Tag: Bias Binding

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The Bias Tape Appreciation Society is 1, let’s celebrate!

A look back at the first year of BTAS

Cassie here! I’m the ‘Chief Bias Elf’ at The Specky Seamstress… it was one of those titles that started as a joke and just kind of stuck! Chances are if you email or message us, it’s me you get first and I love hearing from you 🙂

I joined #TeamSpecky late September 2023 to help Laura and Yvann with a *bit* of admin with their new subscription box… Laura said it’ll be “a couple of hours a week”, “we’re not really sure how it’ll go…” and I’ve been running a lot of the admin side of the subscription boxes ever since.  Little did we know that earlier this year I’d become the first contracted employee. And, we’d not only be at the end of our first year of the Bias Tape Appreciation Society, but that we’d already have designed almost all of the next year too!

So we wanted to mark the birthday of our ‘baby’ with a round up of our fabulous designs!

What’s special about The Bias Tape Appreciation Society?

When Laura first started the company, and designing Bias Tape, she was looking for unique and well made bias to add to her precious makes. That’s exactly what the Bias Tape Appreciation Society embodies. 

2m of Bias through the letterbox each month is first and foremost a fabulous, affordable treat – it’s less than a fancy frothy coffee and a slice of cake!! But it’s also just the right amount of Bias to dip your toes in, with enough to add to most garments, and not so much that you’ve got loads left over. Plus, members can purchase extra packs with their special code during the exclusivity period, so you can grab a little more for those bigger projects.

Whether you’re a #BiasMatcher or a #BiasRebel, we’ve seen lots of fantastic makes featuring Bias Tape Appreciation Society Designs this year. 

The First 6 Designs…

  • We started strong with Sewing Machines! Adorning handmades with sewing machines seemed too perfect for words, and it’s a design that people keep coming back to.
  • Please Look After Me is a definite crowd pleaser; with both a strong message AND a fabulous colour palette, it’s a #TeamSpecky favourite… watch this space for a new colourway!
  • Sewing Makes Me Happy; this one pretty much explains itself, and that’s why we chose to make it into a design for The Label Collective too! And there’s a bonus colourway too. Are you a Lemon Meringue or a Key Lime Pie?
  • Go Fish – ideal for summery and nautical makes, as well as on darker fabrics, what’s not to love about this bias? And as of this month, there’s a matching Woven Label through The Label Collective too. 
  • Made With Love and Mistakes, is another strong message on a bias; we know that all of our makes are made with love… and tears, sweat, accidentally some blood when you catch yourself with a stray pin, and definitely some mistakes. And that is ABSOLUTELY FINE because we’re not machines!
  • Disco Tape Measure – we love our Disco designs, there’s just something so satisfying about the bright colours on the dark background, and it’s ideal for darker fabrics, where it won’t show through.

And the next 6 designs…

  • Thanks, I Made It. Who doesn’t want to shout this about makes they’re particularly proud of? We certainly do!
  • Berries in June coincided with #SewFruity24 and we see it being used in lots of makes; it definitely felt like adding a cream tea to your makes. And the darker colourway version has been popular too, especially on darker fabrics… who said fruit is just for the summer?
  • Doesn’t Have To Perfect, as sewists, we’re all our own harshest critics and this bias – and matching label – remind us that not everything has be perfect and that that is just fine… as long as it gets used or worn, it’s perfect in our eyes… for everything else, there’s the unpicker. 
  • Sunshines – we thought this one would be great as summer was in full swing, add some sunshine to your makes to keep that summer feeling for the rest of the year. 
  • Cream Daisies – who wouldn’t want to add a little flower power to their makes? We love these multi-coloured designs that match with everything and nothing, which means they can go in ANY make!
  • Ducks, our latest design is simply too cute for words! Did you love it too? You might even say we’re ‘Quackers’ about it… yes, you can groan at the pun!

We’re so happy with how our first year of the Bias Tape Appreciation Society has gone. It hasn’t been without hiccups, from the lows of underestimating how much bias we’d need and parcels going missing, to the laugh out loud moment when we received an email from a customer whose husband had accidentally put her newly arrived bias out with the recycling – still in the envelope! 

So here’s to another year, and hopefully many more! And knowing I created some of the Bias designs for next year, with complete BIAS, I can tell you, you’re in for a good time.

Have you got a favourite design from the last year? Let us know below!

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What Is ‘Bias Binding’?

What Is ‘Bias Binding’?

This seems like a great place for us to restart our blog, as Bias is one of our main reasons for existing… Laura was looking for beautiful bias tape to finish her makes and wasn’t happy with what she could find, so she created her own!

We know that when you first start looking into Bias it can be really confusing. It might be described as ‘Bias Tape’, ‘Bias Facing’ or ‘Bias Binding’. Some patterns want it to be seen, whilst others have it hidden on the inside. There are lots of different widths and ‘folds’ of bias too, which can be especially confusing when you’re new to using it. 

So what is it?

At its simplest, ‘Bias’ refers to strips of fabric, cut ‘on the bias’ that are intended to enclose the raw edges of a make. If we take a piece of woven fabric, we can use the selvedge edge to show us the grain line, and at a 90° angle, we have the cross grain. When we cut ‘on the bias’ we’re cutting at a 45° angle from the grain. The 45° angle helps to give the fabric a little stretch, allowing it to be applied to curves without any tucks and puckers! 

You might think, ‘but how can woven fabric stretch?’, but if you go ahead and give your fabric a little tug from one corner to the other and you’ll find it ‘gives’ a bit. It’s not truly stretch, but just enough to allow the strips to ease around curves. And it’s this ‘stretch’ that makes finishing the curved hem or neckline so smooth and crisp!

Once you’ve got your cut strips, how you fold them determines how you use them. The main two types of commercially available bias are ‘Single Fold’ and ‘Double Fold’:

Single Fold Bias Binding:

Single fold bias is mostly used for facings and hems, and in places where it is INSIDE the make – although you absolutely can put it on the outside too!

The raw edges of the strips are both folded inwards to the middle of the strip, depending on the width of your bias, there may or may not be a gap between the two.

Double Fold Bias Binding:

Double fold bias is meant to be seen! It’s often used in bag and quilt making and wraps around the raw edges to completely enclose them. The extra fold means it can be folded over the top of an edge. 

The raw edges of the strips are both folded inwards to the middle of the strip, and then it is folded again along the middle, so one edge will sit either side of the fabric. 

Single Fold and Double Fold Bias Tape, image from: https://www.blueprintsforsewing.com/blog/tutorial-bias-facings-and-bindings

Can I Make My Own?

You absolutely CAN make your own, and you’ll find some patterns even come with a pattern piece for bias so you can make it in the matching fabric. It can be the perfect choice when the binding it going to be on show, and lots of people enjoy the process of making bias themselves.

However, it’s worth noting, you often need A LOT of extra fabric to make it, and it can be quite fiddly, which as a beginner can be really off putting! Which is where we come in…

Our Bias:

At The Specky Seamstress, we currently make Single Fold Bias Binding. We think it’s absolutely perfect for finishing off makes and giving them a professional look. Our bias is unique as we design our fabric *just* for bias, so the patterns are printed to run along the length of the strips; every piece is high quality with a fun, intentionally placed design.

When Laura started The Specky Seamstress, she found herself wondering: Why would anyone spend all that time making a beautiful item, only to finish it with cheap, scratchy binding? Doesn’t your make deserve something special?! 

Our bias is all printed in the UK on 130gsm Cotton Poplin, and manufactured in house.

Want To Give It A Go?

Why not try our Bias Tape Appreciation Society and get 2m of an exclusive new design through the post every month! That’s enough for a neckline and armholes, or maybe the hem of a dress: The Bias Tape Appreciation Society

Just want a bit to try out – what about our remnant packs? Each pack contains 3 individual pieces of bias ranging from 50cm to 100cm/1m in length: Remnant Packs

Not Sure How To Sew With Bias?

Why not check out Laura’s tutorial on Youtube? Bias Binding Tutorial – necklines and hems – YouTube