Do you make your own clothes? What do you make?

[Florence4170]

Just that, really. I used to make a lot of my clothes in the 70's and 80's. Does anyone still?

No, but I've been watching the Sewing Bee recently and really fancy making or altering some clothes (I've been making cushions). Not that I know how to but I have some books...

I haven't made any clothes for about 20 years apart from fancy dress.
I did get some fabric this week to make a kaftan with a very old Prima pattern from 2005!

I used to make pretty much all my clothes, even swimwear, bras and jeans. The last couple of years though I've been buying from vinted. Good fabric is expensive and difficult to find.

I still make some things though.

Dresses.

I'm tall - 5'8" - and buying a dress with a waist that is actually on my waist is almost impossible. Most UK fashion is cut to fit the 5'5" average and short-cut dresses look awful on a longer body.

I can buy occasion dresses to fit, but not every day dresses so make my own. They're pretty easy.

I've just made a midi, fit & flare dress in a lovely brushed cotton. Cost about £35 but the fabric is much better quality than I generally find in the shops.

Yes, but it's not as cheap anymore. You need to be able to source good fabric. There are some really good deadstock suppliers around now though and a lot of the indie pattern designers have some great designs.

You can't beat having clothes that are tailored to your body and style which are well made. Time to dust off that machine!

Yes. I mostly make skirts, dresses and tops. It's not cheap but I like good quality clothes, and the shops mostly store very badly made cheap clothes.

I do buy jeans, blazers and coats

I do but not as much as I’d like due to lack of free time.
I’ve made tops, skirts, dresses, dungarees, sweatshirts, trousers, plus all sorts of clothes for my children.

I make a lot of my own clothes and some for my youngest son (15). I make trousers, tops, dresses, skirts. I prefer to use good quality fabrics and my makes often last years and years.

I make a lot of my clothes as I am short so I often have to alter things anyway. I make all my dresses, leggings, sweatshirts, blouses, t shirts etc, but It isn’t any cheaper these days. I love Guthrie and Ghani , she does some great kits and video hints and tips for popular patterns.

I am about to get a sewing machine :).

Mostly to do things for the house (cushions, pouf, curtains, rag rugs) because I am into art and craft but also I want to mend and customise clothes.

I get most of my stuff from charity shops.

I got bags of free fabric from a seamstress on Freegle :).

Oh, and I find sewing can be cheaper than shopping but it’s not easy to make it cheaper - there are free PDF patterns available online, there are markets and shops that sell fabrics for under £5/m but that depends on being able to find a pattern you like for free, getting to a market, finding suitable fabric you like at the right price etc. Plus to start with learning to sew and fit garments can end in disaster! It can be a very expensive hobby.

I make most of my clothes.

I look at what is available in the shops and it seems cheap and badly made in comparison, plus it's really difficult to get good plain basics in natural fibres.

I make jumpsuits - Paper Theory Zadie Jumpsuit (#Sadie jumpsuit or #papertheoryzadie ) and the Deer and Doe Sirocco (#ddsirocco) are favourites.

linen trousers such the as Style Arc Bob Pants (#stylearcbobpants or #sabobpants) and the Style Arc Barry Pants and Jeans for example the I AM patterns Sunshine jeans #IAmsunshinejeans

I make dresses e.g the Closet Core Elodie (#ClosetCoreElodie) and the Chalk and Notch Fringe Dress (#fringedresspattern)

I've also made a few coats and jackets - The Closet Core Kelly Anorak, and the Style Arc Loren

Instagram is a great place to start for inspiration e.g the #sewistsofinstagram

if you are new to dressmaking good places to start are with Tilly and The Buttons patterns which are very much designed for beginners. Most areas have dressmaking classes run by local sewing shops or by adult education at the council.

Yep :) I make shorts and shirts for my son and dresses, tops and skirts for myself. All use 40s and 50s patterns.

I'm giving birth in a few weeks though so I won't fit anything I made last year this summer 😭

Son's pattern is on its way though and he's chosen some fabric 😬

There's a long running stitch and bitch thread as well on mumsnet https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/arts_and_crafts/4904669-stitch-and-bitch-thread-8-its-all-starting-to-unravel?page=6

beginners, returners, occasional sewers and obsessives all welcome !

Can also recommend this thread:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/4812890-dressmaking-experienced-and-beginners-welcome?page=1

Making clothes is DIFFICULT. The Sewing Bee makes it look so easy to turn out a professional finish and it's really not. I would start off with something super simple like the kaftan mentioned upthread and take it from there. Also would advise booking into a class to at least learn the basics before experimenting on your own!!

I used to make clothes for myself when I was in my teens/early twenties. I absolutely loved it and keep threatening to start up again after 40 odd years😬 Back then I had done Domestic Science (bare minimum, no 'o' level) at school which involved sewing. I was terrible at it in school, but then realised it was mainly because I'm not great at following verbal instructions and when I was at home, I could take my time and make mistakes without feeling stupid! I got pretty good at it. There was a brilliant little fabric shop nearby and another one in town and I spent so much time browsing and picking out patterns and fabric. Happy days.

Skirts, dresses, T-shirts. I know what I like and I can make a dress or skirt that fits - my bust, waist and hips are all different dress sizes. I'm average height but with short legs and long torso. It's so nice to make something that just fits me everywhere.

And pockets! I've just made a jersey skirt with a stretch yoga waist band - it's got inseam pockets on either side, proper big pockets like men take for granted, and it's got a phone/card pocket in the waistband. It is making me happy, just need the weather to get above 12 degrees so I can wear it now.

Its made out of a skirt I bought on eBay, worn but in good condition, and 6 sizes too big so there was plenty of material.

If you are a beginner then don't start with expensive fabric. Look for duvet covers with pattern that you like and cut them up. You can often pick them up for very little in a sale or even charity hops if you are lucky. Once you are happy with the fit and style, do it again in nice fabric. Wear the duvet cover one for housework or gardening. Patterns are really expenive so choose one with several variations that you will use lots of times

I’ve only been sewing for about a year, starting entirely from scratch. I learnt to use a machine from a Tilly and The Buttons video tutorial and started by making clothes from her book ‘Love at First Stitch’, (and still do). It was great to be able to acquire new skills at my own pace and not feel like the worst in a class. I agree it’s not a cheap hobby but I find it utterly absorbing and really calming, so there are other benefits. Have progressed from PJs to skirts, dresses and blouses. Agree that the above linked MN threads are great for support and ideas.

I knit and crochet. Just finished a rainbow crochet cardigan. 🌈 It's not subtle 😂

Wow, you creative things, you! I was thinking Simplicity Miss patterns 🤗. I had heard of Tilly and the Buttons but not of the other pattern makers. I think I might try a very simple skirt and see how I get on. The only thing I've made sewing wise for years is shoe bags. I do knit and crochet though, but I don't like making or wearing knitted garments much!

I make nearly all my own clothes and have been sewing since my teens, I'm now 69. I make dresses, skirts, shirts, t shirts, jeans, trousers, pyjamas you name it. In the past I have made my own pants and I made a bra on a Workshop day. Last year I made a lined coat. I also knit my own jumpers.

I get most of my fabric from a local shop selling deadstock from about £2 or £3 a metre. The coat fabric was given to me. Pound Fabrics and Fabworks are good for buying online. It is definitely cheaper than buying clothes for me and everything is unique.

I tend to reuse the same patterns and make variations. A good place for ideas is Instagram try #imakemyownclothes or #handmadewardrobe for a start and then follow individual makers.

I do. There’s been a huge upsurge in people creating their own clothes in recent years. There’s so many independent pattern companies too.
I make dresses, tops, trousers and cocktail and evening wear. I love it.

one thing I will say is that it’s a skill that needs to be learnt. I went to local authority adult education classes to start off with the basics and still go to a workshop regularly.

I'm confident at sewing garments, simple ones, anyway, I don't think I'd venture into jackets or more complicated stuff. I used to have a pinafore dress with riffled shoulders that I'd like to replicate, I also fancy making a blousy dress in Schiaparelli pink.