How to Sew a Collar
Collars frame the face and neck, which makes them a focal point on your garment. They make or break a shirt, and if you want your collars to look professional and polished, they take some practice.
The method I am sharing with you today came from a seamstress who shared it with me to speed up the production of sewing multiple shirts. Its a real cheat, because unlike most collar techniques, once you have it constructed, you pop it on and sew it all in one step!
1. Pin the collar
2. Sew the collar at seam allowance, starting at the corner and sewing 3 sides.
3. Turn and press the collar
First you are going to grade the seam allowance of the collar down to half. And then clip the corners as shown below. Finally, use a point turner to flip the collar right side out and get precise points. Press the collar, making sure to get very close to the seam.
4. Edge stitch the collar
Try to sew as close to the edge, and as straight as possible.
5. Assemble the collar stand
One thing that really helps me is to draw the seam allowance onto the curved ends of the stand. Its really hard to eyeball that curve, and this always makes a big difference for my students.
Fold the collar and collar stand in half, and place a pin to mark the center.
Then, match all three pieces up at the center and pin. Proceed to pin to the center out to the end of the collar stand. And be extra sure to match the edges of the cloth. The collar should curl slightly.
6. Sew the collar stand
7. Clip and grade the collar stand and press
8. Fold and press one side of the collar at seam allowance
This is the process that allows you to just pop the collar onto the shirt. Be sure to use a ruler to get this really accurate.
9. Fold other side down over the just pressed side and press
There should be the slightest lip the size of a few millimeters that is bigger than the other side of the collar stand.
10. Pin the collar to the shirt
Start with the corners, and pin towards the middle. For this method to be successful, you must check your work and make sure you are pinning through all thicknesses and that you are sewing through the collar stand in the same place on the front and back. In other words, make sure the back isn't shifting as you pin or you will end up with unhappy results.
11. Sew the collar to the shirt
PHEW!! Even though this method helps you cut a few steps, its still a lot of work to sew a collar! But, this is a pretty collar and well worth it. To get an in depth look at this process, don't forget to watch the video lesson.
I'm always looking for fun tutorials to show you and my students. Let me know how I can help you, and you might just see it pop up as a tutorial soon :)
Thanks and happy sewing!
Andrea
