The Art of Something New

If you’re anything like me, when learning something new you want to just skip ahead to the good stuff. And while sometimes that works, being able to sew properly means that you need to get to know your sewing machine first. Otherwise you are truly limiting yourself and what you can do.

I first started sewing on a whim. Until then I couldn’t even sew a button onto a shirt but one day I saw a tutorial on how to make an envelope back pillow and decided I wanted to do that. My daughter had taken some sewing classes with a friend and loved it. She was really excited about her new skills so we got her a sewing machine. In typical preteen fashion, she used it a few times and now it was just collecting dust. I pulled it out and essentially asked her how to make it work. My 13 year old was showing me how to thread the machine and how to sew a basic stitch. I did a few test stitches and then I was off to the races. I completed my first pillow! It wasn’t perfect but I was pretty impressed with how my first attempt to sew turned out. I was hooked.

A few trips to the fabric store later and more pillows were made. I decided to take it a step further and moved onto a baby blanket for friends of mine. I thought to myself “I’ve got this down. I don’t need to know what all theses knobs and crazy stitch patterns on the front of my machine really mean. I’m doing great!”. And then I started watching more how-to videos and reading sewing tutorials and I had no idea what the heck they were talking about. There are different stitch lengths and widths? You can change the foot? And what is a foot for that matter? I asked my daughter and all I received was the I don’t know shoulder shrug. I realized that although I was doing well, I had no idea how to truly use a sewing machine and if I wanted to be great, I needed to learn.

So I looked up the manual for my machine online (cuz who knows where the original one was) and I read. I played with settings, I pushed buttons and turned dials. I did so many test stitches combined they probably could’ve sewn together 50 more pillows. Ok, so that is probably an exaggeration but you get what I’m saying. I learned all about my machine and how to use it properly and because I did I am better at my craft. I am not saying I am perfect by any means. I know I can still improve but I also know it will come with time and experience. I will still have my trial and errors. I will still question why I choose to work with a particular fabric as it is sliding around under my needle. But I will continue to learn and push myself. With every stitch I rip because it was a little wonky I will learn to guide my fabric better or maybe slow down a bit but I am finally at a point that I can be truly proud of my work and want to share it with not just my family and friends but to anyone who comes across our site.

““It is my paint on the canvas...””

I have always loved being creative and designing. Coming up with an idea in my head and making it real but until I found sewing I never felt like I could really do that well. I lacked the skill(s) to do what was in my head. And forget trying to explain them to someone else for them to do it. It never would translate properly and I was always left frustrated. I finally have an outlet for my creativity and I am happy to now be able to share it with all of you.

And so, that is how I began this new art form. Some may not see it that way, they see sewing as a practical skill that most people don’t even know how to do anymore. But to me, it has become art. It is my paint on the canvas, my clay on a sculptors wheel. I look forward to growing and learning everyday and sharing my journey with all of you with tips, tricks and how-to’s (and how NOT to). So I hope you join me weekly as I get Into The Sewing of Things.