You might remember that I flat-lined my dress with another layer of the same fabric. So instead of seam allowances being hidden between the lining and the outer fabric, I handled both layers as one, which put the seam allowances inside toward the bodice foundation and my body.

If the fabric had held a nice crisp press, I could have just let it be. But this fabric didn't want to stay flat after it cooled from the iron even with help from the wooden clapper on the bottom of my point presser.

So I cross-stitched every seam allowance by hand down to the lining layer without going through any of the outer layer. A cross-stitch (sometimes called a catch-stitch or herringbone stitch) is a series of small backstitches worked in parallel lines with diagonal connections. One line catches the seam allowance and the other goes over the edge and catches the lining, which holds the seam allowance flat.

The cross-stitch has the added advantage of being flexible & stretchy, so it moves with the garment and is less likely to break. And if it does break anywhere, the backstitches keep it from all pulling out completely. This is how costume shops always hem trousers for stage (but with a double thread) because the whole hem doesn't just fall out at once, giving us a chance to repair it before it's a hazard.

Photos of the split darts (I cut them open with plinking shears instead of finishing with serging to avoid unnecessary bulk over the bust) and the seams I cut & serged after fitting & tweaking everything - all cross-stitched down.

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