Fam Jam Day 7- Tamar Pfeiffer Tips on Making Ruffles
Hi! My name is Tamar and you can find me on instagram (@sew_much_luv). I'm so excited to be part of the Ash and Elm Fam Jams blogs! Fam Jams has been such a fun event! I hope you have been having as much fun as I have! Do you have your pajamas all cut out? Are there ruffles on your pajama patterns? Or do you want to add ruffles? Well, you’re in luck because I'm here today to give you some ruffle tips! I love little girls in ruffles. Ruffle sleeves, ruffle pants, ruffle tops, ruffle bottoms. . . you get the picture. The more ruffles the better! So, naturally I will be adding ruffles every chance I get as long as I have little girls who still like ruffles.
For this pair of pajamas, I used this adorable Ash and Elm Sister Bear Panel in double brushed poly and this buffalo plaid yardage.
The pattern that I chose actually does not have ruffles. Gasp! Not to worry, you can add ruffles to any pattern! I'll show you how!
Measure the length of the raw edge to which you want to add your ruffles. Cut out a ruffle strip twice as long as your raw edge by about 2 inches.
Sew the short edges of your ruffle strip right sides together to form a loop. Finish one of the long edges with either a rolled hem or a tiny hem. Or if you are using knit fabric you can leave the edge raw.
Sew two rows of basting stitches 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch from the top edge. I used to try to get away with one row of basting stitches. But believe me it's so worth the tiny bit of extra effort to sew two rows!!!!
Gather the basting stitches until your ruffle width matches your fabric width.
Sew to attach using a 3/4 inch seam allowance.
Press, topstitch, and remove the basting stitches that are showing.
Enjoy your hard work
It's true, ruffles are a lot of work. And if you're like me, you sew frantically while the kids are napping. So, you love a good quality short cut. If you have a serger, read on to learn how to use that gathering foot that came with your serger. It's amazing, and totally worth learning how to use! You can't sew a circular ruffle with your serger, but any flat application of a ruffle works perfectly. With a little practice you can turn out perfect ruffles with just one step.
To set up your machine all you need to do is put your gathering foot on and adjust the differential to 2. I find that with double brushed poly a little less than 2 is better. (Do a test on scrap fabric).
Cut your ruffle strip a little longer than twice the length of the piece you are sewing it to.
Put your ruffle strip under your gathering foot. Sew a few stitches. Feed your main fabric through the slot in your foot. Now just sew. Be careful not to stretch the fabric as you feed it. Also be aware that the ruffle fabric will feed twice as fast as the main fabric. I like to hold the ruffle in one hand and the main fabric in the other hand. Then I can guide them separately through the foot.
Now just press and topstitch! Look at those beautiful little ruffles with very little effort!
This method also works well for adding ruffles between color blocking. Just attach a ruffle to the top of your panel before sewing it to the colorblocked portion.
Now go! Make all the ruffles!
Thank you in advance if you decide to shop through any of my affiliate links. It won’t cost you anything extra, but it helps me keep sewing for my family!
-Tamar
Julie Reim
You totally nailed it! Your directions will be so easy to follow for a perfect ruffle!
The more you do the better they turnout!