My grandmother could copy a pattern from a dress she tried on in the store and she sewed many of her children’s clothes. The sewing gene skipped my mother (by forceable choice) and landed in me. At least, it tried to.
Two months ago I decided to make my own curtains as part of a project to re-decorate my bedroom. When a coupon for 50 percent off at Jo-Anns fabric store landed in my inbox, I was raring to go. I even had a few dollars on a gift card to apply.
I arrived at the store and was delighted to see nearly everything was on sale by 40 – 50 percent off. I could save my coupon for a regular-priced bolt of material and get other items at a steep discount, too.
I carefully searched the aisles of fabric for the perfect material and discovered wonderful terry cloth for towels that you can buy at a fraction of what the finished product costs at Macy’s or Target. Bath sheets for $5.99 a yard? Sign me up! I also spotted fuzzy flannel for $4.99 a yard. New sheets in no time!
Then I came upon the most steeply marked down fabrics in the store: the discount rack. Some of the material was down right fugly, other pieces were damaged. One bolt was irresistible. For $12.50 (orig. $24.99), I could buy one yard of heaven – a cream-colored piece of suede-lined, fuzzy sherpa goodness. My plan was to turn the material into two pillow coverings. (Pillow insides were 50 percent off, sealing the deal).
I purchased the sherpa material along with 11 yards of brown suede (40 percent off) to make curtains. I ran out of brown thread shortly after starting the curtains so I turned my attention to the pillows. I made as few cuts as possible (reducing my chances of error) and got to work sewing a cozy three-sided enclosure for my pillow, top. On the fourth side I sewed on three buttons, above right (simpler than a zipper, I reasoned).
The material was difficult to work with because it is very thick and the fuzz got caught in the string many times. I didn’t run out of thread, but I did run out of time so the project stretched from Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Overall I spent $25.50 (and forgot to use my gift card 
) to buy two pillows and the pillow cover material. I devoted five hours over three days to completing one pillow.
A waste of time? Me thinks not. The process was very entertaining and I renewed my appreciation for sewers, quilters, and knitters. As for making towels and sheets? I may just wait for a great sale at Target.
Sewing lessons:
- Measure thrice, cut once
- If you don’t have pins to hold material in place, needles will do
- You can undo a lot of stitches, but it’s a total pain in the a**
- Sewing straight lines is actually very difficult
- Lumps mean it was made with love
massdistraction/Flickr
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Have I mentioned how much I adore ShopSmart, a magazine put out by Consumer Reports? The latest issue (Jan. 2010) has a feature story on secrets to being a savvy clothing shopper. The key is to know your fabrics! I’ve highlighted some of the most important parts of the story below.
The best fabrics are:
- cashmere (more affordable that it used to be, goes in the wash but lay flat to dry, watch out for moths and pilling.)
- cotton (easy to clean and lasts long, wash on cool for longevity)
- linen (durable but wrinkle prone, iron twice with the steam off for the best look)
- wool (hardly wrinkles but moths love it, hang in a steamy bathroom instead of ironing)
The best blends are:
- cotton + polyester (no ironing needed, turn inside out when washing to reduce pilling)
- cotton + spandex (the stretchiness makes for a good fit, but can shrink or stretch over time)
- wool + polyester (fewer wrinkles than 100% wool, buy at least 60 percent wool for the best look and feel)
Fabrics to avoid:
- polyester (doesn’t breathe well and stains are difficult to remove)
- rayon (reacts badly to being wet and is relatively delicate)
- silk (wrinkles easily, direct sun fades it)
Five signs that clothes are well made:
- no hanging or loose threads, which indicate there may be other problems you can’t see
- finished seams, which are sewn with a blind hem stitch that you can’t see on the outside (cheaper seams are finished with a looping chain stitch that can come undone)
- lining, which helps clothes hang better (but not every piece needs lining)
- sturdy details, which means buttons are firmly sewn on, zippers don’t pinch skin, and stress points are reinforced
- extras like spare buttons and comfy tags indicate extra care was taken
Bonus: you can read a few of this month’s stories and previous issues on their website.
