Sew Your Own Wardrobe: The Complete Step-By-Step Guide

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For this collection, I decided to make pieces that would be able to transition between each of these areas, focusing on pieces that would be comfortable and still feel put-together. Here’s me working on my exploratory sewing. I consider this to be my design practice and try to create a capsule collection each year to add to my portfolio. It keeps me happy and curious to discover new pathways in design and sewing. Lesson 6: Don’t make too much!

Now I sew one item at a time. And I make a muslin, which I didn’t do before because often the garments were simple styles and basic fits that I would make the adjustments right on the actual garment. If a garment is especially complex, and has a lot of details, bet your booty I’m making a muslin. But I also make a muslin to test the suitability now, so that I’m not being wasteful with my materials and am being very careful to ensure that what I’m making I’m going to love and wear for the long term. Our focus will be on quality and fit. I'll show you how to adjust patterns to fit and suit you perfectly, whether you prefer long, short or cap sleeves, high or low waistbands, and slim, straight or wide-legged trousers. Not Just Ladies Wear If I wore them regularly, even more than once in a week, then that pattern goes to the hit archive, because it passed my comfort and confidence test. If I got lots of inquiries and my friends noticed it, then it got bonus points, because folks do get used to seeing you a certain way on a regular basis, and if it passed that test then I knew it matched my personality. Storage & organisation Furniture Textiles Kitchenware & tableware Kitchens Lighting Decoration Rugs, mats & flooring Beds & mattresses Baby & children Smart home Bathroom products Laundry & cleaning Plants & plant pots Home electronics Home improvement Outdoor living Food & beverages Christmas Shop Shop by room

Have you tried sewing your own garments? I’d love to hear about the clothes you’re making in the comments below! Read through the entire pattern before starting. This is a really great habit to get into to help familiarize yourself with all of the steps and techniques in a pattern. I do this before even cutting out my pattern. It gives me a good sense of what I’ll need to do, and helps me think of any adjustments I might make as I go.

Firstly, when you make your own clothes you’re able to completely customize them to your preferences – think size, tailoring, shape, colours, textures. So instead of having to go on the hunt for the perfect pair of trousers that has all of the features you like, you can just make them exactly how you want instead. I started sewing my clothing because I was inspired to make things that felt true to how I wanted to present myself. I’ve always been told that my sense of fashion was unique, as I’ll wear whatever I want, whether it’s in style or not. There are so many great options available out there, and it’s so much fun to explore them all. But hopefully this list gives you a good starting point! Practice on scrap fabric. Like I mentioned before, test out your machine and a few different stitches or techniques on scrap fabric first. This will help you get a feel for things and won’t waste expensive fabric.I mostly buy fabric online, just because I think it’s easier to find sustainable fibres (like linen, cotton, hemp, etc). The last time I went into my local big-box fabric store, I didn’t see much in the way of 100% linen, and the ones they did have were very expensive. A lot of smaller companies ship worldwide and have a really great selection of fabrics to choose from. Double bummer. Even if you are able to sew it up and make it fit, you must give the garment a few wears to see how you really feel about it. When it's on you, you are going to see if it fits your personality and improves your confidence. There are several garments that I sewed up that passed this test. One of the best parts is the techniques I'm going to share will work for ladies wear, men's clothing and children's clothing. I hope these tips have given you the confidence you need to take the first step in sewing our own clothes! If you have any questions that I didn’t answer, let me know in the comments below. And, please also let me know if you enjoy the sewing content! Sewing is such a big hobby of mine, and I would love to share more of it with you alongside my other slow fashion, capsule wardrobe, and simple living content. For a first garment, choose a simple, beginner-friendly pattern—like a boxy top or a simple skirt with an elastic waist. Many indie pattern companies sell patterns; I have my own shop, 100 Acts Of Sewing, and I also recommend Grainline Studios, Made by Rae, Seamwork, and Christine Haynes.