Want to learn how to sew a faux shirring back panel using narrow elastic and simple stitched channels? Here’s a tutorial for a machine-friendly alternative to traditional shirring from our friend Leighanne!
Shirring is a lovely technique when it works well on your machine — but not every machine is set up to handle it smoothly, and that can turn an otherwise simple project into a frustrating one. When Cashmerette pal Leighanne (who sews at @ohsewfearless on Instagram and Sewciable, and blogs over at ohsewfearless.com) set out to sew the Wayland Dress, she loved the design of its shirred back panel but wanted a construction method better suited to her machine. So she came up with a faux shirring technique using narrow elastic and sewn channels instead — same gathered, stretchy result, just a different route to get there.
If your sewing machine has ever had a difference of opinion with elastic thread, this one’s for you! Now over to Leighanne:
How to sew faux shirring
I’ll say it plainly: shirring and I have never got on.
I sew a lot and there aren’t many sewing techniques that I will shy away from, but shirring is one of those exceptions. Give me a welt pocket any day, but shirring… no thank you.
When the Wayland Dress arrived with its shirred back panel, I knew I didn’t want to miss out on its great design, but I also knew I had no desire to sew the shirred back panel. I like to think there are work-arounds to most problems and this is one where there is a solution. So, I decided to sew the dress with a faux shirring back panel.
Fancy taking the same approach? Here’s how I did it.
Instead of the elastic thread method, we’ll build a series of narrow channels down the back panel and use them as casing for lengths of narrow elastic. Same stretchy, gathered effect, none of the bobbin wrangling, and for my personal preference a tidier finish. Below is how it goes on the Wayland bodice, along with the construction tweaks that make it all work. The Wayland is compatible with the Upton line, so once you’ve got this technique under your belt there’s a lot of scope to play with it.
One quick note on kit before we start. The only real extra you need is narrow elastic (mine is 8mm / 5/16″). The spacing of your channels is set by that elastic: aim for the width of the elastic plus 2mm (1/16″) between your stitching lines. With 8mm (5/16″) elastic, that puts my channels at 1cm (3/8″) apart.
First, the order of construction changes
To make this work, you’ll build the bodice in a slightly different order to the pattern. The faux shirred panel needs to be made up separately to the rest of the bodice, so start by sewing your centre front, side front and side back pieces together for both the outer bodice and the lining, exactly as the instructions have you do. Set those to one side. Then we’ll work on the back panel on its own for a while.
Take your two centre back pieces, put them right sides together, and sew the outer bodice to the lining along the top edge.
Understitch the top edge
Press the seam with the seam allowance towards the lining, then understitch 1.5mm (1/16″) from the seam edge. This keeps the lining rolling neatly to the inside.
Trim to reduce bulk
Trim the seam allowance back by half. This edge is going to become your very first elastic channel, and you don’t want it any bulkier than it needs to be.
Mark your seam allowance and channel lines
With the outer bodice and lining wrong sides together and the outer facing up, mark the seam allowance along the bottom edge. Treat this as your stop line: no channel stitching should go past it.
Then mark straight lines from the top of the bodice down to that seam allowance line. These are the stitching guides for your channels. Space them at the width of your elastic plus 2mm (1/16″). Mine is 8mm (5/16″) elastic, so I’m marking my lines at 1cm (3/8″) intervals.
Stitch the channels
Still with wrong sides together and the outer bodice facing up, stitch down each line you’ve just marked, running from the top all the way to the seam allowance line. You’ll end up with a row of channels down the full length of the panel.
Cut and thread your elastic
Cut your elastic into lengths, each roughly the width of the pattern piece. You only need a piece for every other channel, so don’t cut one for every single line.
Thread a length through every other channel using a bodkin or a safety pin and leave a tail hanging out at each end.
Anchor the elastic, one side only
On one side only, stitch across the elastics to hold them in place, keeping your stitches within the seam allowance. Leave the other side completely free for now.
Trim the anchored side
Trim away the excess elastic on the side you’ve just stitched. Leave the tails on the other side long, we still need those.
Pull the fabric back to ruche
Now gently pull the fabric panel back along the elastic, easing the gathers along as you go. Work a couple of pieces at a time and keep half an eye on your elastic tails, matching their length is a good way to keep the ruching even across the panel.
Don’t fix the other side down yet. We’re keeping it open until the bodice is on and we’ve done a proper fit check.
A word on sizing
Ordinarily a pattern tells you exactly how long to cut your elastic so you achieve a fit in line with the size chart. As we’ve changed the method, we don’t have these measurements and so trying it on is the only way to get this right. This is why we leave one side of elastic in place until the fit is checked.
Attach the main bodice and lining
Take your main bodice panel and lining, attach the straps and stitch together at the neckline following the Wayland instructions. Stop 4/8 (the Wayland’s seam allowance) from the edge of the side back panel. You need that little bit left free so you can join the shirred back panel to it.
Attach the faux shirred panel
Pin the faux shirred panel to the outer bodice at the side back seams and stitch the side where the elastic is already anchored.
Before you sew the second side, have a look at how much ruching you’ve got. There’s a bit of eyeballing here. You want enough gather, but not so much that the panel has ended up too small, or so little that you’ve quietly pulled it all back out again. Don’t agonise over it, there’s a fit check coming in a moment.
Secure the second side
Stitch the other side of the panel to the bodice, catching the elastic in the seam, and leave the lining open. Don’t cut the elastic tails yet. It’s really important that these are not cut until we have checked the fit.
Try it on
At this stage the lining is only attached at the neckline, so you can gently and carefully try the bodice on. Check the elastic fits, check the bodice front sits the way you want, and while you’re there confirm the position for your back straps.
If something needs adjusting, unpick the short seam and take the elastic in or let it out. If it’s too tight, ease your gathers along the elastic and pull a bit more through. Too loose, do the opposite. Once you’re happy, secure the elastic with a second line of stitching, again just within the seam allowance.
Now trim the tails
With the fit right and the elastic stitched in place, you can finally trim off the excess elastic. Hang on to the offcuts as they will likely be long enough to be useful for another project.
Finish the lining
Last job. Fold the seam allowance of the side back lining under, towards the centre back, to enclose the seam. Pin it in place, then hand stitch the lining down just as you would when finishing a bodice with a zip. That gives you a clean, seamless finish on the inside.
And that’s it!
From here, attach your skirt and finish the rest of the dress following the pattern as normal.
No elastic thread, no bobbin tension tantrums, and to my eye a tidier finish than the original. I’ll take that.
If you try out this shirring alternative on your Wayland Dress (or any other shirred dress pattern), tell us about it in the comments below! And be sure to follow Leighanne at @ohsewfearless on Instagram and Sewciable for more me-made inspiration.
Another way to do “shirring” to offer sewists more than one choice of how they will execute this step. I LOVE IT! Creativity knows no bounds.
I much prefer faux shirring and have used it before in other projects. My machine handles shirring quite well but I don’t like how it feels against my skin if there’s no lining and I believe elastics will be easier to replace if they ever wear out or break.
That’s a great point. I hadn’t really stopped to think about it, but I do also prefer the finish on my skin.
That’s a great point. I hadn’t stopped to think about it until just now, but I prefer the feel of this method too 🙂
I can’t stand the feel of shirring on my skin but the good news is that the Wayland has a knit panel between your skin and the shirring. I need to retrofit a panel to my Franconia!
I put a lining over the Franconia shirred panel because the elastic was too scratchy. It does make it lovelier to wear.
Why would you only do every other channel? I’ve never had a pattern before that called for shirring, so I’ve never tried it. I was wondering what would happen if you used every channel and if the appearance would change. I really like the look of how you did it without having to use elastic thread, which seems rather difficult for me to find in a store. I knew if I did the real thing I would have to order online. I have lots of regular elastic, though, so thank you for this technique which seems very user friendly.
I did every other channel on mine too, every channel would be overkill IMO, and a lot of work.
What a wonderful Tutorial. I have saved this. Thank you.
Great tutorial. I’m not a fan of shirring and feel like this would be a great alternative. Thanks!