Ever noticed those floaty, wavy edges on stretchy tops and skirts? Yep, that’s a lettuce hem, and they are so easy to pull off and you don’t need a fancy overlocker (aka serger) to do it either. A regular sewing machine can do it no problem! Let me show you how!
Either enjoy watching the video and sew along with me, or scroll on past it and you’ll find a full step by step sewing tutorial waiting just for you.
A lettuce hem is made by stretching a fabric as you stitch over the edge of it. This holds the edge in the stretched position, while the rest of the fabric pings back up.
But not all stretch fabrics make good lettuce hems. To find the best fabrics for making them, I look for ones that naturally curl up at the edge and stay there when you stretch them, like jersey knit. That’s my favourite go-to when I’m after those bold, frilly edges. Most stretch fabrics will stretch better across either their width or their length – For the best curls, I always sew along the direction with the most stretch.
It’s fun to experiment with other stretchy fabrics too, though if they don’t curl, you end up with a subtler wave instead, which is still pretty cute. Just know that the fabric choice plays a much bigger role in your success than your technique does.
I like to use an overcast foot on my sewing machine. The black guide at the front of the foot is to line the edge of the fabric against, but the part that really makes lettuce hems easy is the bar that sits right in the centre of the stitching area.
It mimics the finger on an overlocker/surger so that as you stitch over the edge of fabric, the stitch forms around the bar, then slides effortlessly off underneath into the perfect spot on the fabric edge. You just need to select a zigzag stitch or an overcast stitch that is wide enough to clear that middle bar easily – trust me, it’s worth checking that clearance or one broken needle later, you’ll wish you did! If you have a more adjustable stitch width than my machine, then know that the wider you can make your zigzag, the more fabric it can pick up as it sews. You’ll get a bolder stitching line, and a matching bolder curl to go with it, so knock up the stitch width as far as it can go as long as you’re still clearing the presser foot with the needle.
For my medium-weight cotton jersey, I like to use an 80/12 jersey needle and to shorted my stitch length between 1-1.5mm. The denser the stitching is, the more structure it adds to the edge of the fabric. This helps it to hold the shape better, but much smaller than 1mm and it risks the stitches building up on the bar and getting stuck inside it.
I start out by stitching a couple of stitches forward and back to secure the thread end first, then with one hand in front and one behind, I gently stretch the fabric then start sewing my zigzag stitch.
I try to keep the stretch tension constant rather than trying to pull it through under the foot or it tends to end up with uneven stitches and broken threads.
I’ve noticed keeping my sewing speed steady really helps. If I try to zip through too fast, some spots end up overstretched, then other spots haven’t held the tension the same so they barely ripple. The whole hem looks uneven after. Slow and smooth is the way to go.
Some sewing machines can be a bit more prone to puckering while sewing stretch fabrics like this. If yours does that, just tweak down the thread tension down a touch and it should sort that out. If not, it may just be that the fabric is a tiny bit over stretched.
Then before you know it, it’s already done! It really is as easy as that!
I hope you’ll have fun giving it a try yourself. If you do, I’d love to hear how you get on, or whether you’ve picked up any other extra tips along the way.
Haven’t got an overcast foot? You can find a range of overcast feet to fit different machines here. Just check the foot you think is most likely to fit and you’ll find a list of compatible sewing machines listed with it. Can’t find yours? Let us know and we’ll try to find out for you.
Want some more fun with your overcast foot? You might also want to check out our Overcast Foot Tutorial for more ideas of things you can do with it.
Happy Sewing!
