Yesterday we managed to do all the prep work for or tank which is awesome! Today, we will be focusing on assembling and inserting out Neckbands which will help us for when we tackle a similar process of inserting our arm bindings tomorrow.
Are you ready? Let's get started! I'll meet you on page 31 of your instruction booklet!
With RST, sew the short ends of your neckband together with a zig-zag stitch to create one continuous cylinder. Press seams open.
With wrong sides together (WST), press your neckband in half lengthwise (like a hot dog!).
Baste both layers of your binding together using a long zig-zag stitch right along the edge.
By basting this piece together, it will be easier to attach it to the neckline next!
With right sides together, attach your neckband to your neck opening, lining up all the raw edges, Center Front (CF) notches, and Center Back (CB) neck seam to your CB notch.
Your neckband will be slightly smaller than your neck opening and will likely
not divide equally between the front and back neckline, so use those notches as
your guide when pinning it in place.
I tend to pin my CF and CB neckband to the corresponding notches on the bodice pieces. Then I lightly stretch the neckband until it fits the neck opening perfectly and place a pin at each shoulder seam!
We are now going to sew your neckband to your neck opening. To do this, you
can start at the CB of your garment.
Sew a few zig-zag stitches to lock the neckband in place.
Then, you are going to lightly stretch the neckband piece in between your pins as you sew to get it to lie flat against the neck opening. Try not to stretch your neck opening, only the neckband.
Before moving on to the next step, I always find it helpful to try on your tank at this stage just to make sure that the neckband isn't too loose nor too tight. Fabrics all behave very differently, so it's important to check on the fit of your garment throughout the sewing process to help catch any issues before everything gets 100% sewn into place!
Your neckband should fit close to your body without tugging on your fabric causing puckers or without gaping away from your neck. If it does either of these things, you may need to cut a larger band (Puckers) or make your current band a bit smaller (Gaping).
Once you are happy with the fit of your neckband, trim your neck seam and press your seam allowance down towards the inside of your garment.
You are now going to embark on edgestitching your neckband down to add extra security as well as keep the seam allowance from popping up while it is being worn.
Simply sew a straight stitch about an 1/8” (0.3 cm) away from the neck seamline,
catching your seam allowance on the wrong side of your garment in this stitch.
Woohoo! You have successfully completed your neckband! Tomorrow's task should be a piece of cake as it follows a similar strategy. I will meet you then for Part 3 - Attaching the Armhole Bindings.