Sewing isn’t just for old women! Next time you see your grandmother, you should ask her for all of her words of wisdom when it comes to sewing.
There is nothing worse than getting a tear in your pants and not knowing how to fix it. Or, thinking you know how to fix it but actually making things a whole lot worse.
You don’t need to become an expert at sewing, but these hacks are ways to make your life easier and you’ll find they will actually come in handy, especially if you do love to sew!
1: Make pleats using a fork
You might think “pleats, no way that is too fancy!” Don’t worry, I thought so as well.
You can pretend to be a sewing pro by following Sarah Tyau’s tutorial video of how to use a fork to make pleats! It is so easy, you’ll wonder why you didn’t think of it yourself.
2: Fix a hole using interfacing sewing
Have a hole in your pants, shirt, or dress? You can use interfacing sewing to fix that right up!
Instead of having patches all over of different patterns, you can use this form of sewing to make the hold blend in with the rest of your clothing.
You can follow the tutorial for this trick at C Sews.
3: Make a perfect straight stitch every time
Now, if you have a sewing machine, that kind of means you already take sewing seriously. But if you’re a novice, you might be struggling with creating a straight line.
The simple trick here is to put an elastic around the machine to use as a guide to keep your lines straight.
4: Fix your stubborn straight pin
Do you have straight pins that are giving you a tough time? Take them out of the pincushion!
Instead of sticking them in a little bit of fabric, you’ll poke them into a bar of soap. This way, your pin will glide effortlessly through the fabric you’re trying to sew.
5: Use a soap bar instead of chalk
Another soap and sewing hack! Who knew these two things paired together so well?
You might be using chalk to mark your place while sewing and though that isn’t wrong, you also probably know that chalk can wipe away easily or go on faint.
To draw a thicker, clearer mark, use soap (a thin bar, a giant fat bar won’t work well) to draw your lines.
6: Instead of making holes using pins, you can use clips
If you don’t want to make a hole in the material that you’re trying to hold down, you can avoid that by eliminating pins.
Instead, use a small clip to hold the material in place and get to sewing!
7: Use a hairspray to make threading a needle easier
Threading a needle is the biggest hassle in the world. If you don’t grab the thread just right, you’ll never get it through.
If the thread is a little frayed, forget it. You might as well quit while you’re ahead. Instead of driving yourself crazy, spray the end of the thread with a little hairspray.
It will go through like magic!
8: Make the waist of your jeans bigger
There is no shame in needing a little extra room in your jeans. Maybe they shrunk in the wash, maybe you had some really good pizza lately, whatever the reason, we’d never judge.
Instead of buying an entirely new pair of jeans, you can follow this E How tutorial on how to make some extra room in the waist of your jeans.
9: Keep your buttons from falling off
Have you had buttons fall off of your shirt? Of course, you have, who hasn’t?
It is actually a simple fix! Simply apply a little clear nail polish/top coat over the thread on your button. If you’re ever replacing a button on your shirt, make sure you never skip this step afterward.
Which hack are you going to try out first? I am definitely putting all of my pins in soap moving forward!
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You can see how these hacks and more sewing tips are done in the video below!
