NBSG Construction Notes (How to Make Things)

If I can do it, you can too. Learn from my mistakes.

PIPING/TRIM:

To get the trim looking exactly right, you're probably going to have to make it yourself. This is a semi-advanced sewing technique, but the results are worth it. Most sewing stores carry vinyl in various colors for tablecloths and upholstery seats in 60" wide bolts. For one uniform you'll need approximately 1/4 to 3/8 of a yard of each color. You will also need several yards (approximately 3 and a half for each uniform) of satin "rat-tail" cord. If you think you're going to mess up a couple of times, get a couple more yards just in case.

First, cut strips of vinyl approximately 2" wide in whatever color goes on the outside and the same amount for the inside-- in this case, the trim is for the Commander's piping, which means the outside color is the burgundy/red and the inside color is the old gold. Next, using a zipper-foot (or a roll-hem foot if you have one; I used a zipper foot) stitch a piece of rat-tail satin cord inside the fold and stitch the piping closed. Now take the strip of vinyl that is the interior color-- here it's the old-gold-- fold it in half and stitch it as tightly as you can get it next to the rolled piping.

If you're having difficulty sewing the vinyl because the foot keeps grabbing, use the old trick of tissue-paper on top of the vinyl-- just sew right on top of it, and tear the tissue-paper away once you're done sewing (in my example above, the white vinyl was EXTREMELY "grabby" and would get stuck under the foot unless I used tissue paper-- you can see the outside color of old-gold and the interior color of the white under the tissue paper, for the Admiral's uniform).

Finally, trim the whole thing down to approximately 3/8ths an inch wide-- and voila! Vinyl piping. I will warn you: this takes a bit of time, but it looks VERY good when done correctly. It's well worth the trouble to create, since while it's possible to find vinyl piping, and while it's possible to find it in colors that are close, I have my doubts that you could find this exact stuff either online or in a retail store.

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