Search CraftWorld Join Sign in

Home Inspiration Advice Downloadables Community Magazines Offers Premium

CraftWorld Experts Love Sewing Team Dressmaking for Beginners

Dressmaking for Beginners Advertisements

We share a round-up of basic dressmaking knowledge to get you

started on your way into the world of sewing!
By Bethany Armitage, Tuesday 22nd January 2019

Learn everything you need to know about dressmaking tools, selecting fabric and
patterns as well as beginner courses and getting involved in the community.

With very few exceptions, we all wear clothes and have drawers and wardrobes full of them.
Very few of us know the person who made our clothes, or even which country they were
made in. In this post we look at a few of the basics of dressmaking for beginners.

There is something magical about having the skill to construct your own clothes in the 21st
Century. Dressmaking as a hobby is growing in popularity around the world, especially in
the UK, for a number of reasons. Whether it's a simple T-shirt, kids PJ's, a pretty summer
dress or even a pair of knickers, making your own clothes is a hugely rewarding skill/craft
that few people ever take the time to learn. Crazy when you think how huge the fashion
industry is!

There are thousands of patterns available to buy from big pattern houses through to small
independent designers. Patterns for every garment type that we can adapt to fit perfectly to
Love Sewing is the UK’s favourite sewing
create a unique style. You just need to learn the basic skills to start sewing your own clothes magazine. Every issue is packed full of gorgeous
and we're here to help get you started and share patterns with you.. patterns for sewists and dressmakers of all skill
levels. ...

See more from Love Sewing Team

Follow

What are the easiest clothes to sew You might also like

for beginners?
We've got lots of free patterns for you to download and sew today. For your first projects, you
should choose patterns which are easy to fit and don't have too many fussy details. Here are
some we recommend:
Patchwork Square
Birthday Star Card
Simple Sew Brigitte Dress

Beginner-friendly cotton top

Quick and easy A-line drawstring skirt pattern

Music box - a fabulous

box card for ...

Kid's Contrast Cuff Tee

How and where do I begin making

my own clothes?
Butterfly Get Well Soon
Our pattern brand Simple Sew patterns is dedicated to beginner and intermediate sewing. Card
We handhold you every step of the way with the sewing projects and we have a team online
to help if you get stuck. CraftWorld is jam-packed with sewing content. top tips and free
patterns!

Download our free sewing guide to get you started!

NEW Gemini Cut &

Emboss Folders & St...

What tools do I need to start

dressmaking?
This is by no means an exhaustive list. The following are essentials you'll need to get started.

Sewing machine (see below)

Thread

Sewing machine needles and hand sewing needles

Pins

Tape measure

Scissors, for fabric, for trimming thread and for cutting patterns (that's 3 pairs in
total - never use your dressmaking scissors to cut paper as it will blunt the blades)

Ironing board and iron

Seam ripper

Marking tools such as dressmakers chalk for marking out patterns

In many cases, it's trial and error and personal preference when it comes to sewing tools. This
is especially true of marking tools - luckily for you we have an ultimate guide! CLICK HERE
to find out more and find your dressmaking marker of choice!

What's the best sewing machine to

use for dressmaking?
Fairly obvious, but to start with you will need a basic sewing machine if you don't already
have one. We would advise asking friends and relatives if they have a machine you could
borrow before you invest in a machine. Often people have sewing machines lurking in
cupboards that they used once to sew a pair of curtains 20 years ago.

There are many sewing machines available second-hand (although you may need to get them
serviced). If you're after a bargain there are plenty of affordable entry-level machines in
supermarkets and department stores. For example, you can get the Singer Fashion Mate
which is a perfect beginner sewing machine for dressmaking from less than 150.

Don't stress about needing overlockers/sergers yet. Yes, they are very useful, but you need to
get skilled up on your sewing machine first. #babysteps

CLICK HERE to see our Beginner's Guide to sewing machines.

Your machine may look a little overwhelming on first inspection but once you understand
the basics using this guide for beginners you will soon start to understand how to make the
most of all the features on your machine. No matter what your machine, it will have the
same basic makeup so it's easy to learn what all the various buttons and levers do. Machines
almost all come with numbered arrows to show you how to thread them (and usually have
extensive instruction booklets) but if you get stuck there are plenty of YouTube tutorials to
get you started. Play with the stitch selector, choose stitch width and length and start to get a
feel for how the fabric moves through the 'feed dogs' as you sew. Nothing beats practice, so
take the opportunity to mess around with any fabric scraps before starting on any projects.

How do you read a sewing pattern?

Sewing patterns can be a little daunting to look at for beginners, but most come with
explanations of every step. Grab yourself a hot drink and take the time to read through the
pattern step by step before you begin. Patterns include helpful information sheets, especially
those aimed at beginners. The pattern instructions will explain their markings for:

Pattern Cutting lines

Layout Diagrams

Grainline

Fold Line

Darts

Notches

Lengthening or Shortening Line

Circle Dots

Button & Button Hole Placement

Tucks and Pleats

Sewing Pattern Abbreviations

How do I choose a pattern to sew?

Start simple! Don't try anything too complicated that will leave you frustrated and confused.
Our own Simple Sew pattern brand is aimed at beginner sewing, we won't include anything
overly complicated.

Sewing magazines are an amazing resource for beginner dressmakers. We always feature a free
pattern cover gift and sometimes two! The beauty of buying a magazine pattern is that you
know there will be lots of other dressmakers sewing up the same pattern. The editor and
team are on hand to help too, if you get stuck. You also get all the patterns inside and loads
of fabric inspiration and helpful sewing advice.

Many beginners don't realise that it is possible to preserve a sewing pattern by tracing out the
size you need and keeping the original. This means you will be able to come back to the
pattern and make it in different sizes if needed (in case you shrink, grow... or just get it
wrong first time!) Buy back issues of Love Sewing direct from our web shop which includes
plenty of beginner patterns. Look out for the words 'Beginner' or 'Easy' when browsing
through patterns.

Have you thought about downloading digital PDF patterns? CLICK HERE to learn how
to assemble a PDF pattern with ease!

Where can I get the best sewing

patterns?
Selecting patterns can be daunting when you're new to sewing, luckily most brands state the
difficulty on their packaging so you can stick to beginner designs until you feel ready to
graduate to the next stage. Some of the brands you'll come across most often are:

SimpleSew

Jaycotts

McCalls

KwikSew

Burda

Where can I learn to sew?

Sew-alongs and video tutorials are a godsend when you get stuck! Look out for patterns
which have been featured in Sew-Alongs or have accompanying video tutorials when you are
starting out. With sew-alongs as with magazine patterns, there are many dressmakers
following the construction process and asking questions along the way.

FREE SEWING TUTORIALS ON CRAFTWORLD

For more expert advice, check out our guide to Stress-free Stitching - we share our favourite
18 tips, hacks and clever fixes to make sure your sewing goes as smoothly as possible! CLICK
HERE to boost your sewing skills!

How do I choose fabric for my

pattern?
The pattern will advise you which fabrics to use and how much you need as in the example
above where lightweight woven fabrics like crepe, faille and satin are recommended. The
table then shows the amount of fabric needed. So for example for size 14, sewing up view B
if you buy a fabric which is 45 inches wide you will need 3 1/8 yards of fabric. If you need
that converted to metres, just google it! For beginner dressmaking stick to patterns that don't
need precise pattern matching to look good. Steer clear of stripes or very large patterns. We
also make fabric suggestions with all of our featured patterns and sewing projects in our
magazines Sew Now and Love Sewing.

Before you cut into any expensive fabric, sew-up a voile (a test garment) in an inexpensive
fabric to test that you are cutting the correct pattern size. It will be worth the time and effort
as you can then sew with confidence when you get started on your chosen fabric.

CLICK HERE to follow our cheat sheet to learn how to match fabric to your sewing
patterns!

Who made your clothes?

There's an ethical angle to sewing your own clothes too, especially if you also source your
fabric carefully. Most of our clothes are made by anonymous, low-paid seamstresses working
in factories on the other side of the world. Each garment maker sewing a seam here or a
button there on huge assembly lines for the throwaway fashion industry.

If the above 'Mini Fashion Protest banner' gets you thinking a little deeper, find out more
about the 'Love Fashion - Hate Sweatshops' campaign over at The Craftivist Collective.
When you make your own clothes, you start to look at every garment in your wardrobe with
wonder as you begin to understand how much skill and time must have gone into every
stitch, dart and hem of those jeans, or that jacket that cost just 30!

We're proud to be part of the growing, global community of dressmakers. People who love to
sew their own clothes, whether to make a unique statement, for ethical reasons or just for the
buzz of saying "I made this". With some determination, some advice and a few lessons, you
could slowly transform your wardrobe into #memade fashion! (or maybe just learn how to
sew your own knickers to start!)

Be sure to tag us over on Instagram with #lovesewingmag when you finish your first garment
and upload your makes to CraftWorld! We'll be cheering and offering congratulatory biscuits
and hot tea!

Happy sewing,

Betty

This article is tagged as:

Sewing beginner dressmaking how-to expert advice

NAVIGATION HELP & SUPPORT ESSENTIAL INFO

Home Contact Us Terms & Conditions

A world of inspiration Inspiration Gallery Privacy Policy

from crafters you trust. Forum
We make it easy to
Social Feed
discover all the best new
ideas, share your love of Groups
crafting and create Experts
something amazing every
Shopping
day.
Help

CraftWorld © 2020 Practical Publishing International Ltd, Vitality House, 217 Wellington Road South, Stockport, SK2 6NG. UK company number 4191165
SUBSCRIBE & SAVE