10 Tips for beginning sewing

Every time I do a blog post about anything sewing, my comment box and my FB message box tend to fill up with people asking questions about getting started sewing. And, I love this. It's great that so many people want to sew, and create, and fill their homes and gift friends with things they've made with love. However this week, I've been deeply buried in designing a huge project (since my mom and sister have both graduated from nursing school this summer, I've been designing nurses aprons, per my mom's design requests-see above picture for a tease), and haven't had time to respond as I'd like to all these comments and messages like I usually would. So, I thought that I would do a quick "tips" post for starters, and maybe if people like it, I could do more of them as time goes by. I guarantee you that I will think of at least 10 more tips after I hit publish on this post. :-) Also, if anyone has anything they'd really like a quick tutorial on, I'd be open to suggestions on that.

Ok, here goes:

1. Work with fabric you LOVE. Not just like. LOVE!!! It will keep you inspired. Many large fabric stores have unspeakably boring fabric (admittedly, some of it is great, just saying, a lot of it is really lame-oh and kinda homemade looking. Think about that when you buy, is this fabric going to look homemade-lame-ish, or homemade kick-you-in-the-mouth-awesome?!) You want the kick in the mouth. Shop designer's online, or visit your local small fabric/quilting shop. You won't regret it... a simple project with awesome fabric becomes an awesome project, every time.

2. Start easy. A one hour project for a beginner seamstress can take 3 or 4 hours, especially if you have little people that need food fed to them. You can still get it done in a day... and meanwhile, you're learning. The next time you make it, it will only take you half the time, the third time you make it, it will take you an hour. A few beginner projects I suggest PJ pants, simple skirts, aprons.If you start with a complicated dress, or huge quilt, you're going to get overwhelmed and frustrated. Wait until you are experienced enough to not be overwhelmed by a project like that. Also, I really suggest Indie Pattern Companies, and small home based designers. In my experience, their instructions tend to be more well written, and easily understood by beginners, because they are written by people who actually sew in their living room or whatever, like you and me! Also, a lot of times they have pictures instead of diagrams, which is preferable when you're learning.

3. Always clean and organize your sewing area at the end of a project. I usually make cutting out my next project part of that task. Nobody I've ever talked to likes cutting out. Make that part of your cleanup for one project, and next time you sit down to sew, you start out with the fun part---assembly, not the mind-numbing cut-out part.

4. Wear shoes. Flip-flops, slippers, tennies, whatever floats your boat. Just wear them. Stepping on pins will make you swear, and sewing&swearing is no good. :-)

5. Google. Sewing blogs. Sew Mama Sew Forum. You can find anything you need on the Internet. Use it. It will make you better, and encourage you. Blog about what you sew. Your friends love to see it, and it's always nice to get feedback on what you make.

6. Build a collection of printed solids in different colors. I can't emphasize that enough. You won't start out with a lot, but get fat quarters on sale, 1/2 yard here, 1/4 yard there from remnant bins, sales that you couldn't resist, etc. It seems like a really simple thing, but SO many projects I've done have felt just a little boring to me with great fabric even, until I've thrown in accent pieces, binding pieces, you name it from fabric I already had in my stash and as Kiki says quite often, it went from "This outfit was really boring, I added this *enter item here* and it became so ZAZOO!!!!"

7. Save your scraps. Don't throw any of them out. Your selvage ends can be used to stuff something (dog beds, bean bags, throw pillows, you name it, someday...) and even your smaller pieces might come in handy if you ever decide to piece together a quilt, or do tiny applique work. This might not work for you, but it works for me, and this is my 10 tips, so it stays. Thanks for sticking with me through my obstinence.

8. Don't ever hesitate to write on your patterns, instructions, etc. Changes you made, how you did it if you were altering the instructions, whether you liked how it turned out, etc. This is super important... not doing it would be like making the most fabulous epic meatballs ever, and then not writing down all the stuff you put in them.Not that I've ever done that. (Actually, I haven't done that. I did write them down, but I keep losing the piece of paper and having heart attacks over it, so it really is like I never wrote them down when I can't find it. Also, thank you for sticking with me through my neurosis.)

9. Change your needle. Change it often. At least every project, maybe every two small projects, maybe halfway through big projects. Use the correct needle for the fabric you are working with, always. That can be a pivotal point between success and failure-I know this, because I've had near failures due to incorrect needle usage. Right needle, and VOILA! Project was a go. Keep all types of needles on hand-because you know what?! You don't have a needle, you can't sew. You can usually buy them in variety packs. You will thank yourself for doing this, because you will not have jammed thread, broken thread, broken needles, fabric runs, and just plain old frustration that no one needs. Or be sewing at 2am and break your needle, and not have a back-up. Not that I've ever done that.

10. If your sewing machine jams constantly, breaks constantly, does something else annoying constantly, there is something wrong.Sewing machines are not (or should not be, anyway...) designed to be annoying and counter-productive. Is your tension wrong?! Are you using the correct needle for your project? Have you taken apart your machine and dusted it lately?! If you've verified that you've done everything you can to make it run properly and it still doesn't work, then it's time to get a tune-up. If the tune-up doesn't work, it's time for a new machine. Your sewing machine should always be your partner, not your enemy.

And, so we have some pictures in this post, some friends of ours are having a baby soon and a woodland themed nursery, and this is the gift I put together for them... I'm calling it the "Insane Woodland Posse." :-) The patterns are all my design, and I had so much fun. I'm envisioning so many things that could be done with variations of this...
And, of course, a rag quilt. :-)

So, go out, give it a try. It's fun! Pick a small fun project, and and have fun with it. Before you know it you'll be going clothing shopping, not to buy clothes, but to inspect the inside of them with plans to re-create them in your sewing room in your own fabric choices. Most importantly, remember that it is a learning process. Stuff I was so intimidated by in the first two years of sewing (like anything with binding for example) is actually easy now... and if I follow this same theory, stuff I'm still a little intimidated by will become easier in the next two years of sewing. It will be the same for you. And, if you ever are ready to throw in the towel forever, try to remember the (paraphrased) advice of the Dear (fictitious!) Mr. Stuart Smalley-- "You're good enough(to sew), you're smart enough(to sew), and Doggone it, people like you(this doesn't really apply, but it's gotta be said.)!!!"

Go forth and sew, my young Padawan Learners! (Sorry, I can't help it. Currently everyone is a Padawan Learner in this house, due to the fact that I have two children who are obsessed with Star Wars.)

The End.