How to Sew Ruffles
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1-2 hours
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Beginner
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- 15-25
Knowing how to sew fabric ruffles by hand lets you adjust how much fabric you want ruffled, but a sewing machine can make the process much faster. Either way you decide, understanding how to sew these decorative pieces will add a pleasant note to your favorite dress or skirt.
Sewing Ruffles by Hand
Step 1 - Thread the Needle
Thread your sewing needle with a length of thread that is at least 12 inches longer than the length of fabric that will be gathered. This will give you enough thread to adjust the length of the ruffles in the fabric. Tie a knot at the end of the thread.
Step 2 - Needle
Insert your needle at the top edge of the fabric where the ruffle will be made. Use a running stitch which will make it easy to form the gathers.
Step 3 - Gathers
As you sew, form gathers with your fingers at even spaces. Once the fabric is gathered, you can tie a knot at the end of the thread.
Sewing Ruffles by Machine
Step 1 - Prepare the Settings
Set your sewing machine to a five or six millimeter stitch length for the thread spool and bobbin spool. Leave six inches of thread hanging loose on the first side of the fabric before stitching. Tie a knot in the bobbin thread.
Step 2 - Begin Sewing
Sew one line of thread along the edge of the fabric that is to be ruffled. Leave six inches of thread on the other side of the fabric before cutting the threads.
Step 3 - Complete Ruffles
Cut the threads, then start to form the ruffles by moving the fabric along the line of stitching. Once the ruffles are in place, tie a knot at both ends of the thread, then cut off the excess thread.
Your ruffles are ready to be sewn as a decoration on a dress, shirt, or skirt.
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![Mary Haberstroh]()
Mary is a contributing writer for DoItYourself.com. She's an experienced home improvement researcher and project builder with a wide range of interests, and especially enjoys learning about flower gardening, birds, and books.![H.R. Helm]()
H.R. Helm is an accomplished DIY craftsman. He has been DIY since childhood and is now a septuagenarian. He is experienced in wood and metal construction, having designed and built several houses and metal buildings. He built every permanent building on his current homestead and did all the plumbing and electrical work. He has several years experience as a professional cabinet builder, and he is an accomplished auto repairman, having operated an auto repair business for many years. He currently has a home shop where he sharpens and rebuilds saws, repairs lawn mowers, mobility scooters, hydraulic jacks, and anything else that comes along. He also builds custom tools for metal working. Invention prototypes are another of his many accomplishments. He owned and operated a manufacturing business building Compact Utility Vehicles for homeowner use. H.R. enjoys making jams and jellies during fruit season along with cooking meals. He is committed to outdoor cooking in a Bar-B-Q pit he welded together several years ago. He maintains fruit and nut trees along with helping his wife with a vegetable garden. He farmed commercial garden produce for several years. It helps to have over 50 years of farming and ranching experience. Employment/Education Highlights ASE Certified Master Auto Technician Certified Welder Cross country truck driver -- over dimensional freight Design Engineer/Project Manager for injection molded plastic company Bus Driver/Substitute Teacher Inventor with two patents (weight training – anti-rollback for manual wheelchair) BS in Industrial Technology
