21.3.14

I'm a Crafty Sew and Sew

DD being crafty
I'm not the best seamstress in the world. Maybe I would be on the Discworld...but not in this one.

I inherited a sewing machine from my MIL and I was taught needlework at school (and yes it was only the girls, boys did wood work of course!) and I learned the ways of the sewing machine under the stern eye of my needlework mistress. She was scary. "Gels! I do NOT want to see any lipstick on your thread! LADIES do not lick or bite their thread, they cut it neatly!" but she taught us well, I know the uses of the various 'feet' on a sewing machine, I can sew a button hole whether by machine or hand. I can sew a button on too - including into a coat (slightly different technique needed to avoid it being too tight) I can sew a tacking stitch, a blanket stitch and I can do a double seam on denim. I can hem too. All because I learned at school.

BUT even if you don't have all of those skills and even if they, quite frankly, terrify you, you should ensure your home has a sewing kit. Everyone, of every gender should be able to fix stuff! No one should be throwing away a pair of trousers due to a lost button or a jumper because of a frayed hem.

In the time of the internet you can even learn online using youtube tutorials or friendly bloggers and once you are feeling happy with a needle then you can craft! It needn't be perfect either. I learned to make a rather cute strawberry at a festival last year under the careful eye of RedTedArt and it was super easy and fun!

Ditch the wunda-web, the hem-bond or whatever it's called, grab a sharp and get sewing! Be not afraid.

This year I plan to learn to knit (other that finger knitting which I learned at Camp Bestival) and it looks like Wilderness Festival might be the place as they are planning a Naked Knitting Circle!

Do you sew? Do you knit? How 'crafty' are you? and did you learn at school?

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