Dart: a tapered tuck stitched in a garment in order to shape it
Source: Oxford Dictionaries
Darts are used in all kinds of garments, everything from jeans to fancy party dresses. Garments can have many darts or just a few, and they can also be a variety of shapes. The more shaping that is needed in the fabric, the bigger the dart. The acronym “FBA” means “full bust adjustment” – and translates into – make the dart bigger! 🙂
If you are not comfortable sewing darts, practice! Use tracing paper and a tracing wheel to copy the “legs” from the pattern to your fabric. Fold the fabric so the legs match from the wide end to the narrow end. Start stitching at the wide end too, and move toward the narrow end. Go slowly when you get close to the narrow end, and maybe even turn the flywheel by hand so you have more control. No worries, after you stitch a couple of hundred darts they will get easier. 🙂
Happy Friday!
Maris Olsen
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