Here are a few basic but helpful sewing tips for beginner sewers:

Pressing each freshly sewn seam as you are sewing your project truly does make a difference in the finished piece. Here’s an idea why plus pressing tips:

Source: Utah State University - Sewing and Textiles

Sewing clue: Press along the stitching line on both sides before pressing the seam open to set the stitches. This makes it easier to press the seam open and helps the seam lay smoothly. To press, raise and lower the iron as you move across the fabric; use a gentle up and down motion. This will keep the grain of the fabric straight. Pushing the iron back and forth on the fabric can stretch and distort the grain.

And:

Sewing clue: Pressing is an important part of sewing to shape and set the stitches. Press after stitching each seam. You will be able to stitch the next step smoothly and evenly, and your article will have a more professional look.

Iron out all the wrinkles of the pattern pieces before pinning to fabric. This makes the cutting job more accurate as well as much easier to fold and store in the pattern envelope.

Regularly oil your sewing machine (check the instruction manual) and keep the machine dust and lint free (a can of compressed air is nice to have on hand as well as a small brush).

Buy the best pair of sewing scissors that you can afford, use them only for cutting fabric. Super Tip: hide them so that no one will use them for cutting pipecleaners and other nefarious objects ;).

Cut fabric right sides together so that any markings you need to do will be on the wrong side.

Clip the threads properly before moving onto the next seam, no more hunting for long threads on a ‘finished’ piece.

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Posted in Crafts, Sewing | ( 0 )