How to Gather with a Serger (Easy Settings and Steps)

Learning how to gather fabric with a serger is one of the fastest ways to create soft, even gathers for ruffles, skirts, and decorative edges. While sergers are usually used for finishing seams, they can also gather fabric automatically using differential feed settings. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to gather with a serger step by step, including the best settings, tips, and when to use this method instead of traditional gathering.

What is Gathering with a Serger?

Gathering with a serger is a sewing technique that uses increased needle tension and differential feed to automatically pull fabric into soft, even gathers as it stitches. The most important part of the serger setup process is configuring the machine, and here I will show you all the settings you need. Once this is done, away you go, ‘serging up a storm’ of beautiful gathers. Gathering is a core skill and you can learn all methods in this fabric gathering guide.

Gathering with a serger is just one way to gather fabric. Other popular gathering methods include gathering by hand, shirring, ruching and gathering with cord.

If you are new to sergers, then read my article first on what is serging and how to use a serger.

How to Gather with a Serger (Step by Step)

Here are the instructions for how to gather with a serger and the best settings to use:

Setting	Recommended Value
Stitch type	4-thread overlock
Needle tension	High (8–9)
Looper tension	Standard (3–4)
Differential feed	1.5–2.5
Stitch length	Medium

1. Set up the Cones

Set the serger to a 4-thread machine. You need 4 cones of thread for gathering with a serger.

2. Tighten the needle tension

Neater gathering with a serger will occur with two needles engaged, and the tension on the needles tightened. It is important to only tighten the needle tension and not the looper tension. It is the increased tension that will cause the fabric to gather.

To tighten the tension, turn the needle dials to a higher number. My dials are at the front of the machine, but yours might be wheels on top. It is quite common for the needle dials to be the ones on the left, but consult your manual if in doubt. (How to find sewing machine manuals). See how both my needle dials are now set at 9 (this is the highest setting) while the loopers remain at their standard setting which is 3-4.

When you start testing, you may find that you get the best results by having slightly different needle settings. For example, the left could be a 9, and the right could be an 8. Start with them both the same and then come back at the end and make further minor adjustments. Your machine will have slightly different standard looper settings, but it is usually around the 3 to 4 mark.

3. Adjust the Differential Feed

Tighten the differential feed by setting it to a higher number. The higher the number, the tighter the gathers. My knob goes from 0.5 to 2.5, so I set it at 2.5. For normal serging, it is set at 1.0. The differential feed knob is usually on the right of the machine, but consult your manual if you can’t find where it is.

💡About the differential feed: Your serger has two sets of differential feeds, which are controlled by the feed dogs that move the fabric under the presser foot. A higher speed on the feed moves the fabric faster on the first set. The second set is slower, and the fabric gathers as the feed dogs pull the fabric through.

4. Start Serging Gathers

Guide the serger along the edge of the fabric, and the machine will do the hard work of gathering with a serger for you. Remember the serger will trim the edge as it sews. Either factor this in as you sew your gathers or disengage the blade and do not trim the seam edge.

It is important to be certain that the line of stitching made by the gathers, does not exceed the seam allowance. If this happens, then the stitches will end up showing below the finished seam or the band if you are gathering to fit a waistband. As the stitches are so dense, they are really hard to unpick.

Best Fabrics for Gathering with Sergers

Gathering with a serger is best done on light to medium-weight fabrics. Quilting cotton is the ideal weight for this technique. For heavier fabrics, the best method is gathering with cord or machine gathering.

When to Gather with a Serger

Gathering with a serger is best done onflat ruffles where the precise length is not necessary. I like to cut the ruffle strip much longer than I need and then cut off any excess at the end. Using a serger to gather is less precise than using a ruffler foot or a gathering foot.

A serger is ideal for gathering when:

• Precision length is not critical
• You want fast results
• Making ruffles or skirts
• Working with lightweight fabrics

How to Work out the Serger Gathering Ratio

If you need to work out a particular ratio of gathering, cut a test strip of 10 (25cm) inches. Gather it using your serger and measure its new length.

If it is now 5 (12.5cm) inches, then the ratio is 1:2 gathers. You can now make adjustments to get to your desired ratio. Once you have done gathering with a serger, it is difficult to adjust the stitches at the end, so test thoroughly first to get the amount of gathering correct.

Tips for Gathering with a Serger

1. When gathering with a serger, remember to always experiment on a scrap first to test settings.
2. Leave a long tail before and at the end of the gathered edge. This way, you can make slight adjustments at the end.
3. It is hard to tighten the gathering created on a serger but easy to loosen it, so don’t make your gathers too loose.
4. Before gathering with a serger, write down the original settings for your machine. This makes it easier to get everything back to normal after you have finished.
5. If the gathers are too tight, simply release the tail threads.
6. If it all goes wrong, read my article on how to unpick a serged seam or simply cut the edge off and start again.
7. You can adjust the amount of gathering on your machine by experimenting with different differential feed settings. Here is a photo showing you some different settings. As you can see, the 2.5 setting produced the deepest gathers, and the 1.5 was the gentlest.

How to Gather with a Serger FAQs

Gathering with a Serger – In Conclusion

Once you have finished gathering with a serger, you can now adjust your gathers to fit your skirt or sewing project. As stated earlier, it can be a little difficult to adjust the stitches tighter or looser, so hopefully, only a small amount is needed. Now you are ready to surge ahead and gather up that row of super, special gathers using your serger machine where the only tension is in the fabric and not your shoulders.

Using a serger to gather fabric is a quick and efficient technique that produces soft, even gathers with minimal effort. By adjusting the differential feed and needle tension, you can create beautiful ruffles in a fraction of the time compared to traditional methods.

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