Where does a man begin to learn how to make his own clothes?

Dear WB,

I haven't read the Coffin book for many years now, but one thing that stuck was his suggestion that unbleached muslin be used for interfacing. In the time it takes to wash and dry it three times, I can have three shirts completed.

I have developed a very fast, efficient method of shirtmaking. I do all the details first; construct the stand and collar; put in the sleeve vents; press in and sew hems; sew the yokes to the back (inside and outer); sew the fronts to the inside yoke; topstitch the yokes to the outside fronts; attach collar stand to neck; flat fell sleeves to armholes; french seam sleeves and side seams; attach cuffs. Some designs have a separate button band down the front. I would do this step before sewing the yokes. While I can't describe it here, I have a way of attaching the collar that precludes the stand ever hanging over the edge. Putting in the hems before sewing the pieces together assures a smooth french seam over all the layers.

I also seem to recall that the book recommends all cotton fabrics. Since I hate ironing and can't afford to send shirts to the cleaners, I use treated cottons or blends that don't require any more than touch-up ironing. I find it somewhat elitist to refuse modern fabrics.

Teri

Kate has given you a lot of information about machine and I 'm going to point you to the FAQ written by members of this group on general information on buying a sewing machine. Please give it a look. As to hand held machines, my personal feelings are that the only good hand held is the needle and thread that you hold in you hand and do hand sewing with :). The FAQ can be found at:

You might try the Janome Gem or that tiny Sears machine that sells for about $100 that is supposed to be a decent-quality clone of the Janome Gem. It's like a half-size machine that will do light and middle weight sewing.

But forget the Tiny Tailor types of machines. They are not built for real sewing.

Thanks for the informative post. JPBill

Provided that you want to turn them out as fast as possible, or want to produce an exact duplicate of the shirts you buy at Walmart.

I flat-fell the seams in my T-shirts, (using David Coffin's method) and like them much better than overlocked seams. I use only sewing-machine straight stitches, not even zig-zag, for seaming. I do sometimes use zig-zag for hemming, if I don't want to turn under the edge and it would curl if left raw.

But I'll confess that I do the second round of stitching on neckbands by hand. The first round is machine straight stitching; I find it *less* likely to break than zig-zagging.

I use six-ply 100/6 thread for seams; since it comes only in white and ecru, I sometimes settle for 50/3 for top stitching felled seams.

When I'm being *really* fussy I'll hem the fells by hand (spaced backstitch worked from the right side). When I just want to whack this together to see whether it fits, I'll make plain seams, press them open, and then zig-zag over the seam line to make them stay pressed open. I'm still wearing shirts I made years ago by that method.

Half an inch of seam allowance is worlds aplenty.

(Once you have the fit perfected, that is.)

Joy Beeson

What about sewing by hand with a needle and thread? is that feasible?

I'm put off this stuff by the requirement for a sewing machine and/or serger et cetera. I don't want to commit much money and space when I don't know for sure that this is going to work out well. I'd prefer to start small and light, very small and light, like a needle and thread. I find knots fascinating anyhow, such as seamen's knots, and I wonder if needles are more versatile than a sewing machine, perhaps enabling me with bigger needles to sew tougher fabrics. Also, my elderly dad is a somewhat conservative guy on issues of manhood and good reputation and I don't know what he'd think if he hears I got interested in sewing machines. We already had our disagreements about me not wanting to live up to the ideals of his peers and my disinterest in hunting was a failure on my part to spend more time with him, a sewing machine would be way too much. Even if he never hears about it he still resides in my conscience and his imagined reaction makes me shy.

Now, now, tailors have traditionally been men, and an awful lot of Italian tailors would be offended if you called them sissies, just because they sew! Also, sewing machines are, after all, machinery, and by extension, masculine. (A friend of mine says all sewing machines are male!)

My grandfather taught me to sew by hand, and he was as macho as they come. I say, don't let any preconceived ideas of what you think your father would say keep you from a very satisfying, useful and practical hobby.

There are a couple of excellent sites for men who sew, by the way:

this new >

Also, my elderly dad is

Go find an older machine in a local thrift store. Outlay -- well, in my area, portable machines are around $20.

Trying to sew an entire garment with a hand needle when you are a beginner is like trying to paint an entire wall of your bedroom using a Q-Tip instead of a brush. You don't necessarily need a whole electrically fed painting system, but you do need a brush, because a Q-tip will take a long time.

That's what I do. (well, that and pick them up off the curb on garbage day.)

When I was reading the FAQ, I found a lot of valuable information, but the only part I managed to retain was "all metal workings." So when I found one that fit that description, I got it and have been happy with it ever since. If you find one with a manual, that's a big bonus, by the way.

If you get one and your Dad makes a comment about it, you could always tell him you

1. You're trying to fix it for a girl you know - have details ready.
2. Bought it because a girl you know wants one - have details ready. This might work best, because then you can eventually say it wasn't the type she wanted, so now you're stuck with it.

or

1. You wanted to see if the motor would work for something else you're trying to do. Have details ready.

And BTW, if you get a second hand machine and it doesn't work, then come back and we can tell about some internet groups that will cheerfully help you diagnose and possibly repair the problem. You'll find lots of guys in those groups, BTW.

There is nothing wrong with hand sewing, if that's the way you want to go. Many sturdy servicable clothes were made for 100's of years by hand. Granted, machine sewing is faster, and more efficient, but not necessrily better. The technique for seaming is a basic running stitch, sometimes doubled back on itself.

Some people still chose to make things by hand. Many fine couture lines still have hand elements, as does fine tailoring. Some historical reneactors try to be extremely authentic, down to garments that are totally hand sewn.

Hand sew if you want, if that's what makes you happy. A machine is NOT necessary.

penny s - owner of five machines, but I love to do handwork too.

Take what others have said to heart, and remember: traditional woven fabrics respond well to hand stitching. Knits somehow do better with less handling, and a machine is often better for that.

I have made garments entirely by hand, and I can tell you that while it's very satisfying once the garment is complete, it takes AAAAAAGES and is extremely tedious! This is why, once sewing machines were relatively cheap and reliable (think 1880's) so many manufacturers and dressmakers and tailors started using them.

There are still many processes that are easier and better done by hand, but for strength, durability, ease, and consistency, straight forward seams are usually better done on a machine.

As for space... Well, one of my sisters lives in a 1930's studio flat in London. Her main room is 12 feet by 10. Her bathroom isn't big enough for a full sized bath, and her kitchen is 3 feet wide by 5 long. She houses herself, several thousand books, a computer, and both a sewing machine and serger. As she says, it all fits in, but you have to learn to be tidy! And she finds a sofa bed the best option for both sleeping and sitting. Organization is the key. She found space to make a posh silk velvet suit that she wore to a 'do' with the Princess Royal as principal guest.

As for the manliness issue - fergettit! ;) If you ain't man enough to ride out a discussion about sewing with yer pa, you ain't' man enough for the blokes on THIS group, the quilting group, several embroidery groups... I've been sewing for over 40 years, and I've ALWAYS known blokes who sewed! And knitted, and embroidered... One of the embroiderers was the dad of a friend of mine, and a stoker in the Royal Navy. And I also once met a para who knitted Aran sweaters.

You've been pointed at several blokes who sew, and I'll just add Kaffe Fasset and David Page Coffin to the list, along with reminding you of my

6'3" tall FiL, the engineer who built RADAR during the war and managed a television factory, who made all his own trousers for many years, along with numerous things for his wife.

How long would it take to sew a shirt by hand compared to a machine?

Also, I'm thinking of starting to do stuff by hand, I'd need to learn what kind of stitches there are anyhow, to do whatever the machine can't do or even to do buttons. If i feel comfortable enough about what I'm doing I'll invest in a machine.

Also, how possible or difficult would it be to downsize a shirt or pants? I think shortening would perhaps not be a problem, but say, for example, that I got this large shirt that I want to make smaller. Is it feasible? I'm thinking of starting with this.

I have no idea how long it would take to make a shirt by hand. I'm sure the

10th one would be a lot faster than the first one. One nice thing about hand work is that you can take it with you. There are a lot of "found moments" during a day ( waiting at dr's offices etc, watching TV) that make good opportunities for getting something stitched together. Certainly there are many projects you can do, like pillows, quilt squares etc that will give you good practice for developing hand sewing skills, and a feel for whether you really want to tackle anything bigger or not.

Risizing down, other than simple length issues, "alterations" is a job best left to the experienced alterationist. Many times it's just not worth it, too much deconstruction and reconstruction.

I have a father who is.....uh....difficult to say the least. I can totally relate to the poster's dilemma.

"According to Godey's Lady's Book, it took about 14 hours to make a man's dress shirt and at least 10 hours for a simple dress. A middle-class housewife spent several days a month making and mending her family's clothes even with the help of a hired seamstress. After the purchase of a sewing machine--and suitable training and practice--those hours dropped to 1 1/4 for the shirt and one hour for the simple dress."

times would be for someone who was experienced and knew what she was doing.

Your choice. I prefer machine sewing, and don't hand sew if I can use my machine.

It's not easy unless it fits across the shoulders and around the neck. If so, you only need to taper the sides, below the armholes. If it's too big across the shoulders you've got a much bigger job, and if the neck's too big you can't make it smaller because the hole's already been cut and you can't cut it smaller.

I suggest that you start with a simple project like boxer shorts, using a nice woven cotton fabric and a Kwiksew pattern. If they don't turn out perfect just don't wear them where anyone else will see them!

Sally Holmes Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England

How much weight do you give to his other opinions?

I've had parents of kids who were like this about their sons doing 'gurlie' subjects at school. Even back in the late seventies when I started teaching I told them: get over it - you cannot live their lives for them or re-run yours through them the way you wish it had been.

I suppose I was lucky: while my mum sews, my dad could knit, and his brother kept his own family of 4 boys and a girl in school jumpers. All

4 boys knew how to use the knitting machine, and my aunt and girl cousin knitted fancy lacey stuff by hand.

My dad, and RAF fly-boy, always said if you weren't man enough to knit, sew, cook, change a baby, and run a house, you weren't properly educated! He taught me to press clothes and shine shoes (amongst many other things, including having an independent opinion about whatever I felt like), and was an excellent cook and gardener. The oldest of three boys, he ran the house for several years after his mother died when he was 16 or 17, including while he was a student at university, until his father remarried.

A few years ago my husband was the first to sew on my all singing and dancing new computerized sewing machine.

I like that one Manly sewing site. Dh's mom taught him to sew and one of the best gifts I ever got was a Frostline goretex parka that he made with his own two hands.

P.