grain line on your bodice pattern is perfectly straight. When
you are piecing together several pages from a pdf, it is difficult to get it exactly lined up. Use
an acrylic ruler and rotary cutter to make sure it is straight. I have a rotary blade that I only
use on paper.
Step 3: Your bodice and sleeves will be cut on the fold. You will need 2 bodice pieces and 2
sleeves. Cut them one at a time.
Step 4: Mark the right side (pretty side) of your fabric with a sewing pin if it is not obvious. I
am using an eyelet fabric that has a right side that is very hard to see. I would hate to get the
blouse all sewn up only to notice that 3 right sides are showing and one wrong side is
showing. When you are cutting on the fold, this is a very important step. If your fabric is a
solid, pick a side to be the right side and stick with it.
Step 5: Set your serger to rolled edge. Refer to your manual for the proper settings and feet.
Step 6: Put wooly nylon in your looper. You could also use regular serger thread or
embroidery thread. Wooly nylon is very difficult to thread so tie it off to another piece of
thread, and pull it through the looper.
Step 7: Make a rolled hem on the bottom edges of your sleeve and bodice pieces.
Step 8: Using elastic thread, hand wind a sewing machine bobbin.
Step 9: With regular thread in your needle and elastic thread in your bobbin, set your sewing
machine to a long straight stitch/basting stitch.
Step 10: Start sewing at the edge of your fabric. Make sure to leave a long tail of thread so
that you can tie it off. I like a 1/2” or 5/8” edge when I do shirred sleeves.
Step 11: When you get close to the edge of the other end, pivot your needle. You do this by
putting your needle down in the fabric, lifting the presser foot, and turning the fabric 90
degrees. Don't forget to lower your presser foot before you start to sew again.
Sew 2 stitches.
Step 12: Pivot the fabric again. Your previously stitched line should be against the edge of
your presser foot. Use that line as a guide and continue sewing to the other end of your
fabric.
Step 13: Sew as close to the edge as you can, then pull fabric off (needle up and presser foot
up) leaving a long tail of thread.
Step 14: Tie a knot at the end of each row with your needle thread and bobbin thread.
Step 15: I don't keep water in my iron so I use a spray bottle to wet the elastic thread rows.
You may skip this step if you have water in your iron.
Step 16: Carefully iron you rows (with steam if you skipped step 15). Do not let your iron
touch the wooly nylon rolled edge. Wooly nylon melts!
This is what your sleeve should look like now. The steam will shrink the thread. Washing will
also help it shrink up a little more.
Step 17: Start assembling your shirt.
bodice piece. Pin curve.
With right sides together, line up one sleeve with one
Step 18: Open sleeve out with right side facing up. Place the 2nd bodice piece (with right
side facing down) so that right sides touch. Line up curve and pin.
This is what your shirt will look like opened up.
Step 19: With 2nd bodice open face up (right side up), place 2nd sleeve right side down. Line
up curve and pin.
Step 20: Open 2nd sleeve out. All parts of the shirt will be right side up with pinned part facing
the mat.
Step 21: Take 2nd sleeve (far left of previous picture) and match the 1st bodice piece curve (far
right of previous picture). Pin together. The following picture is ready to be pinned.
All pieces are pinned.
Step 22: Make sure that you take your serger out of rolled hem mode and set it for serger. (I
almost had a rolled hem seam)
Step 23: Serge (or sew) all pinned seams.
Step 24: Iron serged sleeve seams toward the bodice pieces.
Step 25: With right sides together, pin side seams from the bottom of the sleeve to the
bottom of the shirt.
Step 26: Serge side seams. I used this method.
Step 27: Serge top of neckline.
Step 28: Fold down top of neckline 5/8” - 1” to make casing for elastic. I turned mine down
3/4”. There is no 3/4” marking on the dritz ezy-hem so I lined up the top of my serged edge
against the 1/2” mark.
Step 29: Pin your casing down. If your fabric is slightly shifty like mine, you will need extra
pins. Do NOT sew over the pins!
Step 30: Sew 1/8” from edge of fold. This will create a little ruffle when you insert your
elastic.
Step 31: Add a tag to the back if you want one.
Step 32: Sew bottom line of casing. Make sure casing is wide enough to insert elastic.
Step 33: Insert 1/4” elastic into casing using a safety pin.
Step 34: Fit top on child. Make sure the elastic isn't too tight or too loose. I used 19” of
elastic, but I don't like gaping tops.
Step 35: Making sure that elastic is not twisted in the casing, butt edges of elastic together,
AND zig-zag back and forth several times across where they meet (not shown).
Step 36: Push elastic back into casing, and adjust fullness around neckline.
Step 37: Finish sewing casing closed with a straight stitch.
You are finished!!!!
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