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My First Sewing Machine…
I just found out about the first sewing machine I ever sewed on as a young girl beginning at 6 years old. I remembered it was black with silver trim, but I did not know the brand etc.
My mother just told me that it was a gift from my paternal grandmother to her in the mid 1950’s.
My grandparents were having a house built in Kansas and they purchased a bedroom suite from Montgomery Wards and they gifted a sewing machine with the purchase. Isn’t that a neat bonus gift from a department store! (My paternal grandmother was an architect for the Atchison Topeka and SantaFe RailRoad so although we would hand sew together…she did not sew with a machine.)
This sewing machine had just the basic straight stitch that could be length adjusted and a zigzag stitch. It rewound your bobbin and of course had the pressure foot. My mother purchased a Singer brand buttonholer attachment that fit on the Montgomery Wards machine.
This machine had everything necessary to make wonderful dresses and crafts for many years.
Therefore, a good sewing machine for beginners can be just the basics. This sewing machine would be perfect and really accomplish anything you would like to sew. It would give you a foundation to sew patterns, applique, and could most certainly be purchased with a button attachment. Which if you do any clothing sewing, you will need.
The sewing machine I have found that seems to meet those requirements is the Singer 4423 with the following attributes:
- 97 Stitch Applications for any Fabric or Project
- One-step Buttonhole that Create Consistent Buttonholes in a Style to Suit Your Needs.
- Adjustable Presser Foot Pressure to allow Adjustments for Very Heavy or Very Fine Fabrics.
- Adjustable Stitch Length & Width
- Quick and Easy Threading with a Built-In Needle Threader
- Front Load Bobbin that is Easy to Wind and Insert
There is a Singer buttonhole attachment that can be purchased separately for this machine.
Is it cheaper to make your own clothes?
Making your own clothes in today’s economy is a conundrum. If you are an average size and can wear clothes straight off the rack then no…making your clothes probably would not be cheaper. But if you are a little busty or are not the perfect size 2 you probably could make clothes that truly fit you better than anything you could buy in a store providing you already have your sewing machine and notions.
This would be a time to evaluate what a pattern costs, what the material costs and thread and any accessories such as zippers, buttons you might want to purchase. You can not put a price on your time… you have to lump that in with your entertainment expenses and realize that the satisfaction of having an outfit that looks and feels good when you are wearing it…is worth a lot!
In 1970’s the style was mini mini skirts in our little town in Kansas. My father took me to California as he was attending a conference and while there I observed people wearing long mid length skirts…so I came back to Kansas and made a mid length circle skirt in bright red yellow and blue patchwork material with a matching yellow zipper front hoodie and then I wore white shirt underneath… I was so proud of the outfit…and I think it possibly helped lower the skirt length at the school at the time. I got rave reviews from my friends.
This is just to show you that your sewing can change trends and improve your feeling about yourself. Often the latest trends are not the best for every body type so sew your own trend and march to your own drummer so to speak!
Is sewing your own clothes hard?
Sewing your own clothes can be hard especially if you pick a complicated pattern to follow. I suggest keeping with Simplicity patterns to begin with because they are structured for the beginner and keep the instructions very user friendly. As you get more accomplished with your sewing you can move to other patterns like Vogue for example that tend to have more complicated instructions and directions. Once you understand the basics of putting together an outfit. You will be able to adapt your knowledge of sewing to the more complicated instructions and sew things together in a reasonable order no matter what the pattern says.
An example would be whether to insert your sleeve on an outfit before you sew up the seam. Sometimes this might make it less complicated than having to sew the sleeve on in a circle than a more straight approach. As you sew you will pick up easier ways to accomplish the same task.
I picked a Vogue pattern to sew my California outfit and had to do a lot of adapting the pattern when it came to the zipper front hoodie!
What do you need to start sewing clothes?
First I recommend a Simplicity pattern because it is easy to read the instructions. Additionally if you look on the back of your pattern and go to the size you are going to make and then look at the width of your fabric, the back of the pattern will tell you exactly how much material to purchase. Also it lists the other items you may need such as thread, buttons, zipper etc. to make the pattern just like the pictures. The instructions inside the pattern will show you exactly how to lay out the patterns on the material so you will maximize your material usage and not run out of material.
I am assuming you have already purchased a sewing machine to use to make clothes. It is pretty essential because hand sewing would take a long time to go over seams enough times that it would not pull out when you wear the garment. Should your garment have buttons, be sure you have a good buttonholer attachment for your sewing machine too.
Can I make clothes without a sewing machine?
It is probably not advised to make clothes without a sewing machine if you have long seams.
Although, there are some Simplicity patterns where you really may only sew the top of the shoulder and the rest of the garment is a wrap. In this case, you would not necessarily have to have a sewing machine. But any long seam would require double if not triple stitching to keep it from pulling apart as you wear the garment. This exercise though not impossible would be very time consuming.
I personally would ask an Amish lady how they make their stitches, of which that would give you a way to make clothes without a sewing machine.