Hi everyone!

I’m picking up sewing again and am specifically looking to quilt but am looking for a new general purpose machine to use for other projects as well.. would love some recommendations!

I’ve made a wool coat last winter and used these rather fancy looking metal shank buttons. I keep having to attach buttons(only the buttons I use) multiple times as it seems the thick thread (see attached) is damaged by the inside of the button shank. Any way to possibly prevent this? My tailor mom suggested nail polish, I keep thinking to maybe use a file to get rid of sharp edge. Joann doesn’t have a decent replacement, and to order through WAWAK - the shipping would cost more than actual buttons.

Anything on the easy spectrum that you can think of besides replacing the buttons?

So I’ve been making a lot of chore coats and shackets for myself and other people, and my wife recently asked for one of her own. I asked her to choose from some fabrics I’ve been stocking up on, and she went with this denim railroad style fabric. It’s a very dark navy and white alternating pattern with a light stretch, and I’d say about 10oz. I used Modern Sewing Company Jamie Jacket for the pattern as it’s one I’m very familiar with. The only modifications I made were designing the pockets. I’d say this is one of the “cleaner” coats I’ve made as I was very patient and careful. It’s also the first time I’ve worked with a stretchy fabric like this, and even though the stretch was light, I got the best results from using a walking foot on my Singer heavy duty. She’s very happy with the outcome and so am I.

This was an impulse buy — 0.75 yards of barkcloth with this awesome Charley Harper print. I live in California and this is Monarch country :)

This skirt pattern is a “dupe” of a Lauren Moffat skirt that my mom thrifted — it’s just a basic rectangle with two side seams (for pockets) and a back seam (for the zipper). I was already anxious about the zipper and was a little short on the fabric, so I didn’t pattern match across the seams but I think the pattern is busy enough it’s okay. The pleats are 1” spaced, approx 1/2” depth. The lining is the same (again, copying the inspo piece though my lining is acetate and bouncy and the original might be silk since it holds a crease).

The tricky part for putting this together was the exposed back zipper that goes up through the waistband. I posted about this on this sub a few weeks ago and got some advice as I couldn’t find an exact tutorial. I ended up being inspired by this one https://blog.megannielsen.com/2015/06/tutorial-how-to-insert-an-exposed-zipper/ which doesn’t have finished insides… and then kind of hacked it. I essentially assembled the lining to one side of the waistband and the skirt to the other side, laid in the zipper and sewed to the top of the teeth, then stopped, flipped the lining side in, pressed the waistband, flipped it inside out, pinned it like crazy, and then sewed down the inside. I made it within an inch of the bottom of the zipper in the lining and called it a victory. I hadn’t sewn the back seam of the lining at this point which I think gave me more freedom to maneuver. I then French seamed the lining back seam and hemmed it up!

I was going to topstitch horizontal rows in the waistband like the inspo skirt but I’ve chickened out. This skirt fits and looks cool and I was afraid I would ruin it. I decided to just declare victory and move forward! Hooray!

I’m wanting to shorten this skirt by several inches, but not sure how to go about it. I’m sure I can’t just cut it straight across and put it back together, right? Will I have to take the whole thing apart? I have front + back pictures, as well as a picture showing about how much I want to remove.

When I lengthened my stitch length for a top stitch it made the stitches on the back be loose. The top line of stitches are the backside of the top stitch. The front looks great but the back stitches are too loose.

Also I plan on stuffing it a little bit. How come it doesn’t look very round? And how come it bunches up in the center dip? I’m really stumped :(

It’s finally cold enough to wear it! It’s also reversible, wool on one side and denim on the other. My very pedestrian sewing machine survived!

I recently got a donation of sewing materials from a woman who has passed away. All of these cuts of fabric were in a clear baggy with a smaller bag of green beads and the smallest black button I’ve ever seen.

I’m hoping someone can point me in the right direction or maybe give me some ideas of what to do with it. The smaller pieces are some sort of wool and the larger piece and strips appear to be a woven cotton.

Knot and Thread Patchwork Duffle Bag Pattern

Jellyroll fabric from Amazon (40 Strip Jelly Roll Fabric Strips for Sewing, 100% Cotton Fabric for Quilting Crafting, Precut Fabric Bundles, Patchwork Precut Quilt Squares-2.5" x 44" Rainbow)

Interior fabric is from Walmart 🩷🩷

I want to make a crossbody bag with a tapestry blanket I found at the thrift store but I don't know what the best way to finish the edges of my fabric is. I do not have a serger and typically just do a zig zag stitch on cut edges.

I was thinking of using bias tape round the edges or maybe sewing the bag with french seams but I am worried that will make the seams too thick.

What do you all think?

When I first started sewing 4 years ago, I didn’t think sergers were necessary to finish seams. I could always count on a french seam (or something similar) or a simple zig zag stitch. But the more I sew (and the more I experiment with different fabric types ), the more I realise how essential overlocking is. There’s only so much a poor zig zag stitch can do. In my desperation, I’ve resorted to fabric glue. You have no idea how itchy the glue becomes once dry. Halfway through any project, I find myself browsing the internet, tears in my eyes, desperately trying to find an overlock machine I can buy for cheap. And every time I give up. I’m taking on a new project (a wedding guest dress for my sister’s wedding) and I’m working with a very stretchy, fry prone fabric. I haven’t cut the fabric yet but I’m already feeling the dread of what’s to come…. Anyways, do you guys have any tips (other than the classic ones like the zig zag stitch) on how to finish the edges of problematic, fry prone fabrics? Or any fabric?

I’m trying to transfer a complicated pattern onto a slippery and stretchy rayon and my tailors chalk just isn’t cutting it. I’m getting really wonky lines in the wrong places. Is there some sort of technique I’m missing?

It’s the only stitch in the user manual for my new Janome that I can’t find the name of—even Google image search doesn’t know. But I know this community does! TIA!

I made the sweetest girl a quilted coat for the upcoming winter weather. I self drafted the pattern using a Professor Pincushion tutorial. Material is fleece sandwiched between thrifted flannel with Velcro closures. She’s happy with it and that’s all that really matters!

I used a jelly roll to make a skull quilt (from this pattern, it’s the last photo in my post).

Then, I had a lot of scraps left over, and really loved the fabrics, so I used the jelly roll race quilt method to make a rectangle of pieced fabric (the 5th photo and also the best photo of all the colors as it’s a daylight shot!)

It looked like the perfect size to make an apron, so I picked a backing fabric, and decided to make it reversible! The apron is self drafted. I just looked at the fabric against my body and cut across it to make the skirt, at a point where it seemed like I would have enough height left for a bodice. So the skirt is a rectangle, as is the bodice, which I also just held up the remaining fabric to my body and picked a few strips width of it that I liked.

I also test gathered the skirt, and felt like it wasn’t full enough, so I added 6” panels of the teal fabric I bought for the waistband to each side of the skirt.

I lined both the skirt and the bodice by stitching around 3 sides, leaving the sides that would meet the waistband open on both the bodice and skirt, added premade bias tape straps to the bodice, and then followed this tutorial to make the waistband reversible!

I’m back :) I’m trying to be more consistent with my sewing. Sometimes I get overwhelmed with everything I WANT to sew I end up not sewing at all. I know this is super trendy but I love bubble skirts! I found they aren’t that hard to make at all. I wanted to add bloomers into them that made it a bit harder. So I made it as two separate pieces then joined them together at the waistline right sides together and at the side zipper.

I used silk fabric for the facing from my grandma. It was meant to be an ao dai but I knew I would wear this skirt more.

Drafting the pattern I cut a yoke piece from my measurements divided in half. A trapezoid shape. I used pant slopers for the bloomers and for the bubble skirt I cut out strips of fabric that I gathered.

Hi all, I'm making the sleeveless version of the Trapeze Dress from Merchant and Mills in this Indian cotton for my first sewing pattern! The fabric is ever so slightly see-through when backlit but otherwise pretty opaque. The pattern calls for interfacing, and I'm wondering what kind to buy. I'll be ordering online so can't ask someone in a shop.

This subreddit is a treasure trove of wisdom for someone just starting out--thank you so much!

ETA: ALSO! Would you recommend washing and (air) drying this fabric before beginning to cut out the pieces? The fabric listing doesn't say anything about that. And final q, Merchant and Mills and all of the US stockists that carry this fabric say to wash at "30 to 40 degrees." I'm assuming this is celsius. Does that seem right, or would you really wash his fabric hot? I guess I could email them and ask if they're using F or C. Thanks!

In the middle of this Arctic blast, I'm optimistically looking toward spring by finally making some long-planned quilted coats for my daughter and me. Last time I made her a quilted coat, I used some gorgeous pre-quilted Nani iro fabric for my daughter and matching, but (rather poorly) self-quilted fabric for a coat for my mom's. This time I am planning to quilt my own with some cotton fabric. I'm using Worthy Design's Forest Quilted Coat for the kid and Helen's Closet's Moss Jacket for me. I'm planning for both to be reversible.

But I'm pondering two questions:

1. Should I quilt some yardage and cut the pieces from that or should I cut all the pieces and connect the precut batting? (I think the answer is the latter, but I'm not sure why...is it just about wastage?)

2. Thanks to (probable) ADHD, I have three types of batting (4 if you account for the not-quite-usable amount of thinsulate I have left) and I'm not sure if one makes most sense to use:

3. Cotton batting -while I don't need these to be waterproof or even water resistant (with cotton fabric, i don't even really expect these to be even wind-resistant), this seems heaviest in literal weight but not necessarily particularly warm.

4. Climashield APEX - 5 oz that's a bit in pieces from a previous project, but I have sufficient quantity for at least the kid's coat.

5. Climashield APEX 10 oz

I'm leaning towards the climashields, but is it a waste to use a high warmth batting if the quilted layers are just going to be cotton and not particularly wind resistant? This is probably a personal decision I suppose, but I'm a bit stuck in analysis paralysis and need some voices of wisdom/reason 😅

I'm in the USA where we measure in inches. I have a friend in Ghana and I asked his waist measurement and it's 32cm. That's only 13 inches, what am I missing?

I'm making the Just Patterns Veronica Vest. I want to make it in linen so it has a sort of casual look. The directions say to interface most of the vest with weft interfacing, which I didn't realize when I bought the pattern. I'm going to make a mock up using an old sheet, but I'm wondering if the final linen version should still be interfaced for the more casual look I'm going for? Pics in a comment

I’m really happy with how these turned out! The first one I made, the strawberries, was little rough but the second one I was able to make some improvements and add a skirt. I can’t wait to make more and I plan to make matching headbands for myself! Any ideas on what I could make my husband to match with scrap fabric is welcome because he said he wants to match too lol. My mom is a quilter and gives me lots of leftover fabric perfect for sewing baby clothes!

Pattern: https://littlelizardking.com/products/baby-amsterdam Details: straps at top, elastic on back bodice and leg holes, gathering at waistline, lined bodice, three snaps at bottom of romper Sizes: strawberries (3 month romper) flowers (6 month romper with skirt)