My First Sewing Project
Tuesday, January 18th, 2011 at 7:14am
For Christmas, Mr. Knight surprised me with a sewing machine. Growing up, I remember making throw pillows with my Mom. Well, more like she sewed them, I just picked out some terribly tacky fabric for her to sew them from (hello fabric with a galaxy/star-system print). My Mom also made my halloween costumes.
Here I am donning my “Bun Bun” costume. Gator Momma even made the ears!
There are so many exciting possibilities when you have a sewing machine. Once you have the basic skill set and know how to actually use your sewing machine, you can make just about anything. Learning how to use a sewing machine is a whole other story. I spent probably about a day reading the manual, upper and lower threading the sewing machine, watching videos online and reading through a few beginner sewing books I purchased (Martha’s Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts and Bend-the-Rules Sewing).
After a few weekends of gathering supplies and researching/procrastinating, I finally got started on my first project: a little zipper pouch (following Gussy Sew’s tutorial). Funny I follow a tutorial I found online rather than one in my new sewing books.
4 hours later, and 1 very well used seam-ripper (my best-sewing-friend and enemy), I had this:
It’s not perfect, but that really isn’t what matters. I learned SO MUCH from putting together this cute little zipper pouch. Sure, it was frustrating at times, but incredibly rewarding to look at what all my hard work had accomplished. It feels great to look at it and say “I made this.”
Since finishing architecture graduate school, I’ve been looking for some creative outlet. I have all this built up need. The occasional website design, album design, water bottle label, here and there helps a bit, but I really felt the need to work/build something with my hands. I guess that’s what 6 years of building models will do to you. And finally, after 8 months, I think I may have found my outlet.
What’s even better? Total cost of pouch (includes fabric, felt interfacing, and zipper) around $4-5. Awesome.
Up next on my sewing agenda? RUFFLES!
Here’s a few sewing blogs I’ve discovered and love for inspiration and tutorials:
The books I mention above are also very good for learning the basics, and they have super easy projects.
- Gussy Sews
- 2 Little Hooligans
- Sew Dad
A Husband that sews? Lovin’ this. - Skip to my Lou
That’s all I got right now. As the list grows, I’ll add them to my link list on the left. :)
Anyways, while I have y’alls attention, would you be interested in any sewing tutorials? They’d be super easy, as I’m navigating this whole new sewing world myself too. Just some simple projects, tested by a newbie (so you don’t make the same mistakes as me and become buddies with a seam ripper). All these tutorials would occur on my new blog, Gator Wife. Coming soon, in the next month I hope! :)
If you have any suggestions for good sewing and crafting blogs, please share!
all photos, except the first, taken by Mr. Knight
Tags: sewing
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