Sewing

You never know when you might need a quick hooded costume for a theater production, Halloween costume, or any event that requires a medieval hooded look. It's the perfect Little Red Riding Hood,...

Need a quick and easy project for any holiday? This project is ideal for both beginners and veteran stitchers. For beginners, it only requires a regular sewing machine, and no fitting or...

This is the process I followed to get as much fabric as I could from a shirt. True a few of the pieces are only 2 1/2 inches wide, but if you need 2 inch square patches, it is perfect.

Here is a great project if you have an over abundance of tee shirts, a need for reusable tote bags, and desire to help make the Earth a greener place to live.

This will explain how to remove an embroidery design or monograming from a piece of clothing, bag, towel, etc. It's not an easy process and patience is needed. Good luck and I hope my article...

Understitching gives your seam a nice finish--particularly a curved neckline--since it keeps the lining or facing from rolling toward the outside and helps the seam allowance to lie flat without...

Often you will want to display your quilt - or wall hanging - in a show or on a wall in your house. The question, then, is how to accomplish that. Well, you can just add a hanging sleeve onto the...

Ribbon can be used in numerous craft and sewing projects. In this simple sewing project, ribbons create a striped design for a blanket. Using 1 1/2 inch satin ribbons and a piece of soft fleece...

Some plush animal patterns are extremely complicated, but that's no reason to avoid the craft completely. With this quick method and a few common supplies, you can make a plush animal using only...

Bias binding is used to edge curved and straight fabric edges, such as the potholder pictured above. String ties and hanger-loops can also be fashioned from bias binding. The traditional way for...

Velveteen is the perfect fabric for holiday attire as well as accessories. Soft and luxurious, velveteen comes in an outstanding array of jewel-tones to please just about anyone. The following...

Beginning sewers can make this stylish sash in very little time. The sash works up easily and can be finished in one day (or less). Choose the fabric that you like and that is easy to work with....

This is a super simple and easy blanket to make that is super soft and cozy. A great project for a beginner or experienced sewer and a wonderful baby gift!

Whether you want to close a garment that you are sewing from scratch or add zippers to clothing you already have as a fashionable accent or to improve the fit, the process is similar, and not as...

With the high cost of jeans today, you should try to make them last as long as possible before buying new ones. When your child comes home with a tear in the knees or the rear end of his...

You may need to remove stitches from a sewing project if you make a mistake, or if you need to pull out temporary basting stitches after you’ve completed the final sewing. The easiest way...

When sewing a wedding dress or any other expensive garment, a mock-up needs to be made first out of muslin or any other inexpensive material. The woman then tries on the first draft of the dress...

Basting stitches are extra-long stitches that you can use to temporarily hold fabric in place. They hold the fabric much better than pins, and they can be easily removed with a seam ripper, if...

Easy sewing lessons. Get tips for sewing the first seam in fabric in this free video clip about sewing a flanged pillow case.

A hemming stitch can be use if the hem allowance is finished with seam binding. It also useful if you don’t want the stitching to show on your fabric. Hemming stitches are usually used for...

A zipper foot is a useful tool for sewing zippers to fabric, since it allows you to sew closer to the zipper teeth than a regular sewing machine foot. If your sewing machine didn’t come...

Fun doll clothes and accessory sewing projects are great for a mom and daughter to do together. Create an entire wardrobe for your daughter's dolls. Use the technique of properly sewing the lining...

If you want to trace fabric pieces to make a paper pattern, you can hold the fabric in place with paperweights. This will help keep your fabric pins from getting dull. For example, you may want to...

Most sleeves are designed to be slightly larger than the armholes. This helps make the suit sleeves more comfortable, and gives you freedom of movement. However, it also requires you to ease in...

Collar patterns are fairly simple to make, once you have a measurement for the neckband. You can make the collar any style you like, but no matter how it’s shaped, the edge of the collar...

Rag quilts are a fun and simple entry to the world of quilting. They are easy to make using basic sewing skills, and make great gifts. They can be made out of various types of materials, and the...

Does your little "tomboy" insist on wearing shorts, or cannot be quite "ladylike" when wearing a skirt? You can quite easily dress your little one like a girl, while letting her have the freedom...

Mini skirts are a simple sewing project, and they don’t take very much fabric. You can buy a mini skirt pattern from a fabric store or online, or make a basic mini skirt following the...

Professional tailors often charge an arm and a leg for simple procedures that you could do yourself in the comfort of your own home. Are you tired of too-long jeans? Read on.

Inserts allow you to add extra fabric to a skirt to make it larger and more comfortable. Before you can pin inserts to the skirt, you’ll need to measure your waist and the skirt, decide...

You can sew extra fabric, or inserts, to a skirt to make it larger and more comfortable. First you’ll need to measure your waist and the skirt, decide what size to make the inserts and cut...

Quilts began as a way to use up scraps of fabric, so that nothing would be wasted, and otherwise useless rags and pieces could be turned into something warm and practical. Although you can buy...

One of the most fun parts of making a quilt is deciding how all the pieces of fabric can work together to make a beautiful, useful creation. When sizing a quilt, keep in mind that any pieces you...

If you’re making a fancy dress or using special occasion fabric, or putting a zipper in the side of a skirt, sewing the zipper using a lap installation method can help hide the zipper and...

Lapped zippers use a flap of fabric on one side to cover the zipper teeth, which can work well for delicate fabrics and fancy dresses. Lapped zippers are also often used in the sides of skirts....

Before you can sew a zipper to a garment, bag or piece of fabric, you need to pin it in place. Centered zippers, which use a small flap of fabric on each side to cover the zipper, are the easiest...

To finish the neckline of a t-shirt, you can use a simple band made from knit ribbing. This is a special type of knit fabric that has vertical stretch lines and finished edges. You can find knit...

Sewing a quilted doll blanket is a great craft project for the beginning quilter. It is a simple design using as many or as few colors as you like. This can also be a great quilt project to use up...

A typical seam is 5/8 inch wide and is straight. There are many ways you can finish this basic seam to make your garment look professionally finished. Here are the directions to do a few of the...

Halter tops are a fun, cool fashion trend that you can easily design and make for yourself from an old t-shirt with just a few snips of the scissors. Once you master that technique, you can...

A centered zipper is for patterns that allow equal amounts of fabric on each side of the zipper. This is opposed to a lapped zipper, like in many pants patterns, where the zipper is hidden by an...

The collar of a shirt is its crowning glory. To get a professional look, the collar must be carefully cut, sewn and applied while being pressed each step of the way. Interfacing adds to the...

Decorative pillows are a great way to add color to a room. Fabric scraps from other projects can be used or small amounts of fabric can be purchased at fabric stores. Sewing the cover for a...

Give the seams of your sewing project a finished look and prevent fabric from fraying with a French seam.

Ever get stuck trying to find the right baby gift, child's gift or need an extra craft bag? Try making an bib-style jean bag it has multiple uses, cheap to make and fun to create.

A Kimono is a traditional Japanese robe-like garment that is worn by both men and women. Kimonos are T-shaped, ankle-length garments; they are worn in layers and can be worn casually, formally or...

Many people find it difficult to sew in a zipper and get it straight. It doesn't have to be that way at all. The following directions are so simple that a sewing novice can get the zipper put in...

Finding the perfect pair of jeans is like the quest for the Holy Grail--nearly impossible. Tailor an existing pair of jeans to fit like a glove. Embellish an old pair of jeans with a little swift...

Making your own skirt is easy and fun. All it takes is some fabric, a few pins and the most basic sewing. This is a simple skirt to make, no zippers or buttons, and it takes about an hour to...

Sewing a wrap skirt is the easiest wardrobe item for a beginning tailor. There are no zippers, buttons or clasps to sew. Furthermore, the fit of a wrap skirt is very forgiving. Whether you're...