Novice at sewing. Realistic to dive straight in to altering things?

[RakeABedOfTyneFilth]

I would like to learn how to sew while on maternity leave with DC2 (I know, there may turn out to be no time, demanding baby etc etc but humour me there!)

Have a good quality machine and the space to do it (big dining room table). I know how to switch it on, choose stitch, reel thread, basic trouble shooting. I can cut from a pattern, but probably need practice with the attention to detail of pinning pieces together and not stretching/ruckling/wrong tension as I sew (slight tendency to impatience).

The things I am most interested in being able to do are: making kids fancy dress outfits, mending things, sprucing tired things up, and making normal clothes breastfeeding-friendly. This last one I can tell will be the most challenging, but I have lots of lovely clothes that I don't want to put away in storage for a year or more, I want to be able to wear them while feeding. Things like nice fitted dresses. Can I cut darts in them and put in a complementary/contrasting lining fabric to hold a zip for boobie access? or is that a project just destined to be a total wreck?

If it were me, I wouldn't alter anything that I loved. I would use something I didn't like or buy something cheap first and try out the plan on that first. Then if there is success, plough into your good clothes. I've never altered clothes so drastically so won't advise you on that. I've only been sewing a couple of years and am a beginner.

Impatience is my downfall too and I'm learning to rein myself in now as I've buggered up a few projects by not measuring a second time or re doing a mistake.

(Boob.com have lovely nursing clothes.)

Oh I'd certainly buy some cheap things to practice first! I suppose the consideration is whether the cost of the practice garment(s) and the risk of (still!) getting it wrong on the final garment outweighs the value to me of a year or so's loss of use of the clothes that I would otherwise just store. Or if the costs of doing it are higher than just buying more BF-ing clothes.

I agree with MasterFlea in that if you have lovely clothes you want to wear again, put them safely away and look forward to wearing them once you've finished breastfeeding!

I'm an enthusiastic but not very skilled sewer, so I tend to stick to craft/soft furnishing projects rather than clothes, as I feel there's often a bit more room to manoeuvre. I struggle with things like zips but this doesn't seem to matter so much with non-clothing, IYSWIM.

I do know, though, that practice makes perfect, so if you want to become a clothes-altering whizz then definitely dig out some old stuff, or bits and pieces from charity shops, and get going! Aternatively run up a few zillion cushions first for practice with cutting, pinning, seams, corners and zips.

Just don't launch straight into trying to alter beloved stuff, that would be my advice, especially if you're impatient! (I'm exactly the same!) :)

boob.com is not I think what you meant to link to...

thanks both. yes, cushions I forgot about those! And I have a baby playmat/quilt project just waiting to go.

Will buy things from charity shops if I want to do altering. Are there books for this sort of thing or would youtube be better?

I would not mess with a fitted dress. I spent 5 years as a pattern cutter, and teach it now. Leave any fitted dress well alone ....

I'm sure there are plenty of helpful books around but I'd just suggest a happy hour or so scouring t'interweb to begin with for blogs with good DIY craft and clothing tutorials. Often if you search Pinterest then the photos on there link to how-tos. Designsponge.com has some good ones, and also has links to other similar sites.

Seriously, there are soooo many crafters out there now blogging about making their own stuff, I would make use of their expertise!

Oops. I knew I should've checked the address first. Very sorry.

this is it. I promise!

I'm another very experienced sewer, designer, garment tech & pattern cutter & have done so professionally for way more years than I care to mention & even I would not attempt to adjust fitted clothes that I love to function for breast feeding, too complicated, lot of faff & they will never be the same again even if you do succeed & then want to revert back - as other have said - really, just put them away & enjoy them again later :)

In fact I would leave alterations alone full stop, that is unless its simply running something in to fit better, replacing a zip on something you love, shortening, etc etc - it's often way more faff than its ever worth & you can more often make something more quickly & easier too.

I'd recommend looking for tutorials as said above & buying a couple of very basic simple patterns of styles that you love that will be good for breast feeding & start with those - same goes for fancy dress outfits - a basic girls princess one for example can be adapted to so many different characters - just by changing the fabric & trims

Good luck