Sewing for a Modern Girl
My soon-to-be teenager has had a mixed past with sewing. Two years ago, she was beyond thrilled to learn that there was a sewing class for homeschooled kids in our town. She eagerly made a Trick or Treat bag for Halloween, and a potholders for Thanksgiving. She was still having fun when they made an appliqued snowman pillow. But then the class took a rapid step forward an made pajamas from a pattern, which was fairly overwhelming for a novice given three-hours. Next class came the announcement that they would be making doll clothing for the rest of the year. My girl does not “do” dolls. She was done.
Yet, I could see she still had an interest in learning how to sew. I had belonged to a “block of the month ” club, and she was interested in what I had made. She also had started developing her own style in clothing. She mentioned that she wants to make belts, bags, and head bands that coordinate. Last month, she was happy to be back at the machine making the “Comfort Bags” for the teacher’s gifts, and started asking me to create a curriculum for her.
Since my sewing ability is “daring novice” , I did what any resourceful homeschool mom would do. I went to the stacks, and hit the internet. I wanted more than just sewing ribbons and lace to the cuffs of her clothes. I have found a wealth of ideas out there, perfect for a modern girl to build skills.
My first find is a book “Rip It!”, by Elissa Meyrich. The cover caught my eye, as it states “How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Wardrobe of Your Dreams. ” Paging through this book, I was happy to see clear instructions with step-by-step photographs. This is more than just embellishing (which they cover too) but reconstructing. Girlie is very excited to insert fabric panels in the calves of her jeans, as well as make skirts from jeans and skirts from old dresses. This book will definitely keep us visiting the thrift store.
The second book I purchased is “Lotta Jansdotter Simple Sewing.” This book features 24 patterns and directions for simple yet fun projects. The tote bags were adorable! The bed linens had her jumping. What I really love about this book is the lay-flat sprial binding and color photos. I know I will enjoy making projects from this one as much as she does!
The third book I purchased is “Generation-T-108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt.” by Megan Nicholay. This is reconstruction at it’s finest. Girlie saw this one in the craft store and read it the whole way through. Before check out, we had to head back and pick up some t-shirts for her to get started! Luckily, Michael’s has Hanes t-shirts on sale at 5 for $10 fairly often, so these projects are cheap.
PLEASE NOTE: There seem a lot of books out there on these themes that are, well, less than ideal. Some are so filled with funky graphics and claims of beginner ease, yet patterns contain smocking and pleats. Another group of books seem to be more fluff than substance. I want more than eight idea for my $17, thank you very much. I strongly recommend making a trip to a book or craft store to actually LOOK through before buying.
I have also found the internet is full of bloggers who happily post patterns and photos. I spent some time and found some adorable apron patterns (what a cool gift idea!) . I have found a lot of cute skirt patterns for little girls. While I know Girlie would love the style, I am going to take the opportunity to teach the math process to adapt the pattern for her. I spent an hour the other morning using my search engine for skirt sewing pattern ” and had a blast looking and printing.
Can’t wait to hear what you all have found out there!
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About
I am the mother of two wonderful children, ages 12 & 15, that I have been homeschooling using a blend of Charlotte Mason and unit studies for ten years. My hubby is a terrific dad, contractor and big kid, and we also have two furry, four-legged children others would call “dogs.” I am a total crafty mama, trying my hand at almost anything, and enjoying most.
You can also find me blogging at Homeschool Hacks. 
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Unfortunately I don’t have any great book tips for you, but I did tag you for a meme at my blog. Hope you can participate
Ohhh! I am going to check these out. We just made quilts two weeks ago and Ellie wants to sew more. She is a novice and younger than yourr daughter so she will need more help but I’m sure we can find something in the books you mentioned. Thanks!
Hi – I am a regular reader of your blog and also have daughters who enjoy sewing. They spend one day each week at their grandparents, and do lots of sewing as their grandmother is a quilter: clothes for themselves, clothes for their dolls, quilts and blankets and pillows, and so forth. I’m interested in these books you recommend, but I have a question about them. Are the clothing projects appropriate for mildly sheltered kids? So much clothing for girls these days – teens, preteens, and even younger! – are *so* inappropriate to my eye, and I’ve happily kept my girls (11 and 7) out of the malls as a nice side benefit of our homeschooling. Thanks so much!
Deconstruction can be so fun… a great way to explore sewing techniques and artistic expressions – for cheap! As always, you’ve obviously done your research on the subject but I thought I’d offer two suggestions:
1. See if you can’t pick up a dressmaker dummy for cheap at the thrift or a garage sale. As Girlie moves along she’ll no doubt want to make things that bit her properly. I know from experience that it’s frustrating as all get-out to slave over a garment only to have it be ill-fitting.
2. Make sure you visit the outlet thrift or buy-by-the-pound section of your thrift store.
To comment on Christina’s thoughts: I bought the Generation T book for my niece. I know that some of the things in there were a bit racy but we had a nice chat about before she started shredding about how many of the showier items would look just as cool layered over snug fitting t’s or leggings. It worked for her.
As you know, I recently dusted off the sewing machine for the quilt project. I was at Barnes & Noble yesterday and saw a book that may be of interest Sew U by Wendy Mullin. She started young by deconstructing clothes from the thrift store but now she is a designer. I found it an easy read with clear instructions and she includes 3 free basic patterns (she has a line with Simplicity) for making a shirt, skirt, and pants. A write-up says the following:
This book gives basic sewing skills — how to cut, sew, and light pattern making to alter these patterns so that they’re built by YOU! In addition this teaches elements of design through pattern making and sewing techniques.
Great book for beginner sewers, pattern makers and future fashion designers!
The internet is also a great source as you already know and indicated. The sewing tag provides a wealth of info. I agree with Tara about the dress form….I am so bummed that I sold mine in my younger/unwise years being that they are cost over $100.
My 11yo enjoys Sew U, which southerngirlmusings mentioned and which we own. It reminds me of a junior high home ec class.
I’ve done a quick (60 second) bookstore browse of the books you mentioned in your post; thanks for a bit more insight into them.
I’ve seen people making dress forms on knitting blogs. I seem to remember that it involved duct tape. Something like making a cast of your body, removing it, stuffing it with something-or-other, then making a cover? Might be worth googling.
I *love* the sewing level you’ve given yourself — “daring novice”. I, too, boldly go where I probably don’t belong. I think this, as much as anything, inspires my daughter. She sees me tracing off Ottobre patterns, messing with the lines of the pattern, ripping stuff out and redoing, sometimes pitching it all and starting over. She has seen me do something wrong multiple times and *still* perservere and finish the item. And not just me — her piano teacher was just telling us that she was sewing a skirt and put the zipper in from the hem up (rather than from the waist down); she ripped it out, then promptly made the exact same mistake again. The piano teacher was absolutely not emarassed by this, nor should she be — she thought it was a funny story.
I cannot sew. Actually, I can do a really poor job at fixing a hem or sewing on a button, but I do have a machine and I do want to try.
Bravo’s Project Runway is a show she might be inspired by. Season 4 just ended but it looks like a daylong marathon on June 12. (double-check local listings)
These design shows are great for budding artists because they show the entire design process. On each show, the contestants are given a project and the parameters … the projects with the ridiculously low budgets are the best because if forces the designer to be the most creative.