When I was in high school in the 70′s, sewing was a lot more economical than buying retail.
I didn’t grow up learning to sew, and was extremely jealous of my girlfriends who sewed with their moms. Two friends, in particular, had mothers who were gracious enough to invite me over to watch when they planned to sew together. What a blessing that was to me! It motivated me further to learn how to sew. Never underestimate your influence as a mom to another young girl. Here I am, 30 years later, talking about it.
Things are different today and have been for a while. Based on retail fabric prices alone, one could not rationalize sewing as an economical option for clothing. Yet, some things are worth more than the price involved.
Learning the skill of sewing is a lifetime gift that cannot necessarily be quantified.
It’s a gift that lasts for years and years and will touch the generations to come. I think it’s worth it. Canning falls in the same category. Frankly, unless you have your own cheap and/or free source of food to can, it can actually be more expensive.
It’s the skills of homemaking that your daughters (children) will take with them, not necessarily what they made.
Once I learned to sew, I saved up for a Viking sewing machine, that I still own today. I wouldn’t give this ‘girl’ up for the world. In my 20′s and before children, I made my own ‘work’ clothes i.e. blazers, skirts, etc. and then my own maternity clothes when I became pregnant with Hailey.
Actually, (funny story here) sewing is one reason that Hailey knows so many Motown songs. I LOVE Motown and I have found that Aretha Franklin’s music kind of grooves well with the rate of sewing. She (Aretha) and I have sewn together for many years. My singing lacks in skill but something about sewing with Aretha just heals my soul! While pregnant with Hailey, I had no other children as well as free evenings to sew to my delight. We (Aretha and I) sang for many hours together as Hailey listened in my tummy. No wonder she likes gospel and soul music.
Over the years, I’ve saved a ton making my own custom drapes. Learning to repair clothing makes what we own last longer. My decision to teach myself to sew was one that has paid off during my life many times.
Rahel, Meredith and I were out over the weekend, trying to buy a few things for them both for the warmer weather to come. Finding modest clothing for young girls becomes more of a challenge every year. Around here, we call inappropriate clothing simply “Hoochie-Mama” or “Hoochie”. For the longest time, Rahel kept asking in her broken English “What ‘hoochie’ mean?”. We tried to explain but always wound up laughing. I think she gets it now.
To that end, good luck finding pre-teen and teen clothes that aren’t “Hoochie”!
I made a decision to drag out my old Viking and fire that girl up this Spring, so the girls and I bought one pattern that they could both use for an Easter dress.
We scoped the clearance racks and found some decently priced fabric for two dresses. Mer’s is the white bodice with zebra stripes and Rahel’s is the cream bodice with the brown leopard print.
I’ll be honest here, even with the sale fabric, the pattern and notions got me. Mea culpa because I haven’t sewn in years and don’t have all the accessories like I use to. I haven’t stocked up on notions for a long time and I got nailed on those things. Had I been better prepared, the cost wouldn’t have been so much.
$48 for all of it, about $25 for each dress. Not bad but not great either. More prep on my part could have made this project half that price. Where it will pay off in the long run is that the girls will learn to sew.
6 Great Ways to Sew and Make it Economical
* Collect re-usable patterns: Purchasing a pattern for one use can very often be a waste.
* Re-purpose old clothing for fabric: Old blue jeans are great for this! I have a whole pile of old jeans that I intend to use to make sturdy tote bags for the grocery and the pool. Just because something has a stain on it and can’t be worn again doesn’t mean it can’t be re-purposed for another project.
* Shop garage sales for fabric: I’ve been surprised to see entire bolts of fabric at garage sales for very little!
* Swap patterns and fabric with friends: This is something that this generation has done a much better job at than mine did….learn to trade and swap! With the advent of Craigslist, Flickr, and I’m sure many other sites that I’m not aware of, folks are not waiting to garage sale their stuff, they get on line and trade it.
* Stock up on notions: Pick up elastics, threads and other notions here and there when they’re cheap! That way you don’t get nailed at the register for incidentals like I did.
* Be patient and plan projects: This allows time to watch for sales and to ask around for materials.
Do YOU sew? Would you like to learn? Did you grow up sewing? How do you save money sewing?
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About kmorris
Abby got a sewing machine for Christmas. And we decided to make PJ’s first. It is incredibly expensive to make clothes now adays. I grew up making clothes. I loved to sew. I sewed all my prom dresses and wanted to make my wedding dress but didn’t have the time. Anyway, Abby is really enjoying the sewin but my wallet is not
Chris,
What a great skill to teach Abby! There are inexpensive ways to do it, you have to be creative though…and patient.
Hugs!
I just got a sewing machine again in January, after being without one for about 20 yrs. I could have saved a lot if I’d had one while pregnant and when my daughter was a baby, for the simple reason that regular clothes sometimes just need a little alteration to become maternity wear, and also for simple things like baby blankets and non-disposable diapers. I could not find retail non-disposable diapers to fit a newborn, and ended up using disposable. Receiving blankets and other baby wear is SO EASY to make, and economical because babies are so small. I can usually find baby flannel for ~ $3-4.00 per metre ( a little more than a yard), as opposed to paying $7 or $8 for one in the baby dept. I also cannot believe the price of the thread, etc! Wow. I will now also be stocking up whenever I see it on sale, etc. I will also have my eye open for notions at garage sales, church sales. I do like the re-purposing movement out there right now…….clothing and other items………our mothers and grandmothers used to do that as a matter of course, but my generation and younger have totally become “throw-away”. I am trying to get away from that mentality. What I have found is that it is MUCH more difficult to throw away something that you’ve made with your own hands. I think it is VERY important to teach the younger generations life skills that may be useful at some time in their life. There are free patterns out there on the internet as well.
Karen,
Great to hear from you! I agree, agree and agree some more!
I read in the paper last Sunday that the price of cotton alone has gone up something like 516% in the last 12 months! It’s no wonder the price of fabric and thread is so expensive. These are the days to swap!
Great post! It was just what I needed. My girls really want to learn to sew but I just don’t have the skills. I have started reading my old Singer Sewing book but it is slow going. I have also wondered why we should sew if we can get clothes cheaper. My answer to that is that my girls want to and who knows, maybe they will grow up to be modest designers? Thank-you for the encouragement
Hello Project Life Blog Queen,
Even just teaching your girls to sew buttons on and how to darn a hole will benefit them in life. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Thanks for reading!
Darn a hole???
Hey Project Life Blog Queen,
Darn a hole, like with a sock?
–verb (used with object)
1.
to mend, as torn clothing, with rows of stitches, sometimes by crossing and interweaving rows to span a gap.
Perhaps it’s too old of a term….does it make sense?
I love to sew, but don’t sew as much as I used to. I grew up with a Mom who sewed and taught me how to sew. Now when I sew it is mostly baby quilts, receiving blankets, or other quilts. I have made clothing for several years – not sure why I haven’t. The thing I loved about making my own clothes was having clothes that actually fit properly, but I was also able to make them so that as I grew I could alter them so that I could wear them longer. How do I save money sewing – watch the sales and the coupons. Just recently I was buying some notions and found a $2.00 catalog that had two 50% off, two 40% off, and two 30% of coupons so I bought the catalog and even though I spent $2.00 for it, I end up saving $65.00 just with the coupons. Trading patterns and looking for deals on fabric is also a great way to save, also repurposing fabric / clothing. When I buy fabric it tends to be in the same color family (blues, greens, beige) and so I usually buy it on sale and buy extra and then can use it for other projects. Although recently I found that I had too much extra fabric so I made a bunch of backpack drawstring bags to use up a lot of that fabric. That was a lot of fun.
Julie,
I agree that ‘color families’ can help to coordinate your efforts and projects. It sounds like you have been getting some great deals.
First, I completely agree that appropriate clothing for young girls is hard to find! And I wish you luck on that.
Second, the pattern you found for Meredith and Rahel is so cute. I’d love to see an Easter picture of them.
I learned to sew in middle school – my mom sent my sister and I to get lessons, and some of them have stuck with me. I no longer have a sewing machine (lack of space), but I do hand-sew occasionally. I see no need to give away perfectly good pants or a perfectly good coat for lack of a button. And I see no reason to pay to have somebody else hem my husband’s pants when I can do a fine job! Ok, maybe not great, but it works!
Have fun sewing with your girls!
Molly,
Assuming I finish the dresses on time, I will post a pic of them. I agree that our sewing + skills may not be AAA+ but it’s good enough.
Oh, and I’ve actually found free fabric on Craiglist. Sometimes it’s random, but bits and pieces are good. Great for my scrap-y projects.
Molly,
Craigslist can be a fantastic way to find free stuff!!
I would love to sew more but it’s not cost effective for clothing. But I recently stopped thinking that you have to sew clothes to sewing curtains, napkins, shower curtain, a clothespin holder for my clothes line that my husband is “working” on and learning how to patch holey jeans (that’s a challenge). I’m not creative or artistic in anyway, so that keeps me from doing those type things ( sewing, crafting, gardening), such a weirdo. But moving out to the middle of nowhere makes my brain think of it as being practical so I’m going with that for now, still a weirdo.
Andi,
You’re funny. Sewing goes way beyond clothes, that’s for sure. And BTW, I am TOTALLY not creative or crafty, but I can copy things well. It gets me by most of the time.
If you have Joann’s there, they put patterns on sale for 99 cents here and there. If you sign up for their flyer (can be done in store or online), you’ll get an ad flyer with all the current sales plus a 40% off coupon on an item of your choice. That’s pretty much the only way I buy patterns.
And I totally agree…the modesty factor is a big reason to sew some items. I have a 10 YO daughter about to outgrow girl’s sizes and we may be sewing lots then, after previewing what the junior department offers.
Cathy,
We do have Joann’s here, I need to get back on their mailing list. Thanks for reminding me of that!
It is a goal of mine to buy a sewing machine this summer or at the latest, get one for Christmas! I learned to sew an apron in home ec in middle school, but the one time I sewed since then was a disaster! With three little girls, I believe it is important to learn this skill and pass it on to them!
Hi Clint and Lauren,
LOL! Sorry about your apron! Just like anything else, sewing takes practice but isn’t hard to jump back into either. Keep the “skill passing” part in mind as you progress.
Kelly,
I have material that we have gotten in various ways(thrift store has been great–some was actual fabric and others I am re purposing sheets and pillowcases). I have no idea really how to machine sew , so I will be learning with my girls. I do have a friend who has offered to come help and I love her stuff(she was totally illiterate only a year or so ago with sewing!). She started easy and went with it, I cannot wait to do so. I do have a Huskvarna-Viking that I got for a great deal($100) as it was a used one but rarely. I have hopes of curtains from the sheets and pillowcase dresses and pj’s from the others.
This is a project we were supposed to tackle last year but did not.
I soo agree with the ‘hoochie-mama’ clothing as it is our style to go loose and long if possible. There is much to be said for keeping the girls innocent. I love the fabrics for the dresses and would love to see the finished product.
Hey Dkoski,
I sure love my old Viking and wouldn’t trade it in for a new one!
Yes, I plan to post the finished product! Thanks for commenting!
I couldn’t agree more on both counts in your post. Trying to find modest clothing for pre-teens and teens is impossible. All stores seems to want to dress teens as smaller sized women. Also I recently purchased fabric, etc. to make four basic casual skirts to wear during the spring and summer and it cost me 50 dollars.
Diane,
4 skirts @ $12.50 isn’t bad, especially if they fit well and you enjoy wearing them.
It’s all about balancing out the cost / effort / modesty factors.
Thanks for your comment!
I grew up sewing, and I’m so grateful that I learned.
Most of my fabric is either found at the thrift store or new from walmart, or given to me by peopl who know I sew. I have to kep my eyes peeled, but every once in a while I find some good stuff to add to my stash.
Buying all new fabrics etc definitely gets expensive. I’ve found perfectly decent clothes at the thrift store for a fraction of the cost of sewing them new would be. Currently what I use my skills for is quilting. Every once in a while there’s a baby dress to be made for someone.
Margaret,
It sounds like you’ve got the hang of making the best of your skills as well as taking advantage of good deals you find! BTW, Walmart in this area has dropped it’s sewing area, which was very disappointing b/c I found great deals there!
Margaret,
Thank you for your comment, you make an excellent point. I teach my boys how to sew a button on and to make a straight stitch. You never know when they’ll marry, they need to know a few basics, male or not!