Have you explored the attachments available for your overlocker?
There is SO much fun to be had! Maybe you’re loving using your overlocker for those quick and clean finishes on your garments. But there is so much more it can do. From blind hems, adding piping, beading and, what we’re diving into today, gathering!
I’m using the Amber Air S400. You can purchase the Utility Feet Kit (seen below) which includes that gathering foot and gathering attachment I’m using today as well as a blind hem foot, elastic gathering attachment and cloth guide!
You can use the gathering foot by itself or together with attachment for anywhere you want gathers - whether it be speeding up the gathered tiers on a dress, ruffles on a sleeve or for a decorative ruffle on a pillow like I’m making today.
Setting it up
Changing your regular foot to the gathering foot only takes a couple of seconds. Raise your presser foot, press the button at the back and the foot will drop off. Next, align your gathering foot and lower the presser foot lever again until it clicks into place. That’s it! Now you can go ahead and use the gathering foot by itself if you like! Have your overlocker on your standard 4 thread set up. Then increase the differential feed dial to 2.0. The longer your stitch length the more gathers you will get, so you can adjust this to your liking. You can also increase the tension on your needles for tighter gathers still! One more tip to increase them further is to place your finger lightly on the fabric coming out the back of the foot so it doesn’t feed through as quickly.
Why use the attachment?
When the gathering foot alone can achieve so much - why even use the attachment?! The attachment is perfect for gathering one piece of fabric onto another. Remember that tiered dress we mentioned earlier? Or in my case the ruffle onto the main body of the pillow.
The attachment allows you to feed both pieces of fabric through the overlocker at once. It separates them so that only the bottom piece gets gathered and you end up with beautifully finished seams as well. Cutting out two steps: attaching the gathers to the flat piece and then finishing the edges! So let’s attach it! Opening up your overlocker and pulling out a screw driver may feel intimidating the first time. But it actually is really simple. Once you’ve opened the side cover you’ll see the attaching screw that I’m pointing to in the photo. Loosen this and locate the thin rectangular opening on the edge of the flat bed extension.
Slide the gathering attachment through this opening as far as it will go and tighten the screw back up! The arm on the attachment rotates, place it so that it lies over the top of the feed dogs and under your presser foot. You’re now ready to have some fun!
Testing the gathers
There are a few different factors that affect how much your fabric gathers, including your stitch length and tension settings, but also the thickness of your fabric. So I always recommend testing on some offcuts of your fabric first. To clearly show you how the attachment works, I have used two equal lengths of fabric. My differential feed is set to 2.0 and my stitch length is set to 3.5.
Swing the arm out of the way as you position your fabric under the presser foot. You can sew a couple of stitches to hold your fabric in place as you then swing the arm back so that it lies in between the two layers of fabric.
Stitch! Use the grooves in the arm to align your fabric as you go. You can see that my settings have resulted in the purple fabric being gathered to ⅔ the length of the pink. It’s as easy as that and the edges are beautifully finished too.
Let’s sew a cushion cover
First I gathered my supplies. Here’s what you need:
Fabric (front, back and ruffle)
Cushion insert
My fabric width wasn’t long enough to cut my ruffle in one piece so I swung the attachment arm out of the way and used my overlocker to piece three lengths together into one long strip. I then folded my ruffle strip in half lengthwise. This way I had a folded outer edge that didn’t need finishing!
Remember the bottom piece is the one that gets gathered, so that’s where I placed my ruffle fabric. The main body of the cushion cover lay on top.
Here it is attached
The edges are already cleanly finished so all that’s left to do is fold the ruffle to the inside and attach the backing!
A new overlocker skill unlocked, an afternoon well spent and a Guest bedroom refresh!
Will you give this a try? Let us know what gathering project is at the top of your list!
Don’t forget to share your projects with us on Instagram, tagging @husqvarnvikingsewingaus and using the hashtags #husqvarnavikingaustralia #husqvarnavikingsewing #keepingtheworldsewing or our Facebook page Husqvarna Viking Australia.
Amy Watts: Creative enthusiast and fabric aficionado. With a penchant for intricate designs and a love for vibrant textiles, Amy weaves her passion for sewing into every stitch, turning fabrics into delightful creations that spark joy!
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