How to Gather Fabric, Add Ease Dressmaking

When fabric is gathered, this is sometimes known as adding ease.

Gathers need to be added to certain pieces of fabric when dressmaking to help it curve. For example when sewing a curved hem or fitting the shoulder of a sleeve.

How to Add Ease Gathering

There are many ways to add ease into a fabric. Traditionally ease is added to fabric by changing the setting on the sewing machine. By following the steps below:

Machine Settings to Add Ease

  • Change the stitch length to long, between 4 – 5 setting.
  • Reduce machine tension to loose, between 0 – 1 setting.
  • Two parallel lines then should then be stitched, with a gap of 0.5cms.
  • Stitch alongside the edge of the fabric that you wish to be gathered.
  • The lines should be stitched within the seam allowance area.
  • Tie the threads together at one end of the fabric.
  • Then at the other end, gentle tug the bottom two threads.
  • Fabric should then start to move along the threads and gather.

All sewing machines are different, so you may need to experiment with the settings. If you find the stitching is too tight or too loose, to gather the fabric.

How to add ease to Sleeve?

Ease should be added to the top of a sleeve, before fitting it to a garment.

  • The top edge of the sleeve needs to be gathered before fitting to garment.
  • The ease should be between the single and double notch on the sleeve.
  • When the sleeve is pinned to the garment, the ease may need to be tightened or loosened.
  • To ensure the notches on the sleeve and garment match.
  • The ease should be even and the gathers evenly distributed.

Adding Ease to Hems

If ease is not added to skirts with curved hems before sewing the hem. The hem will become pleated in areas and not lie flat.

  • When a hem is slightly curved, ease needs to be added to the edge.
  • Once the ease is added, it need to be evenly distributed.
  • The hem can be folded over and ironed flat, ready for sewing.
  • If the hem is pleating in areas, more ease may need adding or taking away.

Easy Way to Gather Fabric

Fabric can be gathered without having to add ease stitching. Instead gathers can be added using special sewing machine feet. When fabric is gathered this way, the gathers cannot be adjusted, they are stitched in place.

See sewing machine fabric gathering feet below: