Start your sewing adventure with us.    Join Seamwork

  • Tutorial: Making thread belt loops with Nancy Zieman (and 3…

    Nancy Zieman is one of my sewing heroes. From the wonderfully clear writing in her books to her fantastic TV shows, she’s done a lot to bring the craft of sewing into our homes. So I’m thrilled to be the final stop on the blog tour for her newest book, Nancy Zieman’s Sewing A to …

  • Some pants fitting basics

    With the Clover pant pattern, we wanted to create a slim fitting pant that’s flattering on many women. When you’re making your own pants, you want them to fit perfectly. Remember fitting room woes and the time it took to find the right pair of pants. Fitting pants will take time just like finding those …

  • Tutorial: How to make your own piping

    Piping’s fun to play with, but the choices at the fabric store can be a bit dismal. Making your own piping opens up a world of possibilities. You can go subtle with piping made from your garment’s fabric, or bold with contrasting or patterned piping. We’ve talked about using flat piping as a detail on …

  • Tutorial: How to sew darts

    For beginners, sewing darts tends to seem like a complicated step. I know that I was confused about getting a straight line and ending right at the point. Double pointed darts seemed even more confusing. After some time spent practicing, I was able to master the art of the dart. I’m sure that if darts …

  • Tutorial: How to make button loops for the Violet blouse

    Here we are in our final steps of transforming the Violet blouse pattern and I am so proud! If you’ve followed along with us by adding tucks and a lace collar, then you’re ready for clustered button loops. If not, feel free to go back to check out the tuck tutorial and lace collar tutorial …

  • Tutorial: How to make a lace overlay collar

    Next up in the transformation of the pretty Violet pattern: the ever so lovely lace overlay collar. Check out our previous tutorial If you’d like to add tucks to your blouse. You will need: Violet pattern and necessary supplies Lace fabric Scissors or rotary cutter Seam ripper Step 1: Cut out three collar pieces: one in lace, …

  • Tutorial: How to add tucks to the Violet blouse

    One of the great things about our Violet blouse pattern is that it provides a great canvas for an endless variety of alterations. We brainstormed three simple techniques that will add a little extra personality to your blouse: tucks, a lace collar, and clustered buttons with button loops. Each technique is incorporated in succession so …

  • How to make a rouleau pocket

    Everyone loves pockets! They make otherwise simple garments super cute and provide a cozy spot for your hands to rest. This tutorial manipulates rouleau strips into any design you can dream up. Here we’ve added a rouleau pocket to our ginger skirt. While these pockets are only semi-functional (you might lose small objects), they sure …

  • Tutorial: Ginger Waistband with Flat Piping

    A-line skirts are a sweet spring staple and look even sweeter with contrasting piping at the waistband. Easier to make than corded piping, this type of piping doesn’t include a cord and is referred to as flat piping. This technique can easily be added to any of the three waistband styles for our Ginger pattern, …

  • Tutorial: A simple way to sew facings with invisible zippers

    Once you’ve got the hang of sewing invisible zippers, you may wonder what the best way is of attaching a facing or a lining to it. This method is machine sewn and the seam allowance is tucked under leaving a clean, finished look. Our Ginger skirt pattern uses a variation on this technique, so you …

  • Tutorial: Make an easy scalloped hem

    With our scallop inspiration post in mind, we created this tutorial on creating your own scallops. For this project we took the Sorbetto sans pleat and added a fun scalloped hem. You can use this tutorial to add scallops to almost any hem if you like. Highly customizable, you can make the tiniest scallops, deep …

  • The 5 things to remember when buying a sewing machine

    {image: photo of Modern Domestic by photographer Leela Cyd} We get a lot of questions about how to go about buying a sewing machine. Today, we’re lucky to have a real sewing machine expert here to show us the ropes. Meredith works and teaches at Modern Domestic, a fabulous shop here in Portland AND has …

  • Tutorial: Make Sorbetto Without a Pleat

    Love the Sorbetto top but want to remove the pleat for a simpler look? Here’s how to alter the pattern in no time. Watch for a tutorial on adding a scalloped hem to the top for a super cute look! Tools Needed: Sorbetto top pattern Pen Scissors 1. Mark the pleat line as “place on …

  • How to Sew Bias Binding

    Bias binding is an excellent thing to have on hand as it can be used for making piping, covering edges and creating facings. It comes in many different widths and folds as well as fabric types. You can even make your own! For some garments, you may want to use bias binding to finish the …

  • 4 tips for staystitching to prevent stretched out necklines

    Staystitching is a straight stitch sewn through one layer of fabric. It’s most often used around a curve to prevent distortion. This is because the curve cuts across the bias, the stretchiest part of fabric. To really see this in action, cut a curve out of some scrap fabric and then pull on it. You’ll …

  • Basic Maintenance: Tension & Skipped Stitches

    We’ve all experienced some wacky things happening with our stitches. The thread will go all loopy or skipped stitches will mar that otherwise perfect topstitching. These are things that happen to everyone. These things shouldn’t keep us from enjoying the process of sewing. So here are a few common problems and solutions explained to help …

  • Free pattern to download: The sorbetto top

    I have a little treat for you today: the Sorbetto top, a brand new free downloadable pattern! Several weeks ago, Kathleen of grosgrain asked me to participate in a little something she put together called free pattern month. I thought it would be a great opportunity to put together another freebie pattern for you all, …

  • Design Detail: Topstitching

    Topstitching is a fun way to add a simple detail to your clothing. Topstitching is a decorative stitch, usually a straight stitch but it can really be any type of stitch. It’s typically used on the edges of garments like hems and necklines. However, it can be used anywhere next to a seam. While you …

  • Tutorial: How to Match Plaids and Stripes

    Aligning plaid and stripe fabric can be tricky and time consuming. This tutorial shows you one way of aligning stripes. It definitely takes a bit of time, but it’s a nearly foolproof way of getting the job done. Patterns that match up on the sides always look professional. Take some time to try out this …

  • Building Your Sewing Vocabulary

    Photo by themissiah We’ve gone over some sewing vocabulary with the post on Fabric Terms. In order to help you brush up on your sewing vocabulary, we’ve continued with some frequently used words. Are there any words or terms that continue to stump you? Let us know! We’d love to help out. In the meantime, …

  • How to use a bamboo point turner

    Ever have difficulty getting points just right? It seems like rounded corners are all too prevalent in home sewing. Using a point turner can change that. This handy and inexpensive tool can be found at your local sewing store or online for less than $2. The point turner comes in plastic and bamboo. Both are …