Second hand fabric is mostly unused fabric, but it probably sat in someone’s stash for a long time, so there may be some stains, holes, or just a weird shape. If It can be damaged or problematic, why would you bother with it, you ask? Well, you’ll find second hand fabrics of different sizes, weights, fibres, prints, style and age, that you can’t buy anywhere else. Certainly not for that price and as a bonus, you provide support to your community. For instance, I was looking for a rayon fabric, to sew up a summer skirt. Rayon fabric in a local craft store cost AU$19-25 per metre, I needed 2-3 ..read more

Prewashing is one of the sewing preparations steps before we get to the sewing itself. To prewash means that you wash your fabric, dry and iron first, before you cut out a pattern pieces and sew it all together. Wash and dry your fabric as you would wash and dry a garment from it. Why is prewashing beneficial? Cleans the fabric Prevents colour bleeding on your project Removes chemicals Shrinks fabric Trues grain Removes smells You don’t want to put so many hours in the sewing and then realise that colour bleed or fabric shrunk and now It’s not wearable. Treating a raw edges Before yo ..read more

Every sewing course should begin with safety rules where it’s explained how to work with tools and machines in the safest way. Turning the machine off when you’re changing the needle, adjusting the speed of sewing, using a finger guard or clapper are some of the safety practices we can prevent injuries with. Sewing safety rules: These are not just rules, but rather safety habits. The practices for us to eliminate hazards and have positive memories on time we spent in sewing room. Machine OFF  Always turn off the machine when you’re: threading your machine changing a presser foot ..read more

You can sew anything if you prepare your fabric, adapt the machine needle, choose the right presser foot and machine settings. For enjoyable sewing experience with rayon prewash the fabric, press and starch before cutting. Use plenty of weights and pins and cut on a single layer. Put a universal or microtex needle into your machine, shorten the length of the stitch and sew with a cotton thread. What is rayon? Rayon is a woven, man-made fabric from natural fibres. Rayon is produced from purified cellulose, primarily from wood pulp, which is chemically converted into a soluble compound. Rayon ..read more

Match seams at the first attempt every time with these easy steps. Press the seams, pin through the seam stitching and on both sides of the seam. Check your pinning before sewing to avoid seam ripping. Straight pins or fork pin You probably have the straight pins in your sewing kit and they work perfectly fine. I like to use three for one seam matching. One in the centre and two from both sides. Because the fork pins are already doubled, one is enough. It slides from the sides of the stitching line. The fork pins are more on the pricey side and unnecessary. Please, do not sew over the fork p ..read more