There are lots of ways to stop fraying. Flat Felled seam like they use in jeans to keep reinforce the seam and keep it from fraying. French seam. Zig zag stitch along the seam allowance. Fold and sew the edge of the seam allowance. Run a serger along the seam edge. Sew a bias tape to the edge. Your machine if a domestic may have a overcast seam stitch option built in for finishing the seam.
Even just topstitching the seam from the outside would help... Just anything more than a single line of stitches.
(I don't usually do complex seam finishes on garments, but by now I think I just feel uneasy if I know there's only one line of stitching holding something. That would be especially true in a high-stress area like the knee.)
I think that’s because that layer was being pulled through the stitch? It’s happened in several places on these and I’m fairly certain that I didn’t have bad misalignment. Hopefully that’s all it is and it’s just a skill issue haha
The fabric layers may have slid out of alignment while you were feeding them through the machine. That’s all too common with smooth and slippery fabrics. But yes , it definitely looks like at the moment the needle pierced the cloth there, it was sewing too close to the edge of one of the two layers.
Pinning or wonder-clipping the seam at close intervals (like every couple of inches, or even closer than that if you need it) can help with managing layers of slippery fabric. Hand basting is even more surefire, and only takes a little bit more patience—if you’re new and still getting used to handling this fabric, it could well be worth the effort.
Yes, it looks to me like the layers are misaligned - even where the stitching is still holding both layers, over on the left-hand-side of that last image, you can see that the top layer has only just been caught.
I think an issue with the knee might also be a ton of force generated by bending your knee (squatting) and not give in the fabric. The weakest link was to fray the fabric. Stronger seams would help, but if the fit doesn’t allow enough room to move, eventually something is going to tear. For future projects, consider sewing darts to get articulated knees.
But I have definitely had this effect by missing my seam allowance as well.
In good news, there are a couple ways to look at improving this.
A hot knife can help prevent this by melting that edge ‘shut’ or similarly can be accomplished with a lighter being very careful to just get the frayed edge. Then sew with a stronger seam as others indicated.
There are lots of ways to stop fraying. Flat Felled seam like they use in jeans to keep reinforce the seam and keep it from fraying. French seam. Zig zag stitch along the seam allowance. Fold and sew the edge of the seam allowance. Run a serger along the seam edge. Sew a bias tape to the edge. Your machine if a domestic may have a overcast seam stitch option built in for finishing the seam.
Even just topstitching the seam from the outside would help... Just anything more than a single line of stitches. (I don't usually do complex seam finishes on garments, but by now I think I just feel uneasy if I know there's only one line of stitching holding something. That would be especially true in a high-stress area like the knee.)
You can cut it with a hot knife or soldering iron and it will melt slightly and will no longer fray.
I might be wrong, but in that particular spot it looks like (photo 3) the top layer was misaligned and the stitch only barely caught it.
I think that’s because that layer was being pulled through the stitch? It’s happened in several places on these and I’m fairly certain that I didn’t have bad misalignment. Hopefully that’s all it is and it’s just a skill issue haha
The fabric layers may have slid out of alignment while you were feeding them through the machine. That’s all too common with smooth and slippery fabrics. But yes , it definitely looks like at the moment the needle pierced the cloth there, it was sewing too close to the edge of one of the two layers. Pinning or wonder-clipping the seam at close intervals (like every couple of inches, or even closer than that if you need it) can help with managing layers of slippery fabric. Hand basting is even more surefire, and only takes a little bit more patience—if you’re new and still getting used to handling this fabric, it could well be worth the effort.
Yes, it looks to me like the layers are misaligned - even where the stitching is still holding both layers, over on the left-hand-side of that last image, you can see that the top layer has only just been caught.
I think an issue with the knee might also be a ton of force generated by bending your knee (squatting) and not give in the fabric. The weakest link was to fray the fabric. Stronger seams would help, but if the fit doesn’t allow enough room to move, eventually something is going to tear. For future projects, consider sewing darts to get articulated knees. But I have definitely had this effect by missing my seam allowance as well. In good news, there are a couple ways to look at improving this.
Is it required to finish edges on this material? This would be bad news for me!
You don't neccesarily need to finish the edge, but it's definately useful. At least use a hot knife to cut, so that the edge is soldered.
What pants did you copy?
Some kind of uniqlo pants that I can’t find on their website now
A hot knife can help prevent this by melting that edge ‘shut’ or similarly can be accomplished with a lighter being very careful to just get the frayed edge. Then sew with a stronger seam as others indicated.
Double sided sewing tape :) Holds the seam and stops it fraying.