This practice kit is similar to the kit used in our Sewing 101 Bootcamp course with a few twists and extras. This kit will help you to further develop your sewing skills. This kit is designed to take you through the key functions of a sewing machine.

This kit contains: 

• 6 Practice sewing sheets (paper). They get progressively more complex and help you gain control on a sewing machine.
• 4 pre-cut pieces of practice fabric
• 2 pre-cut fabric pieces for creating a pin cushion. Stuffing is available in the Fiber Fill, Stuffing and Batting bin in Textiles.
• Knit Fabric pieces for practice
• Elastic

Set-Up

Set up your sewing machine using a standard needle & standard sewing machine foot (Foot A).

Need a reminder on basic machine operations? Check out the manual in each machine cart or linked here.

Using the practice sheets

Straight lines

• On the first few lines practice doing a back stitch at the beginning and end of each line
• On the next few lines sew both on the printed line and next to the printed line using a 1/4 or 1/2 inch seam allowance. Try adjusting your stitch length for each line.
• Next try a few lines of zig-zag stitching. Vary the stitch width and length to see how that changes the density of the zig-zag.

Rectangle

• Using a 2.5 stitch length and a straight stitch, sew up to the corner of the square, then with your needle down, rotate the paper and continue to sew down the next side of the shape.
• Use the hand wheel to manually advance one stitch to perfectly hit the corner of your square if needed.

Triangle & Octagon

• You can use a similar method to the rectangle, practicing pivoting
• Using either a straight or zig-zag stitch and practice on the diamond shape, with turns in the corners

Circles

• Start with the largest circle and then progress to the smaller circle as it will be more challenging.
• Using a 2.5 stitch length and a straight stitch, align the edge of your presser foot with the printed line of the circle. Sew around the circle slightly rotating the paper as you go to stay aligned.
• If you start to sew off course, no worries! With your needle down, pivot your paper slightly, take a stitch, and repeat until you get back on course smoothly.

Fabric Practice

This next lesson is practicing sewing a consistent seam allowance.

Note: Right sides together means good/pretty/printed sides together! You’ll see this on patterns a lot or sometimes abbreviated as RST.

• Align the two hexagon-shaped pieces of fabric, right sides together, and practice sewing different seam allowances. Use the marks on the stitch plate to align the fabric and sew a 1/4, 3/8 or 5/8 inch seam allowance along the edge of your pieces.
• Align the two circle-shaped pieces of fabric, right sides together, and practice sewing different seam allowances. Use the marks on the stitch plate to align the fabric and sew a 1/4, 3/8 or 5/8 inch seam allowance along the edge of your pieces.
• Alternate Option: Make a shaped pin cushion or tiny pillow using the directions below!

Making your pin cushion

Make your first finished project!

Fabric Squares: Now that you’ve mastered each shape on paper, practice on fabric! 

• Align the two squares, right sides together.
• Mark a 2-inch area in the middle of one side. You will not be sewing here and it’s important that it not be at a corner.
• Sew from one mark, all the way around the piece, with a 3/8th inch seam allowance stopping at the second mark. Don’t forget to back-stitch at the beginning and end.
• Next snip your threads and the corners of the piece.
• Turn the piece right side out, using a dull knitting needle or chopstick to poke out the corners.
• Stuff with batting and hand stitch the opening closed.

Check out these video tutorials for directions on sewing your pin cushion and using a ladder stitch to close it up!