Time for another lazy tip! Last time I talk about how to sew a basic tee, which almost always involves a folded band stretched and sewn around the neck.
Being supremely lazy, I never bother with the pattern piece for the bands. It’s not just laziness, either… Ever knit has such different stretch and recovery that one pattern piece can never be accurate for all jerseys! I’ve heard different methods for measureing the neckline then subtracting a percentage to get the right length… but come on, math? Not me!
Here’s my lazy method for figuring out how long a neckband piece should be to get the right amount of stretch.
I use this method all the time, and it’s pretty reliable!
Here’s an example:
See how the knit band is pinned at three points? As I sew, I know that the band *must* fit between those two points, so I hold tight and stretch the band to fit. No guess work that way, and a nice even stretch all the way around.
(On this particular example, the back neck has quite a pronounced curve. I knew this knit was very stretchy and could handle that extra distance, but on a more stable knit I might pin a fourth point at centre back to add some extra length.)
How do you figure out the length of knit bands? And does anyone have a tip for guesstimating the length of elastic needed on lingerie projects? Mine always comes out too tight or too loose!
p.s. I’ve started gathering all of my Lazy Tips for Sewing Knits together. Click on the link just below my header to find the other tips!
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