Sewing is a fun and handy hobby. If you, or anyone in your family, ever damage a good item of clothing, then instead of throwing it out or paying lots of money to get it repaired, you can do it yourself! Being a wizard with the sewing machine means getting lots of respect from those around you!
However, even the most keen sewer will admit that it involves lots of fiddly and annoying steps. And that can detract from the enjoyment of making, repairing and altering garments to your heartโs content. But that doesnโt have to be the case.
If youโre a sewing enthusiast, then you may be surprised to learn that there are a range of incredible tips and tricks that make it much easier. If you want to make sewing less of a chore and more of a joy, then simply adopt these clever, easy hacks:
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Sewing.com
Having Trouble Keeping Two Pieces of Leather Together? Use a Paperclip
Paperclips leave no unsightly holes in the leather and are great at keeping the material perfectly in place.
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Sunlit Spaces
Steel Wool Is Your Pincushionโs Friend
If you stuff a pincushion with steel wool, then itโll keep the pins in place and sharpen them at the same time, making them better for the job at hand!
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Flickr
Use Quarter Inch Thick Tape to Know Exact Measurements, Always
Washi tape, for example, is this exact length. That means that you can measure with accuracy and not have to constantly put a ruler on top of your work.
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Wikipedia
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Trouble Getting the Tip of a Thread to Stay Straight? Use Hairspray
Itโll make the tip hard enough so that you can get it onto the pin with ease!
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Flickr
Extracting Elastic From a Waitband Is Easy With a Bodkin
Such a convenient and handy device. And they only cost a couple of dollars.
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Amazon
Having Trouble Finding the Right Amount of Space Between Two Buttons to Add Another? Flatten It With a Hair Straightener
Itโll let you see the space with no crumples whatsoever
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Sewing.com
Having Trouble Holding a Pattern in Place? Use Some Washers to Weigh It Down
Theyโll keep the pattern together while allowing you to move the garment.
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Flickr
Do You Want to Create Gathers? Itโs Easy to Do
You have to sew a zig zag stich over yarn and then use that in your fabric with a straight stitch.
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Flickr
Struggling to Remember How Much of a Seam Youโre Allowing for? Place a Rubber Band Over the Measured Lengths on the Sewing Machine, and Itโll Be Easy!
Now youโll only need to measure it once. Use different colors to mark out different lengths.
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Sunlit Spaces
Struggling with Lumpy Fabrics? Plastic Bags Will Come to the Rescue
Most people have hundreds of plastic bags doing nothing in their homes. If you use one on top of lumpy fabric as you sew, then it leads to smoothly sewn items.
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Flickr
Are Hemlines Difficult for You? Use Cardstock to Create Perfect Folds
Itโs the perfect thickness to hold the hemline in place while you sew around it.
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Wikipedia
Want to Keep Your Pins and Needles in One Place? Stick Magnets Onto the Bottom of a Dish
Now you can move the needles about without them falling everywhere.
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Dukes and Duchesses
Want to Keep Your Bobbins Organized? Use a Toe Separator
Youโre probably more familiar with using these at the nail salon. They have a great usage in sewing, however!
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Flickr
Want a Pin, Needle and Thread Case That Can Slip in Your Pocket? Use a Matchbox
They cost next to nothing and are super handy!
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Pixnio
Does Your Button Thread Unravel? Nail Polish Will Stop That
Covering the button in nail polish after youโve sewn it onto the garment helps it stay attached for longer. Clear nail polish is the obvious choice, unless youโre feeling creative.
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Flickr
Do You Always Lose Your Scissors? Make a Long Necklace Out of Them
Youโll always know where they are! Just donโt forget to take them off when youโre done, or it could be a really painfall fall.
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Sunlit Spaces
Does Your Foot Slip Off the Sewing Machine Foot Press? Attach a Rubber Band
The friction will ensure that your foot will slip no more.
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Sewing Parts Online
Scissors Always Getting Blunt? You Can Sharpen Them Quickly With Foil
Stack seven pieces together and chop it with your scissors a couple of times. Itโll be as sharp as when it was new. Just make sure that youโre careful with your fingers when sharpening
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Wikipedia
You Can Measure More Easily If You Permanently Attach a Tape Measure to a Table
This could also work with a ruler.
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Maxpixel
Binder Clips Are Great For Quilting
Theyโll keep the material in place, so you can concentrate on sewing.
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Sunlit Spaces
Are Your Straight Pins Dull? Put Them In A Bar of Soap
Theyโll slip through fabric much more easily.
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Maxpixel
Sewing Corners Is Easy When You Keep the Needle Down and Rotate the Fabric 90 Degrees
If you do it like this, you will always have perfect corners.
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Wikipedia
Freezer Paper Can Allow You to Trace Pattens On Fabric Without It Slipping
It sticks to most fabrics, meaning that thereโs little chance of you making a design mistake.
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Flickr
Want to Use Something Stronger Than Thread for Buttons? Then Dental Floss Is Your Item
Dental Floss is way stronger than thread, meaning that it will help the buttons stay on.
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Wikipedia
Sew Spare Buttons on the Inside of Coat Sleeves
This will keep them out of sight and handy for when a button finally pops off and disappears.
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Pixabay
Strengthen Thread With Wax
Run the thread over wax, and itโll be much stronger when you sew.
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Sew for Home
Attach a Zipper the Easy Way
Just sew a seam together. Put the zipper on the seam allowance. Sew it up. Cut open the seam again, and youโll have a perfectly placed zipper.
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Make It & Love It
Tape Two or Three Pencils Together for Tracing the Perfect Seam Allowances
Two pencils gives you a half inch of space. Three pencils gives you five eighths of an inch.
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Ful Atolye
Need to Turn Something Thin Inside Out? Donโt Tear It Open. Use a Chopstick and Straw
Something that you canโt twist inside out by hand can be opened with a straw and a chopstick. Just unthread a bit of it either side, place a straw at one end and a chopstick at the other. Push the stick into the straw, then push the item over the chopstick.
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Happy Sew Lucky
This Is the Quickest Way To Make Large Clothes Fit More Easily
Turn the item inside out. Sew up the sides. As easy as that. You should also mark up where to sew by wearing the clothes inside out and marking it with pins and a pen first.
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Sewing.com
Struggle With Hems? Just Add a Fake One
Take a piece of the same fabric that you used, cut a two inch strip and attach it to the bottom of the garment. Itโll look just like a hem.
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Olive Rands
Avoid Fraying by Cutting Fabric With Pinking Shears
The pattern that the shears make will stop any fray!
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Sewing.com
Wash Your Fabrics Before Sewing โ The Clothes Wonโt Shrink After
It can be really annoying to create a beautiful garment, only for it to shrink to half its size in the laundry. However, if you wash the fabric before starting to sew, it will mean that it wonโt shrink the second time! There are different ways to wash different fabrics to ensure that they doesnโt shrink in future, so read up!
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Bluprint
Serger Threads Last Much Longer
Running out of thread is so annoying. But serger thread spools tend to have a length of 3,000 yards! Thatโs a lot of sewing.
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Flickr
Thread those needles the easy way.
This video shows how you can thread a needle in an incredibly easy manner.
After adopting a few of these hacks, youโll find that sewing becomes more fun and rewarding than ever. Your family will be amazed at how much quicker you can make things!
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