Labs have started up again which means I have fewer days to get photos and sometimes on those days I'm so tired I'd rather stay in bed all day. Instead I bring you posts in the form of tutorials and other things I can photograph at home. First up is this; a tutorial for making knee patch tights. It's simple and quite cute, I've seen them for sale but they're much too expensive for my budget. Besides, why buy when you could DIY? I'll admit, these didn't turn out as well as expected. I should have stitched the edges before attaching them to the tights to prevent fraying. On top of all that I sewed them with my knees bent so they look a little silly when I stand up. At least I know for next time and I can share these tips with you! Next up on my list I might re-make my circle skirt tutorial with decent photos and full instructions, keep an eye out for it!
*A pair of tights
*Some fabric
*Needle and thread
Let's begin with the basics, the tights. They should be a high denier or, even better, made with cotton or wool so that holes don't lead to laddering. They also need to be quite close knit so that anything sewn on stays in place. For fabric you can choose almost anything. Stretch fabrics will work well because they'll take on the shape of you knees but they might fray more easily. This would look great with some leather-look vinyl or lace.
First you'll want to make the patches. To do this, get a piece of paper and sketch out a rough oval shape that fits the size of your knee. Then fold that paper in half and then in half again and cut along the line you've drawn. This will help obtain a smooth curve. Unfold the paper and make sure it looks about even. Then trace the shape onto some fabric and cut out the shapes.
If you're working with a thin fabric that might fray you can cut out four patches and sew them almost all the way around (right sides together) in pairs. Then turn those inside out and sew them onto the tights. That way there are no exposed edges. You can also use a blanket stitch or some form of stitch around the outside to stop the edges fraying.
Two
Sewing on the patches. First you'll want to baste the patches onto the area you'd like them to be, do this while wearing the tights.
Then, take off the tights and go around the edges and use small stitches to attach the patches to the tights. I used an overcast stitch which prevents fraying and I attached the patches at the same time, killing two metaphorical birds with a single length of thread. Remember to remove basting afterwards (which I didn't do for these photos).
