SewLSC

A friend asked, how do I sew so fast?  And how many hours a day I sew?  I'm not sure how many hours a day I work on a project. I want sewing to be a fun, no pressure exercise so I made a concrete decision to not keep track of my hours.  The question made me think. There are a number of factors that contributed to my efficiency and output:  (1) I converted an underused bedroom in my empty nester home to a sewing room. Yes, it is a cliche. But the first time in my life I can cut, sew, press, fit & alter and store fabric, patterns and notions all in the same room. I keep my machines out. I keep my cutting board out on the table. I have a place to put and organize planned projects. And I did not need to put everything away between sewing sessions. Huge time saver! Huge! (2) I organized my patterns and fabric. Patterns are organized by type of garment or craft project. Fabric is organized by use and fabric type. Bottom weights together. Fabric for tops...

Can you use sheets as fabric to sew clothes? IMHO solid colored sheets are great for many garments. I’ve used them to make shirts, dresses, flowy pants, PJs, nightgowns and even a bra, which I reviewed here. The drape of sheets are often more similar to target fabric than actual muslin, which can be quite stiff. Per yard, sheets are often a LOT cheaper than muslin. Moreover, I like to sew wearable muslins so I can fit the pattern after wearing the test garment a time or four. I think the reason garments made with old sheets look like old sheets is twofold: mismatch drape and outdated color combination. The first is when the drape of the sheet does not match the drape of the fabric intended for the garment pattern. It is the same problem as with use of quilting cotton for garments. If the drape is similar, quilting cotton can be stunning in garments such as skirts and dresses. Not so much if the sewist uses quilting cotton in place of charmeuse or chiffon. Or knits. ...

An advanced beginner sewist recently asked what can you short cut/speed sew and what can you not? That question got me thinking about sewing efficiency.   I took a class on Craftsy years ago called Sew Better, Sew Faster . The class explained industry techniques for sewing efficiency. Sometimes I like to go very slow and sew couture level detail. I did that for my MOG gown that took months. ( And I took a class to learn to sew couture too). Most of the time I sew RTW style for myself and my family. This is a concrete decision to let go of perfectionist tendencies and not hold myself to a standard that exceeds what I would accept from most shops. I’ve sewed almost all my clothes since 2011. Not all garments I wear need to be couture quality. Sometimes good enough is good enough. Here are my prime takeaways for increasing efficiency: 1) Using a serger is quick and gives a nice seam finish. 2) Presser feet are engineering miracles. The correct foot for the job helps. Stitch in th...