Are you ready to get your machine doing this? (for more details about the Clothing Sew Along please read here)
Are you excited? Today I will be covering the very basics. You are in for a surprise. I'm doing this in video format because I can convey the most information that way. So bear with me! This is basics. Basics.
First thing is first. Do you have a machine? Do you know how to thread the bobbin and properly thread the machine and needle? If not, grab your manual (or visit uncle google) to learn how. Unfortunately, every machine is different so I can't tell you how to thread your machine.
Now make sure you have some basic supplies:
A spool of good thread. Dual duty cotton or polyester thread will work fine. Old thread tends to break easier and that will just cause you frustration.
Fabric scissors.
Pins. I like the kind with the colored heads so I can see them better but any fabric straight pins will work.
Some scrap fabric. Woven cotton is preferable, stay away from knits and stretchy fabric when you are starting out. More on that next week.
A table and chair. It is important that your sewing machine is at a comfortable height for you. You'll be spending some time there shortly so make sure that when you are sitting at your machine you can comfortably put your foot on the foot peddle and use the machine without having your body in any awkward positions.
A new needle for your sewing machine. New, sharp needles will make you a better sewer. A dull or slightly bent needle will cause you major pains.
Okay! Let's get started! In the video I will discuss the straight stitch, back stitch, thread tension, stitch length, sewing a straight line, sewing curves, and seam allowances. I can't believe I made a video. It started out at 27 minutes and you can thank me that I cut more than half off! Wow, did I ramble! Are you ready? If you already know how to do theses things, you can save yourself and skip to next week :)
(if you are reading in a blog reader you'll probably need to click here to see the video)
What do you think? I'm sorry I didn't get the camera zoomed in a bit more in a couple places so you could see better what I was talking about.
Could you do this? The key is to practice. Any questions? Please let me know. You can leave a comment and I'll email you back or you can email me directly at thetraintocrazy (at) gmail.com.
Interested in learning more? I have learned a lot from the Sew Everything Workshop
Are you going to be joining me for this sew along? Leave me a comment and let me know! This week is rather basic but we'll be picking up speed in the next few weeks.
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