Advertisement
Sewing is an essential skill - at least, in a household with rough-n-tumble kidlets ;-)
Good hand sewing (and machine sewing) skills are needed to patch clothes and repair zippers to making blankets from old t-shirts to stitching up cuts (human or animal).
I'm sure there're more websites available, but these should be helpful to those who have little or no sewing skill
www.sewing.org
www.sewing.about.com
Good hand sewing (and machine sewing) skills are needed to patch clothes and repair zippers to making blankets from old t-shirts to stitching up cuts (human or animal).
I'm sure there're more websites available, but these should be helpful to those who have little or no sewing skill
www.sewing.org
www.sewing.about.com
posted by:
|
Atlanta
|
Advertisement
Advertisement
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Tue, June 9, 2009 - 6:31 AMAgreed!
I am afraid I am only a novice sewer, although I am handy enough replacing the zipper on a tent or sewing a new button. I actually own a sewing machine, but it is in storage at the moment (until I settle into a regular home again).
I remember my Mom routinely making patterns and creating whole garments from cloth. I am a long way from this level of skill. Wouldn't it be a useful thing to know, though?
Thanks for the links! -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Tue, June 9, 2009 - 11:47 AMI've been sewing since I was a kid thanks to my mom and grandpa.
If you want to learn it's easy and can even be free. Every fabric, quilting, or craft store has someone there who teaches classes in the store, or has a list of customers offering to teach privately. I've even seen ads on craigslist or in the paper offering lessons. Check with people in your church. Ask a neighbor that you know sews. Check with your parks and rec center, I've seen classes offered there too. Most colleges offer sewing classes. You can always find someone to help you out. Most people are quite excited and willing to help you learn to sew. Especially an plder person because they appreciate the company too. Once you do it you find that it's not so hard after all. It just takes practice. Just ask around. Almost everyone knows someone that sews, you just might not know it yet. Ask.
I think everyone can and should learn at least the basics of sewing.
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 12:58 AMFor the purposes of being covered, rectangular construction is an excellent place to start.
www.renaissancetailor.com/demos...es.htm
www.geocities.com/shadowdry...unics.html
Tunics and breeks are pretty comfortable, too, and I've always had a preference for cloaks over coats especially in really cold weather. A hooded cloak that is lined with fur in the hood and in the top third or so of the body of the cloak is vastly warmer than any coat I've ever owned. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 4:41 AMGreat links! Just the renaissance tailor one makes me feel like I could do that. Just sew up the edges then flip it inside out, right?
Lol - my first efforts might not be fancy, but they should be functional. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 4:59 AMGrowing up there were a few things my Grandmother told me I needed to learn and know - learn how to cook, learn how to grow a garden, learn how to shoot a gun, learn how to sew, learn what Mother Nature tells you, learn what you can to survive. So far she has hit everything right on the head. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 12:01 PMTimberwolf ~ sounds like you had one smart Grandmother. : ) Exactly the same thing my mom and grandpa told me. Unfortunately we lived where I didn't get to learn to garden except for flowerbeds and houseplants. I'm working on correcting that now. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 9:57 PMSee Zarina - the old school way of doing things holds up in the new world of things. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 10:37 PMI know Timberwolf. Over the last 4 or so years I have unconsciously started reverting back to old school everything. I've found mysrlf doing things I thought I would never do when I was growing up. I was going to be a "modern" woman. Well that all went to hell and I realized my mom and grandpa weren't so old fashioned and rediculious as I thought. Turned out that most everything they told me was right on the money. My lifestyle now is so much like theirs that it isn't funny. The only real differencce is that I live in a 5th wheel and I don't have a garden.....yet. If I had my grandpas farm I would be in hog heaven now! But, he sold it when it became too much for him to handle alone. too bad, it was a great place. Oh, now I'm getting all nostalgic.
-
-
-
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 5:22 AMDarkling,
I didn't spot specific instructions on the renaissance tailor site, but I only scanned through the first page. The first pattern shown - think t-shirt - and yes, stitch & flip ;-) Practice fabrics can be anything from clearance sale curtains/tablecloths to thrift store bedsheets to the $1/yd table at WalMart. When you get ready to stitch one up, pm me and I'll try to answer any questions you might have.
My sewing kit includes not only the usual needles-n-thread, but upholstery & carpet needles
...upholstery threads...button/craft thread <<these heavier needles & threads work better for stiff fabrics like canvas or thick fabrics like lined coats>>...heavy duty scissors <<can't cut denim with wimpy scissors>>...zipper repair kits & heavy duty zippers <<learn how to install & repair zippers - they're everywhere from blue jeans to heavy coats and tents>>
-
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 11:58 AMOne thought about zippers..... I would highly recomend getting the metal zippers. Plastic ones don't hold up as well. When I have a pair of jeans or something that's past it's useability I always take out the metal zipper and save it. I use them in everything. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 9:56 PMZippers are such a pain in the ass to get right, especially in men's pants. Why's that? -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 10:40 PMI agree - I fix/replace zippers in tents and sleeping bags pretty often - even in field conditions with needle and thread. But last time I needed a new zipper in a pair of pants... well lucky enough, I was visiting me mum :)
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 10:44 PM*hahah* I thought the same way when I started out, but it really just takes practice and a good machine. You can't do great zippers in jeans with one of those cheaply made ones. Take your time and practice. Rip out the zippers and put them back in several times until it becomes easier for you. It kinda helps too that there will be stitching marks left in the fabric to help you redo things the same way. That's how I got it down. I bought seriously cheap jeans at a garage sale for just practice. Size didn't matter so I got jeans for 25-50 cents a pair. Fabulous investment for learning a skill. It took me a while to get jeans zippers down but It's doable. Be patient. You'll get it! -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 5:42 AM~Z,
I hate putting in zippers 'cause it always seems so awkward. Good idea about the cheap jeans...I'm sure around my house there's a pair of kidlet jeans that have "bit the dust". I'd also say practice doing this with hand stitching. You need to trust your hand stitching to hold even the zipper in a pair of jeans.
Another suggestion...
Find or buy a piece of sheet foam......cut off 2 sections and practice stitching them together - neatly and not too tightly.
Why?? I think this would be good practice for sewing up deep cuts in human or animal skin. Your stitches need to keep the skin together without pulling it too tight. Thread? I don't know - I'll have to find out what is used medically and figure out the equivalent in my sewing kit...maybe a nylon thread?
FYI, fishing line and dental floss can also be used as "thread". I'd probably trust the holding power of fishing line before the floss, but would use the floss if I had to. -
-
This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 9:54 AMI have been told that in an emergency situation you can sew up human tissue with any thread. You'll just have to watch and when it's healed enough remove the stitches. My hubby when out in the boonies has also used superglue or duct tape to close wounds. Both seemes to work just fine with no problems.
I agree that you need to be able to sew in those zippers (and everything else) by hand. When there's no electricity for your machine, or you're out in the sticks and need to make repairs, hand sewing is your only option. Unless of course we're all going to revert back to nudeism. LOL -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 10:03 AM..."Unless of course we're all going to revert back to nudeism."
;-0 That is soooo not an appealing thought considering some of the folks I've run across today. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 10:26 AMHahaha! I know. Personally I wouldn't even want to see me naked right now! But, ya just never know what's gonna happen. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 4:32 PM"Hike Naked - it adds color to your cheeks"
I do love being naked outdoors, but there are times when some protection from the elements (if not the prudes) is a plus. -
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Thu, June 11, 2009 - 7:08 PMI completely agree! However due to an accident and an illness a while ago I gained a ton of weight, and am just now starting to take it off. Maybe by the end of the year I'll be willing to venture out au natural again.
As for the prudes, no one said they have to look. I've gotten enough gripes about my tattoo that I have developed a "don't like it ~ don't look" attitude.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Re: ...sewing skills
Wed, June 10, 2009 - 9:16 AMYup, pretty much...stitch up the edges and flip it inside *in*. One of the nice things about rectangular construction is that it's pretty much all straight edges, which makes it easier to cut AND easier to sew. Once you've stitched up a couple three tunics, you can play with gussets and pleats and things to fit it to your needs. Always remember, just as with carpentry, measure twice and cut once. You can always take something in, but adding more room can be a stickly challenge. Build it big, put it on inside out and use safety pins or something like to take it in where you want---than see if you can still get it off, LOL!
I'd recommend a trip to a thrift store to find an old flannel sheet...use it to make a night shirt for a first project. Fit is less important, and fewer people will see it. :-P When you can put together a tunic, you'll find breeks are really simple.
And we'll get pictures, right? :-D
-
-
-
