Sewing–the truth

I saw a t-shirt I liked at a little boutique store.  It was a printed t-shirt with a military type pocket on it.  They wanted $65 for it.  And I immediately thought, I could easily make that.  So I tried it.

I actually sewed the t-shirt too, but it would have been very easy to just add the pocket detail to an already made t-shirt.  The shirt at the store had two different prints one of the front and one of the back, I wanted to recreate that, therefore I made it myself.

I would still classify myself as an intermediate sewer.  As I mentioned before most things I make, I don’t even wear.  My biggest problem is, I’m afraid to make something too small, so everything turns out too big.  This is a problem with the things I make for myself and for Bella.  I also like to order fabric online.  Fabric.com is one of my favorite sites.  The main problem with ordering fabric online, you can’t exactly tell what the fabric feels like, or what the colors will be when you get it.  Most times it fits well with how I thought it would, sometimes it doesn’t.

I also like to find inspiration photos online.  Sometimes I use patterns, most times I just wing it.  Truth is, I’m not very good at winging it.  I have had this tank top in mind forever.  I can not find a good representation of this fabric anywhere.  I recently tried a bolder print, but it turned out too “70’s” for me.

I found this fabric online really cheap (I think $4/yd), so I picked it up.  I decided to try a pattern with this one, but tried to modify it.  I also cut a few steps out, and instantly regretted it.  I do wear it, but the collar never stays up like it should, and the sleeves (the piece I adjusted) need more work.  I just need to spend 30 minutes on it someday and then it could be salvageable.

This one was the same story, cheap fabric online.  Couldn’t tell online it was completely see through.  This top actually turned out decent, and I cut it to the correct size for once.  I just have to wear a tank top underneath.

So the truth about sewing is this.  You have to make a lot of mistakes and a variety of mistakes to become good.  At the end of the day, if you value your time, it is still probably cheaper to buy clothes rather than make them.  I spend an average of 2 hours on every shirt.  But if you want a unique and interesting look, or you want that $100 shirt but can’t quite pony up the money and you enjoy doing it, it can be fun to sew your own clothes.