M5 Chapter 6 - Tucks, Pleats & Gathers

This chapter was all about making tucks, pleats and gathers. I nearly always start any sample with more precision and formality before I loosen up! This was true here. I started with strips of muslin fabric to make pleats and folds, using machine straight stitch.

6.1

6.2

 

I then looked at joining and pleating different fabrics - muslin and tissue paper.



6.3

Straight double narrow pleats and then worked on the diagonal.

6.4

Tissue paper pleated in various directions.

6.5

Wide and narrow pleats stitched, cut and re-joined.

6.6

Pleats made on the bias, folded and stitched.

6.7

Pleated, cut and layered.

6.8

 

On to gathering, starting with hand running stitch pulled.



6.9

 Pulled drawn threads to gather in both directions.

6.10

Rows of machine stitching using a gathering foot.

6.11

Different directions of machine stitching using a gathering foot.

6.12

Hand stitched circles pulled to enclose pulled threads.

6.13

Hand stitched spirals, pulled.

6.14

Hand stitching in a grid pattern, pulled in both directions.

6.15

Pleats made with a long machine stitch, pulled to gather.

6.16

Hand stitching to make pleats.

6.17

Long machine stitch pulled to make gathered pleats.

6.18

 

Pleated and gathered using long machine stitch and pulled drawn threads.



 

 

This has been an enjoyable and very useful chapter. It has demonstrated a wide variety of fairly simple and quick methods to produce many different textures and reliefs. Although the muslin produces a 'soft' relief, different fabrics would produce a stiffer effect or the relief could be painted with something like PVA or gesso.