The Fast Way to Thread Your Overlocker or Serger (with Video!)

Let's face it, threading an overlocker or serger isn't the most fun you could be having while sat at your sewing table. 

The good news is that it's actually quite rare that you'd need to thread it from scratch. 

More often than not, you can get away with this easy, speedy method of changing the threads that I'm going to show you - a method which doesn't require you to navigate all those hooks and loopers. Hooray!

You'll need to do this while the machine is already threaded up, before any of the cones run out of thread - so keep a beady eye on those cones. It's the perfect way of rethreading if you just want to change the colour, for example.

Your Makes!

Hands up if you're ready for some serious sewing inspo? It's Frances here, TATB's Office and Wholesale Assistant, with a roundup of some of your beautiful makes from our sewing patterns. Here at Buttons HQ, we love seeing what you've been sewing - and these are just a few of the gorgeous garments you've shared which are getting us all inspired for a new year full of sewing projects.

Over the past year, we've seen lots of you stitching your dream loungewear sets using the Stella hoodie and joggers patterns from Tilly's book Stretch!. Ruth made this gorgeous, sunshine yellow outfit which is perfect for brightening up those stay at home days. And is there anything cuter than Esther's candyfloss pink set with her co-ordinating trainers?

The Lotta dress is a great project for beginners, or a satisfyingly speedy sew sure to kick your sewjo into gear! Gina's choice of a monochrome print works amazingly with the pattern's classic A-line shape. Linzi has hacked the pattern to add a mock turtleneck by using the Freya bodice and sleeves (pattern from the book Stretch!) instead of the original pattern pieces - which we have to say is genius!

How to Make Shoulder Ruffles with Lettuce Edge Hem (Free Pattern!)

Fancy adding some cute, curled edge shoulder ruffles to one of your me-mades?

I added shoulder ruffles to one of my Billie sweatshirt dresses and loved the result so much I decided to make a free pattern so you can make them too! (Take a look at more photos of my Billie dress here.) You can also add these ruffles to the Freya top or dress from my book Stretch, or the Tabitha t-shirt or dress from my book Make it Simple – or basically any garment pattern designed for knit fabrics and which has a shoulder seam.

In this post, I'm going to share a step-by-step tutorial for how to sew the shoulder ruffles, including a video on how to create the curled "lettuce edge" hem on an overlocker (AKA serger). If you don't have this machine, don't worry - keep reading to the end where I share an alternative method of making shoulder ruffles using just a regular sewing machine.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE SHOULDER RUFFLE PATTERN

Tilly's Shoulder Ruffle Billie Hack

I love love love the simplicity of the regular sleeve version of the Billie sweatshirt dress. Having said that, I can't say no to a ruffle, so decided to add experiment with some little shoulder flourishes on one of my Billie creations. And I love the result!

Truth be told I got the inspiration from a similar top Khadija on The Apprentice once wore. Not my usual source of fashion inspiration, admittedly!

I cut out a long crescent shape piece for each ruffle, sewed a lettuce edge hem on my overlocker to give it that rippled effect, then gathered the other edge in place to the bodice shoulders before adding the sleeves. If you fancy adding some shoulder ruffles to your own make, stay tuned as I've got a full tutorial coming next week with a video AND a free pattern download ;)