CHAPTER 20
TUCKS AND PLAITS
Tucks—Nun's Tucks—Curved Tucks—Cross Tucking—Laying Plaits—Stitching Plaits—Supporting Inlaid Plaits
TUCKS should be marked with a measure so that they will be of even width.
NUN'S TUCKS are wide tucks usually two inches or more in width. The method of making all tucks is the same more or less, but the wider the tucks, the greater the difficulty in keeping the tucks and the distance between them even, especially when the bottom of a skirt is circular. In such a case the tucks must be marked and basted before the stitching is done.
Ill. 184. Tucks
Cut the gage from a piece of cardboard, and from the end measure down the width of first tuck, making a slash and a bias cut to meet the slash. (Ill. 184.) Make a second cut as shown in Illustration 184, allowing for width of space and second tuck.
It is quicker and more accurate to make a gage of this sort in measuring short spaces, such as hems, tucks and the spaces between them, than to use the tape measure, as sometimes the eye becomes confused at the small marks on the tape, and mistakes are made that will prove quite serious.
Ill. 185. Curved Tucks
CURVED TUCKS—Curved tucks are sewed on a curved line which makes the under side fuller than the upper side. Mark the edge of tuck with tailors' tacks (page 85) or pins, fold material on this mark and baste quite close to the edge (Ill. 185.) Mark the depth of the tuck from this edge, using a gage to keep the tuck an even width and baste. In sewing the tuck the extra fulness must be eased on the under side of the tuck as you sew. Be careful to distribute this fulness evenly so that it does not fall in bunches or draw the edge of the tuck out of place.
CROSS TUCKING is an effective trimming for waists, blouses, dresses, etc. All 
Ill. 186. Cross Tucks
tucks running in one direction should be made first. The cross tucks should be the same size and should be placed the same distance apart as the first tucks, so that when the tucks and cross tucks are finished they will form perfect squares. (Ill. 186.) Cross tucks may be of various sizes, but pin-tucks placed about an inch apart measuring from the sewing of one tuck to the edge of the next are particularly dainty.
PLAITS
IN LAYING PLAITS in a garment it is advisable if possible to lay the plaits before the seams are joined.
Ill. 187. The Box Plaits Basted in Place
IN STITCHING PLAITS it is best to leave at least one seam of the garment open, and if it is a skirt, remove it from the belt, for the work can be more easily handled under the machine if it is open and flat.
After stitching the plaits as desired, baste and stitch the seam.
If it is a skirt, put it on the belt, press the plaits and try the skirt on to get the correct length.
A hem is the best finish for the bottom of a plaited skirt or dress. (Chapter 18, page 93.)
Be careful to get the plaits even, without any draw, especially where the edges come bias.
As each plait is flattened it should be basted a little distance from the fold edge, as shown in Illustration 187. to keep it in shape. This will be found a great convenience later in working on the garment.
Ill. 188. Plaits Cut Away on Reverse Side of Skirt
When a plaited skirt is made of heavy material or is lapped very much at the waist in fitting, it may be made less bulky by cutting away the surplus material after the plaits are stitched. The overlapping material is cut away to within an inch or so of where the stitching finishes. (Ill. 188.) From that point it is cut across the top of the plait. (Ill. 188.) The raw edges left in this way are bound with a bias strip of lining or ribbon seam binding, that will finish across the top of each plait (Ill. 188.) except where the seams that join the 
Ill. 189. Tying Threads
breadths form the inner fold of a plait. In that case the binding will continue down the raw edges of that seam to the bottom of the skirt.
In cases where the plaits are not stitched the entire length, the thread-ends on the under side must be securely tied, as shown in Illustration 189.
Gored skirts that have a side plait or an inverted box plait let into the seams some distance up from the bottom, are sometimes troublesome because of a tendency of these plaits to show below the bottom edge of the skirt since there is nothing to which they may be attached. This trouble may be avoided in the manner shown in Illustration 190.
The seam edge and the edge of each of these plaits are bound, and after the skirt is finished a tape or strap of lining is sewed to the top of each plait and is carried from one to the other all around the skirt. (Ill. 190.) The tape will generally be found sufficient stay, but in a woolen skirt of heavy cloth an additional tape or strap may run diagonally from the top of each plait to the next seam and be securely sewed there to the wrong side of the skirt. This stay also is in Illustration 190.
Ill. 190. Supporting Inlaid Plaits