Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Butterick 6031: Panty Tutorial!

Panties, at long last! Here's a step by step tutorial for making the undies from Butterick 6031, my lingerie pattern. (See the slip steps in these posts.)

Before we start, perhaps you're wondering, "why the heck would I make my own panties?" Let me tell you, the reasons are numerous. After you make one pair of these, you can tweak the pattern to your personal preferences. I designed these to be my perfect undies: boyshort-esque, with adequate butt coverage, flat lace trim, and a higher-than-usual rise (though not Bettie Page high). The design came from my frustration at finding lingerie I liked the fit of. Second was my frustration at the cost of lingerie. $23 for a pair of panties that rides up all day? No, thank you. Once you get the technique down, you can make a pair of these in about 20 minutes and the cost of supplies is incredibly economical.

Convinced? Okay! Let's get started. First, make sure you have a stretch needle in your machine. 

You'll have three pattern pieces cut out: the front, the back, and the lining. You'll also need a length of wide stretch lace trim.


With right sides together, sew the front to the back at the crotch seam: set your machine to a narrow zigzag (about 1 mm wide by 2.5 mm long) and stitch with a 5/8" seam allowance. Then stitch again with a 1/2" seam allowance. Trim next to your second line of stitching. Finger press the seam allowance toward the panty back.


Get out your lining. Place the lining over the crotch seam, on the wrong side of the panties. Pin in place.

Baste the lining to the panties with a narrow zigzag (1 mm wide, 5 mm long). Use a scant 1/4" seam allowance.


Now get out your stretch lace. On the upper edge of the panty front, place the lace on the right side so that it's overlapping the edge of the panties by 1/4". Pin in place. The lace should not stretch at all as you're pinning or sewing it.


Stitch in place close to the lower edge of the lace with a square zigzag (2.5 mm x 2.5 mm).


Repeat with the upper edge of the panty back.


Now open out the panties and repeat the lace pinning/stitching process with the leg openings. Here's how it will look pinned.

You have lace on all the edges, and the side seams are still open.

With right sides together, pin the side seams together.

Stitch in a double-stitched seam with a narrow zigzag, and then trim away the seam allowance.


Finally, place a bow at center front (at the bottom of the lace) and hand stitch in place.

That's it! Pretty easy, huh? After you've worn them for a day, you'll have an idea of changes you want to make: you can have them cut higher or lower on leg openings, have a higher or lower rise, etc. If you want a retro high-waisted look, you can also use super-wide lace just at the waist opening.

Hope you enjoy! Now go forth and make panties.


30 comments:

  1. I have been sewing for ten years now and I am still afraid of undies^^ I will give it a try soon!

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  2. Easy as a pie!! Oh I really have to try to sew undies. It looks lot more easier than I thought :)

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  3. Wow! It looks so easy!!! I am on a sewing break, but this one might break the spell!

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  4. What are your recommendations and resources for the fabric and lace? That's the hardest part for me - finding the proper materials. Thank you!!

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  5. Yes, I second that! Where do you get good fabric and lace? This looks so easy! I have the pattern, now to just find materials and TIME! Thanks, Gertie!

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  6. This is very helpful! I was always wondering what to do first, and now i know :) Thank you!

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  7. I've made 4 pairs of these so far, and they are now my go-to choice, particularly if I'm wearing anything clingy.

    I actually just did a version with tubes of bias-cut knit for the trim instead of lace, and it turned out really well. For the top edge, I was even able to do it "burrito-style", with completely enclosed seams. I'm going to do another version to tweak the approach, and would be happy to send photos if you are interested. Not photos of me WEARING them, of course - yikes!!

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    1. Sorry about replying to my own post, but I just read all the comments above. I used the fabric from Gertie's kit, and that's my favorite so far. But I've also made them with a random "athletic knit", two out of ITY fabric from fabric.com and one out of a knit "slinky" lining, also from fabric.com. I used cut-up t-shirts for the lining piece, just my preference. But I recommend placing those carefully, with the curling side towards the fabric (not towards you), or the top edge curls outwards in an unattractive way. I also found that it helped to cut the lining piece slightly narrower towards the top and back ends, that way it is stretched a bit, which reduces the curling. May not be a problem if you follow her instructions and use the main fabric as lining, but I like to have cotton there.

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    2. Oh, they are so pretty! Definitely on my list, although, I have quite a list to get through... I just love the idea of sewing your own lingerie, but unfortunately there are such huge gaps in my actual clothing wardrobe that it might be a while :(
      X

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    3. I'd be interested in pictures of your bias knit tubes/burrito approach. Do you have a blog?

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    4. I'll take some next week once some new fabric arrives! Had a blog, but made it private after getting creeped out by internet weirdos. I need to start up a sewing-only one for things like this!

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  8. Love the panties and slip in this pattern Bertie, seriously my most reproduced pattern! I modified the panties to be a bit higher cut on the but and slightly lower rise, super easy to do, and I traced it off and modified that into a thong pattern. That one took a few tweaks to get right

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    1. Oh and a must make in silk jersey. I've made a slip, panties and thong in silk jersey, best set ever!

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  9. Ah, how the mysterious universe spins! I purchased fabric for undies yesterday, without reference to any blogs, and POP! here's Gertie with a tutorial! Kismet. I *must* sew these now.

    On another note: Gertie, I've followed your blog for a long time, and I have both book #1 and the Craftsy course. It's wonderful to see how your life has blossomed, much of it due to the blog. Congratulations, and keep on keepin' on.

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  10. Thank you, Gertie. Excellent tutorial. And I started making my own undies for all the reasons you listed above. I have not tried your pattern yet, but plan to soon. Thanks again, Cennetta

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  11. I started making my own undies a couple of years ago. I like to use old T-shirts because they're soft and usually have some kind of fun graphic you can put on the butt. I've made them in proper lingerie materials as well and it's fun to decide on the perfect lace or embellishments. Looking forward to trying out your pattern Gertie!

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  12. Love this post, thank you!! Can you blog about what types of fabric you use for panties?

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  13. Do you leave the short top and bottom edge of the pantie LINING loose?

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    1. Yes, it stays secure because the sides of the lining are caught in the lace stitching.

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    2. Also, you can finish the raw edge of the lining if you like, but it can add bulk which can lead to panty lines.

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  14. I've got the same question as Joyree. In fact I don't recall ever seeing a crotch seam in panties. Usually the crotch is a separate piece joined to the front and to the back.

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    1. It can be done both ways. I did a LOT of panty research! My favorite brands (Hanky Panky and Eberjey) do it with this method--at least in the hipster/boyshorts I checked out.

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  15. can these be done on a serger? i love working with my serger, and feel like they would be more secure. would this pose problems?

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    1. Absolutely! I like to show things on a sewing machine since not everyone has a serger, but a serger would be great. Use a 4-thread overlock for your seams.

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    2. I've been making my wife's panties as well as my own underwear on my serger for the last year or so for the reasons you cite - better style/fit availability and far more affordable. I don't write much about sewing on my blog though.

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    3. Awesome! Thanks so much! Can't wait to try these out...

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  16. This is the best ever panty pattern, after the first pair I tweaked the pattern ever so slightly , therein after perfect panties for me the most comfortable I have ever worn and so quick and simple to make, thank you Gertie

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  17. Just purchased your pattern yesterday. Made 4 pairs for myself and 2 pairs of a tweaked cutdown version for my daughter. So comfortable - am wearing for first time today. Really looking forward to making a matching camisole today! No more store bought undies for me.

    Thanks Gertie (all the way from little NZ)

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Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie

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