Heidiandfinn balletsweater6-12TutorialandPattern

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Heidi & Finn 2009. All rights reserved. For personal use only. www.heidiandfinn.etsy.com
Ballet Sweater Tutorial and Pattern
Sizes 6 12
Supplies
3/4 yard of lightweight- medium weight knit/stretch material for main
(I have used a lightweight cotton knit (t-shirt material) for the example, you can
use any knit material that you like as long at there is 50% stretch or more. Eg.
jersey, interlock, cotton knit, sweater knit, spandex, sweatshirt fleece, terrycloth,
fleece(with stretch), this is also a great pattern for upcycling old t-shirts and
sweatpants)
yard of lightweight to medium weight knit material for binding,
matching main fabric or not (again I have used a lightweight cotton knit for
the example. eg. Jersey, interlock, ribbing, old t-shirts are great)
40-50 of ribbon, chiffon strip, cording, or 2 width fabric to make ties
Matching thread, pins
5
Cut Pieces
For Sweater:
Cut back A on fold :1 in main fabric
Cut Front B mirror images: 2 in main
Cut sleeve C on fold: 2 in main fabric
Cut 2 width strip(s) of binding with the stretch going across the long ways of
the strip. You will need approx. 38 of the binding
Cut a 5 strip of banding fabric for bottom of sweater, with the stretch along
the length of the strip just like the binding. You will need approx. 30 of this
banding
Cut 2 strips of whatever you are using for the ties. They need to be 25-30 long
each (you will trim them later once the garment is finished), if you are making
ties out of matching material then you will need to cut 2 strips of the same
length
Construction
****all seams have 3/8 seam allowance unless otherwise stated
I will be using a serger for most of the construction, and while this is a handy
tool and makes working with knits much easier/faster, it is not necessary.
You can easily make this with only a sewing machine. I
suggest using a walking foot to make things go easier
and ALWAYS fit your machine with a stretch/ball point
needle.
If using a sewing machine vs. a serger you wont need to
finish your edges the way you do on woven materials
(zigzag). But if you like a cleaner finish to the inside, feel
free to use an overlock foot and zigzag the inner seam
allowances (see side picture) or you can simply use
pinking shears.
TIP***when working with stretch material try to let material fall as naturally
as possible, dont stretch or pull when pinning- this will cause seams to
pucker. Make sure you are sewing with a larger and looser stitch than normal,
even a very long zigzag stitch is greatthis will also help with any puckering.
If you still find your work puckering at
the seams try placing a piece of
tissue paper under your material as you
sew this will help the material feed
more evenly and you can rip off the
paper easily when you are done
sewing.
1.
Cut all your pieces. See picture 1
2. Take your back piece and lay it down flat with right side up. Picture 2
3. Take your two front pieces and lay them on top facing down so right sides
are together, matching the shoulder seams. Pin in place if needed. Sew
together along shoulder seams. Picture 3
4. Take 1 sleeve and fold in half. Mark the top edge of the fold with a pin.
This is the center of the sleeve. Picture 4
5. Take the main sweater and lay out flat with right side up. Picture 5
6. Take sleeve and lay flat with right side up. Picture 6
7.
Flip the sleeve on top of the sweater/top, lining up the shoulder seam
and center pin. Picture 7
8. Pin sleeves to shoulders/arm openings starting at the center mark and

pinning down sides. Picture 8
9. Sew from one edge to the other (a U shape). Picture 9. Repeat with
other sleeve.
10. take cuff of the sleeve and finish off the edge if you like, either with a
serger or zigzagging the edge (this is optional, I like to do this step to give
the sleeve a cleaner look). Picture 10
11. Fold the edge of the cuff towards the back (1/2 is standard, but you can
do more or less depending on how long you want the sleeve), so the edge
is folded to the wrong side of the fabric. steam Press the fold flat. Pic 11
12. Flip the sleeve and sew down the fold, with either a long zigzag stitch or a
stretch stitch. Picture 12, repeat with other sleeve
13. Fold sweater in half, along shoulder seams, with front pieces on top of
back with right sides together. Picture 13
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14. Match up underarm seams and pin together. Pin sides of sleeves and
sides of body together if necessary. Sew from edge of sleeve cuff to
bottom of sweater on both sides. Picture 14
Binding the neckline

I am including 2 different ways to bind the neckline, Option #1 works best with
a serger to keep things neat, Option #2 is the cleanest/neatest way to do it with
a sewing machine
OPTION #1
15. Lay your sweater out flat, with right side up. Picture 15
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16. Take binding strip and lay down with wrong side facing up. Fold the
binding in half so the right side is facing out. You can press it if you like or
simply hold in place with your fingers. Picture 16, 17
17. Take the binding strip that is folded and lay down on top, lining up the
raw edges of the neckline, leaving a least 1 overhang. Pin into place if
needed. Cut off excess binding. See picture 18, 19
18. Sew/serge the binding to the neckline. Picture 20
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19. Flip the seam to the back of the sweater and press the seam flat. For best
results use lots of steam and press the iron down rather then dragging it
across the seam. Picture 21
20. Topstitch along the neckline, close to the sweater edge. Sew with a long
straight stitch or long zigzag stitch or stretch stitch, depending on your
machine. Picture 22, 23
OPTION #2
21. Take your front piece and lay down with right side up. Take your binding
strip and lay down with right side down. Picture 24
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22. Take the binding and line up one raw edge along the neckline. Pin into
place, leaving a 1 overhang. Cut off excess fabric from binding See
Picture 25, 26
23. . Sew the binding on the front piece with a seam allowance. Picture 27
24. Flip the binding up. See picture 28
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25. Flip the sweater over so that wrong side is up. Picture 29, 30
26. Fold the raw edge of binding to meet with the raw edge of the neckline.
See picture 31, 32
27. fold the binding down again so that the folded edge now lines up the
stitch line . See picture 32, 33
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28. Pin the binding in place as you go. See picture 34,35
29. Flip the sweater over. Topstitch along the neckline binding, close to the
binding edge. Sew with a long straight stitch or long zigzag stitch or
stretch stitch, depending on your machine, Picture 36, 37, making sure to
catch the back of the binding in your stitch.
30. It should look like picture 38
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Completing the sweater

31. Lay down sweater with front pieces closed the way you want them (the
left on top or the right side on top), and folded along the shoulder and
side seams. Picture 39
32. Pin the two front pieces together along the bottom raw edge where they
end. Picture 40
33. Baste stitch them together. Picture 41
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34. If you are using a sewing machine, cut off the excess binding. If you are
using a serger then the serger will cut them off when you attach the
bottom. Picture 42
Making the side ties
*if you are using ribbon or cord for the side ties, then skip to step 37
the sweater
to complete
35. Take one 2 strip of fabric and fold in half so right sides are together, pin
if needed. Sew together along raw edges to form a tube. Picture 43,44
36. Repeat with other strip, turn tubes right side out (I find it much easier to
use a tube turner for this, you can also use safety pins and string) pic 45
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37. Take your 5 strip of fabric for banding and lay it down with right side up.
Position it just under your sweater for reference. Picture 46
38. Fold the banding in half, so there are two layers that match the width of
the sweater along the bottom hem. Cut both layers so there is a seam
allowance on either side. Picture 47, 48
39. Fold the top layer back and out of the way. Picture 49
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40. Place the two ties (or strips of ribbon) on each side of the banding about
an 1 from the top edge. Picture 50
41. Fold the upper layer back on top and pin the ties in place through all three
layers. Picture 52
42. Sew the cut ends of the banding together. Picture 53
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43. You should now have a ring of fabric. Fold the ring in half lengthwise so
the seams are hidden on the inside and the raw edges along the length
match up. Picture 54, 55
44. It should look like picture 56
45. Line up the banding ring and the sweater, so the folded edge of the
banding is pointing up towards the sweater/top. picture 57
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46. Make sure the ties are coming up through the top of the ring. Picture
58,59
47. slip the banding up over the hem of the sweater so the raw edges match
up. Picture 60,61
48. Make sure the side seams on the banding matches up with the side seams
on the sweater. Pin into place. Picture 62
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49. Sew or serge the bottom band to the sweater. Picture 63
50. Fold down the band. If you find the bottom band a little wavy, steam
press it flat. Picture 64, 65
51. Almost done!
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How to wrap the ties and finish the ends

This is the way I like to wrap the ties, but you can do it however you like, depending on
the length you made them
1. Lay the sweater flat, with ties out on sides (or on your little one)
2. Pull ties to the front and cross them
3. Wrap ties around to the back and cross them again.
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4. Bring the ties to the front again and tie them in a bow.
5. You can now, decide if you like the
length of the ties, if they seem too long

cut them to the desired length
6. I like to finish off the ends by tying

them in tight knots as close to the end
of the tie as I can, and cut off the
excess.
7. All Done!
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Ballet Sweater
Pattern Printing Diagram
All the pieces will print in order of placement from pages 26-30 in your pdf file.
This diagram will help you with putting those pieces together. Depending on
your printer, you may have to adjust the papers slightly to make sure all the
sizes line up correctly.
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27
28
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Ballet Sweater Tutorial and Pattern

****all seams have 3/8 seam allowance unless otherwise stated

Cut all your pieces. See picture 1

8. Pin sleeves to shoulders/arm openings starting at the center mark and

Binding the neckline

18. Sew/serge the binding to the neckline. Picture 20

24. Flip the binding up. See picture 28

See picture 31, 32

30. It should look like picture 38

Completing the sweater

33. Baste stitch them together. Picture 41

Making the side ties

42. Sew the cut ends of the banding together. Picture 53

44. It should look like picture 56

49. Sew or serge the bottom band to the sweater. Picture 63

51. Almost done!

How to wrap the ties and finish the ends

2. Pull ties to the front and cross them

3. Wrap ties around to the back and cross them again.

5. You can now, decide if you like the

length of the ties, if they seem too long

6. I like to finish off the ends by tying

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