okay, i have to be very quick and im not sure if its spelt right but has anyone got a guise on ruching? is it very simple? any tips? thanks!
<33

Okay, I think I know what you mean, if you're talking about something else entirely, let me know.

Ruching is basically gathering, usually on two sides of a piece of fabric. Test a scrap piece to see what length of fabric you fabric you need to get the gather-y look you want. Machine baste on both sides of the fabric, leaving a long tail of thread on each end. Do not backstitch at the beginning or end. Then, pull on the bobbin thread to gather.

If you are having difficulty gathering, try adjusting the tension (looser) or making sure the stitches are as long as they can go on your machine. If you have a heavier fabric, you may want to try this:

Use a piece of string (can be anything basically - so long as it is heavier than thread), and using a zigzag stitch, stitch your fabric with the piece of string fed through the machine zigzag stitch. In other words, the needle comes down on either side of the piece of string. This is called couching; you can also use thin elastic, but the result is a little different, and you don't sound like you have much time to experiment. Pull on the piece of string to gather as desired.

After your fabric is gathered the way you want it, you may want to baste again over the gathers to keep them in place, or you can just sew it to another piece of fabric without basting, it's up to you.

Hope this is the info. you were looking for!

-Starr

P.S. If there is going to be stress on the piece of fabric that is ruched, you may want to stabilize it by sewing a flat piece of fabric *behind* the ruched piece, so that it is not pulled out of shape.

I just ruched a teeshirt that I was altering (sorry for talking about reconstruction- I know it's not popular with some!) and the easiest way to do it is just to attach curtain tape to the other side, and pull the strings and tie like you would with the top of the curtain! It's so simple and works a dream!

g xxx