DEFINITION: A casing is a tunnel-like section of a sewn object, through which one may pull a drawstring, curtain rod, or elastic.

This is my own definition, but you can find the Merriam-Webster definition here as well.

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DISCUSSION QUESTION: How do you make a casing?

Most often, I make a casing when I’m creating a garment that uses elastic. I form a tunnel at the waistband or the bottom of a sleeve, by doing first one fold in the edge of the garment, and then a second fold that’s much deeper.

Some commercial doll clothes patterns skip that first folded edge, but I don’t ever want my casing’s edge to fray, so I find it helpful to do a first fold, and stitch that first fold inside the casing, to create a cleaner edge.

When I say that some commercial doll clothes patterns skip that first folded edge, this is what I mean:

The casing shown at the top of the garment in figure 2 above only has a single fold, so just under my stitch line, the raw fabric will eventually begin to fray. Because children dress and undress their dolls so much, I like to do what I can to prevent fray.

So I fold the edge of the fabric once (making a tiny fold that’s hidden inside the casing), and then a second time (with a deeper fold that forms the casing) before stitching my casing. Compare the garment below to the one above, and you’ll see how the fabric’s raw edge is hidden inside the casing for the skirt I’ve sewn a casing for, below.

It’s possible to make sleeves this way, as well, so you can slip a length of elastic inside the sleeve’s cuff-area casing, to create a gathered end where the doll’s wrist is located.

In this case, I’ll sometimes add a stitch along both folded areas of the sleeve’s fabric, running my stitches at the top and bottom of the casing.

Here’s what that looks like:

That produces a little different look to the final garment, having that tiny bit of non-casing that sticks out from bottom of the sleeve.

Here’s how it looks when finished, as you would see it from the wrong side. Notice how the elastic inside the casing gathers up the fabric:

It’s especially helpful to have that extra lip at the every end of the sleeve when you’re applying some sort of trim, like the lace I added to these sleeves.

This is how that dress looked when finished:

I’ve made my own curtains many times as well, and of course, they also use a casing. I’ve used both variations of casings — the single stitch at the bottom of the casing method, and the stitches above and below the casing — when making curtains. Again, it really depends upon the look I’m trying to achieve.

Okay everyone, your turn! How do you sew a casing? Any tips or tricks to share with the rest of us?

Do you prefer to sew a casing on the sewing machine, or do you find it easier to control your stitches when sewing a casing by hand?

Do you use different methods for elastic, curtain rods, drawstrings, etc?

How do you finish off your stitches when sewing a casing?

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Chelly Wood and the ChellyWood.com website are not affiliated with any of the doll or toy companies mentioned in this blog post, but Chelly enjoys designing her doll clothes to fit a variety of dolls. To learn more about the doll companies mentioned in today’s post, please visit the doll or toy company’s website.