Sew confident beginning sewing angela wolfHopefully you had time over the weekend to spiff up your sewing room. My Craftsy class Sew Confident: Essential Techniques for Beginners” has officially launched and we are already just shy of 500 students. Very Exciting!

CONGRATULATIONS!

First things first, congratulations to Tracey McKoy from Baltimore, Maryland. Tracey was last weeks lucky winner and has already joined us in the Craftsy classroom. Guess what else I found out? She enjoys fishing! Good thing Craftsy drew her name or you might think I was swayed 🙂

Let’s Giveaway Another Class!

Angela Wolf sewing for beginners Crafty

There was such a HUGE response to the class giveaway, I am going to giveaway another Sew Confident Craftsy class! To enter this time, simply leave a comment below telling me why you would love to win this class,  joining students from all over the world – 1 random winner will be drawn Friday at midnight, EST … Good Luck! 🙂

Wondering what’s covered in the class? Here is a link to the trailer video and as promised a SPECIAL 50% DISCOUNT if you would like to join us today.


Beginners Guide to Fashion Sewing


Let’s get started! In case you missed last week’s message, the series for beginner sewing starts now.

Part 1. Choosing a Pattern

What’s the big deal about finding a pattern anyway? Scan the pattern books, find a cute cover photos, and you are ready for sewing success, right?

Angela Wolf fashion seiwng patterns for beginners

If only we can all be so fortunate, but in most cases the scenario pans out a little differently. I recall sewing my first pair of pants. The pattern cover showed a tall, elegant model sporting a flowing pair of front pleated pants. That was exactly what I wanted.

Angela Wolf sewing patterns for beginners 2

I cut out my size (at least I thought that was my size) and the end results more resembled MC Hammer pants: the crotch was down to my knees and the cheap polyester fabric was a puckered mess.  I wish I had kept them so I could give you the laugh of your life, but here is a close second:

MCHammer Pants

They ended up in the trash, I was so disgusted! All those hours L This image flashes in front of my eyes when I hear so many tell me they don’t sew clothes because the patterns don’t fit.

Choose A Simple Pattern

For a beginner sewer, the ideal pattern to start with is something easy, for example this fringe skirt

Angela Wolf sewing patterns tweed skirt

A skirt pattern is ideal, a tailored jacket is not. A simple sheath dress is a great choice, a color-blocked princess seam dress is not. Many patterns will tell you if the pattern is EASYsewing patterns angela wolf3The good news is that through time you will master the fitting and sewing skills to make any garment, but to start, keep it simple J 


Fashion Flat Sketches
Another way to determine if the pattern is ideal for you, look for the flat sketch.  Here is a flat sketch of the my Fringe Skirt Pattern which shows 2 side seams, a center back seam, and a waistband.

Angela Wolf Fashion Sewing Patterns for Beginners Tweed skirtFlat sketches are used in the fashion industry and often overlooked on the home sewing side. This simple black and white sketch shows how many seams are in the garment, where the seams are located, along with other design details such as buttons, belts, pockets, topstitching, etc.. This sketch will be your guide to finding the perfect pattern for your skill level.

Every pattern should have a fashion flat sketch either on their website, the back of the pattern envelope, or in the pattern instructional booklet. Here is another example:

flat sketch dress sewing patternCheck out some of your favorite styles and see if the information you find in the flat sketch will cater to your sewing skills. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t jump in and take a chance with a more advanced pattern, but I compare this to my cooking (which is worse than terrible!) Why, because I am an artist and I always choose the more beautifully photographed meals which typically include ingredients I have never heard of, the use of pans I don’t have, and techniques like sauté that only mean “burn” in my book. See the correlation. My goal is to help you become the best fashion sewer ever and it starts with simple J – next week we will weed through the many pattern companies and designers.

Don’t forget to leave a comment below in order to enter to win my Craftsy Class “Sew Confident: Essential Techniques for Beginners” (The winner will be announced in Saturday’s blog post What’s new on the sewing table this week?)

Cheers and Good Luck!

Angela Wolf

 

 


And the Winner is  Stephanie Troemel!  Thanks for all the comments everyone 🙂

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