10 Tips for Beginning Seamstresses

1. The better you cut, the better your project will be.
2. Push out all corners with a tool.  It will make your edges sharp.
3. Topstitch wherever possible. It makes projects look more finished.
4. Change your sewing machine needle often.
5. Buy fabric you like when you see it; the projects can come later (think of it like eating with seasonal vegetables).
6. Iron your fabric.
7. If you make a mistake, pluck it out as soon as you notice it.  No sense in going further then getting it out later. It will just take longer and make a bigger mess.
8. Clip threads as you go.  As soon as you finish a seam, clip both sides of the seam tight to the fabric.  If you don't, there will be way too many at the end of the project and you are bound to miss one.
9. When you are winding a bobbin, wind two (or more).  It takes longer to re-thread the machine than to wind extra and keep them waiting.
10. If your machine is acting odd, re-thread it on top and take out the bobbin and put it back in.  If that doesn't work, then open it up and clean up the lint down below.  If that doesn't work, change the needle.  Next, try the upper tension.

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