Making Clothes

I once made a waistcoat (a reversible one at that) at school worldwise and I was very proud of myself but that was many, many moons ago and I have done nothing like it since. Niamh did get a small sewing machine as part of her Christmas and i have had great intentions of helping with it and maybe making items of clothing but haven't been up to it yet! I love the idea of making something unique for my daughter ! xxx

I was very lucky, my mother was a seamstress so I made my first dress when I was 6 years old. It was a blue velvet cap sleeved party dress, my mother still has it. I love to sew and create my own clothes. Sometimes I will go to a jumble sale and buy frumpy clothes that are made from great material and remake them into something I like for me. I have wardrobe full of home made clothes, and as long as I have two hands I will always make my own clothes. Makes them unique dont you think? When you make and design your own, you can be sure no one else will be wearing the same!

Yes pal like you I learned at school . I was in a fashion parade where I wore a dress and matching bag I had made , I used to make all my curtains cushions pillow slips and aprons too ( before I had RA , I made my boys trousers when they were little too and knitted for all the family and especially new born , I used to get a lot of satisfaction from it , I used to embroider too , I do miss doing all of that but now I have the laptop and all my nice friends like you to chat too, Wee xx

I was taught some sewing when I was younger. Used to be great at patching and repairing things, but I've never really any decent scrap of clothing. I was learning to crochet a bit, but I'm afraid that I've lost any bit I've learned of THAT since then. What I do have is more than most girls my age, nowadays, so I suppose I should take some comfort in that, xD

I have taken dressmaking as my vocational course in high school. In my fourth year we had two last projects to pass before completing the course. One was to sew a "mestiza dress", one of the famous Filipino costumes. Since my mother did not have the money to buy the materials needed my teacher asked me to make the dress using pattern paper. Just imagine completing a costume in all its intricate details using paper! Well i finally submitted the gown i have painstakingly handsewn without having any part of it torn or pasted. The other project was graduation dress. Since all of us in that class were so excited and everybody wanted to stand out when graduation day comes, we all bought the powder blue shiny cloth we thought appropriate for our designs only to find out that it absorbs the heat of the summer sun and it clings to skin wet with perspiration! That was the most uncomfortable graduation day for me, ever! I have not done much sewing when i was in college but after five years of studying agricultural engineering and could not land a job i worked as a domestic helper abroad and i still remember my Chinese employer proudly exhibiting to her friends the three-piece set of computer covers i made using a cloth diaper. When she first handed me the diapers and asked me if i can make her the covers she thought that i was only going to sew the edges clean. Oh i'll never forget that look on her face when she saw the perfectly fitted covers i made without any sewing machine. After that she bought a better material and had me make another set. After three years in that country i came back and when there was nothing much to do at home i tried to recall what i have learned in high school and practiced making my own clothes. When finally i was hired to work in a government office and found out that casual employees were not entitled to clothing/uniform allowances i then designed and made my own office attires. That was me then when my eyesight was clear, those steady hands, strong legs and feet that can pedal through hours and stamina that knew no limit. It was fifteen years ago since i sew a blouse, five years ago when i last made a curtain, but i keep a handy portable sewing machine and a complete sewing kit for little emergencies. Buying a nice new suit from your hard-earned money is a nice feeling but wearing your own thing is...(i don't know, it's hard for me to explain). What more if you see other people wearing "your" creation?

oh yes, i did a course in fashion designing and i think that was the best decision i made to learn new things. there i learned stitching, embroidery ,fabrics, a lot about fashion and trends. i can stich outfits for myself, for kids in the family and also some household items like curtains or cushion cover. its a great hobby for people who r creative and innovative . some girls have even pursued it as full time career. i think every girl should take interest in it...its lovely

Out of necessity I made a lot of my clothes when I was younger. Once I got some experience with the sewing machine I was able to make some great outfits. I loved to sew. The last thing I made for myself was my wedding dress 11 years ago.

I learned how to sew when I was in junior high school. I made a shirt while in there. I have not made a thing since LOL. I forgot how to use a machine.

Oh! You brought back a very hurtful memory from the school days with this discussion. I remember in about 7th grade we had to take sewing as a home economics class and I was expected to do well as my mom sewed and worked in a fabric store in town. However, I don't have the patience to sew. Pinning the pattern to the fabric,slowly cutting it out, ripping apart anything that you don't have right seems like such nonsense to me when you can buy the items on sale at a yard sale much cheaper than you can buy the material. However, I was going to make a skirt and top, well the skirt was not straight when I was finished with it,so I had to take it home to redo it,which meant ripping out all of the sewing that I had done on it. I did and redone it again only to be told that it wasn't right again. Redo it again. Well, finally I took the whole outfit home and told my mom that I wasn't able to do it. She lectured me and she finally sewed it or I would have failed the class. These days, I won't sew a button on and forget understanding a sewing machine.

My mum always tried to get me interested in sewing and knitting when I was younger, but back then I never had any interest. It's only now that I wish I had the skills to make my own clothing, as I find it really difficult to find work/business clothes that fit and look good (I'm a little smaller than an Aus size 6, so nothing ever sits properly, as 6 is the smallest size made over here in the shops). When we were kids, mum used to make a lot of our clothes, but she works a lot longer hours now, so she rarely takes out the sewing machine anymore.

Hi, i have never sewed any of my shirts or trousers.and i haven't even learned the art of sewing.but yeah women do love sewing and those who are good at it move to the next level like embroidory and designing.But i think its very time taking art where you have to concentrate for hours to make the job done and more than that you have also pressure on your eyes.so I think time has changed now where women do find better way to engadge themselves than this cutting and knitting...Iam glad that you are still having that passion within for the art...:)

i dont know how to use sewing machine, i dont know how to crocket and knit. Though i bought books for beginners. I have a talent for designing clothes and i have a passion for it. I can design and go to tailoring shop and yes its a nice dress already. I also put accessories to the clothes, using buttons, flowers, laces to make it more feminine. i have a lot of clothes that i uniquely designed and my friends and officemates already know this. Sometimes they will ask me whats good accessory to put on their clothes. Happy mylotting and Smile Always!

It's interesting that this was posted today... I was just thinking today about how when I was little girl, I would design all sorts of clothing. I let go of that dream in favor of being the model, not dressing them. But now that I am learning more about small business, designing and selling clothing has begun to spark my interest yet again. I'm 19, and wasn't taught to sew when I was younger. I worked as an upholstery apprentice for a few months, but I was deathly afraid of the industrial size sewing machine, LOL, the type that can sew through 1/8th inch plywood.

Sewing was one of my interests. My mom teaches me at an early age. Then during high school days this is one of the THE subjects to be passed. By these was able to sew the basic ones. But one instance put me to pursue on sewing a skirt since there was program to be held in school and needs a uniform. But there was no time it would be sewed by a expert since by the few days was just left before the scheduled program. What i did was to sew it myself... i too was not able to convince myself i have done a great task...just trust in yourself...

I admire anyone who has the patience to use a sewing machine. My mother is great with one, but I just can't stand to use one. I can barely take a needle and thread and sew a button back on!

I used to sew all of the time, but do not seem to anymore. I even bought a serger. I did lots of costume production for Easter musicals at church. Others would cut them out and I would serger them really quickly. I was not good with hand sewing. I would not be good or precise enough for tailoring. I did enjoy making lots of clothes for my kids. I used to make dress pants for my son when he was three, because he was so tall and skinny. I would like to get back into some of the sewing. I have not done much in about five years.

My Mum sewed and I learned from her. She could do amazing things with a sewing machine. I used to make all my clothes and my Dad and I struck up a bargain; he would pay for the fabric, thread, zippers etc, if I made my own clothes. It worked out well for a while. I also made clothes for school friends for a bit of pocket money and I once made a dress for a customer when I worked in a fabric shop. That was a disaster. She was a size 8 (barely) and had brought me a size 10 pattern. She was so tiny and we couldn't do fittings. I still charged her because I had to re-do things a lot. It was expensive, beautiful, Italian fabric too so it cost her a lot for this simple and elegant dress that she probably never wore. I also made lots of clothes for my girls. I wasn't an expert, that's for sure and these days I sew occasionally but mostly do repairs.

My mother made a lot of my clothes, even my dance dresses. But I didn't quite get that talent from her. I wasn't a good student of sewing, I can do enough to replace a button or fix a hem, but I am not much good for anything else unless you want embroidery or cross stitching on it.

LOL--I grew up in a sewing handicapped and dysfunctional family. Neither my grandmother nor mother sewed much, and my mother actually hated sewing which was odd considering she attended the Fashion Institute..she had hoped to become a fashion designer, but dropped out due to thinking that designing, cutting patterns was boring. so nope never learned to sew much myself....I do, do some, but in relation to some of the crafts I make, but not much or involved there.

I do not know how to sew and I did not make skirt by myselves! hehe !