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Behold… I made a Megan dress!

A few weeks ago I picked up a copy of Love At First Stitch by Tilly Walnes, from the Kinokuniya at Ngee Ann City. (If you’re in Singapore, I really recommend the sewing book section there - there are a lot of books that have paper patterns included, including those from bloggers like Tilly, Collete Patterns and Gertie. I got a little over excited in the shop!)

I’d read the reviews for Love At First Stitch so I was pretty hyped for the book. And it totally lived up to expectation! It’s a gorgeous book, very beautifully put together - and Tilly has a lovely conversational way of writing which makes you feel like you’ve known her for years.

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In my first month of sewing I’ve made two Hollyburn skirts. The sewalong at Lavender Lane helped enormously through the process. (NB. Lavender Lane link removed, blog has sadly expired.)

I printed out the PDF pattern, and even just taping that together was a real learning curve for a newbie like me! Somehow I ended up with wonky grainline markings in the pattern – but I think I got away with it.

I made this green version first (my first ever garment!):

I was pretty pleased with myself. Within a few days I had turned a length of fabric into a wearable item of clothing!

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I started out on my sewing journey in the typical way: I made a pillowcase!

It actually happened at the perfect time – my husband and I wanted to get new bedding for the new year, but we couldn’t find pillowcases to match our king-size pillows anywhere in Singapore. When I realised I could make pillowcases easily with my new sewing machine, it was like it was fated to happen! My beginner’s project immediately turned into a mission – I had to make 2 sets of 4 king-size pillowcases to replace our old ones.

So I trotted down to Spotlight to find some fabric. I knew it would be a learning curve picking out fabric for the first time – but goodness me, it took ages. I was probably in there for an hour, poring over all the different types of cotton and trying to find a good balance between the feel, the colour, the pattern and the price. I ended up choosing bright green cotton poplin in polka dots and stripes. Bright colours lift my spirits, and I’m on a real green kick right now!

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Now that I’ve been sewing for over a month (okay, maybe closer to six weeks) I thought I’d write down five of the big discoveries I’ve made along the way. Some of these beginner sewing tips I had read beforehand, but I never truly understood them until I experienced them for myself!

1. A good pair of scissors is really, really worth it

I started out buying two cheap pairs of scissors (less than S$7 or £3.50 each), but I ended up going back to the store a few days later to upgrade to a pair of Fiskars (around S$60 or £30). The cheap ones felt like they were tearing through the fabric rather than cutting it. With the Fiskars I can make nice, clean, accurate cuts, and they’re genuinely a joy to use.

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