Monday, August 24, 2020

Tutorial: Bagging Method for Lining of Sleeveless Dress & Nova Midi Dress by StyleArc.

I've been wanting to write about this subject AND to do this tutorial for a very long time. As you will learn later on, the tutorial is sort of connected to the subject. 

I've been thinking, that even though most of you who are reading my blog are home sewists, you might find it interesting to read about how industrial sewing techniques can have different rankings in the professional fashion industry. All within the industrial sewing techniques. I know some of you who follow me are also interested in learning how to end up with professional looking results when you sew, and this article might be of particular interest to you. 

The tutorial is for using the bagging method when sewing a lined, sleeveless bodice. It can be used with a bodice with or without a zipper. In this case it is without.

The dress in this post is the Nova Midi Dress from StyleArc. There are more photos plus size and fabric info in THIS post from my Instagram account.

Rank of techniques within industrial sewing, what does that even mean? Simply put, it means that some techniques are considered higher quality than others in the professional fashion industry. So in theory (there are of course exceptions, let's not get distracted) that means high end brands like Chanel, Prada etc will use the higher quality techniques (and the higher quality fabric etc etc) in their RTW (ready to wear) lines (don't mix it up with Haute Couture), hence the higher prices. Fast fashion brands like H&M, Zara etc will use whatever technique is fastest (speed equals money in industrial sewing) and lower quality fabrics to keep the prices down.

There is also haute couture and tailoring but that is a whole different world. Like comparing oranges and apples. Different techniques and a different work process entirely. I don't know how to do any of those techniques, but I know somewhat how industrial sewing differ from them.
And then there is home sewing which is often a mix of tailoring and industrial techniques, because a home sewer is using whatever techniques they have been taught from a family member, picked up in a book, online etc.
Another place where home sewing is a mix of tailoring and industrial sewing is fitting. Tailoring is all individual sizes after personal measurements. One garment for one person fit to perfection. Industrial sewing is mass production and all fixed sizes. In home sewing many (myself included) use patterns with fixed sizes and then we customize it to fit our individual bodies. And I think most of you who follow my blog, and therefor might end up reading this article, mostly have an interest in using industrial sewing techniques (vs from the world of tailoring). Every technique I teach or talk about, is from the world of industrial sewing, so I think if that was not for you, you would have found other bloggers to follow, who use your preferred sewing techniques, a long time ago. :-)

Although I've told it before, let me just remind you what a sample machinist (which is my education) is supposed to do. Because that explains why I would have the knowledge and opinions about rank of techniques within industrial sewing. I say suppose to do, because today that job is often performed by the production factory to save money.

My education as a sample machinist is to work with the designer(s) and pattern maker(s) to sew the garment samples for a collection using industrial techniques. No hand sewing whatsoever. A home sewist finishing up a tricky spot with a bit of hand sewing is no problem. But an industrial sample machinist needs to always think about production. The extra time that little hand sewing would take times thousands in a production setting is unacceptable because it would affect the final price remarkably.

So the designer show their price level (both production price and ultimately retail price) by choosing which techniques to sew their samples with and the sample machinist helps the designer with that process by advising and performing the techniques. 

Again, of course there are designers that sell their clothes for sky-high prices and then they are made with lower quality fabrics and sewn sloppily etc. I'm just talking about the theories here, haha.

Any step of sewing a garment can be done and finished often MANY ways. But they will not all be ranked equally in terms of which techniques have been chosen. This both goes for finishing of seams and which techniques has been chosen for finishing necklines, hems, sewing in zippers, linings etc etc.

And this is what I'm hoping to inspire you to do too in your home sewing journey: 
Pick high quality/ranking techniques when you make your garments. Many have decided to learn to sew their own clothes because they don't want to support the fast fashion industry, so why should we use their fast fashion techniques!

Now before it sounds too much like I'm sitting on my high horse here, I also want to mention that I have areas where I use the lower rank of industrial techniques/finishes with no regrets. In the end for all of us that sews as a hobby, it really boils down to personal preference. I often use my overlock to finish seams (3 threads/1 needle for wovens). Sure, I use French seams when sewing with thin fabrics because I like that better. And sure once in a while I cover my seams with bias tape if I feel like it really makes sense (a jacket without lining etc) but in general the extra work this requires, does not measure up to the small amount of extra joy it gives me. (Plus I don't like the stiffness it can give to the seams.) Those are my choices and of course everyone else is entitled to their own.

So please remember just because I try to encourage you, doesn't mean I expect everyone to change their way of sewing. There can be many reasons for choosing faster and/or simpler techniques. Small children around, disabilities, busy job, or simply feeling this technique is a good fit for the ambition level you have with your sewing hobby. Or fits where you are in your sewing journey. I do remember the feeling in the beginning where you are literally just trying to get a garment out of your sewing. The refinement usually happens along the way as you get more experience with the basic stuff. I just want to make sure the choice is deliberate (later on) and not random. KNOWLEDGE is the key here, and that's what I'm hoping to provide you with one post at a time. Sometimes mammoth posts, ha.

This is why I also want to encourage you, now that you have embarked on the Mie's-school-for-involuntary-sewing-education journey (haaaa, thank you Melanie for being such a fun editor), and therefore not a total beginner, to start questioning the instructions you find in pattern tutorials. Don't just follow them blindly. They are suggestions, but if you know a better way for you, please use it. I can't tell you how many times, I've had someone contact me after they ended up with a garment (or parts of) they were somewhat unhappy about, telling me, they did think the instructions were a bit weird. But they went ahead with them anyway, and now they wish they hadn't. Part of becoming a more experienced sewist is to learn to dare to trust that intuition (that something else might be more your preferred way of doing it). I know it can be scary at first, but the more you do it, the better you will be at it!

So how to know if something is higher up on the rank list, if you don't have a teacher to ask? Well generally, the more shortcuts, the further down the list it goes. And again, please remember this is somewhat subjective. There is no absolute right or wrong list here. There are also so many details to one technique, which can move it in one direction or the other.

And remember my previous post, that ended with a bit about sewing in the round. THAT is a big indicator and something cheaper brands (or those who don't know better) skip a lot.
Let me give you a random example of a knit ribbing in a sweatshirt or tee neckline.

High end: Sew both shoulder seams and close the knit ribbing to a ring. Place ribbing seam at the shoulder seam and sew the ribbing in one continued round seam. It's sewn in the round! Move it even higher up the raking ladder by covering up the seam with knit tape afterwards.

Medium: Do the same but place ribbing seam at CB. Also sewn in the round but the seam in the ribbing is more visible at CB than at the shoulder, so that moves it a bit down the rank list.

Lower end, often found in cheap fast fashion: Sew only one shoulder seam. Sew ribbing to the open neckline and THEN sew the second shoulder seam and close the ribbing at the same time. Not sewn in the round and it often gives a bulky finish at the ribbing.

Another example is a dress with a waist seam. You definitely want to sew the side seams of the bodice and the side seams of the skirt together first, press and then connect the bodice and the skirt at the whole waist seam in the round. I saw the sewing instructions to a dress from a quite popular pattern company not that long ago, suggesting to sew front skirt to front bodice, and back skirt to back bodice and then the side seam in one go. Personally it made me not want to sew their patterns. I know, I know, sometimes I'm a bit dramatic, ha.

And a third example is how to sew lining in a sleeveless bodice.... and now the introduction finally makes sense for this tutorial, ha.

As you have probably guessed by now, the bagging method is a higher ranking way of lining a sleeveless bodice within the industrial sewing world. Some details could have been added to make it even nicer, and I'll get to that in a bit, but that doesn't change the order and way of sewing this. 

The bagging method can be used in any case where something has to be made reversible or in two layers (like a lining).  It's an incredibly useful technique to learn and can be used many places and in many types of clothes. All seams will be hidden on the inside AND all seams will be sewn in the round.
And that's why I'm not a fan of using the burrito technique here either. In fact I'm even less of a fan using it for linings, because if you sew shoulders first, then the armholes and THEN finish off with the whole lining and outer fabric side seam in one go, your armhole is NOT sewn in the round and this way is often used in fast fashion, and it just doesn't look as nice under the arm. But even if you love the burrito method (yes, I guess we can still be friends LOL) I still think this technique is a great trick to add to your sewing repertoire.

Now the bagging method has one huge disadvantage. Teaching how to do it is tricky. I've heard several designers say to me in private that they really prefer the bagging technique, but they are not sure they would be able to explain it in a way that is helpful to their customers. And I really do understand that! When choosing techniques for sewing patterns, it's always a balance between quality of sewing techniques and user-friendliness. And before you have tried it for yourself, it is definitely hard to wrap your head around what is going on. It's basically impossible to explain just with words or even follow the steps in your head if you haven't made it before. Normally, photos always helps with any explanation but because of the way the bagging technique is done, photos often come out looking like a crumpled up mess. It really has a lot going against it in the teaching process, ha.
BUT this is the classic, high end way of sewing a lining within industrial sewing, and I promise you it isn't difficult to actually do as soon as it clicks for you. Even though it might only click when you have done it a few times following the tutorial step by step. After that you'll realize how logic this is and you'll wonder what in the world you thought was so hard to understand. 

StyleArc happens to also provide a tutorial for lining the bodice of the Nova Midi Dress, and interestingly enough they do it in a way I've never seen before. But the result ends up exactly like the way I'm going to show you in this post. All seams hidden and armhole sewn in the round. Their way has some extra steps though, which I'm not a fan of BUT I think it helps to explain and understand what is going on better. So again, it's that pesky balance between it being user-friendly and higher quality when making tutorials for sewing patterns. So whether you go with theirs or 'mine' isn't going to change anything quality wise for the final product. But one might give you a better sewing experience, all depending on temperament and how you learn and work best. 

How could my lining and dress be even more high end within industrial sewing? The lining could have had separate facings (which should be interfaced) in the same fabric as the outer fabric and then special drafted lining pieces with the facings subtracted (meaning, facings and lining together is same same or a tad smaller than the outer fabric). This way is especially used when your outer fabric is too thick to also be used as lining. That's not really the case for fabrics recommended for a dress like the Nova.
But I didn't have enough outer fabric to cut my lining from the outer fabrics, so I really "should" have drafted my own facings and lining pattern pieces but 1) this is good enough for me personally and 2) this makes this tutorial easier to follow because you can clearly see the difference on inner and outer layer throughout the whole process.

SO should we get to this tutorial or what!!

The first 2 collages/8 photos are how to sew the neckline. This is also exactly how I sew a neckline facing, so feel free to use this part of the tutorial for that technique. No difference. 

1) You start by sewing, and then pressing, shoulder and side seams of bodice and lining. No need to finish seams as they are all going to be fully closed in in the end. I split open the seams in this case because that is the least bulky way. Lining has strips of interfacing in the neckline and armhole.

2) Start by sewing the neckline together. Place fabrics right against right side. Put the layer with interfacing at the top for the best control. Put pins in your CB and CF notches plus match up the shoulder seams (remember they should meet in the sewing line, not outer edge). See THIS #miessewingtips post for further instructions).

3) Sew the two layers together in the neckline. Remove pins before sewing over them. See HERE why.

**A quick note about seam allowances (SA). As you can see I've used 1 cm SA in the neckline here, and the Nova Midi Dress has 0.6 cm SA in the neckline. Either I forgot in the moment of sewing or I added the extra 0.4 cm while cutting. It's so far back and I can't remember. I probably forgot because normally I'm fine with the more narrow SA (unless there is gathering involved or other details like a zipper. Then I just add the extra myself. It's NO biggie, just a slightly wider neckline, but I'm mentioning it to avoid confusion.

4) Clip the seam allowance in the neckline, so it can curve properly when turned.

5) Now understitch the neckline. Stitch on the lining (or facing if that's what you are sewing), with both layers of seam allowance below folded towards the lining. (as seen on photo 6). Personally I don't press first before understitching. Instead I use both hands to pull the two layers of fabric away from each other while sewing, so the ditch between the two layers is totally flat. If you feel like pressing first, by all means do that.

6) The back side of the under stitch, so you can see the direction of the seam allowance.

7) And NOW it's definitely time for a pressing. I use my ham so it helps maintain the round shape of the neckline.

8) The neckline is now finished. Like I said in the beginning, this is also the exact same way I sew a neckline facing, although I would fixate the facing to the shoulder seams by stitching in the ditch. See THIS post for photos/more explanation.

And now we are getting to the armholes which is where the bagging method differs from the burrito method. In the bagging method the armhole will be sewn in the round. In the burrito method it will not be sewn in the round. Pick what fit your temper, abilities and/or ambitions based on what you read in the introduction.

Every time I use the bagging method I do it by using my hands, not my brain. What that means is, that I don't try to think or predict how the seams are going to be placed to get it to come out right. I do it with my hands instead, because that works every time, and in the next photos I'm showing you how. But this is also why this method is hard to teach (unless in person teaching) because it's a process and you having the garment in your hands to actually work with will help so much. But I tried my best to be very very detail oriented when making this tutorial.

9) The starting point is always the same. The two layers that needs to be sewn together in an opening (here an armhole, but remember this works for anything reversible) is placed how we want it to end up, so wrong against wrong (side of the fabric).

10) Now my hand is reaching up (follow the white arrow) between the two layers from the bottom (you can just see my hand at the bottom left of photo 10), all the way up to the bottom of the armhole where the side seams of the bodice and lining meet. 

11) I flip the two seam allowances/layers of fabric from wrong against wrong side of fabric, to right against right (still just with one hand), and now I pull those two layers back down and out in the open. 
Now this photo 11 was meant as an extra help. But when I do this technique, I don't actually see this step. It's all happening in the darkness between the two layers of fabric. My hand goes up, I flip (without looking) and pull back out and making sure not to let go. So if this one photos confuses you, just skip it and move on.

It's the motion of opening up the two layers and then grab and pull the two layers (but now with the fabric layers right against right) that I'm trying to show you with the numbered arrows. In photo 12 you can see how it ends up after 'the flip'.

12) Whatever you do at this point, do NOT let go of the two layers, before those they have been secured with a pin. If you accidentally let go, I'll recommend you start over at step 9, since that's faster than you accidentally end up with a twisted bodice and have to unpick seams etc.
So here you see me pinching those two seams together.

13) I open the seam to make sure my seams are lined up in the sewing line (not at the outer edge), before putting in a pin to keep them securely together, and NOW you can let go and continue to the next step. This is how you match up anything, seams, stripes, whatever. Always at the sewing line.

An armhole sewn with the bagging method is sewn in TWO sewing operations. Photo 14-16 is showing you half the armhole from bottom to the shoulder.

14) Now you align the two armhole seams (bodice and lining) up until you reach the shoulder seams (of bodice and lining). As you can see I'm putting a pin in at the two darts (bodice and lining. If you had facings, you would have made that dart build (eliminated) into the facing). And don't worry about how weird everything else looks or seems at this point. All you need to concentrate on is to get from bottom of armhole (side seams) to the top of the armhole (shoulder seams). As long as you followed step 9-12 you will be alright! 

15) Here you can see the whole one side of the armhole connected with a couple of pins. If you feel like you need more, put more in. Using less pins is a matter of practice though. If you never try it, it will never feel easier over time. Just saying, wink wink.

16) Now it's finally time for some sewing. StyleArc uses smaller seam allowances for seams that will be graded anyway, so it's 0.6 cm here. (And I remembered to do it this time, ha) Sew from the bottom (with the layer with interfacing on top, so if your outer fabric has stretched after cutting, you can ease it back in shape) and all the way up to the shoulder seam. You can sew a bit over too. You don't have to stop exactly at the shoulder seam, because you will get back to that seam when you sew the other side. Your seam will end up as a circle. Sewn in the round.
I also clip my seams at this point (after sewing) but if this is your first time, it's okay if you want to untangle and see if this actually turned out right, before you go back in and clip the seams. In other words it can be done later but the most efficient way is of course to do it right away. Your choice. Just remember without the clipping of the seams, the curved seam won't look so smooth. It will though as soon as you go back in and clip the seams, no worries.

17) Now we go back to ready position and it's time to sew the other side of the armhole. The bodice is untangled and back to fabric layers being wrong against wrong, like in photo 9) but now half the armhole is sewn and the other is still open.

18) Again reach up and grab ahold of the seam allowance under the arm and pull down and out in the light. Since it's already sewn together half the way, it's easier this time.

19) Now we want to sew the other side of the armhole.

20) Now because I personally want my interfacing layer on top (for reasons already mentioned), I actually work my way up to the shoulder seam, which is what you see in photo 20). (It would be impossible to know if I haven't marked it.) You could have put some pins in, as you worked your way up there. As you can see, I didn't. I put them in afterwards. No particular reason. You do what you think is most helpful to you.

21) And now I start sewing the second half of the armhole. As you can see I found the end of our previous stitch up at the shoulder seam. I'm starting a bit further back so they overlap with at least 2 cm (about 1"). You can back stitch if you feel like it. I don't.

22) And then I work my way down the armhole to where we started the first seam down by the side seams. I usually backstitch down there.

23) Your armhole has now been sewn in a round continuous loop, although in two operations. Clip your seam allowance (again, if you feel like an untangle first, do so) so it curves nicely when turned around.

24) And you got it, just like the neckline, I under stitch. This also also done in two operations, just like the actual sewing of the armhole. From side seam to shoulder seams on one side. Take your garment out of the machine and go back up the other side of the armhole,  and then begin from shoulder and down to the side seam.

25) And yeah, it's a bit awkward when you reach the narrower part near the shoulder seam.  There is no denying that. A pretty maelstrom of fabrics. Just take a deep breath and go slow. Make sure to check frequently that no other parts of the fabric layers, has worked its way into the sewing area underneath. Some shoulder straps will be too thin too under stitch. Then I'm just extra careful when I press.

26) And here is your finished and under stitched armhole. Ready for pressing.

27) + 28)  Again I use my ham to maintain the curved shape. A sleeveless board will work too and then press smaller areas at a time.

All you have to do now, is doing the whole process again on the other armhole.
And yes of course I do them both before I go press but in the name of the tutorial, this is how I chose to show it.

The photos in the collage above does not have numbers because they are just close up shots of the finished result.

If this was a sleeveless dress with a full lining you would be finished by now, except you needed to hem the lining. (You can also close it with the hem but that's not an option I choose very often, mostly for personal preference.)

But because of the waist seam, I'm going to show you how to close that part too using your machine and the bagging method. Because that's why we are here right. Again, that seam could also be close by stitching in the ditch from the front (again within that option there are several different ranking options. Folding in the seam allowance is higher ranking than leaving the finished edge visible. But as with all things there is also a difference as to how hard it is to do.) and since you don't work in a production setting, hand sewing it shut is also an option.

The way I closed up the bottom of this bodice is also the same principle I use when closing up a coat hem with outer fabric and lining. But of course there are differences, for one because this is a circular seam. But the principle of unpicking a seam in the lining to make a hole, reaching in and pulling out the two layers that needs to be connected is the same.

29) First of all, looking at this photo I now wished I made that lining in a less flesh colored fabric. (Yes, I'll get my head out of the gutter. Moving on, haaaa!!)
But here you see how I have unpicked part of the side seam of the lining and made an opening. Because at this point you have closed all other seams, so to close the last one, you need to create a temporary opening.You might think, why did you sew that whole seam if you knew you were going to pick some of it up again later. Good question, dear students! (Man, I hope you still find this joke funny.) And you certain can make that opening (in one lining side seam only) as you sew your seams. The reason I don't do that, is because it's easier to press when sewn, so after I pick it up, it already have those pressed lines exactly in the sewing lines. And now it's easy to sew back together. And I was taught to sew it together by literally stitching on top of the two seams, which if we are talking a coat where it's done inside one sleeve seam and it is never, ever seen (okay, maybe by the dry cleaners), then I'm personally okay with that. But in a more visible seam like here, I do hand sew it shut. Happily.
At this point I have also loosely folded up the seam allowance. If you look to the right of photo 29 you can see it's not sewn yet. This is once again to have the garment in ready position to how I want it to end up when it's finished.  

30) So once agin, you reach inside your bodice, between the outside fabric and lining layers, this time through the hole in the lining side seam. 
So you reach in and get a good grip of all those three layers (two of them are already sewn together). For the dress it will be the seam where the first gathered layer is sewn to the bottom of the bodice and then the lining. It will be the lining's right side and the waist seam's wrong side.
As you can see in photo 30, I only use 0.5 cm seam allowance for the lining, that gives some extra length to the lining, which ensures that it doesn't pull the outer fabric when being worn. You could also add that extra 0.5 cm when cutting the lining. It is certainly easier to sew two seams together that has the same seam allowance, I just didn't think that far ahead when I was cutting.

31) Again don't let go of those three layers before you have secured them with a pin. Match up the seam in the sewing line.
You gently pull the three layers/seams out through the hole until you reach the opposite side seam. Definitely put a pin in/allign CF and CB (of both bodice and lining, so let's hope you marked those notches, ha), so your bodice and lining stay lined up/not twisting.

This is also sewn in two operations just like the armhole. One half waist circumference and then back to the starting point and then the other half waist circumference sewn in the other direction.

And just to show how dedicated a blogger I am (hahaha), the next four photos are taken after the dress was finished, worn and washed about 6-7 times. As I was finishing up writing this tutorial, I realized I was missing some photos. I guess I was over it at the end of the sewing and taking photos of each step, ha. So I unpicked my hand sewn opening in the lining and staged these last pretend-to-sew photos. That's why the fabric looks a bit unraveled (but not too bad), the seams more unpressed and the fabric slightly less shiny. 

32) So here you see me ready to sew the lining to the waist seam in the bodice. I need to sew with the dress seam on top because I need to sew on top of the seam that is already there (the first layer of gathered tier to the bottom of the bodice). So go slow and use the existing stitch as your guide and sew as exact as you can on top of it. I'm not sure you can see it, but I've put pins in also directly in direction of the seam (not perpendicular) to help keeping the lining below in place. THIS post will explain why that is more helpful vs putting them in perpendicular to the seam.

33) Here you can see how I kiiind of caught the lining using 0.5 cm seam allowance. Having the same SA would definitely make it easier. Now you need to untangle and do a gentle pressing. I press from the front so I don't accidentally flatten my gathers. The last photo in THIS post shows you how I press seams where gathers are sewn to a non gathered layer. And yes, with this method your SA is also pressed upwards, yay.

34) + 35)  Here is the finished result and my hand sewn shut opening (photo 34). (Yes, I took these photo before I opened it up to take photo 32 and 33, ha.).

36) And now 36 steps later, you are ready to smugly flaunt your armholes sewn in the round.

Okay, anybody still here?! Phew, this was a lot. The good thing about blog posts is that they don't disappear after 24 hours and they don't keep jumping to the next slide before you are ready (way to sound 100 years old Mie).
It's my hope that you maybe one day will try out this way if you haven't already.

Peace out and as always thank you for reading.


  1. Yup, still here... Will definately try that next year, starting to think about autumn/winter sewing now. Tusind tak!

    1. Velbekomme! The bagging method can also be used for coats/jackets...anything with a lining...just saying. ;-) I hope you'll find it useful when you try it.

  2. Thank you Mie! We are about to move house but I have a very special dress planned for once we’ve settled in and I’ll be sure to try your beautifully detailed method x

    1. Uh, good luck with the move. I hope you'll find the tutorial helpful. :-)

  3. Wow that’s fantastic. I could totally do that with those instructions. I’m about to make Mum a dress to wear to my sons wedding and this technique will be featuring in that. Thank you for such clear instructions and photos.

    1. Oh, great timing! I'm so happy to hear that this is helpful to you! Congrats on your son's wedding. :-)

  4. I'm pretty lost, but I'll try it with fabric in my hands. I want to try to line a bodice with sleeves for a certain project, but I guess that's a separate tutorial 😂

    1. Yes, with the fabric in your hands that should definitely help. And the bagging method works for anything lined, also sleeves. So as soon as it clicks for you, you'll be able to do it with the sleeves as well. Put the bodice in ready position, reach in and grab and flip the seam allowances and pull out, pin and sew. You can do it. :-)

  5. Thanks so much for taking the time to make this tutorial. I also view sewing instructions like “serving suggestions” on the cereal packet - I follow them only if I really like the outcome they provide and frequently go my own way. As a result I seem to spend an inordinate amount of time reading, prepping a pattern and re-checking before I get to the fabric. For this reason, I really value pattern companies who draft really well and allow for basic good construction that is appropriate for the garment/fabric - if the pattern is drafted reliably then I can make my own adjustments from a sound base. If basic good construction is allowed for in the pattern, then I can adjust techniques as I prefer. I have used this bagging technique before and I often find myself getting into trouble about halfway through - you did so well describing the process!! With your excellent description I now feel ready to make more sleeveless garments for our coming Southern Hemisphere summer. Thanks again!!

    1. I love your comparison to food 'serving suggestions'! And I could not agree more about loving/preferrring properly drafted patterns. That's why I love StyleArc because I don't always agree with their suggestions for techniques but I always agree with their drafting. I hope you'll be able to break the code to the bagging method when using my tutorial. That would make me happy and proud.

  6. Thank you so much, I am very excited to try this. I am a fairly new sewist (outside of 4-H as an adolescent). I made a sleeveless top that used the burrito method and it bothered me that the sewing wasn’t complete all the way around. This method looks fantastic and will soothe my brain!

    1. Well, here is the solution to your bother. I hope you will enjoy your next project sewn in the round. ;-)

  7. Thank you for this. Brings back memories. Hmmm now I need to understand the 'burrito' method. I expect I know but am just missing the terminology as I'm from the dark ages.

    1. Yeah, I'm sure it hasn't been called the burrito method for that many years, haha. I took my education in Denmark, so I had to learn (and I'm still learning) an English sewing vocabulary when I moved to the US. Now it's the Danish sewing words I can't remember, ack. I'm sure if you google it, there will be lots of tutorials for it.

  8. This great - so helpful. Thank you!

    1. I'm happy to hear that! You are so welcome. :-)

  9. Hi there Mie, thanks again for such a comprehensive tutorial! I really love getting your perspectives as a professional. I am pretty much self-taught, mostly from the directions in patterns, but started as a child so way back then it was McCalls/Style/Simplicity/Vogue etc then a Knit-Wit course. Since then I've read a tonne of books and magazines, and in more recent years have widely diversified the patterns that I use (you already know that I am also a huge fan of Style Arc). I now realise that I use a wide variety of methods for construction, just depending on what I feel is appropriate for the fabric, the design and my mood! It's great to have so much to choose from, and realy good to be reminded of the pros and cons of each one. Maybe I'll bag the bodice of my next Nova!

    1. Hi Lara. Thank you so much for your comment. I loved to learn a bit about your sewing background too. And I 100% agree with you, that we can never know too many techniques, and when we sew as a hobby we can use which one we feel like that day. Like I said in the post, I don't always use the top notch either. Whatever makes sense to us. I'm honored to hear that you are considering to try this one too. Thank you for reading. We will always have our special StyleArc bond, haha.

  10. So with a long sleeve you attach the sleeve to the dress? You have the sleeve attached to the lining? You use this for the bottom of the sleeve? Where do you pull from?

    1. I'm sorry but I'm going to have to be quite direct with you here. I made this tutorial absolutely for free. I don't even have ads on my blog that you have to deal with. And here you are with four more questions, and not even a please or a thank you. I'm sorry that this tutorial was not exactly the example you needed but if you read the post carefully, you would know that the principle of the bagging method is the same for everything. So if you had taken the time to try to understand it for a sleeveless bodice, plus maybe a bit googling yourself, you would know what to do with a garment that has sleeves. I'm even writing a bit about where the hole is in a sleeved garment like a coat, so that could have been a clue. You can also read my post about the Sapporo Coat pattern, I'm also briefly mentioning the steps of bagging a lining for a coat in that post. And I know you need the info for a dress with sleeves but like I already mentioned, the principle is the same, although details on each garment will of course make it vary slightly. I'm always happy to answer questions, a lot of people will attest to that, but I do have limits.

    2. apologies i was seized with a moment of enthusiasm and just blurted out all the questions in my head. i appreciate all your tips and tutorials and meant no disrespect. thank you for all the work you put into this.

    3. I appreciate you saying that. Thank you!

  11. I have the same question as EIOMbu - what do you do if you are adding a sleeve? Can’t wait to hear the answer! Your explanations are great!

    1. Hi Martha. I appreciate that you like my explanations. Thank you. Did you see my reply to Nina further up?

  12. Mie, I’ve been sewing for 50 years and have never seen this method explained before, and so well that I could visualize it in my head at 11:00pm! And I never have known that the seam of a neckline band should be placed at the shoulder seam for a high-end look, but I’ll do it that way from now on. It makes perfect sense! My own self-taught “high end hack” is for setting in sleeves. Even if the instructions call for sewing the sleeve in “flat,” I always sew the side seams and the sleeve seam first and set the sleeve in the round. It fits better and if I need to adjust something, it’s easier. I also hand-baste sleeves in first; this way I can check the balance and orientation of the sleeve and easily correct it without ripping out permanent stitches. Besides, sewing over lots of pins on a partially-bias seam in a confined area is murder and I constantly stab myself. I think it actually saves time. Thanks again for a lovely tutorial! I always enjoy your posts.

    1. Hi Kathy. Thank you so much for leaving this comment and I'm proud to think that I could teach someone who have sewed for 50 years something new. But that just shows that none of us are never done learning. I absolutely agree about sleeves. They sit the best when sewn in the round. The only exception I have to that is dropped shoulder sleeves, where the sleeve head is pretty much flat anyway. There something about the side seam, that makes me prefer to sew those in flat. I haven't been able to find the right words yet to properly describe why. I'm so happy to hear that you enjoy my posts. Thank you!

  13. Hi Mie, thank you for this and all the other tutorials. It is very well explained and I look forward to trying it on my next sleeveless project (not too frequent as I am in the UK and always cold) but I can see it in my head from your words and pictures and am eager to try it out. I will put a Pinterest link to help me find it in the future, it is so annoying to see useful information and later not to be able to remember where it was or who wrote it. Valuable info. Thank you.

    1. Thank you for saying that. I'm so happy to hear that it made sense to you. And yes, pinning blog posts is a great way to find them again.

  14. This method has a name!! ❤️ Used always out of intuition but never knew it was not only approved but recommended!

    1. Haha, yeah I think this is it. I learned the technique first through my Danish education and then years later, through random googling, I learned the English name.

  15. This came at just the perfect time! I made a lined tank and just after I had sewed the neckline I realized that I didn’t know how to sew the armscyes since I had already sewed the side seams. I was afraid I was going to have to unpick those seams to do the burrito method, which may not have ever actually happened. So thank you for saving my project!

    1. Oh yay, I'm so happy to hear that! Thank you for reading my blog! :-)

  16. Thank you very much for taking the time and making the effort to explain this method with words and pictures. I've just run across your blog. I guess I will go and read everything else, too! Given that a hand-sewn garment is always more expensive than a RTW, it is nice to be able to think to yourself that at least it is better constructed, and you know how each and every seam and dart was done. Thank you, again!

  17. Thank you for these instructions (that I found only because I heard the term "bagging out" in the Great British Sewing Bee and I didn't know what it means). They are great and comprehensible and a nice long reading on a rainy Sunday :)

  18. Yep still here! Oddly enough I just bought this pattern. It’s been years since I made a sleeveless dress and this will help enormously. I’ve bagged coat and jacket linings but not a bodice like this. But I learned how to bag not totally by machine withe the last bit of hem sewn by hand. Until I decided to make a leather jacket which needed to be totally bagged. I found a Threads article and I bought Palmer Petsche’s tailoring book which isn’t bad and my second leather jacket was easier. This is by far the most intensive tutorial I’ve read on how to bag a lining. Thank you! I also found your levels of factory finishing very interesting. I used to be on the committee for a large aids benefit and we had high end RTW donated for what became a very professional fashion show. I got to see all the amazing clothing up close including Armani’s highest rtw label. What a revelation!

  19. Still here too! Love your blogs - I always learn such a lot. I was looking for exactly these instructions a month or so ago and couldn't find them because I didn't know it was called 'bagging'. I'd heard of bagging out a jacket or coat lining but hadn't thought a similar label would be applied to lining a sleeveless bodice. Another one of your lovely blogs to save for future reference. I definitely want to upgrade my home sewing techniques. You never stop learning with sewing, do you? Thanks for all your effort to put this together. Totally brilliant!


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