Ask The Costume Goddess:

Sewing Sequins

By Dina

Dear Costume Goddess,

How can I sew sequins on with the machine? I saw some items at a show and they had the trims sewn on with a machine?

--Orange Mama

Dear Orange,

It's easy to sew sequin trim on with a machine. The metal is soft enough for a needle to penetrate. The sequins can be pinned or loosely basted on, then stitched close to the center, or both sides if the sequinned strip is wide. This will dull the needle more quickly than usual, so it may have to be replaced.

Who wants to spend hours tediously sewing sequins on by hand, when we all have more important things to do, like painting our toenails, or finishing that dissertation?

It may be worth the effort, at times, for several reasons. When you sew a strip of sequins by machine, the needle makes a row of holes and a line of stitching in the sequins. That's fine if the sequins are at the hem of a skirt, for instance, where they won't be viewed closely.

Be sure you sew them on correctly the first time, because if you make a mistake and have to resew, the sequins will have twice as many holes and look pretty grubby. You should start over with new trim. It can't be picked off and re-used on another garment, for the same reason, and this is a consideration if the trim is ornate and expensive.

There are parts of your costume--the bra cup, for instance--which would be difficult to fit under a machine presser foot. Handwork is necessary here. And it really does look nice to have a seqinned trim invisibly affixed with hand stitches.

Some manufacturers sew their sequins with a beautiful invisible chain stitch, but I believe this requires a special machine. Unless you plan to become a manufacturer of costume wear, it probably isn't an option.

If you do machine sew sequins onto a small costume piece such as a gauntlet, a pant leg or a bra strap, it's easier if you do it while the piece is flat, before any seams are sewn.

My words of wisdom on this subject are running out, so I hope that you're ready to run to your machine and finish whipping up that orange sparkler. Send me a photo!

--The Costume Goddess

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