How to Sew a Fell Seam
Flat felled seams are heavy-duty, very durable and hide the raw edges of the fabric. They are most suitable for medium weight fabric, although the most common use for them is in the seams of jeans, made from heavy denim. The layers of heavy fabric can sometimes be too thick to pass under the home sewing machine's foot and they can be difficult to handle if you are not used to sewing flat felled seams. Practice on medium weight fabric and avoid curves until you are comfortable with the process.
Things You'll Need
- Pattern requiring felled seams
- Fabric cut from pattern pieces
- Tailor's chalk
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Scissors
- Iron and ironing board
- Tailor's pins
Instructions
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1
Pin the two pieces of fabric together along the seam line with the right sides facing each other.
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2
Sew the seam as you usually would for any pattern, with a 5/8-inch seam allowance. Double stitch the beginning and end of the seam. Remove the pins as you come to them while you are sewing.
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3
Press the seam open on the wrong side. Trim one side close to the seam line, leaving about 1/4-inch of seam allowance.
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4
Press the seam again, pressing the 5/8-inch seam allowance over to the same side as the 1/4-inch seam allowance.
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5
Fold the wider seam allowance under, covering the narrower seam allowance, so that both raw edges disappear. Pin the folded edge in place as you work your way along the seam. Use a lot of pins to make the fold smooth and even.
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6
Stitch along the fold line, double-stitching at the beginning and end of the seam. Remove the pins as you come to them.
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7
Stitch another seam about 1/8-inch away from the first seam. On the wrong side, you will see three seam lines, but on the right side you will see only two. Press the seam again, on the right side.
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Tips & Warnings
Notice that flat felled seams on jeans are often sewn with a gold contrast thread. You may want to use a contrast thread in your garments as a finishing detail that highlights the seams.
Overlapping flat felled seams, such as when you add a waistband to pants, can be difficult to sew. When you need to sew across a flat felled seam while attaching two pattern pieces, you many want to turn the sewing machine by hand and take one stitch at a time to avoid breaking a needle.
References
Resources
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