Seam finishing is a very important part of the sewing process. It makes the inside of your garment or project look just as neat and clean and professional as the outside, and it prevents the fabric from fraying and creating a mess. There are many, many different finished you can choose from, but I am going to highlight some of the basics today and when you should use them.
Keep reading after the jump!
PINKED
WHEN TO USE IT: Stable fabrics / fabrics that don’t fray easily. Something that may not be washed or worn a lot is best. It is the simplest of seam finishes, and requires no sewing.So if you can get away with just this, why not?! The zig zag edge helps in preventing the fabric from fraying.
HOW: You’ll need a pair of pinking shears. Just simply cut close to the edge with your shears! (I actually usually cut out all of my pattern pieces using pinking shears. So all edges already have this finish and there are no worries about fraying anywhere).
ZIG ZAG
WHEN TO USE IT: Any type of fabric, really (except for sheers and really delicate fabrics – they may shred).
HOW: Use the zig zag setting on your machine. Test it out on a piece os scrap fabric first – try a smaller stitch length for lighter fabrics, and a longer stitch for heavy ones. You can either zig zag both sides of the seam allowance and press the seam open (see smaller photo), or you can zig zag the two sides together, and press to one side.
CLEAN FINISH
WHEN TO USE IT: light to medium weight woven fabrics. May be too bulky for heavier fabrics.
HOW: This is a really simple finish. Nothing crazy here!
1. With right sides together, sew your seam and press open.
2. For each side of seam allowance, turn under 1/4” or less and press. Sew close to edge (of seam allowance. Don’t sew to the garment).
FRENCH SEAM
WHEN TO USE IT: Sheer/lightweight/delicate fabrics. A french seam completely encases the raw edge of the seam allowance, creating a clean and professional finish on a garment where the seam might be visible.
HOW: **Megan recently did a detailed tutorial on french seams. So I’m going to keep this short and sweet. Head on over to her post for a more detailed tutorial!**
1. With WRONG sides together, sew 1/4” from the raw edge. trim seam allowance to 1/8″. Press down.
2. Turn your fabric so the right sides are now together, encasing your previous trimmed seam. Press. Sew 3/8″ away from folded edge. Press again.
3. This is what it will look like from the inside….
4. And this is what it will look like from the outside.
FLAT FELLED
WHEN TO USE IT: In garments that see a lot of stress – like pants and woven shirts. Look at your jeans – I bet you they have flat felled seams! It is a good seam for these types of garments because it is sturdy and durable. Also – this one is seen from the outside of the garment!
HOW: This isn’t hard, I promise!
1. With right sides together, sew 5/8″ from raw edge. Press seam open, and trim ONE side of seam allowance to 1/4″.
2. With the other side, fold inward in half – so that the raw edge meets the seam. Press.
3. Fold this over top of the trimmed side, so that it completely covers it. Stitch close to the folded edge.
4. That’s it! Wasn’t that easy? This is what it will look like from the outside. Actually, you can use either side for the outside of your garment, depending on what kind of look you are going for!
SERGED
WHEN TO USE IT: Many, many different fabrics and garments. Very versatile.
HOW: You’ll need an overlock machine to do this. Follow the instructions for your machine to thread it properly, and go!. There are two types of overlock seams – 3 thread and 4 thread. This one above happens to be a 3 thread finish. Again, you can either serge both sides of your seam allowance and press open, or serge them together and press to the side.
This post is so useful! I’ve read about different seam finishes before, but your addition of ‘when to use it’ is so helpful! Thanks!
Thanks Ali! I’m glad you find it helpful!
Thank for this lovely resource!
Aw, no problem! I hope you find it helpful :)
Yay, this is a really great resource! The photos AND step by step explanations are great. Adding it to my list of sewing tips bookmarks. Thanks! :-)
Thank you, Juli! Glad I can help :)
This will come in handy! A nice and clearly presented summary, thanks a bunch! :)
Thanks hun! Glad I could help :)
Holly – Great 1st post! Easy instruction and I love that the numbers match the photos – I found it so much easier to follow!
Aw, thank you! I’m glad you all like it and found it helpful. As a newbie around here, feedback helps! It’s good to know my layout and instructions work for you, and can model future posts and tutorials after it :)
Hi there! Great post, I was just a little confused about “when to use it”, a great addition might also be “when not to use it” so I know when to avoid a finish with a particular garment or sensitive fabric. Great update- keep them coming.
Jessie – thanks for the feedback! I tried to do this a little bit (like the zig zag stitch is good for most instances, except for sheer fabrics), but I will keep this in mind for next time!
Thank you for this post! Very useful!!!
Thank you …. glad I could help :)
[…] how awesome was Holly’s first post yesterday?! I know, she rocks :) posted in: Studio […]
SO helpful! Thank you very much for this!!
No problem! Glad I could help :)
Great info! However, I am stumped as to how you use the flat-felled seam on pants. Sure, you can flat-fell the inner side seams OR the outer side seams, but you can’t do both, because the pants legs are a tube and won’t fit through the sewing machine for the entire pantleg length. Does that make sense? Is there a way around this problem?
Perhaps I should’ve been more clear- a flat felled seam is usually used for the inner seam only, and then a regular seam for the outside. You are right – it would not be possible to use it on both sides. Hope that helps!
I did more internet searching, and found that some people found a solution, which is to scrunch up the pant leg and make a sort of well to do the final two flat-felled seams. I tried it on wide pajama pants, and though tricky, it worked, but I don’t think it would work on narrow pants or pants that have stiff material. Thank you for your reply. Love your blog!
Just getting started again after 38 year break & the info is invaluable. Thanks.
This was excellent! I’ve only recently started sewing and haven’t figured out the different seams yet. This is a really great resource – I’m sure I’ll be back plenty of times in the future :) Thanks!
[…] to your preference (as you can see, I kept it simple with pinking shears. See other seam finishes here). Sew a row of basting stitches 5/8” from the raw edge on each side of your garment. This is […]
Thank you for this very helpful tutorial. I am just about to sew a blouse using lightweight fabric, and I will use the French seam you’ve suggested. I’m excited to see the result.
I am working on a childs two layered top. I’m a newbie to sewing. The pattern says to narrow the hem which I understand, but then it says to narrow front hem edges in same manner, squaring stitching at opening. The top layer of this top has a split down the front of it so that the bottom layer can show through. Can you help me understand what to do?
The pattern is called New Look 6114.
Thanks, Vicki
I remember reading this post when I was just starting sewing, I couldn’t understand anything, but now it seems so easy! Thank you :)
Thanks Megan, this is very clear and helpful.
The pictures and the information on different types of seam finishes has made it so easy to do my project. Thanks alot for the useful information.
this is really a useful information.. thanks a lot for share this guideline.. its really help me to do my sewing project
I have a question similar to Terri’s above…I have a 2 piece pants pattern and the inseam calls for a flat felled finish…and I end up with the pant-leg-tunnel. Is this normal?? Do people actually do this?
When you say that they are usually only used for the inner seam, does this mean BEFORE the outer side is closed up, that way you avoid Pant-leg-tunnel? So if I used a standard 4 piece pattern instead of the 2 pieces it would be simpler?
Thanks in advance.
Hi Mercedes!
I totally understand how confusing that would be. To be honest, i have no idea how anyone would acheive a flat felled finish on a 2 pieces pants pattern (i’m assumed you mean there is one pattern piece only?). If you were using a standard 2 pattern piece/4 piece pattern for pants then yes, you would sew the inseam with the flat felled finsh before sewing the outer seams :) i hope that helps!! Meg xoxo
It was a great tutorial. thanks so much for it. I may posted this technique to my website : http://www.sarvinstyle.com
Hello there! Your blog was so helpful. I am new to all these and was wondering if you could suggest what seam style best fit a lightweight material such as combining 2 nylon pieces together?
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[…] the sleeve cuffs, bottom hem, and the seams so they look finished and don’t unravel! I will leave it to others to give a variety of seam finish options. Here is a good one for Viking garments, as part of a […]
Thank you. Great explanation.