In class:
The first week, I got to work with a sewing machine for the first time. Because of some difficulties with how it was set up I had trouble at first. Maxx was able to fix whatever was wrong and I got some practice sewing straight lines as well as curves. After that we started drawstring bags. Making the bag itself was not too hard. However, trying to figure out what should be sewn where and why was quite confusing at times.
The in-class project for the second week went a bit smoother. To get practice with embroidery, we needed a design that had at least 3 colors. I went with this shooting star design from Gravity Falls. I was able to make the patch without any hiccups, although I would face problems with embroidery later, with the final project.
Final Project:
I decided to make a box pouch patterns. I have a lot of electronics scattered around, and another container would be useful in organizing them. Therefore, I incorporated electronics into the design for my embroidery. I put a circuit around my name to make it both personalized and relevant:
When I started to construct my pouch, the first problem I faced was the embroidery. For awhile, the machine seemed to keep getting stuck and bunched up. The straight lines bordering my name turned into curves. One of the staff members pointed out that I was using a sewing machine that had a foot for sewing rather than embroidery, and helped me fix the problem. On the bright side, while failing on my first attempt I also noticed that the design was way too small, so I resized it when working on the second attempt.
While sewing up the box, I ran into the same confusions as the drawstring bag. It was hard to tell what should be sewn together and how to keep the other parts out of the way of the needle. I found the first sewing step to be especially tricky, which was a disheartening way to start. However, I soon got into the swing of it and felt much better.
Reflection:
I have come out of this project with a new respect for sewing. On first appearance it looks pretty easy- the machine practically does it for you. But I learned about the tricky little things you don’t see – cutting the fabric the right amount, lining everything up, keeping track of which part of the fabric is on the outside or inside. Overall, I’m fairly happy about my final product, but it was quite challenging work.