Sewing Tips

Love every step.  Try to enjoy every step as well as admiring your end product.  Rushing through the bits you don't like usually results in work that you're not happy with.  Thinking of it as a zen kind of ritual helps you to slow down and be deliberate about your techniques.  Racing ahead and skipping important things will lead to tears.

Start slow.  Literally every time you start a seam, a) start slowly so as not to jam it and b) make sure your take-up leaver starts at the top of it's arc so that the thread doesn't pull out of the needle every time.  Neither of these issues really apply to electronic machines.

Bobbin thread management.  Always bring your thread up through the needle plate and out the back... unless the machine you're on has a bobbin threading channel.

Having trouble?  If a specific technique seems super difficult, there is possibly (definitely) a tool or gadget or machine accessory that could help you do it quicker or better.

Can't sew straight?  Try not to watch the point at which the needle goes up and down at but rather find a point on the presser foot or marks on the needle plate to line up the edge of you fabric with.  Staring at you needle is like trying to drive straight by staring directly at the headlights of oncoming traffic.  Watch all of the road!

Neat and tidy.  Try to take as much care with the parts of your project that you can't see as you would with the ones that you can. This will give you more structural integrity as well as pride in your work.

Steam.  Whether you're pressing your fabric before you start, your seams as you go or your finished project, setting your sewing with steam is the best way to make your project look more finished, polished and fancy.

Interlining, interfacing and stabiliser.  Learn what they do for your structural integrity and finish so your projects come out the best they can.

Pins and Pining.  Everybody has a preference for the pins they like using but know that there are different types and different qualities.  Also, we can hear when you run over pins deliberately with your sewing machine and we will come and confiscate it from you if you do!! (stop that!)

Further pinning.   Pinning the seam at 90° rather than along it like a trail of caterpillars is helpful for a number of reasons but often beginners struggle until they learn this.

False economy.  The whole point of making or repairing things for yourself, apart from all the ideas on self sufficiency, is that you want to make something better and more personalised than what is available out there.  Therefore, unless you're making a mockup (or toile) try to get the best materials that you can to make all your effort worth it.

Rubber Ducking.  Having trouble reading pattern instructions?  Employ a computer coder technique of talking aloud to a stuffed toy, enthusiastic pet or disinterested spouse, or if it comes down to it and you have one; a rubber duck.

The Good Scissors.  Everyone knows that using fabric scissors for anything else ruins them so keeping them away from the non-sewists in your house is a must.  If you have to padlock the handle so they CAN'T be used, so be it.

Pre-washing.  Want to know how a fabric will wear? Wash either a small scrap how you think is best or the whole lot if you're confident.  Some fabrics may also need pre-shrinking still, if you plan to wash it hot.

Fabric Markers.  There is no one perfect fabric marker, BUT there a lot of snazzy ones out there for different task.  Do be aware of Frixion™ markers as they may not always stay disappeared on fabric as that's not what they were designed for.