In my last post I mentioned I wanted to sew more and that I had done a lot of planning and very little else. Well that is not entirely true. Over the last few months I have immersed myself into the world of sewing.
It started back in November/December when I discovered the Great British Sewing Bee on Foxtel. I have since binged watched the 4 seasons. My biggest takeaways from this show were that even if you have have been sewing for years you still do not know everything and can make mistakes and fit is very important.
I also discovered/rediscovered British sewing magazines e.g. Simply Sewing and Sew magazine that come with free patterns. I seemed to have amassed quite a stack even though I mostly only bought them when I liked the pattern.
So with the inspiration from the Sewing Bee and my magazines I began my plan of attack. With the help of my Mum I took all of my measurements, went through all of my patterns and planned what I would make. I wrote everything down in a notebook that I could take with me when I went fabric shopping. I had about 14 items planned for me and several for Miss A. Most of which I already had fabric for. My fabric stash had not stopped growing even though I had stopped sewing.
But something was holding me back. I think my takeaway from the Sewing Bee about the importance of fit was holding me back. I did think about going to my local fabric store for classes in pattern fitting and I did inquire to them about it but now I don’t know if I need to.
Because… I discovered the Love to Sew podcast in late January and have binge listened to all 33 episodes in about 6 weeks. It is a fun podcast by 2 Canadians Helen, a pattern designer and Caroline, an online fabric shop owner and it is a great mix of interviews with small business owners in the sewing community and discussions and question and answers from listeners about various topics related to sewing. I have gotten so many takeaways from this podcast I have forgotten exactly who provided with these great pieces of advice. But here they are, well the ones I can remember:
- You do not have to be perfect when sewing. Some people are perfectionists others are not. I really liked the rule, if you can’t see it from 3 feet (approx. 90cm) away it doesn’t matter.
- I have been introduced into the world of indie patterns and PDF patterns.
- There is so much diversity and individual preference in sewing and it really doesn’t matter. There is no right or wrong way. It is whatever works for you. Some people prefer indie patterns over the Big 4 (Butterick, McCalls etc); PDF versus paper, tracing patterns versus cutting out, muslin first versus no muslin and the list goes on.
- Why spend time making garments that you won’t wear, so if knits are your thing, go for it.
- It is very important to use your measurements to determine your correct size as they differ so much between patterns companies. Just like with ready to wear clothes I guess. I tend to be anywhere from a 12-16, or medium to extra large depending on the store or the garment. With patterns I am a 20 in the big 4 pattern sizes but a 14, 16, 18 or even a 48 in indie patterns. Also, ease plays a part in sizing, minimum ease, design ease, your ease preference.
- You will get better with practice, but don’t let that stop you making want you want. If you haven’t sewn much but want to make jeans, just go for it. For the non-sewists reading this yes making your own jeans is a thing.
- There is a huge sewing community online. If you are not sure about a pattern or technique google it. There is so much help out there. I have started reading lots of sewing blogs after not reading blogs for ages. I have also created a new open Instagram account @rachwraymakes and am following lots of creative sewists and fabric stores and companies.
and the one that I think has made the biggest impact on me
- Fit is important and can take awhile to get right, but even if it isn’t quite right people still wear those clothes, the early versions unless of course they are totally the wrong size. After all, people wear ready to made garments from the shops that don’t fit perfectly all of the time, including me.
I have also bought the Palmer and Pletsch books Fit for Real People and Pants for Real People. They seem very 80’s in style but look super easy to understand on first read. So with these books and after reading some blog posts on the topic of pattern adjustments, getting a perfect fit doesn’t seem to scary now. Also after comparing my measurements with a range of patterns I seem to fit a standard size. No grading between sizes required. Just maybe alterations for my full tummy, flat derriere, short waist and fuller biceps.
As this post is already long enough I will leave sewing goals to another post. Let’s just say you may see more sewing related posts on this blog in future.