Tutorials
How to Cut a Jacket Lining When You Don’t Have a Pattern
Have you ever made a jacket and wished you could line it, but didn’t have a pattern and weren’t 100% sure what to do? Here’s a tutorial to bookmark for when you do. There are many ways to make a lining pattern, partly depending on the type of jacket. To keep it simple and give…
Read More3 Random Tips for Colour Choices
Are you confident with colour? I think I am these days, but I never used to be. Over time I picked up ideas from people I worked with, and also my dad who was good with colours. I really started to enjoy colour to the point where I now feel free to offer my opinions,…
Read MoreTutorial: Zero Waste Inseam Pockets
Easy zero waste inseam pockets can be yours! The pattern for these is in the (free) January instalment of A Year of Zero Waste Sewing. It was part of an idea for making a pocket matrix – a rectangular shape containing all the pocket pieces nested together, which can be moved around the fabric to…
Read More3 Buttonhole Woes (and how to fix them)
It’s feeling like Buttonhole Week here at the Haywood Homestead – I’m working on three projects at once, all which need buttonholes and I must have sewn well over 60. My “everyday drive” sewing machine is a 1964 Singer that doesn’t make buttonholes, in spite of having an array of embroidery stitches. I make buttonholes…
Read MoreThree Tips for Tucks
Have you sewn tucks in a garment before? They’re simply a stitched fold of fabric. The stitching might go all the way along the fold or stop part-way. This week’s post is coming to you from my sewing machine, where I’m sewing a zero waste blouse which has tucks front and back (long-time newsletter readers…
Read MoreOn Writing Sewing Patterns
Please enjoy this little vignette I created for Instagram, showing how I write a sewing pattern. The pattern shown is doll’s clothes for the zw cloth doll. At the end are some writing tips that I’ve found really helpful. Here are some things that have really helped my instruction writing… 1. Write with two people…
Read MoreTutorial: curving flat bias binding with an iron
Bias binding is a trim I’m very fond of using. Since I’ve been making zero waste patterns, I’ve found myself using it more, and in ways which I hadn’t previously. One of these is as a curved trim. I use 1.2cm/½” bias binding (not 2.5cm/1″ which is too wide) and pre-curve it with a steam…
Read MoreFlying High! – Mastering Fly Fronts
The words fly fronts and intimidating are often used in the same sentence. Yes, fly fronts look complicated. There are lots of ways to sew them, and everyone has their preferred way (or no way, if you’ve never done one). I thought I’d share My Way with you, which I learned when I was a…
Read MoreThe jeans waist expansion project
My waist measurement fluctuates wildly these days, growing by up to 10cm/4″ (ie 2 sizes). I don’t think I can conveniently blame the pandemic – I think it would have happened regardless. My tummy muscles are shot to pieces, post-partum and beyond, and I’m becoming a woman of a certain age. Those blog photos where…
Read MoreTutorial: how to add a hood inside a collar
Last week I finished sewing the zero waste Kiabi windbreaker, and this week I have a tutorial on how to add a fold-away hood concealed inside the collar. This would work for any anorak/windbreaker that has a stand collar. I’ve distilled the instructions down to one page, with notes and photos to follow: Some notes……
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