How to Attach Lace to a Cami
Camisoles, or camis, are sleeveless women's undergarments made of loose fitting cotton, nylon or satin fabric with thin shoulder straps. They cover the chest and torso and are designed to be worn under your blouse to conceal your brassiere. Camis that have built-in under-wire brassieres are also available, eliminating the need to wear two layers of undergarments. Old camisoles can be made to look new again by sewing a lace trim onto the top of the cami's chest area and the bottom hem or waist-line of the cami to give it a delicate, feminine flair.
Things You'll Need
- Cami
- Sewing mannequin
- Lace
- Pins
- Wash-away cloth marker
- Measuring tape
- Cloth scissors
- Sewing machine
Instructions
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1
Turn the cami inside out, and put it on the sewing mannequin. Hold the lace up to the cami, and start to pin it at the side seam on the upper edge of the armpit area of the cami's bodice. Where the fabric edges start to move higher up the chest, extend the piece of lace that you are currently working with past the edge of the fabric, the same distance as the lace is wide. For example, if the lace is 1-inch wide, extend it 1-inch past the edge of the fabric. Don't pin the extra bit of lace as it is going to be used for the seam allowance.
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2
Pin a new piece of lace starting at the area on the upper edge of the cami where the fabric starts to rise up towards the shoulder straps. Stop pinning the lace at the point where the fabric meets the strap. Extend the lace past this point the same distance as the lace is wide. Begin pinning a new piece of lace at the strap, and continue pinning it down towards the chest. Stop where it comes to the bottom point of the V shape in the cleavage area. Extend the piece of lace past this point, the same distance as the lace is wide.
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3
Fold the top edge of the first piece of extended lace (the one that stops at the start of the shoulder strap) down at a 45-degree angle. Fold the top edge of the second piece of lace that is next to it up in the opposite direction of the first, folded 45-degree angle. This will make the back side, or exterior, creases of both folds touch. Pin the creases together, and draw a line on the crease with a wash-away cloth marker. Measure 1/8-inch from the line you drew on the lace, and cut off the ends with your cloth scissors to create the 1/8-inch seam allowance.
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4
Continue pinning the lace around the upper edge of the cami's bodice, and stop at the side seam near the other armpit area. If you like, you can line the back top edge of the cami's bodice as well. Fold the extended part of the lace at each of the side seams of the armpit areas under itself, and pin it to the side seam.
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5
Pin the lace onto the bottom hem or the lower edge of the waist-line of the cami, starting at a side seam. Overlap both of the side seams with 1/2-inch of lace. Pin the lace all the way around the bottom hem or waist-line. Fold the extra 1/2-inch of lace under at each of the side seams and pin the lace to the seam.
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6
Set the stitch type of your sewing machine to zigzag. Set the stitch length to 0.8 millimeters and the stitch width to 4.0 millimeters. Adjust the needle tension to a rating of 5 or 6. Insert the 45-degree angle folded lace edges at the start of the straps on the chest into the sewing machine. Start the first part of the stitch on the marked line at the edge of the 1/8-inch seam allowance. Move the fabric through the machine to stitch down the folded edges of the lace. The thread is going to "roll" the edges of the lace as it is sewed, finishing the lace edges for you as you stitch them together with your sewing machine.
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7
Set your sewing machine to zigzag stitch with a 1.5-millimeter wide stitch and a 3-millimeter stitch length. Stitch the lace to the cami, sewing across the top edge of the bodice, starting at the side seam near the armpit area. Sew the lace to the cami, one piece at a time, stopping at the end of the lace that you are currently sewing and then beginning at the start at the next pinned piece of lace.
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8
Sew the lace pinned to the bottom hem or waist-line of the cami with the same zigzag stitch used in step 7. Sew all the way around the bottom, stopping at the end of one piece and beginning the stitch at the start of the next piece of lace. Sew the overlapped lace 1/2-inch past the side seam it overlaps.
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9
Sew a zigzag stitch down the width of the lace at the side seams, starting at the top edge of the lace. Then, reverse the stitch all the way back up to the top of the lace. Sew all the other side seams in a similar fashion. Cut off the excess threads, and trim any overlapping lace.
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