Gabby Bottoms Written Directions

Materials

- Cutting tool like scissors or rotary cutter

- Overlock machine OR zig-zag stitch on a regular sewing machine

-AND regular sewing machine OR cover stitch machine

*This tutorial uses both an overlock machine and a regular machine OR cover stitch machine. If you plan to make these fully reversible you can get by with only an overlock machine. However, if you decide to make the leg holes with fold over seams like in this tutorial, you will need a zig zag stitch or a cover stitch.

*To make these reversible style, follow the Ranger Bottoms Written Directions

Cutting

Assemble your pattern and cut your desired size.

Then, cut 2 of the front piece and 2 of the back piece in your swimwear fabric. 1/4" seam allowance is included.

Step 1

First we need to attach the gussets. To do this, separate your pieces and group them with their like fabric. So you should have a front with a back in each of your fabrics. Line them up along the gusset, then sew across both of them to secure. You can use an overlock stitch for this, or a zig zag stitch.

Step 2

Once the gussets are attached we're down to two pieces- the outer and lining pieces. Lay open each one of them, then match them with right sides together. Pin along both of the waistlines, and then sew. You will also attach elastic to these waistlines. Do not apply tension to this elastic, you want it to sew on nice and flat. You may use an overlock stitch or zig zag stitch for this.

For more information on elastic, click here.

Step 3

Now it's time to attach the sides. Just like the waistline, we want to sew these seams from the "inside out" so they're concealed once the garment is to the right side.

So what you're going to do is grab one of the waistlines, and bring it inside the other side to be able to match the left and right sides. This is tricky to show in a stationary image, so you may want to use 8:25 in the video as a reference.

Once your sides are lined up, you'll sew through all four layers of fabric on each side to attach them. Again, you can use either an overlock stitch or a zig zag stich. Since this seam is not intended to stretch you can alternatively use a straight stitch and trim the excess.

Step 4

That completes the concealed seams, and now all that's left are the leg holes. Since they're still unsewn at this step, take the garment to the right side through one the leg holes.

Our next objective is to sew these leg holes, and there's a few different ways you can do this. Feel free to choose any of them!

1. If you have a coverstitch machine, you can sew in the elastic and finish your foldover seam all in one step.

2. Break up the process into two steps. First, attach elastic to the leg holes on the lining side. Then, flip over the seam to hide the elastic, and use a zig zag stitch to sew the leg hole down and cover up that elastic. You will want your zig zag stitch to be tight so it can stretch, and wide enough to cover the width of the elastic; this helps the seam lay flat.

You DO want to stretch the elastic for this step. A 1-3% seam reduction is ideal but this is up to personal preference. You can accomplish this by measuring, or you can eye it while you sew. This should be just a slight pull, not quite enough to create significant bunching, unless you want it that way. The amount you pull will determine the grip on the leg holes, so you're more than welcome to stretch as much or as little as you want to achieve the amount of security you're going for.

However you get there, that is the last step for the Gabby Bottoms!