Always another project...

Welcome to this sewing advice blog. Here you can ask questions about sewing projects, I'll post tutorials, talk about things that I've learned, and give advice on basic sewing. Now by no means am I an expert. I learn new things about sewing almost every day.

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So I realized I haven’t shared photos of a finished product. So here is this super cute Marvel apron I’ve been working on. It’s incredibly cute. I absolutely love it and I can’t say it won’t be a bit sad when it sells. Pardon my mess of a sewing room but I’ll be taking more professional photos of it tonight.

If anyone is interested in buying this apron, you can find it listed on my etsy shop. 

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I finally have business cards so I can hopefully start getting a tad of income from my sewing. Wish me luck!

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Advice On Hems

As someone who works at a fabric store and spends about majority of her life sewing, there is one thing that I see a lot. Hems. They belong on every article of clothing you’ll ever make. There is no escaping them. Period. Pretty much any article of clothing that goes on your body has them.

So here’s an example. Today I’m working on an apron, which is totally nerdy but adorable, and requires a great deal of hems. The nice thing about patterns is it always tells you on the pattern piece...

See! How handy! And you’ll find that on most pattern instructions they don’t tell you the hem allowance. They just say hem to correct length and sew. That’s it. So keep the pattern pieces in a place you can reach them in case you forget. It’s always a good idea to keep your fabric pinned to the pattern piece until you get to that part of the project. And depending on the article of clothing, you might need to change the hem allowance. You might find the given hem allowance for a pair of pants might be too short for you and might have to make them longer. Or vice versa. It happens. So it also helps to try on before making the hem just to make sure that the hem given is correct or if you’ll need to change it. Having a buddy for this helps so they can make marks for you.

Now the best thing to do is take a fabric marker or fabric chalk (always good to have and aren’t terribly expensive) since they’ll wash out and mark the length of the hem you’ll need. I actually keep a ruler or measuring tape near me and check as I am pinning. Which is always helpful. Helps you know you’re going in a straight line.

So here is a hem that I’ve just finished pinning. Now one thing I hear most from people is that they hate hems. They hate how long it takes. They feel like they always mess them up. The list of reasons can go on for ages. The one thing you’ve got to remember about hems is that if you want to do it right it’ll take time. Sorry but that’s the way it is. The hem I just finished is on the ties for the apron and I’ve only done one of the three sides for one of the two ties. It took me about 15 to 20 minutes.

However, the end result of doing hems is always a great one. As much of it sucks, it gives your clothing pieces that nice finish it needs. After all we see these hems on the clothes we buy from the store. They’re unavoidable. It also keeps us from seeing the raw fabric edge. It also keeps fabric from possibly fraying

So my best advice is, put on nice music that keeps you cheery. It makes the process less painful if you’ve got something to sing along to while you do it. And just remember, take your time. It’ll be worth it in the end. Plus hems usually is a sign that you’re almost done. Hems are typically the final steps. So just keep going, you’ll get it done!

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How to Take Measurements

There are three basic measurements that you’ll see on patterns that you buy for men and women alike. These help you narrow down your standard size. So we’ve got the bust, the waist, and the hips. These are all measurements that can be self taken. I suggest wearing a form fitting tank top and pants. You want the size as accurate as possible and if your shirt is too baggy or you’re wearing sweat pants getting the right size and be a bit harder. You’ll also want to do this standing up.

So to start. The bust.

You’ll want to measure around the widest part of your bust. This goes for men and woman. You’ll want to make sure that the tape measure is level around your bust. It’s pretty easy. If you need to check do it in the bathroom. Make sure it’s going straight around.

Now you’ll want to go to the waist. Your true waist. A lot of people tend to confuse your waist and your hips.

Your waist is the measurement around your bellybutton. This is your true waist. Make sure you’re not sucking in. You’ll want the true measurement.

And last will be your hips.

You’ll want to measure around the biggest part of your bottom. This measurement is purely used on pants and skirts. It’s also really important to know when making your own pants. Even if you’ve got a pattern. If you’ve got wide hips but a small waist, you’ll have to do the pattern that fits the hips then take the waist in so that your hips can get into the garment.

Now there are many measurements. If you ever get something custom made, the maker will ask for more specific measurements. They will inform you of what those measurements are. Those usually include arm length and leg length depending on the garment you’re having custom made.

Hope this helps you all! Happy sewing!

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Reading Pattern Instructions

Since I made a tutorial on how to read the packages that the patterns come in, I decided my next tutorial would be to teach you how to read the directions. However if you’re just starting sewing, I recommend starting simple with simple sewing. It’ll keep you from finding big words on the patterns that you don’t understand.

So this is the pattern I’m using for the demonstration of talking it through. It’s one of the simplest patterns I own.

Now this pattern is a knits only pattern. It only works with knitted stretch fabrics. Sometimes knits can be tricky due to stretch but this pattern is very simple should you choose to use it.

Let’s begin!

So when you open up the instructions, you’ll find this folded up and there will be two pages both front and back. The first page has all the general info you’ll need and once you flip to the back it’ll start with the instructions. So let’s look at the front page.

So at the top left you’ll find the list of all the options of what you’re making. Then directly next to it will be a list of all the pattern pieces and what pieces go to which option of clothing you’re making. This helps you figure out which pieces you’ll need to cut out.

Then on the right you’ll find a section called General Directions. It’s basically exactly what it sounds like. It’s basically directions for the pattern. The cutting/Marking section is almost always the same. Just showing you how to make the appropriate marks. The Pattern section contains the symbols you’ll find on the pattern pieces themselves and explains exactly what they mean. You’ll also find that under the pattern and the sewing section that it tells you the stitch/seam allowance. You’ll want to always check that before you begin sewing.

The lower section of the first page goes into the best cutting layouts for what your making. They give one for every option. Since this pattern is a knit only, all knits come at about 58″ wide so they only show the layout for that width of fabric. You’ll find on patterns that have cottons, which come at around 44″ wide, that there will be options for both widths. Sometimes it helps to look at the layouts that are suggested. You might decide that you want a little extra just in case because typically i find that it can be a little tight.

Once you flip to the back, you’ll find a few more layouts then begins the sewing directions. At the top of the sewing instructions, there will be the diagram of what shading means what side of the fabric it is. Some patterns will give you little tips at the top, especially when they’re fabric specific.

Now I didn’t picture all of the instructions but basically from there you’ll follow the steps under the option of your choice. If you are starting simple like I suggested, it should be basic stitches. All basic and easy. However if you ever have questions on what a direction means, I’ll happily answer.

And for fun, here’s a picture of the finished product that I made for myself of one of those shirts. Apologize for the bathroom mess.

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Announcement

Hello all who may come across this lovely post! I will be working on new tutorials tonight. So if you’ve got any requests, please put them in now! My plans are to do one on measuring yourself so you can get the correct size for yourself. I also want to go into how to read pattern instructions. If you’ve got any requests for something different, let me know asap.

Also, on my page I’ve added a place for donations. I don’t really care for adding it but seeing as I’m up to my neck in school loans at the moment, any donations would really help. The donations would allow me to keep up with my sewing and tutorials. If you don’t want to just donate money then you can always request a commission from me. Just send me a message and we can discuss it.

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Reading Pattern Packages

One of the biggest things I actually hear at work is that people don’t know how to read the packs patterns come in. I can understand, to someone who doesn’t do this often it can be a bit weird. Also, don’t think because you’re a medium that’s the size you’ll be on a pattern. Sadly, it doesn’t work that way. You’ll want to take your measurements first and depending on the pattern, you might have to pattern sizes.

So here’s the pattern I’m going to use as my photo guide for this tutorial.

Now there are only a handful of pattern companies. Personally, I use Simplicity patterns. Though, of all patterns, Simplicity is the easiest package to read once you understand what it is you’re reading.

So this is what the back of a pattern looks like. I’ll go through it by section.

Typically at the top under Fabrics are a list of all the recommended fabrics that you can use for the pattern you have. For first timers, I highly recommend you stick to those recommendations. I’ve been sewing for some time but even I typically stick to the recommended fabric.

The next is Notions. Now for those who don’t know what those are, these are the little items that you might need to do this project. You’ll always see this on patterns and sometimes all it will say is thread. Now for this pattern I’ll need thread, a zipper, snaps, and boning.

Now the next is Body Measurements. This is where you can figure out what size you are. This can help you figure out the measurements you’ve taken for yourself or who you’re sewing for and figure out the size. For this particular pattern, they have a “wide” measurement for the plus sizes. Anyways, once you take these measurements under it will list that pattern size you need to cut out to make.

Now once you get the size, you’ll want to follow directly down from your size to figure out the amount of fabric you need. Now some patterns have different versions. This dress is technically the same however it was nice enough to give me different fabric amounts if I wanted to do the scalloped top around the bust in a different color like on the front of the pattern.

Now this is the part that gets people most tripped up. Figuring out what the 45″ and 60″ mean. Well this applies to the length of the fabric you’re buying. The width of a fabric can be found on the top of the bolts of fabric. However, know that finding fabric exactly at that width will be slim. Don’t worry about this. If it’s 2″ inches short, don’t worry yourself to much and get the amount for the 2″ higher.

This pattern was nice enough to split the lining and the fabric for the rest of the dress.

Now for me, I’ll be making a 22W and will be taking it in since I fall between a 20W and a 22W. Better to be to big than to small. If it’s too small I can’t make it much bigger. So here’s the amount of fabric I’d need for my dress. I’m going to be making it all in one color so it’ll be listed as A Dress

Lining 3/4 of a yard

Interfacing 1 yard

45″ fabric 4 3/4

60″ fabric 3 7/8

Now having a little extra is NEVER a bad idea. Not ever. It’s better to have left over than not enough and needing to go back and trying to find the exact same fabric. Trust me, it’s not easy in the slightest.

So reading this you might’ve realized that there is something I listed you might not know of. Interfacing. You’ll want fusible and something lightweight. You can ask the workers at the cutting counter for advice but on the bolt the interfacing will say if it’s fusible and what the weight is. Also there is usually a chart around the interfacing that’ll give you recommendations for whatever you’re making.

I hope that this helps and if you guys have any questions please let me know. I’ll be doing a tutorial on how to actually read the pattern instructions and also reading the actual pattern pieces. So keep a look out.

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How to Make a Blanket

I must say, making blankets wasn’t something I expected myself to enjoy making so much but they can be done within a few hours. They are nice and warm and can be very cute gifts. They can be made out of pretty much any fabric you want. For beginners I recommend using flannel or fleece for the top part of the blanket. If you use flannel you MUST wash the fabric before you do anything with it because it does shrink but once it’s washed once it won’t shrink anymore. For the back part of the blanket I personally love using a fabric called soft & comfy dots but you can also use a fleece or any of the soft & comfy fabrics.

Now the blanket I am making in this demonstration is a baby blanket size so I have 1 yard of each of my fabrics. For an adult size blanket you’ll want 2 yards and you’ll want to stay away from flannel top fabrics because it’s not wide enough for adults.

So those are my fabrics. To start you’re going to want to cut the salvaged edge off the fabrics then lie the fabrics out and with the right sides together. Then start pinning all around.

When you pin, you’ll want to make sure that you mark where you’ll be leaving an opening. You need to leave enough space to pull the blanket through so the right sides are out once you finish sewing it. I mark mine with my straight pins and make sure to give myself a clear amount of space. You can either do the same or you can use a dressmaker’s marker which comes in whiter or blue. However straight pins work just fine.

If you use flannel, whatever you use as the back of the blanket will need to be trimmed down. Do so before you take the pinned fabric to your sewing machine. The seam allowance is completely up to you. There is no specific size it has to be. It’s however much you feel comfortable with. I give myself 1/2″ seams. Once you sew all around the blanket, take it out and trim the edges down so that there isn’t much access fabric however do not trim the edges of the opening you left. If you do curved corners like I do, you’ll also need to cut little triangles around the curve. Like so:

Then go ahead and flip it so that the right sides are out. From there you’ve got two options. Many people like to sew a stitch that can be seen all the way around the blanket including the opening so it closes it off. I don’t particularly like that look so I like to do what’s called an invisible stitch. It’s a hand stitch and as it’s called, it goes unseen and closes off blankets. So to do an invisible stitch you’ll want to thread your needle. You’ll want to start from inside the blanket and you’ll want to start doing your stitches like so.

You want the needle to go into the other fabric directly next to the first. That’s what keeps it invisible. For demonstration purposes I made the stitch a bit big but you’ll actually want to do smaller and make sure to keep the stitch tight. Once you get to the end you’ll want to tie it off so make sure the stitch is tight and you’ll want to do the same method as you would to make a knot, make a loop then wrap the remaining thread around one side. Then pull tight to create a knot. Below is me pulling the remaining thread once wrapped around the loop.

And then you’ve got yourself a blanket!

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Welcome!

So this blog is here for anyone who needs sewing advice. I’ll be making tutorial posts and giving advice to anyone who might need some. If you’re a new to sewing, this is the perfect place to come ask for advice. I can give you tips on anything you might need. So please, feel free to send asks about whatever and I’ll be sure to get you the help you need.

A little bit about myself. I have been sewing for about 4 to 5 years now. While I’m not expert and there are many things I still have to learn, I know I have the ability to give beginners the advice I didn’t have when I first started. Basic stitches, figuring out patterns, what kind of fabrics to work best for your project, and so much more. All these things I learned alone until I got the chance to actually take a sewing class. From there, I went to help in my university theater costume shop where I helped them work on the costume pieces.

However, now I’ve graduated and spend a great deal of my time sewing. I work at JoAnn’s fabric and when I’m not there I’m typically sewing if I’m not on tumblr or relaxing. So I have a great love for what I do. This is something I highly enjoy and want to share with a bunch of people. That’s how I ended up starting this lovely blog.