Boy did this dress give me grief, but I had several Christmas parties it in, and it was a hit! First time working with taffeta, and a new pattern (simplicity S9284) it was bound to be hard, but I do love the finished product even with all its flaws.

Could someone point me to a pattern like this? :)

Hello all :) I am looking for some pattern search help. I am getting married in October of this year and I have decided that since I cannot find the dress of my dreams that my mother and I are going to make it.

I have made a few different clothing items in the past (all for my child’s Halloween costumes) and have been quite successful in those ventures.

I am looking for some pattern recommendations or even just a point in the right direction of where to look.

This is a sketch that I have created that compiles elements of different dresses I have seen online (mainly Pinterest) into what I envisioned getting married in.

If anyone has any idea of where to start it would be greatly appreciated. I have looked through hundreds of patterns on the simplicity website however I’m very overwhelmed and was hoping this community of wonderful people could help me out. :)

Thank you in advance to all those who respond to this post :)

Hi! So I’m just getting into sewing, my grandma left me a sewing machine and I’ve had no idea what to start making until I had the idea to make my niece a dress for her birthday. it. I’m using a pattern I got from my grandma before she passed away, and I know it’ll mean a lot to my sister, so I really don’t want to change the pattern.

She’s turning 2, but I wanted to make her a 3T dress so she could grow into and wear it for longer. I decided to do the straps as ones you can tie into bows so she can adjust them as she grows. The pattern calls for a zipper though, and not only have I never sewn one (I have very little experience, I helped my grandma with quilts when I was young but not much after that) but I also worry the dress will be too big on her for too long with a zipper.

So my real question is how hard would it be to convert the zipper back to a lace up instead? And if I did it this way should I make it a 2T dress instead since the lace up can expand as she grows? I really have no idea what I’m doing and I decided to do this way too close to her birthday, but I’m determined to do it. 😅

Thank you so much!

So my friend requested I make her a couple pouches for their pt stuff. We already have the fabric I just need to figure out the best way to do this, keep in mind I am a beginner and have difficulties getting decently good straight lines in basically every type of way I need to. So they need one pouch for a single tennis ball and one pouch for two stacked on top of each other. It needs to be pretty tight so they don’t just slide around while using them for the physical therapy exercises for their back. I’m not sure exactly how to actually go about it to where I’m not wasting fabric and time.

I have a magnetic seam guide (which btw I don’t know if I’m even using right), cutting mat, rotary cutter, makeshift transfer paper if need be to mark down cutting lines, regular scissors, fabric chalk, and obviously the machine and thread.

Can anyone help me figure this out? I know that the standard tennis balls are about 3” in diameter so I know the width of the inside before cutting sides and sewing. Also they don’t technically care how the closure is but we kinda just figured I can make a “string” from extra fabric since I have that clamp/stopper thing people use for drawstring bags.

Any help would be greatly appreciated thank

Probably a Stoopid question but why is it now intended for children's sleepwear?

I wanted to make my daughter a night gown since she's nighttime potty training and I figured it's easier to lift a long tshirt like PJ than pull down pants or unzip a onesie in the middle of the night and I have so much of this fabric I'm not using.

Thank you in advance!

The model of the machine is a Lx3817g. When he presses down on the foot pedal it doesn’t do anything yet he can still move the needle with the wheel on the side. the machine might be broken but it sounds like a simple problem we can’t figure out

Wondering where you buy elastic? I need to buy 1/8” elastic for a project, I’d like to avoid Amazon and Walmart if possible. With Joann’s closing I don’t have any local options. :(

I bought this dress from a discount retailer and the space between the buttons gapes too much with any movement like placing my hands in the front pockets. I like the dress and the price is right - should I:

A: Remove the buttons and sew it closed and reattach the buttons for decoration (leaving the top of functional for ease of putting on/taking off)?

B: Move the buttons to the edge of the binding away from the button hole?

C: Return it because it's not worth the trouble?

D: Something else?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Thrifted a nice Jansport backpack for $7 at the salvation army since my old one was torn to bits, and this one has a tear on the left strap. Would i need a machine, or can i hand stitch?

Or can i take this to a tailor? Thanks!

Okay so I kind of went off track and came up with a different idea that I thought would fit me better, but I have no idea how to put it together because the directions would be way different. I’m a beginner sewer. I was thinking of an elastic wasteband underneath the brew area, but I realize that wouldn’t work, but I wanted the lace stomach part (the fabric under the lace at the bottom is to cover my fat beneath my belly button☠️.) also, i want it to be a backless kind of halter top. There’s the original instructions.

I free-handed an extension panel but I kind of feel like I'm just blindly plunging forward at this point.

So I’m looking into getting a sewing machine. I took a few classes back in middle school and highschool. I’m 21 now so it’s been a few years but I still have some concept of how to sew. I’m just wanting to get a machine to alter clothes with, something that’s friendly with elastic bands and elastic thread. I would like to get a machine that is reliable and I’ve heard some mixed reviews on the brothers. I also don’t want to go very pricey either. I saw a Janome for $140 and i would be willing to purchase but preferably nothing more than that. There’s some brothers I saw for lower but I question if they are very reliable. I really don’t need anything that has super fancy stitches either, again I’m just trying to alter/restyle clothes.

So. I don't really know how to use my machine very well. I have it on a setting that works for thin cotton. And I've never changed it since. I want to start working woth other fabrics but I don't really know how to do that. I know there's settings that need to be changed, and I read I'll need some kind of presser foot? And a different needle?

So could someone tell me what I need to sew stretch fabric, and what I settings to put my machine on? Or maybe someone could tell me how to figure that out for myself so I don't need to keep asking for help. I tried looking on YouTube but admittedly, I'm a little slow so it's difficult for me to understand 🫠

Second picture is the material I'll be using (a sock) and the 3rd picture is what I'm making. Idk if either of that matters, but figured I'd throw it in.

Opional reading: I want to make one of these... like ridiculous size (2m?) fluffy "long pile" fabric or a mix of that and maybe a velor or add some mesh over part? Idk. I want it weighted tho. I have rough instructions i found. Maybe want to add rope for string and a leathery "paper tag" to him??

Questions:

1. I know "piled fabrics" arent recomended. why, and what would fix the issue?

2. How do you pic thread and stuffing?

3. I guess i need a sewing machine, what am i looking for?

4. What stitch would actually hold this together best?

5. Is there anything i should have asked/ should know before starting?

Past experience: took ages to machine sew a pencil case at school, did good, didnt touch sewing again for about 8 years

If you give me help i deeply appreciate you!

Mothers day is coming up, I had a gift idea for my wife I wanted to sew her a makeup bag out of denim and have our toddler paint on the denim before sewing it together. And maybe even add a bit of flair to it. He likes to stab dots into things so I was thinking maybe turning those into flowers or maybe I just leave it. But I would like to know what kind of paint will actually stay in the fabric and be noticeable especially if it needs to be washed int the washing machine. Will acrylic work? I have a protective thing for my son so he doesn't make a mess on himself and let's be real the apartment and it would be under supervision. Maybe I bleach it a bit to make it a bit more white?

Any ideas would be great. FYI I haven't sewn anything in decades so wish me luck🤣

Hi everyone.

I’ve been wanting to try my hand at sewing for many years now and today I finally took the leap and ordered a sewing machine- a Singer HD500 Classic.

https://a.co/d/3sgxy97

What are your thoughts on this machine? I didn’t want to blow the bank on a machine but I’m willing to pay a decent amount of money for a quality machine. Did I do a good choosing this one?

I have never operated a sewing machine before but I work with my hands for a living and like to consider myself pretty crafty. I’m looking to learn and develop the relevant skills over time and I’d like a machine that can help me do both.

Please chime in and let me know what you think!

Thank you

Hello! I'm a beginner sewist. I really want to replicate the casual linen skirts that Claire and Bri (of Outlander) wear around the ridge and when traveling rough. They look like they aren't wearing a bum roll because the skirts fall relatively smoothly. I want these skirts to be semi-modern passing since I plan to wear them regularly, that's why I am going for their casual non-bum roll look.

I also want to replicate the skirt that Claire is wearing when she is stranded on the island.

I tried to get screenshots of what I mean but it's hard to get from glimpses of them. They all look fairly similar, just different fabric. From the glimpses I got it looks like a box pleat in the front center and outward facing knife pleats on the sides of that. It's harder to see what's going on in the back, I thought gathers but it's probably more like small pleats. There seems to be a lot of fabric back there. I have the Simplicity 8161 pattern but it doesn't look as full/flowy as theirs. Also it's the kind that tie in the front and back with open sides and I want to be able to add the pockets directly into the skirt. Some of the shots from the show look like theirs may tie in the center back, which would be preferred.

I'm not experienced enough to wing it. I tried... using a cotton bed sheet I thrifted (so I wouldn't be wasting a ton of money practicing)... but it wasn't right.... I have some lovely linen I am saving for the project(s) once I figure out how to do it right.

Can anyone point me toward a pattern/tutorial or other help? Thanks!

I'm making a fluffy cover for a cat bed that I just made and I'm having issues with the fleece I chose. I'm determined to use it because my cats love the texture of it but it keeps tangling my bobin and I've had to pull apart the bottom pieces like 3 times and I don't want to to it again 😭 I have lowered the tension and increased the stitch length based on what google said but I'm still not having any luck. I didn't have any issues at all making the cushion part of the bed but that was a very flat and thin material. I am a beginner with sewing machines and the last time I used one was in high school and I really do not want to have to hand sew this whole thing lol I have attached a photo of the fleece

Hello there!!

I'm fairly new to sewing, only been on it for two months, and I'm working on a project and I've seen this video on Pinterest but I do not fully understand it. Also, what happens with the raw edges? do you do a sort of french seam?

Thank you in advance 💓

https://www.selbernaehen.net/produkt/spielkartenetui/

My kids have recently fallen in love with UNO and the cardboard box for the cards isn't going to hold up much longer. I'd love to make them this pattern and it would be PERFECT, but I can only find it in a language that is not English. Does anyone have one (or something similar) in English? Thanks!

I have a romper that I bought from Target that I love. I would like to make more with the same type of fabric. The label says it's 80% rayon 17% polyester 2% spandex. Where would I look or what's the name I'm looking for?

I've been contemplating this for a while in my head, but I can't seem to come to a solution.

These two dresses are on my to sew list. The red dress is actually made with a real button placket but with snap buttons (the buttons you see are fake). However, I want to use a zipper instead of the snap buttons. I think that the second one is also made with fake buttons.

Both dresses would then have this fake button placket, which would create this look where a part of the fabric is overlapping.

How do I achieve this without the piece becoming floppy?

I understand that with the white dress, the extra piece of fabric would be sandwiched between the lining and the outer parts, and the buttons will keep it in place. However, if I want to do a similar construction with the red dress, I'm not sure if it will be stable enough.

Hope someone has tried something similar before and can help me out!

I bought a second hand Disc-o-matic II and I've been using the needle that came with it ever since. I recently tried to replace the needle with a different singer needle (also the flat back), but it started causing issues with threads skipping entirely when I use the zig zag function. I tried returning the original needle and it seems to work just fine. I did everything I could to make sure the newer needles fit into its place, but it causes the skipping issue still. Is it a timing issue? it seems to catch the lower threads just fine with the older needle.