Sewing Patterns: What They Are

When it comes to fashion designs and sewing, sewing patterns are the original fabric or garment from which the style is copied and reproduced in another garment. These patterns may not only be in fabric form but may also be in paper form wherein these are traced unto the fabric prior to cutting and forming. The art of creating sewing patterns or designing them is called pattern making.

The focus right now is on the so called home sewing patterns. These are the sewing patterns that allow ordinary people to create designs or clothing copied from the ones made by fashion designers as well as the ones you see sold at the malls or boutiques.

Home sewing patterns are normally printed on tissue paper and then sold in packages that contain fabric and trim suggestions and of course sewing instructions on how to successfully recreate the style being copied. These home sewing patterns are out in the market in a variety of costs, styles, sizes as well as sewing skill levels in order to suit every customer’s needs.

The fact is that home sewing patterns are first “graded” meaning that the patterns are redrawn first to ensure that they will be able to fit either smaller or larger sizes as compared to the original style or design. The person who actually introduced sewing patterns first would be Ebenezer Butterick, who produced the very 1st home graded pattern that is based on the grading systems that Victorian tailors use. The original patterns were made for boy’s and men’s clothing. In the year 1866 however, Butterick decided to add women’s clothing patterns and of course the said patterns became very popular and are said to be the heart of the sewing pattern market of the present time.

Home sewing patterns are ingenious creations that enable people to produce the latest fashion styles at an affordable cost as long as those who recreate the clothes are skilled enough.

A Guide to Sewing Buttons

Buttons are one of the commonest fasteners in the world, found on everything from headgear and bags to pants and shirts. They’re very susceptible to wear and tear, though, and it’s inevitable that you’ll have to replace buttons at one time or another.

Sewing buttons looks like a complicated, dexterity-intensive procedure, but it’s actually a simple job that just about anybody can do.

Step 1: Finding the Materials

To begin, you’ll have to get your hands on a button and some thread. Although you could use any kind that you find lying around, you’ll probably want to get some that matches either the other buttons or the item being repaired. Using mismatched buttons or thread leaves you with a repair job that sticks out like a sore thumb – something few people want.

Buttons come in two variants – shank and sew-through. Shank buttons are usually plain and have no protrusions on their back end. Sewing buttons of the shank variety is done through a hole located at the back. Sew-through buttons, on the other hand, are so named because you sew the thread through the two or four holes that are in the middle of the button’s surface.

Step 2: Preparing to Work

Once you have your materials, you can prepare them for sewing buttons back onto the item. Take some thread and form a double strand, tying a knot around the open end to close it. Thread the needle using that double strand.

After preparing your needle and thread, look for the location where the button will be sewn back on. Make sure that the distance between buttons is still equal and that the location you found corresponds to the right buttonhole. Sew at the location without the button from the inside of the garment or item, and then make two or three stitches at that spot. The preliminary stitches will serve as an anchor for the button, making your work more durable than plainly Sewing buttons back on.

Step 3: Sewing the Button

If you’re sewing buttons of the sew-through variant, place the button over the anchor stitches. Make three or four stitches from within the item and through the holes in the button, securing it against the latter against the fabric. Once the stitches have been executed, sew the needle into the fabric and then repeatedly sew it through the loops formed by the stitches on the inside of the item. The last sewing will lock the stitches in place and strengthen the fastening of the button.

Sewing a shank button back onto an item is almost the same procedure. Place the button over the anchor stitches and then, from the inside of the garment, sew outward, through the hole in the shank button and then back inwards. Do this loop four to six times before finishing it like you would with a sew-through button.

Sewing buttons is a very simple affair, really. It shouldn’t take you more than ten minutes from acquiring the materials to looking at a job well done.

Sewing Patchwork Tips and Tricks

If you have a sewing project and would like to finish the product with quality and in a quicker time frame or you just have to finish the sewing project as a gift for someone whose birthday is nearing, the tips below that deal with sewing patchwork, quilts, etc. will help you do well in sewing patchwork and at the same time aid you in coming up with a good quality product:

• When sewing two pieces of fabric together wherein one piece must be eased to the smaller piece, the trick is to place the fabric with the most ease unto the bottom part, particularly close to the feed teeth. The feed teeth will then ease the extra piece if cloth to the top fabric (the shorter one) with less difficulty.

• If you are having a hard time in sewing patchwork using metallic thread because of breakage, try using needles with the brand: Hemline for breakage reduction. If that does not help much, you can proceed to lowering the tension.

• It is also a good idea to have a piece of magnet handy in order to pick up needles or pins that accidentally drop to the floor.

• In the event that your sewing needles get dull or even rusty, rub lightly with a piece of fine steel wool.

• When sewing patchwork, it is best to store pattern pieces in transparent self sealing bags for you to be able to view the pattern.

• When you’re done sewing your patchwork pieces, it is advisable to run a thread that is double in length through the patches and then leave a knotted thread end at the bottom of the pile for those patchwork pieces to stay together wherein you can just pull them off one by one as needed.

Following the tips in sewing patchwork mentioned above will definitely give you a better sewing experience and help you produce good quality products.