Ripping out pleats

[Barb T]

Ah, yes, the 50 yard kilt.....

[okiwen]

"Ummm, you won't be happy with that." <Whoosha!>

[Benning Boy]

OK! here are some pics.

The first shows the pleating so far. The pink pins at the right are the farthest I've gone with the pleats. The pink pins nearer the middle are where I've ripped out a pleat and started to re-stitch it.

Then there's a tighter shot of the same work area.

Last is a wider view, so you can see the set, and get a better idea of what I'm working with, if you haven't seen it before, or don't quite remember it.


The basic color is gray, and actually what I'll call a micro-tweed. The stripes are two tannish ones on the outside, between them two ecru stripes, two narrow black stripes and one light grey stripe. The total width of the set of stripes is 3/4ths of an inch. The pleats at the waist line are supposed to be one-inch wide. If properly pleated, there'd be 1/8th of an inch of dark grey showing on either side of the tannish stripes in each pleat, for a total width of 1/4 inch of dark gray showing between each row of stripes. One-eight in one pleat, and another eigth showing in the pleat next to it. As you can see, I just ain't got it. The amount of dark gray showing between the stripes is pretty ragged.


Also, some of the stripes in the pleats are snaky. Soft wrinkles in the tartan cause the snakiness to be somewhat exaggerated in the pics, but believe me it's there.


Ripping out the pleats, and cutting into the back to make room for my hand, so I can restitch the pleats is dedious, and although I may resew the pleats better than I sewed them the first time, all the other pleats will still be ragged.


I'm still thinking I need to rip them all out and start over, but really need your comments.

[The Wizard of BC]

ya know, there is really nothing wrong with marking your pleats with chalk to give yourself a line to follow.

I do this over in the contemporary class all the time.


With your fabric laid flat measure out the width at the bottom of the Fell, and again at the level of the top strap.
With a fine or sharp chalk, mark a straight line between the two.

Mark on both side of the center line of your pleats.


If you look just to the right of my right thumb you can see my chalk line. Its right about where the pin is.



This is a hand stitched kilt for the Clansmen Pipe Band in Prince Charles Edward Stewart Tartan.

And being sewn left handed by the way.