advice for a sewing pattern novice, please!

Hattysattic

Hattysattic

VFG Secretary
well, here's an embarrassing admission; i can't sew!

..muster up a create your own shift shape thing maybe, and i can make a great freestyle shoulderbag out of old curtains but when it comes to sewing patterns i have always been scared to death.

but seeing as the weather here is bitterly cold and miserable i have been looking for things with which to fill my time (read: any way of delaying tidying ebay room, cleaning bathroom or - god forbid - actually listing anything!) of an indoor nature. i have a sewing machine and about a million old patterns, and at least three trunk loads of fabric. seems obvious what my new hobby should be!

so i know this is the right place to ask (where's laura!). for those of you that can sew, what would you recommend i start with? i.e. what type of item, and what fabric is easiest to work with?

any suggestions gratefully recieved ;)
 
Something like cotton would probably be best - leave any slinky slippy fabrics (like silk or satin) or thick fabrics like wool until you are more experienced.

If you have a pattern for a simple straight of A-line skirt, that is probably the easiest thing to start with.

If you have some spare fabric you can afford to "waste", I'd use it for practise runs - seams, bust darts, zipper etc.

But it really is a case of keep at it, and not be put off by your first attempts! Dior had to start somewhere too!!! :USETHUMBUP:
 
I don't know if i am the best person to respond. I can and can't sew. I too get freightened with some patterns.

I learned a lot of different stitches, and etc, back in my costuming classes in college, and earlier, but I am all butterfingers when it comes to a pattern, or i just quit if it takes too long. In fact, i hand sew because a sewing machine sometimes gets me all fumbled up. Most of the things that we made/altered weren't from a pattern, but we put it on the person or form and started going at it...wrapping, tucking, sewing sections, tacking up. Or seeing a seam that needed mending, and just doing it. If asked to make a copy of a dress, there would be no way in heck it would be possible.

I would think that starting off with some of those "make it in a day" type of patterns might be good to try first so you can make something that gives instant gratification first so you will have the confidence to try something more complicated ina pattern. Or start with an easy sew pattern with a lot of straight line sewing that isn't a shift dress.

I have heard other schools of thought in regards to just diving in to something complicated and learn as you go, but that would probably be for people who are not pattern shy, just sill deficient and picking up the different techniques as one goes.

PS: i would love to see the shoulder bags you have made :)

Chris
 
Oh, another thing is that i find that if i see someone demonstrate something, I learn really quick, but if i just read a book or manual on how to do something, like a pattern instructions, i get discouraged...and once i do it with my own hands, I remember how to do it for a very long time. If that is how you learn,...what about looking into a sewing class or if there is someone who you know who is a good seamstress who could take you under their wing or at least demonstrate a few things to you. Then when you see the call for that in instructions, you will immediately feel more confidence.
 
I took home ec and made clothes from patterns and two sewing classes in my adult life. Do you think I can remember how to make an article of clothing now that I am 50. Heck no!


But it does sound much more fun than cleaning an ebay or bathroom.

so When you are done will we get to see it?
 
hey -sorry i had to go pretend to tidy!:D

thank you for the encouragement, margaret i have a stack of 60's cotton prints so will go for those first - although the mention of zips sends me into a quaking wreck, good idea about practising.

chris - i am very similar in that i can kind of make stuff up as i go along but am lacking the creativity to invent anything interesting, hence the desire to be able to follw a pattern! i have a fun bag made from sari fabic (which i have to admit i hand - sewed) which is probably the last thing i attempted. i'll have to see if i can find it.

pauline - depends how bad it is! will keep you posted.

(off to find simplicity easy to sew patterns!!)
 
I cannot sew at all. :violins: I attempted it when I was a teen and it was a disaster, so I don't bother now.

All six of my kids have learned, however. Most in the local 4-H where their first project was a very simple apron. (which they still use...very practical!)

And David, bless his soul, taught himself how to sew when a coworker used to bring in supplies, ect for a quilting guild she started. He thought it was alot like stitching in the OR (he is a First Assistant/RN), so he gave it a try. His first project was a full size quilt with six squares with all six of our kids silhouettes and handprints, separate squares of appliques of our house, our wedding rings and the church where we were married. This quilt is a true treasure!!!!! :wub:

Gail
 
When I was a complete beginner (never even used a machine before), the women in my family suggested I make something simple like a place mat. You can go buy a small amount of home dec fabric, cut it in a rectangle, and practice making a rolled edge. Something simple like that will help you get a feel for your machine and the various stitches. It will also help you learn to sew in a straight line!

Of course, being impatient, I didn't do that. My first project was <A HREF="http://www.sensibility.com/pattern/">the Regency dress</A> from Sense & Sensibility. It was a little difficult as a first project, but I made it through okay and made a dress that I loved.

If you're impatient to make something you'll actually wear, ;) I would recommend a modern "easy to sew" or "quick & easy" pattern. Personally, I find skirts extremely easy and I love to make them.

Take a look in your area for sewing classes, too. Craft stores (like Jo Ann Fabrics) often have a book at the cuttin counter, or they can at least tell you who teaches sewing in the area. You'll learn faster than if you just tried to teach yourself.

The best way to learn is to jump right in!

:) Laura
 
gail, that quilt sounds amazing!

laura - "If you're impatient to make something you'll actually wear". how did you guess!! :P

i'm going to go to the sewing shop tomorrow and let them take me under their wing/provide easy to sew skirt patterns.

thanks for the advice!
 
It really needs a cleaning before taking pictures this winter, but I could find pics I took several years ago....hope they scanned okay.

This is the front of the quilt:
quilt1.jpg


And this is the back:

quilt2.jpg


It is a keeper, for sure! :wub:

Gail
 
Love the quilt - those hearts!!!! - what a talent! :clapping:


Harriet, it's some time since I last bought a pattern - but back then Butterick were about the easiest to follow, and I think they did a 'beginners range' too.
 
Lovely quilt, Gail! What a guy you have.

Harriet, to answer your question, maybe a nice simple 60s shift would be a good first project. I'd use a cotton fabric, non-stretchy, and not slick.

Good luck!

Lizzie
 
I taught myself to sew in the 1970s with the "Learn to Sew" patterns. I think they were from McCalls. They were very detailed and gave every step. I've use patterns since then that were supposed to be easy, but found that if you didn't have a certain level of actual experience, they would not come out right, just because they leave out a piece of information here and there.

If you have the manual that came with your sewing machine, that would be a good thing to study. Everyone told me how hard buttonholes were. But I just followed the instructions that came with the sewing machine and they made up very easily.

Other than a skirt, a good first project would be a peasant blouse. Just a few seams and casing for elastic and you're done.

I'm trying to make more time to sew myself as I find it to be a soothing and relaxing hobby... probably a good project for evenings. I hope you have fun with it.

carol
 
The manual with my sewing machine confused the heck out of me. I think i really got things tangled up...and now I have to wait for a relative to come and untangle the mess.

My mother used it while she was here, and somehow the thread is knotted and stuck inside somewhere.

That is another afternoon's project...just not today.

Let us know what your progress is Harriet!
 
well so far i have been forced to tidy up the house in order to create a 'sewing space' (i am taking this so seriously), and am nearly done. have dug out all my fabrics and - thank you carol! - a 1970's copy of mccalls dressmaking book that my friend provided for me, which i will read later.

i will certainly post my first 'creation' as soon as i begin. hahaha!
 
I used to give my sewing students really simple things to start.

Threading the machine
Winding a bobbin
Handsewing buttons, snaps, hooks.
Sewing straight lines, sewing a zigzag stitch

Small stuff to start to get familiar with the process.

Then we worked up to practice seams on scrap fabric.

Start with a solid cotton or a small over all print you don't have to match.

One tip when you cut things out. Press the pattern under a warm iron to flatten it out. Pin it to the fabric well, but don't go crazy. Work on a table, not the floor. I have put a pad on the dining room table to protect it from the pins.

And do let us see the finished product!

Hollis
 
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