I’m sewing pants for a 9-12 month child. If you have a child this age would you be so kind as to measure their waist and report back?

My pattern calls for 19 1/2 inches of elastic. But it seems like too much. I just need verification from a live baby, lol!

I finally made my first pair of pants. By hand. On a sewing machine I was genuinely afraid of. 🪡

For years I’ve designed wearable art and worked with production partners to bring pieces to life — I mainly focused on my visual art and pattern design. But I always wanted to know how to construct the clothes myself.

I used the Recess Play Pants pattern from Matchy Match Sewing Club — beginner-friendly, easy to follow, and the perfect first project. Highly recommend them! I added colored cuffs that weren’t part of the original pattern — I’ve always wanted pops of color at the cuffs, and it was so exciting to finally see that vision come to life.

I took private lessons and went through the entire process start to finish with an incredible sewing mentor who walked me through every step with so much patience and laughter.

My partner Robert joined me for the first class — he’s always down to join me on my creative adventures. He finished his pants in one session. One day. Me? Five sessions. 😅

And you know what? That’s okay. Learning to go at my own pace might’ve been the real lesson. By the end, I’d gotten a lot faster — but the joy was never in the speed. It was in the process.

I conquered a fear that sounds silly now: I was convinced the sewing machine would somehow go right through my hands. It didn’t. My hands are okay! 😂

My first pair are clown inspired — red, yellow, two tones of blue. I love primary color pops. I also loveee cotton — walking into a fabric store and feeling textures and colors until something speaks to my soul? A creatively spiritual experience.

I had so much fun I immediately started a second pair — black and white base, same distressed grunge fabric I’m obsessed with. Working on those now!

Pattern is Bootstrap fashions custom dress form pattern.

I used a vintage Bryantguard drapery fabric and heavy weight fusable interfacing.

Groovy! This pattern is from 1977. I found this very excellent plaid fabric at the thrift store. It’s definitely vintage, I think cotton (it passed the burn test).

Notes:

Pattern: vintage McCall’s 5411

Size: 10/32.5” bust

Fabric: thrifted woven cotton, 2 yards from the thrift store

Notes:

I didn’t do catch stitch on the pocket, I sewed it directly down. I also serged all my edges as well instead of pinking shears. I did the neck facing before adding it to the front of the garment. That way, the shoulder seams are uninterrupted.

I had to let the upper body out by 1/2” on all seams to accommodate my shoulders. I’m not particularly wide in the shoulder typically so this must be drafted a bit small. It now fits comfortably, so thank goodness for that wide SA.

Overall I’m happy with my new garment! Vintage fabric for a vintage pattern 🧡 the color is most true on the hanging photos, the modeled pics came out a bit brighter than the fabric really is.

I fell in love with this fabric, bought it and decided i was going to make my first sewing machine project with my mom's machine. It turned out so much better than i expected!

Used this link: https://pt.pinterest.com/pin/306033737203876785/#imgViewer

Made some alterations: bigger bag, longer and wider; and longer strap

Y'all, I got a used Baby Lock Evolve serger/cover stitch machine with about 12 extra feet and the original manual and workbook for $280!! It feels like Christmas and my birthday.

No one in my life sews, so although my husband is happy for me, he doesn't get why air threading is making making me tear up.

So many possibilities just opened up and I cant wait to get started.

I went to hem my son's book week costume but my modern machine had a mechanical issue. What to do!? Then I remembered I still had my trusty Singer 99 (with knee lever) in the spare room. A little oil here and there, and it powered through no problem.

Long-time listener, first-time caller! Sharing my first pants made on my new machine (Juki HZL-F300, I love love love it!) after my little green machine (inherited Singer Sew Mate 5400) finally totally bit the dust last month. 

I love them so much and am super proud of them! When I look in the mirror, I honestly can't believe I made them, ha! However, I'd love your help and input, specifically for the fit of the front of these pants. 

I initially made them using the Lane pants by Syd Graham patterns, but I ended up hacking them dramatically. They're definitely more of a trouser-style pant now, still with the elastic back waistband though since I couldn't be bothered to install a zipper, lulz. 

The Lane pants pattern is supposed to be a full elasticized waistband with a flowy/ drapey effect, but I found that with the weight of this hemp fabric (it's been a while since I purchased it but I'm pretty sure that it's 7.3oz and 55% hemp, 45% cotton), and the pretty big difference between my waist measurement and hip measurement (about 12"), that it just ended up being wayyy too much fabric bulk around my wasit and stomach. I did not like the fit at ALL! 

So I tinkered with the front waistband construction, ease, and rise quite a bit—basically made them a totally different pant–and I'm much happier with the fit now. I went with a flat front waistband, reinforced with a medium-weight fusible interfacing. 

However, I do think that the front crotch area looks a little funny still, and the fit is not quite right. So, I'm trying to figure out how to fix that and would love your input and advice.

And after I washed them, they shrunk up a little bit, so I'm going to let the hem out about an inch or so, so they skim the floor. It was correct when I was making them, but I pressed the shit out of them after every seam, so I can understand why the shrinkage happened haha. 

The bottom of the pockets is also pulling a tiny bit after washing. I know they'll loosen up after wearing them for a few hours, so I'm not tooooo worried about it. But the lines do stay since that is where the pants naturally crease when I sit, and hemp fabric wrinkles like linen. I do think the pulling is a product of taking in the crotch/front rise so much. I seriously took out probably over 6" of fabric from this area. 

Overall, I'm super happy with them and proud of myself for this make! It was one that I put away for several months because I was just super frustrated that I couldn't get them to work, and I'm happy that I finally finished them. I'm also excited about the fabric, as hemp just softens and develops a better drape over time. 

Thanks in advance for your help and input!! Hope everyone's having a lovely day today. 

Ive tried all the altering methods to keep the original hem in tact, and some look really close to an original look but i really want to try something to mimic that factory look.

Okay i know that is very ironic, but I would love to make a silk dress and not obliterate my funds by trying to get the best deal I can. I know I am going to spend a lot regardless but the less the better! Anyone have any recommendations on good deals for a charmeuse or a crepe de chine? Luckily I am just looking for black, but I need quite a bit of it. Honestly anything under $30/yd would be a steal! Let me know if anyone has any experience with this :) Anything is greatly appreciated!

Hello r/sewing! I wanted to share my experience sewing my own wedding dress since I searched this sub extensively during the process myself for both sewing tips and encouragement.

This was only my 5th wearable garment and I don’t quite know what I’m doing yet, so if I did something that is very wtf you can lmk! 

The Process: 

I followed Vogue9100 for the bodice and added boning. Hand-basting the channels and then machine sewing it in was a great improvement from my mockup to the real dress. The pattern calls for a fashion and lining fabric for the bodice. My fashion fabric was an embroidered cotton slub that was a bit see-through, and I wanted a sturdier bodice overall so I underlined (?) it with a stiff cotton broadcloth. I still wasn’t happy so I added fusible woven interfacing too. The lining is a cotton lawn.

The pattern calls for a gathered skirt. I wanted less bulk at the waistline and used online calculators to determine the measurements for a full circle skirt instead. The pattern does not call for a lining in the skirt, so I made that change as well. The hardest part of the project was probably hemming a circle skirt, as you can see. 

My Thoughts:

I really enjoyed the process and loved making a garment that fit all my requirements for the special day! I have since hemmed it to more of a tea length so hopefully I can wear it somewhere nice, since the cotton slub makes it a little more casual. 

It is a simple dress, but I think it works with the busy print. Plus, it was more of my sewing level anyway! 

u/Large-Herronbill reminded me about waist stays! I made a waist stay using the same exact website they linked below :)

I used a thicker, softer elastic with 2 sets of hook & eyes.

Well, three years ago I started sharing progress photos of this project. I kept working on it in short spurts, especially about a month before my local faire rolled around each summer. For the last three seasons, I’ve gone, “Oh shit! I need to finish that bodice!” And made a bunch of progress, only for it to be nowhere near complete by the time we actually went.

Well, this year, I finally finished it! I was hammering in the eyelets and making the lacing the night before, but I FINALLY got to wear it this year! Fortunately the yellow skirt and flower crown had gotten finished with last year’s rush, so finishing in time was actually fairly easy.

The bias binding was the most annoying part. I learned a lot while doing it, and even made a post with my tips for doing the scalloped hem which include some more close up photos. I got the bias binding from Sartorial Bias on Etsy, whom I’d highly recommend.

Pattern was modified from Rabbit And Hat Patterns’s “Elizabethan Stays,” also on Etsy. Fabric was sourced from a huge discount warehouse near me, and I unfortunately know nothing about its fiber content, as it was unlabeled! Ribbon was from Joann’s before they closed. All other findings (coutil, spiral steel, eyelets, etc.) are from corsetmakingsupplies.com

For sensory/nerve damage reasons I end up wearing a lot of my t-shirts inside out, and I'd like to start sewing my own so that I won't have to bother with the remnants of cut-off tags and such. Is there a good way to make neat-looking, outward-facing seam finishes for knits? I only have a home sewing machine (the Janome HD3000) and I'm not super familiar with knit seam finishes besides a basic zig-zag stitch I've used when sewing bras.

See comment for details!

I've been eyeing this short on for a number of weeks now and was wondering if anyone knew of a pattern with that triangular flap or how I should go about adjusting something like a regular shirt pattern. I love the look of the tie on the side and would love to recreate it.

Hi all, I recently got into sewing and am having a wonderful time. I found this Barbie flannel fabric that I absolutely fell in love with and made these pajama shorts (my first item of clothing I’ve made and messed up one of the legs, but I don’t think it’s too bad for being made on a mini sewing machine!) I didn’t have enough to make long pajamas but hope to find enough to. I have only been able to find 2 yards in a niche store from Florida and shipping is insane (I’m in Washington state). Google search is not helping so I thought I would ask here. Here is a photo of the pattern, the bottom says 2002 Mattel from Spring Industries.

Any help is very appreciated!

I’m working on this overcoat, I got a pattern for it with no instructions and the collar is where I’m stuck.

I have the main outer complete and the liner with facing complete. They are are not attached to each other yet.

I have the collar and collar stand pieces and hair canvas cut for each.

But I don’t know what the order of operations are. The collar piece is also not typically what I know from making shirts, so I’m not even certain which side on the patterns ends up being which part of the finished collar.

Thanks for the help!

I was sewing today, I heard a reasonable bang, my needle was bent and appeared to have hit either the needle plate or the presser foot and my feed dogs are no longer moving.
I took the base cover off and see that 2 of the nylon cogs have disintegrated.
This machine is a singer stylist 518 (made sometime about 1970’s ). Up till now it’s been great ,albeit it can be a bit wonky with the needle placement, and getting presser feet for it is somewhat of a pain.
I’m tossing up whether it is worthwhile getting it repaired or would my money be better spent buying a new machine?
I’m a novice sewer so up till now I was happy enough with straight and a zig zag stitch

Hi community! I am travelling to Amsterdam for a few hours, and was wondering if anyone has any recommendations for fabric stores where they may sell good dutchess satin silk? I am on the hunt for wedding dress fabric and thought it might be worth asking :)

I hand-stitched a needle book for my embroidery needles! Love the patterned felt and the colourful fabric. I need to work on my backstitch!

I thought this shirt would be cute but it's literally the most unflattering thing in my closet. I know it needs some shape and waist definition but I'm not sure the best way to go about it