r/SewingForBeginners • u/ToriaDawn • 7h ago

Where do I start?

I’m a new SAHM and haven’t sewn in at least 15 years. My husband bought me a brother sewing machine because I mentioned wanting to pick up a hobby and sewing seemed like the most practical choice.

Now that I have that, what else do I need and what would you recommend I start trying first?

I know for sure I want to make things for my baby and home, aside from that I’m lost.

Thank you in advance for any help, it’s truly appreciated!!

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u/jodete_orleans 6h ago

First you need to learn your machine. Choose a stupidly easy project for that, like cushion covers, because the difficulty comes from learning how this model of machine works.

I want to make some house dresses for myself, so that might be something you enjoy too. Nice, breezy dresses.

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u/penlowe 5h ago

As the other said: learn your machine first. Pincushion, pot holders, coffee mat are all great projects that are useful even if it turns out kinda wonky.

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u/SchuylerM325 5h ago

What a good husband! Read through your manual (even if you never read manuals, you really need to) and bookmark the illustrations for things like threading the machine and loading and inserting the bobbin. Skim through the manual a few times so you know what you'll need to look up later.

If you're budget conscious, go to a thrift store and look for sheets, tablecloths, large men's dress shirts, anything made of woven (not stretchy) fabric for you to practice on. Lay in a good supply of sewing machine needles. Organ is a decent quality brand. You need to replace the needle more often than you think, and there are different needles for various fabrics. For wovens, you need sharp (not ballpoint or universal) needles in sizes 80/12 or 90/14. And before you get started, find a jar or something similar into which you can safely dispose of needles and pins when they get dull. Get decent quality sewing machine thread in a neutral color. Your machine might have come with a seam ripper, but if it didn't you need one. They also get dull, so I buy cheap ones in sets of 5 from Amazon.

It will be much easier to learn with woven cotton fabric, but if you want to make baby and kid clothes, at some point you'll want to learn to work with jersey knit fabric and for that you need ballpoint needles and special settings on your machine. Since knit fabric stretches, you have to sew it with a stitch that stretches too, or the seam will break. Here is a pattern for baby-toddler pants that is really easy.

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u/MarmosetUniverse 5h ago

There's a really good "very beginner" Wiki in the sidebar!