What are French seams?
As is often standard with silk, the Silk Cami is finished with French seams. French seams are seams that are first sewn once, with the wrong sides of the fabric facing, before being turned over and sewn again with right sides facing. The raw edges are completely encased, leaving you with a neat and long-lasting finish.
If you've never done French seams before, we have made a little video showing you how to create them...
Sewing the side seams
The side seams of the Silk Cami are sewn with a 1.5cm seam allowance. As we are sewing the seams twice, we need to split this seam allowance into two. The first seam will be sewn with 0.5cm seam allowance, before being turned over. We will then sew the second half of the French seam with a 1cm seam allowance. Don't worry if this idea gets you all confused - we're going to go through it below...
Place the front and back cami pieces WRONG sides together and pin the side seams.
Sew this seam with a (tiny) 0.5cm seam allowance.
Trim the seam allowance down by half to get rid of any fraying bits.
Pressing the seam will set the stitches, and make it easier for you to sew the next part of the seam.
Turn the top the other way out so that right sides are now together. Press the seam flat, and repin it to keep it all in place. You can never be too careful - especially if you're sewing with silk!
Sew the seam again, using a 1cm seam allowance.
You just need to press the seam towards the back and then you've got your French seams completed.
See you in No. 4, we'll be assembling and attaching the facing. Happy sewing!