Learn to Sew: Free online sewing classes

Have you been inspired by The Great British Sewing Bee? Keen to try your hand at sewing, dressmaking and quilting? If so you're in the right place!

I learned to sew in 2008. I did a basic night class (how to turn on a sewing machine, that basic!!) for a few weeks, and then I started reading sewing blogs. Pretty much everything I know, apart from how to thread my sewing machine, and a little bit of basic dressmaking, I learned from free tutorials on the fantastic sewing and quilting blogs out there. I had never done Home Economics/Domestic Science in school, and had never sat behind a sewing machine before I bought a machine in Lidl in August 2008. I'm pretty amazed at some of the things I've managed to make and how many skills I've acquired in the intervening 5 years - I even have a quilt pattern featured in a book being published this spring! 

But more than that, I am constantly amazed at how much I absolutely adore sewing. I really, really love it. I love making pretty things. I love the processes and the satisfaction at getting something right. I love how challenging it is, and how I can constantly push my skill levels to achieve more. The internet is still my go-to source for all sewing related techniques and questions and yes, you can learn to sew from it - I absolutely did!

So - if you are ready to be hooked, what next?

Last year, I ran a very popular series of sewing and quilting tutorials and classes here on my blog for beginners. I called it {Sew} Get Started. It started by explaining the basics and then progressed into a series of tutorials/classes aimed at helping the complete beginner to learn to sew and increasing in complexity as the series progressed. Tutorials were contributed by my very talented sewing friends, who all have blogs of their own.

They're all listed on this page:

If you're not a complete beginner, you might want to dive in with some of the tutorials. But if you just want to learn to sew, start at the top, and work your way down...and then get out there and explore the wonderful world of sewing blogs!

{Sew} Get Started: Garment Making Basics

Dress I made using the Serendipity Studio Monique Dress sewing pattern

Welcome everyone to another {Sew} Get Started tutorial! Today my lovely friend Sara is going to take us through the basics of making garments which is an area that I know a little about, but don't have too much experience in. Sara seems to be able to turn her hand to all sorts of sewing - quilts, purses, bags, dresses - and each project as gorgeous as the next! She has a really great blog, Sew Sweetness where she does lots of pattern reviews, as well as tutorials and lots of interesting events (some of which I have been lucky enough to contribute to). She has just announced a great new fun event running for the next two months, designed to get people sewing purses/bags for the summer - pop over and check it out!

This tutorial is part of the {Sew} Get Started: Beginner Sewing Tutorials series. To go to the master page with a full list of tutorials and links to past tutes, please click on the link.

So, Sara, it's over to you!

Hello everyone! I am extremely excited to be guest posting on Fairy Face Designs today! My beginner topic is on Garment Sewing. I am not the most seasoned garment sewer on the block, but hopefully some of the things I have learned along the way can help you get started making a dress or top of your own!

Size chart example from a Colette Patterns garment

1. Choosing Your Size Sewing patterns will all be different as far as sizing goes. Some list size descriptions (small, medium, large), some size numbers (2, 4, 6), and others will list European measurements (34, 36, 38). The best way to find your size is to take a measuring tape and measure loosely around your hips, waist, and bust. My recommendation for measuring your chest size is not to go with your usual bra size, but to actually measure around yourself, wearing the bra or type of bra that you plan on wearing with the finished garment (for example, if it is a strapless dress, you will want to actually wear a strapless bra for the measuring). After you have found your measurements, refer to the table on the back of the pattern that lists the measurements for hips, waist, and bust to match up what size you should be cutting for the pattern pieces. If you are in between sizes, go with the next size up, because you can always take your garment in, but it's really hard to add fabric if your garment ends up being too tight that you can't sew it together or get the zipper in!

2. Finding the Right Fabrics After you have chosen your pattern, now it is time to select your fabric! If you have never sewn clothing before, I would suggest staying away from slippery or sheer fabrics; they can be somewhat challenging to sew with. Many patterns will list suggested fabrics on the back. Keep in mind that different fabrics drape differently, which means that they will fall in a different way on your body. For example, chiffon fabric will be very clingy on the body and usually fall straight down, whereas a decor weight will be more stiff. Especially if you are going with a more expensive or directional fabric, it might be a good idea to lay your pattern pieces out on another bit of fabric that you already own, to get an idea of what you will actually use to make your garment.

From Susan of Living with Punks: http://www.sewsweetness.com/2011/09/sewing-back-to-school-transferring.html

3. How to Transfer the Pattern to your Fabric

Cut the tissue (or paper) pattern pieces out. I usually leave all the sizes intact, rather than cutting my size out. Most patterns will also illustrate a cutting layout, although I tend to make up my own layout in order to be frugal with fabric or to fussy cut certain areas of the print. There are several ways to cut the fabric out using your pattern pieces. Some people pin the pattern pieces to the fabric, then cut. My grandma uses carbon paper and a small roller to transfer onto the fabric, then cuts. I use pattern weights (i.e. scissors and quilting ruler) on top of the tissue and trace around the pieces with an invisible fabric marker. Another important thing to mention when cutting the pattern is to also make sure to transfer any marks from the pattern pieces onto the fabric. This means any darts, notches, etc. This will help you later because you won't have to constantly refer back to the pattern pieces once you've cut your fabric out, you can just put them away and be done with them.

From Gwen of Gwenny Penny: http://www.sewsweetness.com/2011/09/sewing-back-to-school-seam-allowance.html

4. How to Begin Sewing

Most garments will be made with a 1/2" or 5/8" seam allowance (although I have seen some garment patterns, mainly made with quilting cotton, using a 1/4" allowance). This is usually noted at the beginning of the pattern. It is really important to use the correct seam allowance because your finished garment may not fit if you don't. If you commonly sew with a certain seam allowance, rather than eyeballing it or using the edge of your presser foot, you might consider putting a strip of painter's tape on the bed of your sewing machine, measured to the desired distance from your presser foot.

This is what a dart looks like from the wrong side of the fabric: basically like a triangle

5. How to Sew a Dart Sewing darts in your bodice (that is, the top area of your garment) is a great way to get a fitted piece of clothing that is tailored to your body. Loose-fitting tops and dresses are certainly easier to sew, but they also won't give much definition. A dart is a v-shaped imprint on your pattern piece, which you will transfer to the fabric. Sewing a dart is not necessarily difficult; with the fabric right sides together, you match up the two straight lines, then sew on top of that line. The problem some people have with darts is that once you sew them for a garment, they may or may not be the right length of dart for your body. For example, I don't think I've ever made a dress pattern where I didn't have to slightly alter the darts. There's nothing wrong with the pattern, it's just that when you sew something for yourself, you want it to fit you more or less exactly, and so, chances are you may need to adjust the darts. This can be accomplished by trying the bodice on, pinching any extra fabric in, and maybe using pins to mark places where you need to make a change. You can also baste areas where you are considering a change, so if you haven't gotten it quite right, it's easy to take the threads out and try again. Sometimes I spend a half an hour adjusting a dart. It's nothing to get frustrated about, just put it down and come back to it later.

Serged Seam

6. How to Finish Raw Edges Patterns may or may not (especially commercial patterns) tell you when you need to finish a raw edge. For example, say you have just sewn the bodice of a garment to the skirt. That is going to leave you with a raw edge, right? You really don't want to leave any raw edges in a garment, because when you wash it, it's going to be a mess. There are several ways to finish a seam. If you are making a skirt, you can use a french seam. A french seam is when you sew your fabrics wrong sides together (say, with a 1/8" seam allowance), then flip them over and sew them right sides together (with a 1/4" seam allowance). That second seam will seal the raw edge inside, leaving you with a finished seam. Some fabrics can be finished with pinking shears. I made a decor-weight skirt last year, and yes, I did finish the seams with pinking shears. It worked out great. Another way to finish raw edges is with either a zig-zag stitch or a serger. Before this year, all of my seams were finished with a tight zig-zag stitch. It is not as pretty as a serged seam, but it does the trick.


7. How to Adjust Size Many people make a muslin of their pattern pieces before they move on to the good fabric. A muslin can also be made with cheap fabric, like a thrifted sheet. You don't necessarily have to sew up the entire pattern with your muslin, just mainly any areas that might need a sizing adjustment (like the bodice). I am too lazy to sew a muslin, so I take my chances. The biggest piece of advice I can offer in garment sewing is...TRY IT ON. Sew a step or two...try it on. Pin if you must. Try it on, try it on, try it on. There's nothing worse than getting all the way to the end, then realizing that an area of the dress that you made doesn't fit right and you have to rip the whole thing apart to fix it.

Hemmed bottom of dress

8. How to Hem You will most likely need to hem a garment, whether it is a top or skirt or dress. I have made dresses with a couple different styles of hem. I have serged (or zig-zagged) the bottom of the dress, then pressed up 1/2" and topstitched. Usually, I will press, then press again, and topstitch. That hides all the raw edges nicely. I also have two different hemmer foots that are new feet to my stash. One is 1/8" and the other is 1/4". The smaller hemmer foot is better for more lightweight fabrics. The 1/4" foot is definitely more easy to use, and suits my needs a little bit better. The hemmer foot eliminates the need to press, press, and topstitch. It curls the fabric for you and creates the topstitch at the same time. A nice little time-saver. My recommendation for deciding if you need to trim fabric before you hem is to wear the shoes that you would wear with the finished garment (mostly with a dress or skirt). Stand up straight, look in the mirror, and mark with a pin how high up you would like the garment to fall. Before cutting any length off, make sure to factor in the seam allowances of the hem.

I hope these basics have given you something to think about in sewing up your first garment! Thank you to Sarah for having me! :-)
 


Thanks Sara! Remember to add any garments you make using Sara's tips to the Flickr group, and don't forget to pop back next week for the last of the guest posts in this series, where Kirsten will show how to make a gorgeous mini quilt.

{Sew} Get Started: Quilted Table Runner Tutorial

Today I am totally thrilled to welcome my wonderful bloggy friend Susan who is guest posting with a great tutorial for a quilted table runner, using the really useful "Quilt as you Go" technique. I have "known" Susan for quite a while now, and she is one of my very favourite bloggers. She makes gorgeous quilty projects, in addition to being the sort of cook I aspire to be. As well as sharing her quilts and her cooking and baking, she is also very funny and always real. If you haven't visited her before, you definitely need to pop over to Canadian Abroad and say hi to her.

Susan is doing the Stained QAL too (although she's a bit further along than me!) and I just love how her quilt top looks, so bright and cheerful!

This tutorial is part of the {Sew} Get Started: Beginner Sewing Tutorials series. To go to the master page with a full list of tutorials and links to past tutes, please click on the link.

So, Susan, it's over to you!

A huge thank you to Sarah for inviting me over to Ireland to do a tutorial. I always wanted to visit the south and see Cork. Probably because I heard it was a huge foodie place long before I found out that Sarah was here too. Quilting and eating - two of my passions!

My tutorial takes you through the steps to create a quilt-as-you-go table runner. It is a very simple design and once you have got the basics you will see that it would be very easy to incorporate some pieced strips, or vary the width of the fabric strips I have listed here. It is an easy design to adapt and make your own.

Fabric requirements -

You will need 17 strips of fabric measuring 3" x 14".
A piece of backing fabric that is width of fabric (presuming that the fabric is 44" wide) x 14".
One piece of wadding that is the same size as the backing fabric.

Layer the backing fabric and the wadding, removing any creases in either, and fold in half lengthwise to find the halfway point and use a pin to mark that point before laying flat again.

Work out how you wish to have the layout of your fabric strips in your runner.

Then remove the centre strip and place to one side. Form two piles of strips, one for each side of the runner, working from the inside strips out as you stack them so that the top strip in the pile is the fabric just to the side of the centre strip.

Time to start sewing. Take your centre fabric strip and pin it to the centre of your wadding/backing using the pin you placed to mark the centre point as a guide. Remember to remove the needle that marked the centre on the wadding before you pin the fabric strip and start sewing.

Before sewing, use your quilting ruler to ensure that you have the fabric square on to the runner.

Sew down both sides of the fabric strip to secure it to the runner. For this first strip you want to use approximately a 1/8" seam. This seam will be hidden once you have attached the adjoining strips.

Place one pile of fabric strips within easy reach of you and the sewing machine. Place the other pile well away so that you do not get confused and take fabric from the wrong pile. All the strips for one side of the runner will be attached before starting on the other side.

Taking the top piece of fabric from your stack place it on top of the centre strip, right sides together, edges of the fabric aligned.

Sew down one side of the strips with a 1/4" seam...

... and press the seam open.

You will want to repeat this process now until all the strips for one side are attached. Always align the edges of the fabric before you pin and sew. It is worthwhile to keep the end of the runner you are not using rolled up or pinned so that you do not inadvertently sew a strip on the wrong side. Do not worry if the ends of your strips are not perfectly aligned. These will be trimmed after the strips are all attached and this is not a problem.

When the final strip for one side is attached, secure it to the wadding/backing with an approximately 1/8" seam. This seam will be hidden once the binding is attached.

When you have completed one side of the runner, take your second stack of strips and repeat the process for the other side.

The backing of your runner will have quilt lines like this.

It is now time to trim and square up your runner. Using your quilting grid ruler as a guide, remove the excess wadding and backing fabric from either end of the quilt. Using your inner seam as a guide, trim at 2.75".

Fold your runner in half lengthwise. Align your two trimmed ends as precisely as you can. Using your ruler, set it along the edge, using the runner ends and the fold in the centre to make sure you are as square as possible. Trim the sides so that all discrepancies in strip ends are removed. I took off about 1/2" from either side of my runner.

Your runner is now ready for binding. You will require approximately 120" of binding to finish your runner. Binding has already been covered in other tutorials so I will just refer you to here for those instructions.

My finished runner measures 42" x 13". Now that it is completed I think I might do some embroidery in the linen strips that I used. Give it a more summery look maybe.

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial and another thank you to Sarah for having me as a guest.

Thanks Susan, I love this tute! If you make a table runner using this tute, please add to the Flickr group. And don't forget to pop back next week for Sara's post on Garment Making basics.

{Sew} Get Started: Wristlet/Pouch Tutorial

Today's tutorial is for a really versatile project - a zipped wristlet/pouch.Perfect for makeup, sewing notions or a little purse to bring shopping, and a brill last minute gift! I'm delighted to be introducing you to my friend Jenna who blogs at SewHappyGeek. She has lots of great giveaways and tutorials/patterns over there, plus lots of creativity on show every Monday in her Manic Monday linky party. And she's our swap mama in Sew Bee Blissful! She is a talented lady and a great source of inspiration - just check out this lovely mini quilt pattern!

This tutorial is part of the {Sew} Get Started: Beginner Sewing Tutorials series. To go to the master page with a full list of tutorials and links to past tutes, please click on the link.

So, Jenna, it's over to you!

 Hello! I'm Jenna and I blog at www.SewHappyGeek.co.uk. I'm so pleased to be able to share this tutorial with you! Thanks so much Sarah! Every gal needs a wristlet or ten in her repetoire. They're easy to make and depending on what fabrics you use, can suit any outfit, from casual fun to formal. I made this one out of some fun London fabric I bought recently - I'm always a sucker for anything with London or a Union Jack on it. This wristlet ends up being about 8.5" x 5.5", and you could easily make it smaller or larger according to your own needs.

 

For this wristlet you'll need:

• {2x} 6" x 9" pieces of exterior fabric and {2x} 6" x 9" of interior fabric
• {2x} 5.5" x 8.5" of fusible fleece or fusible wadding
• {1x} 2" x 12" for the wristlet handle
• {1x} 11" or 12" zipper
• Optional: 1 shape for applique - I drew around a cookie cutter onto Bond-A-Web and ironed it onto the back of a piece of fabric before cutting the shape out.
• Basic sewing stuff - thread, machine, pins, etc.

Ok, I need to interject here - I forgot to trim my fusible fleece down to 5.5" x 8.5", so this is a case of Do What I Say, Not What I Foolishly Did. What you want to do is centre the fusible fleece onto the back of your exterior fabrics. Your exterior fabric should be 1/4" larger than the fleece on all sides.

Trust me.

 

If you want to applique a shape to an exterior piece, do that now by ironing it to the front and sewing around the edges to secure it.

 

Make the wristlet strap by first ironing it Wrong Sides Together (WST) in half, lengthways. Then open it up and carefully fold and press the edges in to meet in the middle:

   

Pin and edgestitch along both edges:

 

Set the strap aside for now. Take an interior piece RSU (right side up) and lay the zipper RSU along the top edge. Pin in a couple of places to keep everything straight. Now place an exterior piece WSU (wrong side up) and line up along the top edge with the interior piece. Pin carefully and adequately to keep it all in place, then edgestitch with about a 1/8" or so seam allowance all the way along the top.

   

Press the fabrics away from the zipper, as shown below.

 

 Now repeat that process along the other edge of the zipper. Interior right side up, then the halfway done unit (the exterior you've just pressed will be facing up), then place the other exterior WSU along the edge. Pin and carefully sew along the edge. When you've pressed it away, it'll look like this:

 

Pin the strap according to the instructions on the picture below, with raw edges aligned with the raw edge of the exterior. Make sure you only pin it to the exterior piece, NOT both the exterior and interior!

Now OPEN THE ZIPPER. Seriously. Do it now. Then, place the exterior pieces RST (right sides together) and the interior pieces RST and pin all around:

 

Start sewing with a 1/4" seam allowance where it says Start and finish where it says Finish. Backstitch at both ends so it doesn't unravel. Trim the ends of the zipper. Then press seams open. Now you can fold it all right side out by placing your hand through that little opening. Make sure you edgestitch that little interior opening closed so your stuff doesn't fall through!

   

Done! You've made a lovely little wristlet!

 

Thanks Jenna! Remember to add any wristlets you make from this tute to the Flickr group, and don't forget to pop back next week for Susan's Quilted Table Runner tutorial.