The importance of repetition to consolidate skills
and gain confidence

The importance of repetition has come up in so many posts, I have been repeating myself about making repetitions 😀 So I have brought the points together for ease of reference.

You may be concerned about getting bored as you sew repetitions. So this post is not only about the rewards of making repetitions, but also about ways of keeping your sewing creative while you make them !

Perhaps you’ve come a long way from your initial trembling moves with hemming one piece of fabric or seaming two pieces together.

But not in the mood for learning yet more ? (There’s does seem to be a huge amount you need to know before you can ever get going with sewing.) Don’t yet feel ready to move on to learning another skill ? Not to worry, there’s no need to feel under pressure. This is a hobby, enjoy 😀 Make another of something you feel relaxed about.

Here’s Deborah Moebes of Whipstitch on repeating as the way we learn.

‘Only’ know how to make drawstring bags ? Vary the fabric for Christmas, vacation, hobbies. . . make them any size, add decorative stitches or trims. And there are many attractive patterns on the web ! Drawstring bags used to be my ‘go to’ make when I needed a rest, so I have rather a lot of them 😀
Now I’ve moved onto box-bottomed totes as my relaxation makes.
What about a different backpack for each time you go shopping ?
A different apron for each time you cook. . .

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There are sections here on :
– making samples,
– repeating non-garment projects,
– variations when making clothes,
– some well-known examples of clothes variations.

Just get a length of throw-away fabric – so it won’t matter how bad you think the result is – and start !
Anything with polyester in it will indeed just have to be thrown away after you have finished with it, into non-recycled waste.

100% natural fibres can be composted, so long as they’re not heavily printed/dyed (see the second half of this post on fabrics).
100% cotton is a ‘natural fibre’ and can be composted. Best cut into narrow strips so it will deteriorate within a year. Here’s a post and comments on composting fabric.
Undyed muslin (US)/ calico (UK) is 100% cotton. It’s recommended for making test garments as well as samples, and many people like to wear it for final garments. ‘Osnaburg’ is similar but thicker, if you’re looking for something a bit heavier.

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Make samples to repeat techniques

Perhaps you’re a timid sewer and are daunted by techniques such as the facings and fitted armholes needed to make a dress or top. Or need more practice with sewing curves before you feel ready to make a whole garment. Make as many samples as you need to, until you feel confident to do a process for real.

See the facings post for an example of breaking a big process down into small steps, and feeling secure about each of those steps before tackling the process as a whole.

Or at least until you don’t have an anxiety attack – practice your self-care ! See the mistakes post if you have a troublesome inner critic 😀

Find a pattern line, sewing bible, or video with instructions that make you feel “I can do this !” 😀
Then how many samples do you need to make – 1, 5, 10, 50 😀

The book ‘How to start sewing‘ has very detailed instructions for techniques, and comes with a set of patterns for samples to make while practising.

As a timid learner, I find it helpful to keep a workbook of samples, to remind me that I do know how to do given techniques.
And I need to allow myself to be free to make 100 samples if need be, or however many samples turn out to be enough before I relax about a technique/ get cross at the thought of having to make yet another 😀

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Projects : repeat by making variations

If you prefer to make usable items rather than samples, or think it would be boring to repeat, here are some simple variations usable on most projects :

Change fabric colour or print (try ‘outside the box’ – my favourite childhood rag doll was made from blue striped pillow ticking).

Go to a (real or on-line) quilt shop and see what prints you would love to have a glimpse of on your projects. Quilting cotton is not ideal for making garments, it may be too stiff, or too loosely woven, but you can use quilt fabrics to make home dec items. And add them to garments as small areas such as yokes, pockets or cuffs, or appliqué patches. Wash well before using, to make sure they have shrunk and all chemicals are removed.
Some quilting cottons are printed on a high thread count base (number of threads per cm/ in.) These are more expensive but may be usable for garments. Batik fabric is a bit stiff but often used for summer clothes, while Japanese quilting cottons are high quality so can be worth exploring.

Colour block : make each pattern piece from a different fabric, or make each pattern piece from a patchwork of fabrics.

Change fabric type – though not from woven to knit. And check if the original is best made in a stiffer or drapier fabric.

Cut from pre-used fabric, perhaps your unworn or unusable garments, or ones from a charity shop. Try to align pattern pieces ‘with the straight of grain’. Or see what happens when you don’t !

Add trims such as :
– machine or hand sewn decorative stitches.
– lace strip, fringe, pom-pom trim, ric-rac, ribbon, fake fur strip.
These trims just need to be attached with a line of stitching, test if it’s best to use straight stitches or zigzag.
(Adding bias binding and piping are skills to learn later.)
See the Embellishment post for many more ideas.

Use your own creativity guided by your loves, to add them to any of your projects (unless you’re a minimalist 😀 )
Go to a (real or on-line) haberdashery and see what trims you fall in love with.

Add appliqué patches
There are bought patches that stick on, others need zigzagging round the edge.
Or make your own – cut fabric rectangles, or any shape you like.
Go to a quilting shop and buy a Fat Quarter of a fabric print you would love to wear as part of your garment.
Several techniques for attaching patches, such as :
– double sided fusible webbing,
– raw edge, just stitch the shape on without finishing the edges,
– turn in the edge and hand stitch (‘needleturn’ appliqué used by quilters),
– machine zigzag or buttonhole stitch around the edge.

Add square-cornered patch pockets
Can be used on many items – cut the fabric piece the size you want + 1″ or 1-1/4″ for seam allowances, and use the same instructions for all.
Here’s a video from Sure Fit Designs, on several shapes of patch pocket (from 5.05).
Or a (much less detailed) photo tutorial from Folkwear patterns.

Vary the size
For many accessory and home dec items – cut the fabric pieces a different size, but otherwise use the same instructions.

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Easy variations when clothes making

When I want to make many garment samples but feel I would be wasting fabric, I look for a similar doll clothes pattern and make that until I feel confident enough to try an adult size item. Rosie’s Doll Clothes patterns have detailed sew-along videos. I do try to use ‘full-size’ techniques even though they can be a bit fiddly at small size, rather than the easier doll-clothes-making techniques.

Your first iterations may be to improve the fit and proportions of your basic garment. If you find you enjoy making variations, you could spend a lifetime making variations of one pattern, so it is worth getting it to match your preferences before you start !

Think it would be boring to keep making the same garment until you feel confident with the techniques used ?
As well as all the variations above, there are many other types of variation which are possible when making garments.
What would be a version of this pattern that you would love to wear ?
Which variations do you feel you would like to try ?
Try some of these variations, and find out if you do feel what you expected to (it just is not possible to be right first time about everything!)

Some of these suggestions do involve learning more skills, but they are not difficult !

Change the fabric
Change the fabric for the whole item.
Or make each pattern piece in a different fabric.
Or make each pattern piece in a patchwork of fabrics. Here’s a pinterest board with examples.

The Matchy Matchy Sewing Club emphasises easy fun sewing, and repeatedly making their small group of patterns in wild combinations of fabrics. For example :
If your style is ‘edgy’ – make your first patterns in variations of black and add some studs.
For ‘romantic’ – choose a variety of florals and add some lace trims.
For many people, those would be extremes. Which fabrics would you love to wear 😀

Add embellishments
Do you fancy the idea of using all the decorative stitches on your machine ? Many people don’t use them, but I love them so I bought a machine with more 😀
Look at the post on embellishments for many decorative ideas to try. They can make the same basic garment look very different.

Change the style elements
As well as the simple variations mentioned above, changing the pattern slightly is also easy. No need to look at one of the huge college textbook tomes on pattern making.
See these photos of tops, tunics and dresses made by a group of people all starting from the same box-top pattern, in a class taught by Cal Patch:
These can all be made using the same sewing techniques :
– change length of body and sleeves,
– change depth of neckline,
These may need learning some new sewing skills :
– add pockets and trims.

The next posts on making variations started from a cut-on sleeve top, but the pattern-change techniques can be applied to nearly any pattern :
Variations A : change style elements. The second half of this post suggests patterns which include variations, to use if you don’t want to do any pattern work yourself.
Variations B : from pullover top to open front.
Variations C : using your fibre-arts skills.

Variations starting from a basic dress and jacket :
Simplest pattern changes to make a different style or look.

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Multiple repetitions made as statements about fast fashion

Two examples here :
Sonya Philip sewed multiple versions of similar simple patterns, to encourage retention of the skills used to make your own clothes instead of repeatedly buying. Highly relevant to sewing, she says “My work is born of patience”. She explores the possibilities of a project, the opposite of fast fashion.
While Sheena Matheiken made multiple outfits all starting from the same garment, showing it is not necessary to have multiple garments to look different each day.

Sonya Philip in her 100 Acts of Sewing made the same basic dress 100 times with slight variations. She then repeated the project for a second year.
The simple variations she used included :
– change the fabric.
– change the length of body, length of sleeves.
– change the pocket shape, neckline shape.
– straight or flared garment silhouette.
– sleeved or sleeveless.

The easy patterns which she developed have three levels of sleeve difficulty.
The associated Creative Bug video classes show how to make the garment, and some variations.

Top with cut-on sleeve
paper pattern.
Creative Bug video class includes pdf pattern, variations include a button-front opening.

Top with flat set sleeve
paper pattern.
Creative Bug video class includes pdf pattern, variations include a robe-style jacket.

Dress with fitted sleeve, woven fabric
paper pattern.
Creative Bug video class includes pdf pattern, variations include changing sleeve length and making sleeveless.

Top with fitted sleeve, knit fabric
paper pattern.
Creative Bug video class includes pdf pattern with varied sleeve lengths.

Would you like to repeat any of those patterns while you explore fit, ease, colour, print, fabric type, trims, embellishment, pattern alterations. . .
Develop your basic pattern until it has the fit and ease that make you happy. Then you can do anything to it and you’re likely to like that too.
Apply any or all of the above variations.
Make more than 100 different versions, or all the same, whichever is ‘right’ for you 😀

Prefer print instructions ? Sonya’s book The Act of Sewing includes full-size patterns for cut-on and fitted sleeve tops, and half the book is on how to make variations.

Once you gain some confidence with your sewing and hacking, add a button front opening to any of Sonya’s tops – or to any other simple starter top you may have chosen (see the box top post) (or to a skirt).
Here is a button-front tutorial from Sonya. (There’s a simple version in her first pattern class above.) Or this post goes into more detail.

With the button front opening, you have something similar to the dress Sheena Matheiken wore every day for a year in her Uniform Project. She did not make the dress herself, though a pattern was available for a while, and it’s easy to find something similar (princess seams and a front button placket) . The ‘dress’ was very basic and without style elements, she could wear it as a top, layer, or dress. This project was not about multiple simple garments, but about multiple outfits all starting from the same garment. This time not just 100 variations but 365 😀 She was helped by being given many designer accessories to wear with the dress !

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Above all – choose ways of making repetitions that you enjoy.
Try out many variations, and continue using the ones you find you enjoy making, using, and wearing.
Relish what Matchy Matchy calls ‘the joy of the make’.
😀 😀 😀 😀 😀

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First published December 2023, links checked March 2024

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