SIA | Project 2 – Beginner Techniques

Hello lovelies. It’s time for me to dust off Elna and make my dreams come true by learning how to design and sew my own clothes. Follow my journey with Sew It! Academy | Project 2 – Beginner Techniques.

THE PROJECT – BEGINNER SEWING TECHNIQUES

Project 2 – Beginner Techniques focuses on learning how to sew curves and circles, ready for garment necklines, armholes, waistlines, and curved hems. Cool!

Can you believe it’s the 1st of October? It’s almost my birthday and then *blink*, it’s Christmas, and then into year 2020. Do you have any plans for Christmas?

Learning from the comfort of my own home has been really convenient. The last couple of weeks I stepped away from the computer to practice my sewing and sort out the weird lump on my leg.

SHOPPING FOR SUPPLIES

A while back I tried a 45mm rotary cutter but didn’t have any success with it. It didn’t help that I was working on a fold out cutting board but I recently read a post by someone in the Australian Sewing Advice group who had similiar issues. Their solution was to swap their large rotary to the smallest 18mm blade.

Following their advice, I ordered my own 18mm from Oz Quilts. That coupled with the Sew Easy Quilt Club Kit from Spotlight which includes a 28mm rotary blade, a patchwork ruler and a decent size cutting mat.

I’ve tested both the 18mm and the 28mm. The smaller blades are easier to control, giving perfect precision, especially around curves.

Another purchase was two magnetic sewing guides from Ebay but I didn’t need them on this project because I’ve learnt where to look and most importantly, take my time.

Tip 1: Don’t order any sewing rulers from Ebay. Although they’re cheaper, they aren’t packaged very well. All of mine arrived warped and bent out of shape. You can use the hairdryer to flatten them out but they’re never the same.

Tip 2 – Check your rulers and tape measures against each other. Using a tape measure for our body and then a ruler to mark out our pattern can throw off the accuracy when the measurement on one isn’t the same as the measurement on another.

THE CHALLENGES

When I say I’m a beginner, I mean it. It’s all the little tasks in sewing that perfect our finished product starting with marking out and cutting our pattern pieces. I’ve seen a number of sewists breeze along and whip up something extraordinary. Meanwwhile, I’m seeking solutions for the little things.

I don’t know what it is but I’ve been attempting to cut perfectly along lines since I can remember! Cutting seemlessly along pattern lines with scissors was a hack job.

The patter piece would come out jagged because the fabric lifts as the blades close, despite keeping the bottom blade pressed to my surface and pressing my fabric close.

Perhaps my scissors are too big? I’ll have to test this out but for now, the smaller rotary blade is definitely the better option over scissors for me. (They’re also brilliant for slicing along wrapping paper!)

THE RESULT

Project 2 began with circle sewing practice by tracing the printed lines with my machine. This very much reminded me of learning how to write by tracing each letter to create muscle memory.

I moved on to the concave and convex swatches. Marking my seams with the dual purpose marking pen (the disappearing ink is pretty nifty) and cutting out with the 28mm rotary and patchwork ruler. It was a dream lining up and whipping along the straight edges and quite easy to navigate around the curve.

Practice makes progress, so I sewed a few swatches, noticing the improvement on the finished edges. Sewing curves and having them lay neat and flat is satisfying.

Next was the make-believe neckline using The Golden Three stitches; Staystitching, Understitching & Topstitching.

Soon it will be time to invest in an overlocker to prevent fabric fraying and give my sewing that professional edge.

Update – The most flattering and funny moment happened. I had read a group post about sewists being approached by friends that request sewing favours and how they’re unable to say no to such requests.

That sparked a conversation with my honey where I shared that I don’t understand how some women find it challenging to politely say “No.”

During that conversation, I skipped over to Instagram where I’ve been sharing my sewing progress. To my utter delight, I was greeted with a message from a former work collegue asking if I could make her a blouse.

Sure, it was comical because I’m a just beginner, still practicing on paper but she made my day. I politely declined, recommending Sew It Academy but wow, I’m inspired to keep learning!

If you’re wishing you could sew, make patterns, drape, fit, sketch, and much more for women, men or kids then sign up for a free month with Sew It! Academy which offers Step-by-Step Courses – Each course is designed to be concise and easy to follow and they’re a bargain at $15 a month.

Keep an eye out for my next project – SEW IT! ACADEMY | PROJECT 2.1 – Ear Bud Case (A little surprise for Paul.)

QUESTION

Do you shop at Spotlight? Did you know you can receive cash back when you spend money with Spotlight (& many other stores) by using an app called ShopBack? If you don’t use it, you’re missing out! My Shopback account has over $450 ready to withdraw into my bank account any time I choose.