How I got into the swing of sewings!

Hello dear readers!

How are you today? This time, instead of showing you the last work I’ve made, I’ve decided to talk about my adventure. I took conscience that I never explained to you how I got into sewing and why I am doing self drafted patterns instead of using commercial patterns! I thought it was time to explain myself about that subject and getting a little bit more personal on this blog.

A lot of you know that I learned to sew on my own, and before getting my sewing machine I never touched one. I remember when I was a teenager I had the will to create super designed clothes. But at that time I didn’t have the materials at home nor the temper to make what I wanted when I wanted it! And then I grow up. And one day, I met a friend who was sewing and she revived my will to create things. From that moment, I decided overnight to buy a small sewing machine. I didn’t know if I would like to sew clothes but I told myself that if I didn’t like to sew, it would be useful for home decor or for cloth alterations. A sewing machine can always be useful! Don’t you think?

When I got in front of this unknown machine. I didn’t know anything! How to use it? What will my first project be? How do we start? How do we place the thread? How, how, hooooow? So many questions where facing me while I was there looking at the machine that I wasn’t able to use. Ho sure, I could have asked my friend to help me or could have taken some lessons. But I don’t know what it is with me. I really like to learn alone when I can be concentrated and focus on something, facing my abilities to understand how things work and understand them with my way of thinking! I think I am a bit of an Alien for that. And you, how do you like to learn?

Well, after putting the machine away for one or two months, I decided to start projects with simple things: sewing a table cloth or transforming flare jeans to slim,…

I directly felt that it was so satisfying to make things with the machine. It was not something ephemeral. The time I spent on my machine was satisfying because after working on a project. It was there and I could use it, wear it and show it! There was a result!

From that moment, I got into the world of patterns! I directly turned to Burda Style magazine, because it is very well known for its patterns and easy to find, and then a book, then two and then more! And I got into the swing of sewings! I wanted to do everything! I helped myself with Youtube, blogs and books. It was so inspiring!

Everyone who is sewing knows that buying patterns may be a little bit expensive in the end, and in my concern I often have a precise idea of what I want to wear: what style, what materials, what details,… So I started to think about my own design by transforming patterns I had already. It worked not too bad but I was still unsatisfied because I didn’t know the rules to transform them correctly to make them perfect for me!

By then, I had been offered by my lovely man two references work : “La coupe à plat nº1, Prêt-à-porter & sur-mesures pour DAME, Jacqueline Chiapetta, Les Presses du Midi” and the three volumes of “Le vêtement féminin, Modélisme, Coupe à plat, dpstudio, OTKUUT Éditions”.

With those works I could then create whatever I wanted in woman fashion! I mixed the techniques of both to understand and adapt them to my self-drafted patterns!

At that time, I started to draw my patterns on paper, it was so satisfying! The inconvenient is that it takes a lot of time to create it, it is necessary to have a big space to make it well and when you have finished your pattern you have to keep it somewhere without damaging it. And it is complicated when you live in a small apartment with no possibility of moving walls!

So my unique solution was to find a way to digitise my patterns! After some research on blogs (I don’t remember the blog which was advising me to download the software and can’t find it back, shame on me!), I discovered Valentina which is an opensource program.

It took me a little bit of time to understand how to use it correctly and to reproduce the exact method from the books to the software. But now I can say I am dealing it pretty well. If you want to know more about it you can jump on their forum or if you want me to explain some tips to use it, I can consider to explain you some things. Just ask me if you want me to give you tips about the program!

So I am taking the opportunity with this article, to announce you that with all this evolution of my passion. I decided to change this hobby into my job. So I am working hard on creating my business at the moment. Sometimes I have doubts and sometimes I am lost, but what’s motivating me is to do something that I like for a living. What is more important in a life? And I want to thank every person who’s supporting me in my project and my frenzy! I can’t wait to reach the point to say I have made it!

And you how did you start to sew? Do you recognise yourself in my story?

If you have some questions, testimonies, suggestions, wishes for my future articles, don’t hesitate to tell me! As JCVD would say “I am Awaaarre”.

Take care my Dears and have a lovely weekend!

Manon