Spend the summer with us learning how to sew by making lots of exciting projects that are fun to wear and use. The classes are geared for young beginners, 10 years old and up. Parents must sign a release form to leave their children with us. Our classroom is small, so space is limited to six participants. You may bring your own sewing machine if you have one, but it must be in good working order. If not, we have a few classroom machines that are available for use. The class is every Wednesday morning from June 4 through August 6 from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The class fee for EACH class is $20. Students provide their own supplies, too. A supply list can be obtained for each class separately. However, the Basic Sewing Kit that you will need to bring to each class includes:
- Sharp fabric shears (bent handle) *
- Water erasable marking pen * or chalk pencil
- Pin cushion or Grabbit magnetic pin holder
- Sewing pins (the ones with the big balled heads are easier to use)
-
Seam ripper*
- 6” seam gauge (metal ruler with a slider)
- 1 pkg. size 80 Universal needles*
- Thimble to fit the middle finger
- Point turner
- Hand sewing needles
- 1 large safety pin
- Tape measure (60” size is good)
- A container with a lid to store all of these (It can be a shoe box, a sewing box, or a basket.) Please put your name on it or tie a ribbon on it so that you will know that it is yours. All items in your box needs to be labeled with your name, also.
The second project will take two weeks to make a pair of shorts or pants from a pattern. You will learn how to use a commercial pattern to make a wearable garment. You will learn how to measure, layout the pattern according to the pattern instructions, cut the fabric, sew the pattern pieces together by reading pattern instructions, make an elastic casing, and make a topstitched hem. You will also learn the importance of using correct pressing techniques. The supply list for classes 2 and 3 is as follows:
- A shorts or pj’s sewing pattern (Simplicity, McCall’s, Butterick or See and Sew pattern are suggested. Buy the pattern by the hip measurement taken at the widest part of the hipline. Don’t worry about what the size number is because pattern sizes DO NOT correspond to the sizes in ready-to-wear. Buy the pattern according to measurements! Get a pattern that has an elastic waist–no zipper. Pockets are OK if you can sew straight.)
- Fabric yardage as required by the pattern
- 3/4″ wide or 1″ wide no-roll elastic–You will need your waistline measurement plus 1″.
- 1 spool of all-purpose Gutermann or Metler* sewing thread to match your fabric
- 1 large safety pin or a bodkin (if you have one)
- 1 empty bobbin filled with your sewing thread–If you plan to use one of our sewing machines, you need a size 15J bobbin ($.75 ea. in our Viking dept.)
- Sewing machine*, all of its feet, accessories, foot control, and power cord if you are bringing your own machine
- The Basic Sewing Kit (listed above)
* These items are available in the Viking Sewing Gallery. Tell the cashier that you are buying for a class and we will give you 20% off. (This is just in the V iking Sewing Gallery—not JoAnn’s cashiers.) If you do not have most of these items, you can buy the Dritz Start to Sew Kit from JoAnn’s. You can use your 40% off coupon when notions are not on sale. It is $15.99 and contains a pair of sewing shears, a pin cushion, a thimble, needle threader, pins, tape measure, seam ripper, seam gauge, tracing wheel, tracing paper, chalk marking pencil, and hand sewing needles.
The schedule for the remainder of the summer is as follows: Camo Shorts or Pants week #2 June 11 & week #3 June 18 Tote Bag week #4 June 25 Sun Hat week #5 July 2 Coin Wallet & Roll-up Pouch week #6 July 9 Ruffled T-Shirt week #7 July 16 Fabric covered Clothesline mat week #8 July 23 Apron week #9 July 30 & week #10 August 6