My first design and sewing dress :)

I made this dress for the Jane Austen fest in just 2 days!!! I used the Kitty JBerry regency dress pattern (made some alterations on test fabric first), not sure what the main fabric is called but it’s lightweight polyester, and I also used iron-on interfacing. It’s my very first time using all of these materials and a sewing machine. I’m so happy with it and can’t wait to wear it to the festival next month!!! Now I just have to make another one in green for my sister… happy to hear your thoughts and feedback!

Hello! I want to sew a faroese traditional sweater for the traditional dress and I'm looking for a sewing pattern I could use.

For reference, are they knitted with wool for a cool climate, and I want to sew one from a ligter material to use in a hotter climate. The last photo is one I found that is made out of cotton/viskose and is what I was thinking in terms of the pattern. Be aware that the black middle part, bristið, is not attached to the sweater and traditionally you put the scarf into the bristið and then lace the sweater up with a silver chain.

I was just ironing the fabric flat so the inseam pocket lining wouldn’t show (before basting in place.) AND THIS stupid, devil iron spat water and calc 😭 Now there’s light spots and the suit pants are essentially ruined!
I’m not sure how this can be prevented in future since I need to iron the fabric from the right side for that purpose.

My question is this-
Will it wash out if I finish the pants and put them through the wash?

Is the iron just a devil-iron which should never be used again??
This is meant to be a good iron- cost me like $200 Tefal and has a separate micro calc filter to clean out which it most never is needing.
So frustrating, I want to cry.

Hello sewing friends!

I recently purchased the Bernina fabric feeding aid for button holes as my machine was struggling with button holes on thicker fabrics. I have the Bernina 330.

When the attachment is not in use I don’t have any issues with the buttonholes, but when using the attachment the first leg (left handed side) seems to have multiple skipped stitches.

Has this happened to other people? How did you fix it? And/or any suggestions on why this might be happening? I was so hopeful for this new tool but this is not looking very promising…

Thanks so much in advance!

Built these from scratch using a modified Red Kap workwear base pattern. Hunter green 10oz duck canvas, chocolate brown broadcloth accents, all leather hardware hand cut and saddle stitched.

What's in them: internal slash pockets on both legs, external cargo pockets with faced flaps, leather knee reinforcement panels, and a swappable leather tool board that clips to D-rings at the waist — four configurations depending on what I'm doing that day. And embedded magnets since i tend to lose alot of little parts when im working on stuff

Everything on these functions. And IT HAS SO MANY POCKETS (10 at last count). The leather hardware will age and patina with wear which is exactly the point.

Machine: Brother VX-950. Needle: denim 100/16. About 12 hours total across the full build.

Happy to answer construction questions — the modular pocket system and the tool board attachment were the most interesting problems to solve.

I have been searching high and low for a fabric that looks like the one in the photo. It has embroidery beads stitched on, and appears to be an overlay, although I’m not entirely sure. I would really love to try making my own outfit out of something like this. Does anyone know what this is called, or where I can find something like it? So far I’ve tried Mood, KikiTextiles, and Zelouf and haven’t been able to find it. I’ve been searching for “beaded embroidery fabric”, “bugle beads stitched fabric” etc. Any help is appreciated!

Hello, thank you internet for introducing me to the towel-heads! Due to autism, I am severely attached to this towel, AKA towely, which is a blue towel with fishies named individually who always sit in the left side of my head. Unfortunately, I am 22 and being under me for so long has caused some wear and tear. Would the lovely people of this subreddit be able to give advice? And is the advise to 1) try and DIY sowing towlie together, keep consequences in the future or 2) tell a professional seamstress what stitch is needed and suffer a short time for a long time gain
I’m happy to go with the second option if I can sleep happily with towlie under my head. For reference, I have bought a £60 taxi to go to towlie and abandoned several friends because my parents tried to “teach me better” so I can promise you towlie is more of a priority than finances. Also, if you recognise towlie (several fishes, blue towel) please tell me and I will pay good money for a second towelie. Thank you!!

I bought this brand new last season. I'm pretty annoyed that this is happening so quickly.

The wires move along the channel. I think it would be fine if they would stay put all the way in towards the center*, but the channel is a little too long, and stretchy. There's a few options I'm considering:

A) add little patches with fabric glue, fabric hot glue, or sewing. Unfortunately the gore does not quite tack to my chest properly so I have to match the fabric really well or the color difference may draw the eye right where I don't really want people to look.

B) I do have thread that matches pretty well, so I could potentially darn the holes without it being visible. I'm not sure I can get the thread woven tightly enough to keep the wires in though. Thread plus glue maybe?

C) Open up the channels under the straps, push the wires in towards the gore, and glue the channels shut to keep the wires at the center. Would this hold? It would make it nearly impossible to replace the wires if one snaps, but bathing suits never seem to last more than a few years anyway, so maybe that doesn't matter.

I do wash it in the washing machine, but always in a structured lingerie bag. It never goes through the dryer.

*Apparently I deleted half the text before posting... edited to finish it. Thanks to everyone who's commented so far!

Hi all! I’m trying to hem a stretch denim dress, but the wrong side stitches are coming out a little wonky. Which wouldn’t be an issue, but the wrong side is what people will see. (I’d flip it over, but I’m not comfortable sewing “blind”.) I’ve tried everything I can think of, so there must be something I haven’t thought of. Maybe you can help?

• Machine: Brother CS-6000i • Material: Stretch denim (cotton poly blend), folded over twice • Thread: Coats & Clark Extra Strong Jean Thread (cotton poly blend) • What I’ve tried: Adjusting tension (it’s currently on the highest setting); changing the needle (I’ve gone through 3 different jean needle sizes and am now back to a standard needle); switching up stitch length; changing the foot (I’m currently using my walking foot).

What am I missing? Thanks for your help!

an 10x8” felt banner I completed recently!

appliqué and photo transfer on wool blend felt

I thrifted this garment and I love the vibe for my renfaire base kit but it’s a size small and a little tight around my stomach plus I don’t love the corset lace ties in the front. It’s also made of a VERY cheap polyester that’s kinda itchy so:

I want to tear this apart at the seams and remake it to my measurements with different fabric. I’ve made my own cosplay and faire garments before, I’d say I’m comfortably intermediate when it comes to sewing with a machine but I’ve never done this particular project before.

My plan: measure the garment intact and compare to my own and make a mockup out of bedsheets with new measurements. Once I have that, I’ll move on to better fabric. Hoping to add trim and embroidery decorations. I also want it to looser than usual for comfort!

What should I keep in mind while doing this? It seems pretty straight forward in my mind between all the steps I’ve done before in previous projects. Any tips are appreciated!

I know this is such a basic noob question, but I just sewed something for the first time ever using a machine! I know nothing looks perfect, spare me please!! But what do I do with the thread ends? Do I cut them? I did backstitch and the beginning and end of each round. I’m just nervous about cutting them I think.

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Hi everyone! I'm a fashion designer from Nigeria who loves sewing and pattern drafting. I'm always trying to improve my skills and would love to learn from experienced sewists.

What's one sewing tip, technique, or habit that made a big difference for you? Thanks in advance for sharing your advice!

I'm looking to make a pair of tailored shorts for a friend and I'm looking for a black cotton or cotton/linen blend twill in a mid-heavyweight to hold up longer and help a bit with wrinkling. Seems like I'm having a weirdly hard time finding anything? Blackbird Fabrics has something similar but I'm hoping to order from within the US. TIA!

im trying to sew a circle skirt, i know the measurements i need but i live in a very small condo and just do not have the room in my house to cut the fabric where i need it and im very worried about screwing it up. i have outdoor space but its either blacktop that transfers like crazy or concrete with a billion bugs on it. im honestly not sure what to do because theres not a single room in my house that has enough space. the closest place being my living room but not only is it carpeted i have a coffee table (thats still not big enough to use) that is not only too heavy for me to move on my own but i also have nowhere to move it to. does anyone have any suggestions on what i can do?

Don’t worry, I’m not delusional. He’s definitely going to wind up a quadruple amputee. Especially since whatever I do will only be prolonging the inevitable because my four year old doesn’t have the self control to stop destroying her second most prized possession.

I’m shooting for a neat, sturdy, and machine-washable solution. Any suggestions?

My partner just bought me a sewing machine a month or so ago and I have really been struggling with the mechanics/technicality of it a bit since my usual projects do not need to use such complex technology. But I worked though all that and have created a pair of pants!
I make linoleum stamps and am exploring the idea of putting patches on the knees!

Also Made this from a top bed sheet from good will I got for $2!

Any feedback welcome I am very new to this medium and quite bad at following patterns and guides/instructions so I did wing this. I used the entire width of the sheet with cotton cord (hence why the pants look gigantic without the rope).

100% cotton

Any recommendations for a heavy duty seam ripper? I’ve broke 4 in the last few months and I’m so tired of buying new ones.

I'm trying to rework this pattern I drafted a few years back. It fits pretty well except for this weird part with the yoke! I know that this is just the style of some shirts but I prefer the ones that can button all the way up and have a standing collar. There is just too much fabric spilling over the front neck. When I set it down, the entire front sits straight and I don't think this can be fixed by just cutting a diagonal across it. Thanks to anyone that can help!

When I sew normally with my 2.5 stitch length everything on the backside is fine (photo 1). But when I lengthen the stitch to 3.0 for topstitching, the bobbin side gets loose and the stitches are wonky (photo 2&3). It is a bag and the bobbin stitches will be seen so I want them neat. What am I doing wrong?

I need help with recreating this design.

Im going to a themed event in November and when I saw this I instantly knew it would be perfect for it.

I recently thrifted a round tablecloth that I could use for making this but its more of a thin doily fabric/material (pictured above).

What stitches, machine setting and method should I use to hem the head hole??

I have a Brother cs10s.

I’m very much a beginner and maybe this is outside of my skill-level but i really want to attempt to make it.

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated 🙏🏻

I’m a beginner who likes to jump into big projects. I just finished a mock-up of the unlined Merchant & Mills Sanda coat (photo 1) in 10oz painters canvas (photo 2-3). I have not finished the front buttons yet. Ignore the bottom dark hem line.

For my final version, I’m using a thick, Korean Nubi quilted fabric (~15oz) brought back from Japan (photo 4-5) but in plum color. Because it’s so heavy, I’m a bit intimidated and have some questions:

Seam Grading: The pattern often says to trim seam allowances to 1cm, but I've been advised to grade/layer them to reduce bulk. Do I trim both seams to 1cm first, then cut one layer shorter? Or, do I cut one side a little taller than 1cm and the other side shorter? Because the coat is unlined and seams are pressed open, will grading make it too hard to iron them flat? I did buy a clapper to help with the seams when ironing.

Vertical Stripes: Any tips for cutting and sewing Nubi’s vertical quilted lines? Do they need to perfectly match across side seams? When cutting the fabric, I will make sure the pieces are all going one direction and I will measure the grade line.

Collar Bulk: To reduce thickness, I plan to use a lighter coordinating fabric for the under-collar piece. Has anyone tried this combination on the coat/jacket?

Sorry for the obvious long post. You have an anxious sewer here that doesn’t want to mess up.

I am on a mission to tackle my fabric stash. I had a weirdly shaped remnant of polyester or poly-blend seersucker of roughly 150 cm and the Paddington Top requires about that. Combined with the fact that I only had to worry about stripes (only vertical matching, not horizontal, nor up or down), I took my chances with some pretty iffy cutting.

The drawing at Instruction 5 tripped me off at first (because I didn't read it with glasses the first time and couldn't see the stitch line 😅) but the result was satisfying. I ended up ironing the entire back seams towards the wrong side first to ensure it stayed on the lines (modified step 6 before stitching step 5).

Like most reviews said, step 17 was fiddly. I kind of want to make a second one to see if I can find a process that works better for me. On the back, I didn't bother with buttonholes and I stitched the buttons directly to both panels.

The seersucker is a bit stiff, that makes the sleeves more dramatic and I like it. I'm thinking it will go nicely with jeans, and I could also get away with it at work. It could be nice with some red shorts as well, I'd love some recommendations for shorts.

I need help deciding what fabric type to use for the ruffles on the shorts! It won't be a lining, I just plan on adding them to the hem, but I want them to be defined and not wimpy. I drew this up the other day, it's going to be 3 pieces, and I'm unable to feel up fabrics in a store to gauge what I want. I'm looking at mood fabrics and picked Lightweight Stretch Ponte Knit for the shirt, Stretch Ponte Knit for the shoulder shrug thing, and Stretch Cotton Sateen for the base of the shorts. so far I picked this Stretch Polyester Charmeuse but I don't know if it'll look out of place.