Do you watch the Great British Sewing Bee and wish you could sew? Why not start your sewing journey with a sewing night class or one of the Uphouse Crafts beginner's sewing classes?
When I began my sewing journey, I had a basic Brother sewing machine. With it, I made clothes for my son, bags, altered clothes, took up curtains, and even made a quilt. As my skills grew, so did my demands on my sewing machine. I upgraded to a Janome 230DC sewing machine (thanks to my husband one Christmas). I still use this machine to help beginners start their own sewing journey in my classes.
Tips for Buying Your First Sewing Machine
- Don't Buy the Cheapest: Instead of buying the cheapest new machine, consider looking at local buy and sell pages for a second-hand machine with more features within your budget.
- Quality Matters: A good sewing machine will last for years. With proper servicing, a second-hand machine can be just as good, if not better, than a new budget machine.
Fabrics – New or Thrifted?
- New: Buying new fabric from online retailers having sales or offers can save a lot of money. Check de-stash pages on Facebook or eBay, as these can offer beautiful fabrics at a fraction of the original price.
- Thrifted: Charity shops are gold mines for fabrics! Repurpose items like duvet covers, cotton shirts, towels, fleece blankets, jeans, and curtains. Not only are you saving these items from landfills, but you're also giving them a new life.
Scrap Fabric Projects
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Key Fobs:
- Perfect for reducing fabric waste while adding a splash of colour to your keyring
- Ideal gifts for family, friends, and teachers. Involve your kids in a fun crafting session!
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How to make:
- Use 1” or 1.25” Keyfob hardware
- Cut fabric & interfacing 6.5” x 4” or 6.5” x 5”
- Iron interfacing to the fabric on the wrong side
- Iron fabric in half with the wrong side together
- Open out and iron to the centre fold so all raw edges will be encased
- Re iron in half so you now have a 6.5” by 1” or 1.25” wide
- Top stitch down either side 1/8” in
- Fold in half and sew the raw edge together 1/8” in
- Trim threads and fit hardware over the raw edges
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Coasters#
- Use even the tiniest scraps to make coasters
- Combine two fabric squares with wadding, stitch around, flip right side out, and topstitch for a polished finish
- You can make coasters in any shape you like, square, circle, rectangular or whatever shape takes your fancy.
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Lanyards:
- Turn small scraps into functional lanyards for keys or ID badges
- Experiment with different fabric patterns and colours to showcase your style
- I like to use fabric 44” x 3” for my lanyards
- Here is my method:
- Cut off the selvedge edges
- Using the iron press the ends of the fabric in by roughly ½” or 12mm. Then fold the fabric in half along the length of the fabric. You then need to fold the edge into the centre along the length
- Sew around all edges 1/8” in, all the way around. Use a 3-3.5mm stitch length. Back stitch at the start and end. Feed the lobster clasp on to the long strip of fabric
- At one end make a buttonhole vertically. At the other end sew on a button. To ensure the button is on the correct side place the lanyard around your neck and fasten it at the back with a clip (fingers) once you have it lying flat with the lobster clasp hanging in the centre
- Attach the button using your machine (or by hand). To finish dew a few lines of stitching to secure the lobster clasp in the centre on the lanyard.
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Patchwork Tote Bags:
- YouTube has fantastic tutorials for patchwork tote bags, like the one from Missouri Star Quilt Company
- Great for using up larger fabric scraps.
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Get Creative:
- Transform scraps into unique quilt bindings or create crumb quilting pieces
- Explore the internet and YouTube for endless inspiration.
Here are a few more blogs and resources that you may find inspiration to start your sewing journey:
Andrea’s Story
Alison’s Story
My Sewing Room Essentials
Sewing Classes @ Uphouse Crafts
Start your journey today with Uphouse Crafts. Use code SHOP10 to save 10% when you book your sewing class at UphouseCrafts.com
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