Photo by Benigno Hoyuela

There are some joys we keep to ourselves, and some, once we break their secret code, we want everyone to know it too. To join us in the joy. In my twenties, it was salsa dancing and more than once I was the person at a dinner party counting steps and demonstrating the basics to prove it really is as easy as 1,2,3, tap. Now that joy is sewing and I’m on an unapologetic campaign to convert as many people as I can. I genuinely believe that with practice it’s something anyone can get good enough at to make things they’re proud of.

You can’t really go wrong if you sit down with some fabric and some plans and a commitment to practice until you’re happy with how it’s going. But, it can never hurt to hear some do’s and don’ts from someone who stumbled a fair few times before they really found their flow.

Photo by Benigno Hoyuela

Don’t start with a cushion cover 

There are so many ‘beginner’ projects that people like to bandy about. Scrunchies. Pillow cases. Simple square things and I get why they’re the ones people tell you to start with, they’re very hard to get truly wrong. But if you’re trying to be a garment sewist, it’s just not going to spark that joy you need to keep going. The best cushion cover in the world will always stay at home, and you’re not going to strut your stuff in a scrunchie and have someone say, wow, where did you get that from?

Do start with something you can see yourself wearing 

Find a simple garment pattern—they’ll be labelled ‘easy’ or ‘beginner’—and make a practice version, make as many practice versions as you need until you’re ready to make the real deal. Tops are a great place to start, some of them have very easy construction methods and then, when you wear them, you’ll get that shot of pure happiness that comes from walking out the door in something you’ve made. The Named Inari Tee Dress as a tank (omit the sleeves for ease and just turn the edges in for a very simple hemming method) was that for me. It’s a great place to start and you’ll cringe one day at the wobbly hems or the unfinished insides, but hey, who cares, you’re going!

Photo by Benigno Hoyuela

Don’t wait for the good fabric 

It seems counter intuitive to spend money on something when you’re still in the very early phases. I feel like I’ve been conditioned to wait until I’m ‘good enough’ for the good stuff. But it’s like cooking, if you don’t invest in the ingredients, you’re going to taste it in what you end up with. See my post about toiles and get yourself some cheap muslin to practice on, so that when you finally make the real thing, it’s worth the time and effort you’ve put into it.

Do pick easy to use fabrics 

One thing you learn as you go is how different fabrics behave. A lot of my early fails were situations where I’d given myself some truly impossible fabric to work with. Find something stable (by stable I mean, not too drapey, that you can put flat on a surface and it’ll stay exactly the shape it started) that doesn’t fray too much, or ideally, doesn’t fray at all. Linen in a decent mid-weight is an excellent starting fabric, one with a tighter weave as it won’t fray too much as you sew and it’s easy to handle. And anything I’ve made in linen has always been a winner for me. When you’re just starting out, viscose, satins, silky and stretchy things are not your friend.

Photo by Benigno Hoyuela

Don’t stop  

Imagine you’re playing a computer game. Every level has a boss. Every boss will almost certainly kill you a couple of times, but it would be crazy to give up right? You know you’ll defeat the boss eventually. Sewing is the same. Every time you get better, you’ll hit a block, some technique, some type of fabric, some garment you just can’t get quite right. And then once day you’ll breeze past it without even thinking. Just, whatever you do, don’t stop trying.

Do remember to look after yourself 

We imagine that hobbies are meant to bring us only peace and joy. I named my Instagram handle ‘Peaceontheside’ because I had some notion that it would be this wonderful, peaceful thing that I did to offset my stressful day job. But hobbies are hard. You’re challenging yourself, you’re out of your comfort zone, you’re learning. You’re probably sitting for hours in a room indoors in a position that’s not amazing for your back. You may have just cut yourself/stuck yourself with a pin/made a mistake for the fifteenth time. Take a break, take a moment, make something easy when you finish something hard—we call them palette cleansers in the sewing world—look after yourself.

Photo by Benigno Hoyuela

Don’t expect it to always be wonderful, but let me tell you, the first time I packed a summer suitcase and 90% of it I had made by my own hands, the feeling was indescribable. It made it all worth it. That’s the joy I want for everyone. That’s why I’m writing this.

It’s progress and creativity and self expression and so much easier to get into and get good at than I had ever imagined. So tell me, convinced? Are there do’s and don’ts I’ve missed? Are you ready to give it a try?

You May Also Like

IL019 100% Linen SAFARI FS Signature Finish

IL019 100% Linen HERON FS Signature Finish

IL019 100% Linen BLUE HEAVEN FS Signature Finish