Getting started with sewing clothing - what surprised me

Hi! I started sewing my own clothing in Summer 2021. Despite reading up extensively on it before beginning this hobby, there were a few things that caught me off guard.

This page isn't intended to be a complete onboarding doc, rather it's a companion that avoids repeating what you've already read elsewhere. At the end, I provide a few practical next steps.

When you buy fabric, you have to wash and dry it before you use it. If you bought multiple different colors, you must wash each color separately. Fresh fabric bleeds a lot more than store-bought clothes! You have to iron the whole yardage, likely fold it in half, then iron it carefully before you can begin cutting into it. And you should iron after each and every seam you sew you.

It's not just during construction. Over time you might find yourself making clothes with new-to-you types of fabric. Some of which will have specific care instructions. You'll actually follow those instructions for the handmade clothes you spent so much time on. Sewing is a gateway to making your routine laundry a bit more complicated.

Making your own garment will cost more than buying a similar item from H&M. Fabric costs much more for consumers than it does for megacorps buying in bulk. On the flip side, the fabric you sew with will be of higher quality and your garments will last longer. And your money won't fund the fashion industry's abhorrent labor practices.

The costs start working in your favor if you compare to luxury stores, or if you make more eccentric pieces that only exist at bespoke shops. But it will take time to work up your skill to attempt these more ambitious pieces.

Cost should not be your main motivator for learning how to sew your own clothes. It will not pay off within your first year of sewing as you gain these skills.

I'm very left-brained by nature, so I felt scared about taking on a hobby that I thought was purely creative. As it turns out, creating clothes can be quite technically rigorous if you want it to be.

Once you start significantly altering patterns, it takes methodical and mathematical effort to make it work. You have to visualize the connection between 2D pieces of fabric to how they fit on a 3D person. It's called pattern "drafting" for a reason. At the industry level, pattern drafters use CAD software similar to what's used by architects and engineers.

This is something you can opt in to. I find this work to be really engaging problem-solving, so I look for opportunities to do it. If this idea scares you, you can more selectively find patterns that won't require much or any modification.

I'm used to learning skills by searching for online resources and reading through tons of open tabs and bookmarks. Compared to other trades, I find that sewing doesn't have many quality free online tutorials/overviews.

There isn't nothing. If you're sewing a popular pattern, there might be a really helpful YouTube video of someone sewing it. If you have a specific question you can find an article on it. If you're having a fitting issue you'll come across a blog post of someone's personal case study. There's handy info when you have a specific question.

But when you're just beginning, there aren't many definitive resources. There's no sewing corollary to what justinguitar.com is for learning guitar. There are a few YouTubers who churn out buzzwordy videos, but each video requires viewing a tangled web of their other videos to make it a coherent lesson. There is simply so much to learn before you even sew your first seam for your first garment, and I haven't seen any online resource walk you through that requisite background knowledge.

Your best bet is to go to your local library and check out one of either the Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing or Vogue Sewing. They are the sewing bibles. (There is zero need to get both. Also any edition that's available will work just fine.)

Either book is a complete resource that covers what tools you need, how to use your sewing machine, how to find suitable fabric, how to use a sewing pattern, and of course how to actually sew the garment together. This will save you time over trying to hodgepodge half-baked online articles. The background knowledge covers a lot of what-you-didn't-know-you-didn't-know, and from this base you can make better sense of what you see when googling/youtubing your more specific questions.

Go to your library and check out one of the books I mentioned above in the previous heading.

If you want to ease in before creating something from scratch you can:

• fix holes in your existing clothes
• add a front patch pocket onto a shirt
• lengthen pocket bags that are too small on a pair of pants
• hem a pair of pants that are too long for you
• buy a cheap thrift store shirt a little too large for you and take it in at the waist and arms to better fit you

It can be hard to find appropriate first projects. You have to balance picking something that excites you but wouldn't be so difficult that it's discouraging. Aprons, skirts, or woven shirts that don't have collars are ideal first projects. Avoid stretchy knit fabrics until you feel decently comfortable at your sewing machine.

If possible, I'd recommend getting your first pattern from a modern online-first pattern company. Compared to the 50+ year old companies (e.g. Butterick, McCall's, Simplicity, Burda), they generally have very detailed instructions. Helen's Closet is particularly beginner-friendly. and Closet Core also has helpful instructions. Check pattern descriptions to see if they mention the expected skill level.

If you only wear "menswear", your choice for first projects is a bit trickier. Menswear largely consists of simple garments that only work with stretchy fabrics (e.g. tee shirts, hoodies, joggers), while the types of garments that use nonstretch fabric have more complicated elements (e.g. button-up shirts, shorts, jackets). In addition, the modern pattern companies generally ignore menswear. If you're shaky on the sewing machine, try to stick to simplistic woven garments like this apron, woven tee, or pajama pants. Once you're more comfortable at your machine, you can tackle knit projects.

Regardless of what projects you choose, have fun with it! And remember there's an "undo" button via your seam ripper.