When you are first learning how to sew, it's really powerful to think about the
endless possibilities for your wardrobe. You can pick any garment and any fabric
and you can sew it to fit your body, and then you can wear it with pride. No
matter how long you've been sewing this creative process never stops being
thrilling. When you're first starting out how do you pick projects to start with?
And how do you pick fabric? And which do you pick first? Remember how we said that
sewing was an adventure? Well this is where it becomes a really fun choose
your own adventure. This lesson will help give you some tips. Let's start with
picking your first garment project. This is the fun part, so please don't stress
out. You can start with almost any project when you're first learning how
to sew. You can choose a simple project so you can just get your feet wet, or you
can dive into a more challenging project and just take it step by step.
The sewing instructions will take you through every single step and you can
pause at any time to look up a technique, ask the sewing community for help, reach
out to your local fabric store for some pointers, or even hop into a class. You
aren't in this sewing thing alone. When you're first starting to sew it helps to
pick projects that satisfy your curiosity. Are you curious about how to
sew knits because that's your favorite kind of fabric to wear? Then
start with a knit project like a t-shirt. If you really want to know how to
construct a pair of pants, then find a simple pants pattern and check it out.
Here are three tips to help you choose good beginner sewing projects. Tip number
one is to look for fewer closures. If you find buttons and zippers to be
intimidating then look for a garment that doesn't
have a lot of closures. Elastic might be easier for you to work with than zippers
and patterns that have wider necklines that slip over your head won't
need any kind of closure in the back. Tip number two is to pick a simple
silhouette. If you aren't ready to deal with a lot of fitting, pick a project
that has a simple, loose silhouette. It will give you some flexibility to start
with while you're learning how to sew and getting comfortable. If you aren't
sure how a sewing pattern is going to fit your body take a close look
at the pattern. Most pattern companies will give you a
description and include illustrations of the pattern which are also known as
technical flats to help you envision it on your body. Seamwork patterns have
really detailed fit guides in all of the instructions and you can even find them
on our website before you download the patterns. That way you can see how the
garment is meant to fit your body and Seamwork members can actually download
a PDF of all of our design flats so you can cut them out and use them for
planning your projects. Tip number three is to choose a skill-building technique
with every single project. Learning a new technique is really motivating
because it's gonna make you hungry to learn even more. When you're first
starting, pick projects that teach you a new skill especially a skill you can
Google really easily like installing bias tape or sewing a dart. With these
three tips in mind that's why we chose the Bo top for this sewalong. It's
loose-fitting, so choosing a size is really easy, you actually only need your
bust measurement, it doesn't have any closures so you don't have to mess with
zippers or buttons for your first project, but it is going to teach you an
essential skill for sewing, which is attaching bias tape. So if you sew Bo,
you'll learn all of the basics, plus a new skill which is attaching bias tape.
That way when you go to your next project,
installing a zipper won't feel that tricky. Now it's time to talk about
fabric. Should you pick your fabric after your pattern, or should you pick your
fabric and then your pattern? The good news is it does not matter. If you have
fabric on hand, you can find a pattern that works for that fabric. If you have a
pattern, the pattern is gonna tell you exactly what kind of fabric to buy. You
can start with either but no matter what you'll need to know a few basic things
about fabric while you're getting started. The first question to ask is if
the fabric is knit or woven. Knit fabric has stretch.
If your pattern calls for stretch, you have to use a knit otherwise you might
find that you can't move in your garment because it won't stretch. Next is the
fabric contents. You'll learn to think of fabric in terms of what it's made of.
Does it contain cotton, silk, linen polyester, or rayon. All sewing patterns
we'll give you a list of the types of fabric that you can use for that project.
Next up is drape. Drape refers to how the fabric hangs on your body. Is it flowy, or
is it stiff. Fabrics have different movements on the body. For example you'll
quickly learn that cotton is not all equal. Quilting cotton is called quilting
cotton because it's a little stiff. It's ideal for precise quilting projects.
It can work for some garments but not all garments. It doesn't drape really
well so it's not gonna hang on your body the same way that a shirting cotton
would which is designed for shirts. The more you sew the more you will get a
feel for drape so I just encourage you to go out and feel as many fabrics as
you can while you're first getting started. Finally think about what you
like to wear. Check out the labels on your favorite clothes and write down the
names of those fabrics. Odds are you're gonna find those same exact fabrics in
the fabric store so it helps to know what kind of fabrics that you enjoy
wearing. It all comes down to personal preference.
The more that you sew, the more that you will learn about fabric, it just comes
naturally. As you are just starting to learn, experiment with different fabrics
take notes along the way, start a swatch journal, cut out little pieces, take notes
label them. It's the best way to learn. Before we move on to the next video
where I'm going to show you how to pick a size, I just want to recommend a fun
class that we have here at Seamwork that can really help you sew clothes
that you want to wear. If you haven't heard of it, it's called Design Your
Wardrobe. It's three weeks long and we'll walk you through designing a collection
of patterns to sew. You'll create a mood board, you'll pick out fabric, and you'll
assemble individual looks. It's super fun and it's great if you're just starting
to really think about your style. It's also in the Seamwork Classroom, so when
you're finished with this class be sure to check it out. But next up, let's talk
about sizes.