When you are starting out with sewing, it’s easy to get overwhelmed when things start to go wrong with your sewing project. You just cannot get a handle on fitting on the collar or the sleeve cuffs. You’ve cut out the pattern and now you realize the stripes don’t match. The pleats just won’t stay…
I stitched my very first outfit on my grandmother’s sewing machine, which had only straight stitch capability. I have to admit, it turned out pretty good even though there were a lot of hand stitching involved to give it the finishing touches. Today, I cannot imagine completing any project using only straight stitches. But that’s…
Being new to sewing is no excuse for sloppy work. Considering all the time and the money you will have spent on any project, it can be terribly disappointing to end up with something that looks slapdash and shoddy. When you put so much of your creative energy into a sewing project, the best reward…
I’ve been sewing for years now and if there’s one thing I’ve learnt along the way, it’s the importance of staying organized. Unfortunately, I learnt this the hard way. All excited about my new , I decided to sew Christmas pillow covers to give away as gifts to family and friends. I bought all my…
I’m the first to admit that sewing is not something that should be rushed. Like all creative processes, you want to take your time at it, enjoying each step and savoring every triumph. Unfortunately, even the most ardent sewer is likely to find that they are pressed for time and cannot afford to indulge as…
I’ve seen many sewers make the mistake of using the same tension setting for all their sewing projects and then they wonder why the finish isn’t perfect. The fact is, the wrong tension is a sewing disaster. It can ruin your sewing project and literally give you a tension headache. Knowing how to troubleshoot your…
Skipped stitches are every sewer’s nightmare! There’s really nothing quite as annoying as being half way through a project and your machine starts skipping stitches. When this happens, you have to open up the stitches and start all over again. Before you start berating your high end sewing machine, you should know that skipped stitches…
The fabric you choose for your project plays a major role in how the end product turns out. Use the same techniques on two completely different types of fabric and you’ll be simply amazed at how different they can end up looking. Imagine this – you use the same pattern for a pair of trousers…
There’s nothing more exasperating than getting held up with your project simply because the thread keeps breaking on your machine. You sew a few stitches and the thread breaks… again. You have to now rethread the machine needle and either remove the stitches that are done and start all over again, which is such a…
As with all machines, sewing machines work best with some basic maintenance, done regularly. The emphasis is on the words ‘basic’ and ‘done regularly’. Most machines today are designed to perform well for years together without any major problems. More often than not, if you encounter any problems, it will be because you have the…
Knowing the basics of sewing machine maintenance is an absolute must if you want your machine to run smoothly and efficiently. There is no getting around this. Neglecting your machine can cause all sorts of problems and lead to unnecessary frustration. Fortunately, keeping your sewing machine in prime condition is neither very technical nor very…
Sewing is a hobby that can truly grow on you. You start off thinking you are going to spend an hour or so every once in a while at the sewing machine but before you know it, you find yourself spending more and more time at the machine. What draws you in is seeing the…