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Blog post: Sewing clothes for necessity as well as a hobby

Posted by: kiteroa on Dec. 13, 2010

Tags:  clothes sewing

I am a very tall (6 ft 2") and rather slender lady and I have always had to make my own clothes if I wanted anything in my size, in particular skirts and always trousers but I ended up buying men's shirts for long arms as button holes eluded me as well as armholes. And trousers were also a challenge, I made very casual ones. But I didn't like sewing and so my wardrobe has always been extremely meagre. In 2009 I ended up with a broken leg and could not walk. I got sick of reading all the time and decided I needed some projects.I decided a good project would be to learn how to make shirts. I got my husband to take me to Spotlight in Queanbeyanand in my wheelchair. I found some patterns and my first shirt was okay but I was not too pleased with it, but things got better, especially the sleeves and the button holes and now I have a whole collection of very professional looking shirts that I'm so pleased with because they fit me perfectly and I made them myself. And then I tackled fitted trousers and jeans. Even though I couldn't walk at that stage, I managed to make trousers and jeans that that looked fine, and I also made myself a black woollen winter coat and it was such a success I made a grey one as well and then I started making dresses and suddenly I had discovered that I could make anything at all if I wanted something new to wear. Now that I am back to walking and running and all the things that people without broken legs can do, and because I already have a very full wardrobe of new clothes, I'm not doing quite so much sewing but I'm still working away at it now and then when I feel like having a different colour shirt to go with a different colour skirt. It was just such a bonus that when I needed a project, there was a very handy Spotlight. It helped me to open up a whole new interest with a very successful outcome and it saved me from going totally bananas being stuck inside all day with nothing else to do but keep on reading all the books I had already read before. Spotlight it is amazing!

    • posted by Liz45 on Dec. 27, 2010Flag as inappropriate Inappropriate
    • Hi kiteroa What a great story. I've had to make my own clothes for the opposite reason to you - I'm short! I buy jeans, underclothes and occasionally a shirt or top, and I don't make T shirts. I've also made curtains, cushion covers etc. Once, a friend helped me make slip covers for a lounge suite - I was very pleased with the result.
      One of the good things about being short, is that I can make a pair of slacks out of 1 metre 10 cms, by 150 cms wide - pretty good really.
      I have problems with arms, spine, neck etc, so have to pace myself, but I gain a lot of enjoyment from sewing.
      I hope your leg is really better now. I bet you won't do that again!!!
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  • Name: Rosanne
  • Location: CARWOOLA NSW

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