I wore my new dress enough that I needed to wash it. I threw it in on delicate with other delicate items, and it came out of the dryer like this:
I think the issue is I snipped the underarm to press down the seams (as directed in the pattern) a little too close to the seam. The flannel unraveled enough in the wash to undo the seam. Once the seam was open the fabric tore. That’s my theory, at any rate (Kathy, do you have any advice or input here?).
This morning, after my 24 hour period of dress mourning was complete, I got out my sewing machine. I closed the underarm seam (and reinforced the heck out of it and the other underarm seam). I stitched up the tear. I was not hoping for magic, but I did hope the dress would be wearable.
In the end, I don’t think it looks that bad. I will continue to wear the dress, and I don’t think anyone will notice the repair.
What other sewing mistakes should I be watching out for? Have you ever had a sewing mishap? Please share your sewing problems so I feel better.
mildlygranola 
Oh no! I’m glad you were able to fix it:)
I’m not much of a seamstress so pretty much every project has some sort of mishap:(
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It certainly makes me want to stick with knitting.
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You did well on the repair, and I’m guessing you are right, you snipped a bit too close. Let’s talk prevention. Did the pattern say anything about finishing your seams? I would recommend using the multi stitch zig zag. Tomorrow I’ll pull out some old 4-H skirts and take some photos so you can see what I mean.
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THANK YOU! I knew you would be full of good advice! I think I added zig zag stitch to my shirt, but I’m pretty sure I didn’t for the dress. The directions just said to finish the seam allowance, and I didn’t know how to do that.
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Yes, this happened to some pjs I made for the boys when they were little, even though there was a full seam allowance. Kathy is right. You’ll need to finish your seam allowance with a zig zag stitch.
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I think I’ll be zig zagging the rest of the dress tonight. Thank you for your help!
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Too many to mention, but mostly making things too short! Can you “create” a tear on the other side to duplicate the seam? Then it will look intentional.
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I saw your picture and my heart sank. So glad you got it fixed back up and wearable! I don’t have any stories to tell on this because I am a complete disaster with a sewing machine.
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