Stitches

Is sewing an easy thing to pick up?

I love the idea of making my own clothes, even maybe costume designing one day, however I have never sewn anything in my life. Well, simple things like pillows, but I know nothing of the types of stitches or anything. Are these things easy to pick up?

Public Comments

1. yes
2. At first, you won't be able to do clothes. but with a little practice, you could easily get there.
3. sewing is very easy to learn. if there is a JoAnn Fabrics store around you, you can see if they offer classes. Usually only the larger format JoAnn stores offer classes but give it a try. they teach it in middle school and high school these days so if they can do it you can too!
4. yes, if you have somone to teach u it, this was my first year in sewing class in my school and i got 96% i made pajamas and a little stufed frog
5. Yup. All you need is practice. There's a lot of books out there that can show you the different types of stitching and the basic patterns for clothes and such. After practicing the basics, it's all up to you to change things up to make things fit better on you, and design it into your own style. Once you get the hang of hand stitching, buy yourself a nice sewing machine and practice on that. It's handy to be able to do both.
6. I took a home ec class in 8th grade. i think operating a sewing machine was one of the easiest things ive ever picked up on. I went to a pretty.....i guess bad area.. school, and even the hard ass kids did it without a fuss. Sure they complained about how gay it was, but if they could do it ANYONE can do it. TRUST ME. they're probably all drug dealers now.
7. I self taught myself. I can't say it was easy though. And still today after 35 years there are times when I want to pull my hair out. First, you have to get to know your sewing machine. If you already have one then read the book that it came with to learn all the stitches. If you need to buy one, they pay extra money for a good machine. Buy it in a sewing store that has classes on the machine which are free if you buy the machine. More tears come from cheap sewing machines because the thread breaks and stitches get screwed up and most of your time is ripping out those stitches. I bought a good one at Jo Ann's and they gave classes. But , there are sewing machine stores out there that do the same. Trust me, its well worth it. After you get that done pat, just buy a simple pattern. The patterns pretty much tell you what to do. Buy Simplicity patterns because their easier. Thats what I did. There may be an older woman in our area that sews also, and you can always ask her to help you understand patterns. I love it. I make my own curtains, costumes for kids, craft items and just repair and hem clothes.
8. Yes they are if you are interested in it. I started sewing at 6 yrs old by cutting sheets up and making clothes. My parents got a little mad and said I couldn't wear it but I kept improving until I was about 12 and made clothes for my little sister and people asked where we bought them. My Dad told them I made them and I have been sewing ever since. I taught ballet,tap and jazz and made all the costumes. I had a business at 12 making summer shirts out of pillow cases in the 60's. Purchase some material and a simple pattern from a fabric store and start. As far as a sewing machine a straight stich with a zig zag stich is great to start off with. Keep it simple at first. Since then(40+ years)I have taken my sewing abilities and applied them to remodeling. Same concept....different materials!
9. I feel confident you have the natural talent you need to learn to sew well. I am encouraged that you have already started making simple things. What you need is some instruction. I was fortunate to have a mother and grandmother who taught me and then I earned degrees in fashion design and later a masters in costume design. Do you have friends or family who can teach you more? Is there a class or a private teacher in your area you can study with? So much is hands on and having someone to watch is so much easier than just learning from books and pattern instructions. You can, however, still learn from books and pattern instructions. When it is time to choose higher education study fashion design where you will be taught much more about sewing as well as design and patternmaking. There is much to learn and it will take many years. Good luck and I wish you good connections with good teachers. Welcome to the wonderful world of sewing.
10. For some it is, for some it isn't. It helps a lot of you're the kind of person who can be patient and persistent when things go wrong, because they will, and if you sit there and blame the machine you won't get anywhere.
11. You can teach yourself to sew... it's a bigger task than having at least beginning lessons from a real live teacher. It's pretty easy to develop some bad habits as a novice that will continue to bite you until you figure out they need correcting -- things like trying to push or pull the fabric under the needle of the machine, or imprecise cutting or not being precise about laying patterns out on the grain of the fabric. Truthfully, I'd tell you to find a beginner sewing class and take it, if at all possible. If not, hit the library for beginning sewing books and videos. The beginning dvd I like best is Connie Crawford's Studio Sewing Skills. which starts with learning to thread a sewing machine, control the machine, lay out a pattern correctly on fabric and cut it correctly, and moves through all the basics clothing construction processes -- which are the major sewing processes for just about anything.