Teaching a Daughter to Sew
I grew up in a home with a mother who sewed, crocheted, embroidered, and gardened. I saw these activities being lived out, and yet I didn’t participate in them. I did learn how to cut out garments, and then my mom would sew them up for me. But that’s about as far as my knowledge of sewing went.
When I got married, the desire to sew for myself was so strong that I decided I simply must learn how! And for me, the best way to learn is to just do it. So, I bought an easy pattern and some fabric, and began the process of learning how to sew. It turned into one of my passions, and it’s a skill that I’ve long looked forward to passing on to my daughters.
I decided the best way to learn how to sew clothing was to find a pattern that my daughter was interested in making, and go from there. She really wanted to make a skirt, so we decided on Simplicity 2609. A couple of years ago she helped me make a tiered skirt from this pattern, so we already had it on hand. This time though, I really wanted her to do most of it herself, so we decided to use view D, which is a simple elastic-waist skirt with a yoke and a center seam.
I showed her how to read the back of the pattern, determine her measurements, and figure out how much fabric she would need. We went to the fabric store and she picked out fabric for her skirt. I showed her how to prewash her fabric, and then she ironed it, since we let it sit too long in the dryer, and it got completely wrinkled. It’s much easier and neater to cut out if it’s been ironed.
I showed her how to read the pattern instructions, figure out how to lay out her pattern pieces, and how to understand the general directions.
We cut out the pattern pieces we would be using, and then we talked about making sure to cut out the little notches (these are especially helpful for beginners, or if you’re making a tiered skirt, so you know where to match up the pieces).
Then it was time to cut out the skirt. She did all of this herself with very minimal help and instruction from me.
When it came time to do the actual sewing, we first familiarized ourselves with her sewing machine. She’s used mine before, but she received this machine as a gift, and hadn’t used it yet.
We spent a lot of time researching which machine would be best for our daughters. In the end, we settled on this one. I’ve been using it myself, and so far it has been nice to work with. My sewing machine is a very basic Singer that we purchased over 13 years ago (and it has been a wonderful machine).
After spending a few hours one afternoon, learning to use the machine, learning how to pin the pattern pieces together, and sewing and pressing the finished pieces…
We ended up with this lovely skirt:
My daughter was very happy with it, and she’s already looking forward to her next sewing project. Just tackling this first skirt taught so many new sewing skills that she’ll continue to build on as she continues to sew. Each time we make something together, she’ll gain confidence and skill. And it won’t be long before she’ll be able to do it all by herself entirely!
If you’d like to teach your daughter (or yourself) to sew, but you’re not sure where to begin, maybe you would also learn best by just choosing a simple pattern and jumping in! If you would feel more comfortable with a systematic approach, you might like this book. It starts off simply and progresses to more advanced projects as you work through the book. We used this when my daughter was younger, and really enjoyed it. She still proudly uses the pillowcase, book cover, and bag she made when she was nine.
Happy Sewing!
I will look for this pattern. Your daughter's skirt is lovely. My daughters took "basic sewing" from Mommy in our home school. This knowledge also comes in handy for making curtains – with or without ruffles.
Karen A.
Thank you, Karen! It's a great, simple pattern. You're so right about the curtains, too! One of my first sewing projects as a newlywed was polished cotton floral curtains for our little kitchen. 🙂
I too am hoping to teach myself to make a skirt from a pattern -but I am very much a beginner with my machine but get great joy out of every finished project
Joy I hope all is well with you and your family as it is a while since you posted
I do so enjoy your blog -and wish you all a Happy Easter
Fiona
Fiona, thank you for leaving such a thoughtful and encouraging comment! We've been sick, but thankfully we're feeling better now. I've also been taking a little blogging break, which has been so wonderful.
I'm sure you can make a skirt! They're not as difficult as they might seem. 🙂
I hope you have a lovely Easter also! ♥ Joy
I wish I could sit in your lessons. I am okay as long as my mom is near but when I get on my own I get all thumbs. ((sigh)) I admire anyone who can sew. I can knit but sew, well? [o=
Your dd is very blessed to have a mama like you.
Blessings and ((HUGS))
-Mary
Thanks for your sweet comment, Mary! Too bad we don't live closer, so we could knit and sew together! 🙂
♥ Joy
I wish I knew how to sew enough to make something to wear. I've made curtains and pillow cases, but that's about it. Also I find that fabric is really expensive. I hate to say it, but it's much less expensive to buy something from Walmart or the thrift shop than to make something. I would like know how those of you who sew alot get inexpensive fabric.
Yes, fabric is expensive these days. And often it is cheaper just to buy something from the thrift store or the clearance rack at Walmart (and we do buy clothing from thrift shops regularly!).
I have been able to find fabric on sale at Walmart for one or two dollars per yard, and when I find it, I stock up. JoAnn also has coupons that can be used, but it may not lower the price very much.
Sometimes I've made skirts out of thrifted dresses that were very inexpensive. You can also use cotton sheets for fabric yardage, and those can often be picked up inexpensively at yard sales or thrift shops.
Fabric.com is another place I find fabric occasionally. The cheapest I've found fabric there is $3 per yard, which would be about $6-7 per skirt (if the skirt takes around two yards or a little more). Which isn't too bad of a price, in my opinion. We also have a local store that sells fabric for $3-$3.75 per yard.
A lot depends on what you're looking for, too. Finding the latest designer fabric for a good price is unlikely (like the Anna Maria Horner voile that I love), but if you're looking for cotton calico, it is regularly available for a decent price at various places. Denim is more expensive, but we wear our denim skirts for a long time, and they get passed down to younger sisters, so I'm willing to pay more for it.
Hope that's helpful!
Just popped over to see your whole post. I think it's wonderful to be able to share this with your daughter! I need to learn to sew from patterns to then be able to teach my girls.
It has been a lot of fun. We're dreaming up our next project (another skirt) now. Skirts are really simple and straightforward. You can do it! ♥
Oh, we love that pattern too. 🙂
I love your February blog header. Selfishly, I really am glad you didn't leave the blog scene for good.
Thank you so much for this sweet and encouraging comment! 🙂
Last year I taught my daughter how to make a simple skirt like you suggested. If that is all she ends up sewing, I would still be pleased. You can pretty much find cute shirts and wear an undershirt to make it modest, but hemlines on skirts fluctuate with the economy! To have the ability to sew them up in a modest fashion is the one sewing skill I would suggest for every woman. She will always be properly attired for her King 🙂
That's wonderful that you taught your daughter to sew skirts, JES! And I agree with you, just being able to make a simple skirt is very valuable!