Hellooooooo Everybody!
So you want to learn to sew?
Get Ready with these basic supplies!
If you are in the Central Florida area, I do offer sewing lessons and Mom's Night Out classes, at a super reasonable rate, but if you aren't close to me in the Sunshine State, this is a great place to start!
(Later on, you can find some basic sewing tutorials on this blog, as well as on my new You Tube channel here).
I know this can seem overwhelming and/or challenging. Getting you off to a good start to learn to sew a variety of products without feeling frustrated is the goal. Below, you will find a list, and photo, of some of the basic supplies I recommend. Because it will be obvious, you will not see "fabric" listed. If you need to know about the different types of fabric, we can cover that in another post, let me know in the comments. You do not have to get the name brand I have. I have owned these items for YEARS and do not know if some of them still exist. Also, I have upgraded on a lot of my supplies and items so don't purchase according to "brand," rather what you can afford. Do not over purchase supplies when you are starting out. You have to figure out what you really need and what your preferences are. Be on the look out for coupons at the stores and on their apps before purchasing supplies as well. (We will get to that in another post). Let's get started!
BASIC SEWING SUPPLIES
(SCISSORS)
This may seem simple enough but it's not. You need to make sure you purchase, and use, fabric scissors for cutting your fabric and regular household scissors for cutting your patterns. Fabric scissors will get extremely dull, quickly, if you use them for regular household use and you will wonder why you cannot cut through your fabric. (If you are able to struggle and get your fabric cut, you will not like the outcome of the raw edges). Do yourself a favor and keep fabric scissors in your sewing basket/area, away from children and you will be less annoyed, I promise. The scissors above are (from left to right); pinking shears - orange, fabric scissors - pink, fabric scissors - gray, snipping scissors - gray.
The snipping scissors (shown in the first picture on the far right), are one of my favorite cutting tool! These allow you to get really close to your fabric and snip off finished threads after you have removed fabrics from your machine. The thickness of regular sewing scissors make it harder to snip the thread close.
I prefer larger scissors for cutting longer pieces of fabric and smaller scissors for smaller pieces of fabric. Less work. It gets better when using rotary cutters!!! You will see that a bit further below.
(RULER AND MEASURING TAPE)
There is no glorious way to get around sewing without one of these items. No way! If you want to create a project with a straight line and of a specific size, get one!
The ruler. There are a variety of lengths and widths. Purchasing a basic one of 18" is a good start. Once you learn to sew and if you get interested in quilting, or larger projects, others will come in handy. Why get one of these? Placing this on top of your fabric allows you to mark your fabric where you need to cut it, creating straight lines to cut. If you want to cut fabric quicker, and easier, purchase a rotary cutter to go along with this. The rotary cutter blade can be placed right up against the ruler and cutting fabric will be an easy delight, not a task!
A measuring tape can be purchased at a dollar store. Simple to use, capable of sticking in a table bin, a travel tote for sewing on the go, this is a must have. This handy dandy thing will also come in handy for taking body measurements when you learn to sew your own clothing. Being flexible has its perks. Try taking your measurements, or someone else's with that flat ruler!Con to using this when attempting to draw a line on fabric? It moves and shifts. Great start but upgrade yourself to the ruler at some point. You will not be sorry!
Quite possibly a gem in a sewer's life! There are many brands for you to choose from.
A grid cutting mat does the hard work for you, along with some other supplies, like the ruler and rotary cutter. The mat is arranged in to grids, one inch squares. You can line your fabric up against the squares, place the ruler at the width or length you want and use the rotary cutter to cut the fabric. Best. Thing. Ever!!
(CHALK, FABRIC MARKERS, PENCILS)
Tailor's chalk. This allows you to make temporary marks on fabric. This wipes right off with a bit of water and helps you not only sew a straight line for beginner projects, but becomes handy with marking for hems, darts later on in the clothing making process. There's a sharpener at the end of the case. Using regular chalk board chalk would not give you an accurate sewing line and throw off your lines between sewing because regular chalk is thicker, producing thicker lines. This means your sewing could be off by about 1/8". Doesn't seem like much but trust me.... it is. If you don't want to use chalk, there are other options!
Markers aren't just for coloring on paper for kids! We get to play with them as well. Fabric markers come in different thicknesses, like sharpies. They have "fine" points. Do not try to use sharpie markers on your fabric! I think you know what will happen; that is permanent ink. This gets washed away. I prefer to use this to mark on inner batting/fabrics, as I do not like when the marker ink gets on my walking foot of my machine. When chalk is not within my reach, I have also grabbed pencils to mark quickly. There are marking pencils that look like colored pencils and ..... not going to lie, I have used regular #2 pencils lightly!
I cannot stress how important this gadget is! This is the difference between your finished items looking professional, or worn and laundered. Use your iron that you already have at home... no need to go and spend a lot of money on one. In fact, I do not know what the infatuation is with irons that cost so much money! I teach sewing classes. Refusing to purchase expensive irons that would end up shifting in the trunk of my car as I drive, I headed to my local Walmart and brought a few simple irons. Those $15 irons have been quick and efficient for me. They heat up quick and iron well; I don't see why there are some that cost over the $40 range. If you know, please tell me. That money saved is fabric money! Iron your fabric before you sew. Iron it throughout your project, if you are sewing inside out (when you turn your fabric right side out), and sew after you top-stitch the last step. Yes, top stitch everything!! It gives a professional look as well! More on that later.To the left, you see a smaller, travel version of a craft iron. I purchased it at a craft store with a coupon, however, I let my younger students use it. Pros? Besides it being a great travel iron for you personally? It is small enough for children's hands, supervise them though, and it lets out less steam than the bigger irons. Steam, and heat, can scare the children when they are first learning to use an iron!
(SEWING MACHINE NEEDLES AND HAND NEEDLES)
MACHINE NEEDLES.
You will break needles. You will break many needles. Pulling, tugging and pressing hard on your presser foot will break your needles, until you learn to work your fabric and the peddle gently. With that in mind, purchase extra needles for your machine! There is nothing worst than being in the middle of project that you would like to finish and breaking your last needle. There are many different types of needles. Purchase the ones packaged for your machine, or the "Universal" needles. They work great. Looking at the various needles in the packages, you will see there are ballpoint needles and fine, sharp needles. Again, that is a topic for a different post. If you need instruction on that, comment below and I will be more than happy to explain the different types of needles. They run about the same cost, approximately $6 or less. Again, if you use a coupon at the stores that allow you to, you can get some for 40% off of that price.
SELF THREADING NEEDLES
Some projects you sew will require you to sew tight to the seam, or sew on buttons. Be sure to have hand needles available for when you need them. Not sure who still uses them to actually sew full projects but.... bless them! I love the quick and efficient work of the sewing machine. Technology is great!
You will use these for pretty much every single project. Get them to hold your fabric and zippers in place until you have practiced sewing and lining up your raw edges over and over again......
Yes, a simple, plastic basket. Straight from the dollar store, these little holders come in handy! I keep one right next to my sewing machine and as I sew I take objects out and put them back in to the bin. The one thing I cannot do is have a mess on the counter as I sew! This helps with that. If you look closely, you can see my chopsticks sticking out! That is right! Courtesy of the local Chinese Restaurant! Get you some the next time you order food. I use those when I turn my fabric/project right side out, to poke the corners. You can use a crocheting needle, if you crochet, or the eraser end of a pencil. Do not use scissors! You will poke a hole through your fabric and you will not be happy when you need to turn that project inside out again and sew up that whole!
You will mess up and need to take take out those tiny stitches ... you will! THIS is your friend. Your machine will come with a small one in the pocket pouch. It will have a rounded cover. You can purchase a larger one, if you wish.
EXTRA BOBBINS
Be sure to grab some of these. Bobbins can be pre-loaded with the color you are using, if sewing a big project, to save you time. Having extra bobbins around also allows you to load multiple colors and not waste what you have IN your bobbin, to start a new project.
THREAD
Spools of thread should be a given. I just posted this here for you to understand that just as there are different types of fabric, there are different types of thread. Be sure to get 100% cotton for basic, daily sewing projects. Some home decor projects that allow you to microwave items should all be done with cotton fabric. You can change the thread type based upon what you are sewing. Ex. quilting... there is quilting thread.
(The handy dandy spool organizer couldn't hurt either! The more "junk," I mean, STUFF, you acquire when sewing, the more organized you will need to be. Which brings me to the next picture ......
SEWING BIN
NOT NEEDED, however, I am sure you will enjoy not seeing all of your items laid out across the table day after day. You may start sewing on your dining room table until you learn to love it and figure out a space in the house for you to take over. This will help with that. Not to mention, it has a handle and you can take it for small sewing meet-ups and outings. Get you one from Hobby Lobby. Use a coupon. : )
When sewing, you will want to turn tabs and straps right side out. This tool is a life saver! Worth the $2.79 I paid for it! You grab the fabric using the hook at the end and pull the good fabric through the "tube" you create.
Amazing! I got this idea after breaking a few pencils that I thought would do a better job. After completing a project, it looks professionally done if you remember to poke out your corners and iron it! All four corners of your bag/zipper pouch/coin purse, etc. should be poked out from the inside prior to sewing up the lining seam. These were free at the Chinese Restaurant my family orders from. You know I keep a constant supply of them!
OTHER RANDOM ITEMS WORTH HAVING AROUND
glue stick : )--> (helps to hold your zipper in place until you sew)
ironing board
old towel or folded old sheet to iron on
Have you purchased a Brother sewing machine and need to figure it out? Do you know how to thread your bobbin? Check your tension? Check out my channel. I walk you through some of these issues.
Nikki
Sew with me....
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