I’m asked lots of questions during every teaching session in the studio, and most of them start ‘this may be a stupid question but….’. Well do you know? I’ve never heard a stupid question yet! They have all been excellent questions, and I’m always happy to answer them. Chances are the person asking isn’t the only one who doesn’t know the answer. So if you don’t know, then please ask. Because the only stupid question is the one you don’t ask.
A question I’m asked frequently is what is the best way of marking fabric for dressmaking? Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer to that as there is a variety of fabric-marking tools available, and each has their pro’s and cons. My advice is to have a selection of fabric marking tools available to cope with every situation. Here’s a list of the most common:
Probably the most common sewing problem is getting correct sewing machine tension. By thread tension, we mean the amount of thread that can pass through the machine to create the stitch. The more thread in the stitch, then the looser the stitch. The less thread, then the tighter the stitch.
Pattern Ease is the allowance made over and above the body measurements when making a pattern. It enables natural body movement. If patterns were exactly the same size as your body measurement, the garment would literally be skin tight. Pattern ease is added to the body circumference measurements, but not to any vertical measurements. Although your shop-bought clothes may say ‘to fit bust 36″‘, if you measure them, you’ll find that they are considerable bigger.
The talking point of last night’s Academy Awards ceremony was undoubtedly the announcement of the wrong winner of Best Film. But my attention as always was on the stunning gowns. So I thought I’d take a look at some of the sewing patterns around that are worthy of an Academy Award themselves.
Modern sewing machines (made in the last 30 years or so) will produce a variety of basic machine stitches including straight stitches, zig-zag and other utility stitches. If you learn what these stitch types are used for, it’ll make your sewing easier and more enjoyable.
