How to Sew a Simple Strong Seam by Hand: A Step-By-Step Beginner’s Guide
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An example of a tailor using not-good-practicely-long thread can be found on page 14 of “17th Century Men’s Dress Patterns” www.vam.ac.uk/shop/17th-centu...
Burnley & Trowbridge thread (not sponsored): www.burnleyandtrowbridge.com/...
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Some tools that may be useful, if you don’t already have:(Please know that these are affiliate links)
-Clear 18-inch ruler: amzn.to/2DIdRrh
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-Every size & weight needle you will probably ever need: amzn.to/2Sd76R7
-My most favorite (& stupidly fiddly) #10 sharps, the tiniest needles: amzn.to/2SaZEGf
-Ye Trusty Olde 8” shears (tartan ribbon not included): amzn.to/2DXkUft
-Those wee bird snips that literally everyone seems to have: amzn.to/2zu9vzY
-or unicorn snips, if you prefer: amzn.to/2KvXGgX)
Want to get started with hand sewing?
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Music:
“Alabaster” by Arden Forest, epidemicsound.com
“The Mercy of the Wind” Million Eyes, Epidemicsound.com
“Follow Hidden Paths” by David Celeste, epidemicsound.com
“Memories of the Green Valley” by Lars Meyer, epidemicsound.com - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
When I was in the Army, I sewed all my patches on by hand. We had a major inspection by some big wig who had a bee in his bonnet about hand sewn patches. If he saw one, he would rip it right off. My turn came round and he had to ask if my patches were hand sewn cuz he couldn’t see any stitches, either machine or hand. I told him “yes” and he immediately tried to rip it off which didn’t work. Well he tried again and managed to nearly tear my sleeve off with the patch perfectly intact. The next day, his assistant hand delivered me a brand new uniform top and patches.
Bravo!!!
WAC Veteran shame on him!
What on earth was his problem? And seriously amazing job on the hand sewing!!!
That is just so badass. I love that your stitches defeated your Major.
what was his deal about sewn patches? hahah
"and a little knot if you're feeling cheeky" sometimes I do like 3 knots if i'm really scared so I must be feeling extra cheeky when I hand stitch.
Y E S
Lmao me too
Eillyboo she’s referencing how in (if memory serves) the Victorian era knots on clothing were deemed highly unsightly. Feel slightly less fear and be your anxious self. If you’d like I have group screaming scheduled for noon followed by relaxing tea!
Me too 😂
SCANDALOUS! (i deffffffinately dont do that at allllll)
I giggled when you talked about the thimble bc I remembered when my mom , a seamstress of 30+ years, once threw away a thimble saying “I never knew what this was really for or how to even use it”
Have finally remembered the nursery rhyme I kept thinking of watching you sew so beautifully - although I appreciate that you don't exactly match the person being approached in the rhyme - 'Curly locks, curly locks, Wilt thou be mine? Thou shalt not wash dishes, Nor yet feed the swine. But sit on a cushion And sew a fine seam, And feed upon strawberries, Sugar and cream' - perhaps we can upgrade it slightly ...
'Time travelling seamstress, Wilt thou film more? Thou shalt please us greatly, For thou we adore, Please sit on your table And sew a fine seam, And floof yon Cesario, And follow your dream'
O, l remember "Curly Locks" 🥰
This is beautiful
*Jan Uzzell* ... The most beautiful comment I have ever read. Thankyou x
@@redmarilynn *blush* - thank you
@@januzzell8631 X
Villain/Hero rips the damsel's bodice--not on the seam cause that'd be too hard. Damsel: "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG I SPENT SEWING THIS?!" Damsel proceeds to beat Villain/Hero with a convenient frying pan.
Omg so true! If someone was attacking me I’d defend myself. But if they f*ed with a piece of clothing I made? Nope. All bets are off. I’d be wearing their ribcage as a hat.
After which, she hands him a needle and thread, and informs him that he had best repair that damaged garment unless he is ready for a second helping from that frying pan!!
That's what Mel Brooks was missing in Men in Tights, lol
Frying pans. Who knew? (A little Rapunzel reference.)
This is amazing. I love it.
ARE YOU TELLING ME ALL I HAD TO DO WAS DRAW STRAIGHT LINES TO GET MY HANDSEWN STUFF TO BEHAVE
I am disappointed in myself
Bro i- i can't even sew straight even if there are lines drawn 😭
😭😭😂😂
Same
I. Am. Shook. I can’t believe I’ve never thought of drawing a line. 🤯
I'm laughing so hard at this 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I have a slight addiction to hand sewing, I learned the art from my Grandmother who hand pieced all of her quilts. Her quilts went for big bucks. One that she had placed in a county fair went for 2000 back in 1980. The man asked her if he could take the quilt before the showing was over but she told him he had to wait until it was taken down at the end of the fairs exhibit. When he came to pick it up he brought his wife who was so excited. I sew clothes, quilts dolls and much more. I love people who share their tha tens for others to learn from. Subscribing today. 💕💕 P.S. I still have the quilts she made me. All of them well loved and still in great shape because of her skill.
No one ever taught me how to sew. I always just did the best I could when trying fix garments. I learned more from this video than I have ever known. Thank you so much. And by the way I love all your other videos. I love seeing how things were made before our modern machines took over.
Thank you. This is exactly the kind of education I'm seeking. Not "how to backstitch," rather why use backstitch and how to make the backstitch more effective, ways to make the felling stitch smooth and less visible, etc. Too many forgo these finer details, and then the work becomes sloppy. My monstrous appetite for perfectionism will not tolerate such neglect.
Also, I think I put too much honey in my tea... Please excuse me.
A tip about backstitches which I haven't seen anywhere, but which might appeal to perfectionists: If the back side of your backstitch seam (with the long crossing threads) does not fall perfectly smooth and even, it might be easier to try sewing the seam upside-down and backwards. Thus, the long crossing stitches are seen on top of the fabric, and you can more easily focus on getting each thread to cross perfectly and identically, instead of the occasional randomness that may happen when these long stitches are hidden under the fabric. I do not find it any more difficult to get the "right" side stitches to come out straight, as all that is needed there is to aim carefully to keep one stitch going in where another came out. It is the keeping the "backwards" part of the thread always crossing from the bottom (or always from the top, as you prefer) which I always found difficult.
Sweet🙂
Forgiven lots of needle nerds around 😛
@@Marialla. That is basically stem stitch, used in embroidery. Favoured by many for both lines and filling because of it's attractive rope like appearence and because it takes even tight curves really well.
@@WitchyGeek Golly gee! I guess I know how to embroider then, and I never knew I knew it! LOL!
"The straighter, the better" *looks in the mirror* gODDAMMIT-
@Engla Hoelstad Saaame!
😂😂😂😂same
Hence she said, in this instance
MOOD
My bi self be like.. .
I swear I learned so much about history AND sewing in one video, like I can’t explain how entertaining/educational this is I-
I’m trying to learn to sew with the aim of one day making my own clothes and following along with this was super helpful thank you! I made my first seam :D
♡♡♡
I think I want to try sewing my own clothes as well. I've gotten into color and shape of garments in terms of what fits my skin undertone and skeletal shape the best. And store bought clothes simply don't...satisfy me anymore. So I guess I just have to learn how to do it myself instead!
I'm doing this as well! I haven't even gotten supplies yet, or a sewing machine! But I figure it's probably going to be cheaper for me in the long run then always buying store-bought clothing. Also it would allow me to make clothes in styles that are more hard to find in larger sizes.
Were you able to make your own clothes?
@@sonyamcgrath9223 Any updates?
My mother made entire garments by hand. She would love your site were she still here.
My grandmother did this too. When my dad was active duty USAF, my grandparents visited then The Azores and Grandma made my mom a suit with hand stitching while she visited.
Gosh I wish I hv enuf patience to do hand stitching.. i love embroidery n m interested in sewing but just after 5mins of stitching I get bored n sleepy n never touch it again😆 I guess m the laziest person
DG jin I absolutely couldn’t do these sorts of crafts without secondary entertainment. Do you sew while listening to things like music, podcasts, audiobooks, even shows/movies? It makes it much more mentally bearable! (And I still need a million breaks.)
So did my mom because she didn't have a machine. After I learned to sew, she quit sewing and turned the job over to me.
My mom sewed and embroidered too, but my dad accidently once called it a waste of time. She stopped after that, even though he repeatedly apologized and even bought the materials. She gave the materials to my grandmother.
when I was little my great grandmother taught me to sew without doubling the thread.Then I put sewing down a bit and a few years later I took a class where I started my thread like that and I was told that it wasn't a thing and I needed to double my thread. I feel very validated right now
My mum tearing me off a strip because I couldn't sew single thread and keep the needle threaded at age 5, having only just started learning... (I cheated and tied the thread on with a single knot at the eye) And nowadays double thread is the done thing??
Goooood grief.
I hate double threading! 😳 The only time I used it was when I was 5 and my mum instructed me how to make gathers for my doll dress project! (She did the rest of the sewing, I just did the gathers...). Then she taught me to single stitch one way and then back again, until finally my dad taught me to backstitch when I was 7 or eight 😁 my school sewing club teacher was rather bewildered at me and my sister because they had to teach everybody else from scratch xD
I was taught that you want to use a thread that is the same dimension as the thread in the weave. You don't double it because it becomes too heavy and distorts a finer weave. I was also taught that you want to use a thread that is of the same composition as the fabric. That a cotton / poly thread, used on a cotton fabric will saw thru the cotton.
My grandma taught me to sew with doubling my thread and when I went to school they taught me how to do it without and it was really weird😂
I was taught on single thread too!! I use both thread counts in my projects though, no one actively taught me that doubling my thread was a proper technique rather I got sick of pulling the thread straight through the fabric so i started knotting the ends together and tada😂
This really brought back so many memories of my great grandmother who taught me to sew. She was born in 1903 I was born in 1975 😅 I never knew until watching this that I learned such an old way of hand sewing. I love your personality throughout this video. You have a great sense of humor and really great at teaching. Thank you!❤❤❤
At 5:30 I got a little emotional - my grandma used that single thread technique, and it's the first one I learned. I haven't used it in decades. Thanks for bringing that memory back. ❤️
I’d learned the double thread/knot early on, but I prefer the single thread method as it’s not as bulky…and, uses less thread!
Due to your inspiration, I have pulled some clothes out of my, "oh no they are broken and I can't throw them away because maybe someday..." box and I have hand sewed them and in effect fixed them. 🙌🕺I mean, the stitches are wonky but it's a start. 💛
Good job! 👏👏👏👏👏
Yay!
This is the best video on hand sewing I have seen. Thank you for making this video. My sewing machine isn’t working so I have decided to finish my grand daughter’s quilt with hand piecing her patches for her quilt top.
Such a thoughtful and useful video for sewing newbies whom have been enchanted by the lure of handsewing. This is a valuable resource and a pleasure to watch. As someone who is used to hand sewing little projects such as mending but new to properly making seams, finding the grain, using a thimble and so forth. And thoroughly enamored by historical clothing and learning how to do it, I thank you most earnestly!
Wow! I always wondered in past videos why you always take pains to say, “this is not a tutorial.” But now I see the level of detail and the thoroughness with which you present everything to qualify as a tutorial. I learned some super useful stuff! Thank you!
Chibihugs Ditto, I entirely echo that! ☺️👍❤️
I tried hand stitching once and cramped my hand so badly that I couldn't use it for an embarrassing long time. NOT ONCE did I think to pin my work down to something to save my poor non dominate hand all that work.
I think I'm ready to try this again, but in a more thought out and intelligent way. Lol
Using a few of these methods to hand see a face mask right now. Strange times we have found ourselves in. Your soothing background music helped my building anxiety, thank you!
I honestly felt like I was watching a clip from a Miyazaki film.
Nice. I like that you don't only explain what to do, but why do it that way. In school we were taught sewing for one project only and it was so non-passionate, so dull, so badly explained, I didn't think I'd ever want to sew again after that. I even forgot all I learned, so this is super useful to learn again. "again". I don't count the first time. (final piece was pyjama pants, made out of... curtain fabric. teacher's choice.)
Globöb Oboglöb
Most curtain fabrics aren’t really soft enough for sleepwear, at least in my opinion.
@@ragnkja oh it isn't. It really isn't! Everything about this project was awful. Hence why I've been put off from sewing for ~15 years! But looking aroung here it's kind of impossible to not get excited about it along with everyone else. :-D
Sounds like my "home ec." class. I wish they'd taught us how to change a tire. I hated sewing, and I could cook when I was 10.( Mom loved to teach cooking, but no patience with teaching sewing, lol).
Dress went from a A-B to a C because I refused to hand stich the heam.
Mmm, I made a plush volleyball pillow in 7th grade. It was unbearably bad and useless.
Can't really blame the teachers as sewing is not a popular hobby and even if they do sew, they usually use sewing machine, so they lack experience in handsewing. As such, most of the time, they're no different than the students they teach and are just following the textbook and syllabus.
I also hand sew entire dresses as a hobby and I can assure you handmade back stitches are 20 times harder to remove than machine sewn ones.
That is a pain I don't wish to know. I have sewn sleeves incorrectly and cried in frustration but at least removing my mistake is easy and fast if done by machine, by hand I would face misery.
And we hand sewists DO face misery.
I tend to use "sewist" = sewing artist. I don't like using the term "sewer" as a person who sews. It looks too much like "sewer" or a pipe the toilet flushes into.
@@meacadwell ........you mean seamstress .....or like.....tailor...
@@meacadwell I mean not that you can't say "sewist" (because, yes, i AM aware that it is an actual term----...I feel as if tho..... it just doesn't really....it sounds very odd aloud.
Well, machine stitches just fall apart if one thread gives so yeah...
I'm watching/listening while finally badly sewing my ripped pockets on my old dog walking coat. I refuse to give up on it, I want to see how many years I can keep it going! Your channel makes me believe I can do these things!
I have silicone thimbles used for needle felting, and I’d definitely recommend them. They’re comfortable, they’re durable, and they’re useful for more than sewing. I’d absolutely recommend them over the typical hard thimble, and they work well in place of a fancy leather one or if you’re against the use of leather.
This is really good info, thank you! Hard thimbles are so bulky they’re hard to work with. I’d just resigned to sticking myself every once in a while lol!
Thanks for the useful tip! I have a few silicone thimbles that came with a hot glue gun which are also handy when using a soldering iron. Haven't tried them for hand sewing or quilting yet, but they'd probably be great. 😀
I think, in Bernadette Bahner‘s videos it‘s about historical accuracy.
For fellow fans of bake off, did you know there is a program in the same style for sewing? It's called the Great British Sewing bee. It's on BBC and it's just as delightful.
Ooh, I had no idea! Thank you!
Fantastic! Thank you!
Interesting, thank you ( ◜ᴗ◝)
Great! Thank you so much !
Very hard to follow n the US as a fan :(
“The straighter the better, *in this instance* “
As a person with scoliosis, I giggled
@@FabulousFrostine As a person with the big Gay, I giggled too.
@@voicetrainingbytris3458 As a person with scoliosis and the big Gay, I absolutely lost it
My lesbian ass:👁👄👁
My bisexuality and wiggly back made me giggle at this
Amid the current crisis, I'm making masks, and my access to a working sewing machine is . . . non-trivial . . . so I'm looking for good ways to stitch by hand. For the mask, I won't need to do the added felling, but the back stitch you've shown here should do wonders. Thank you so much!
When I first started out sewing, I did everything by hand. I taught myself out of sheer necessity, and I only used the whip stitch and straight stitch. I have a machine now, but I enjoy these videos still, and mostly watch them as I knit my garments.
This is all useful information even if one just wants to hem dish towels and mend clothing. It doesn't have to be historical. The lack of skill in ordinary hand sewing these days for every day purposes is very sad.
akarpowicz also sewing machines are scary
@@annonimooseq1246 Thank you! So I am not the only one who is daunted by the sewing machine that stiches on St a cracking pace too far for my liking, needing me to unpick where it veers off the track( horrors!). I so much prefer hand sewing at my own dignified pace. And it gives me more personal satisfaction having done so too!
Yeah, especially because handsewing really isn't all that complicated, just time consuming. It's sad to see so little patience for it...
I learned to use the sewing machine as a child; I have no aptitude nor patience for utilitarian handsewing. On the other hand, I do various forms of embroidery. If I'm going to spend that much time with a hand needle, I want it be pretty. :-)
I used to be able to sew while sitting on the floor. But, that was when my age could be told with a single digit. Now, six-plus decades later I need a really comfortable chair and maybe a footstool.
My high school home ex teacher was enthusiastic. The only teacher I every had who visited the home of every student she taught and involved the parents. She was great. I'm sorry some of your other commentors had such bad experiences.
Thanks, Bernadette, for another great lesson.
Virginia in Ohio
I've always backsttiched my handsewn seams (I used to have a thing for handmade teddy bears) but am new to felling for garment sewing. The result looks very pretty I have to say!
I only wanted to take some helping ideas for my wife for her hand crafts and I thought I'm going to give your video a try. Honestly I'm thrilled by your passion and thorough and expertly explanations. Thank you for giving us such an insight in your wonderful work!
Why, oh why have I never thought of just drawing a line on the fabric to keep my silly seam straight?
Same
i always thought after a while people just learned how to sew straight?
@@sophiewang4205 same
@@AzathothTheGreat use pins and eyeball it (and pray to the old gods)?
Neither did I. In 60 years of sewing 😂
I love that 80% of the comments are people mentioning that they’ve started to sew. I am not excluded from this!
I’ve been sewing for 50 plus years and always enjoy your channel. Learned a bit about linen thread.
Bernadette: “The straighter, the better”
Bernadettes spine: 😢😤
Her health would be better if her spine were straighter, so I guess it fits that instance as well 😂
Rather hurtful comment.
That’s pretty rude :(
As someone with scoliosis too this is fucking hilarious
That's so mean!!! 🤣🤣🤣 I, too, have scoliosis
"I throughly respect your patience while having sat through all those videos while having absolutely no clue what Im talking about"
... Don't call me out like that man xD
Same... 😂
That's just sewing the seams, can you imagine growing the elements from the ground, processing it , spooling it, and THEN weaving the threads together to make the fine cloth ..... i pass out just thinking about it.
*Especially* as processing linen from flax involves such a counter-intuitive series of steps!
Just that nobody did that anymore even in medieval times.
I'd have a very naked family... shame on me.
@@olgahein4384 I'm German and I own several bedsheets made out of strips of handwoven, homemade linen from my mother's family from the 19th century. The domestic loom was only about 80 cm wide (under 3 feet), so the sheets had a seam in the middle.
Homemade linen was used in that part of Hesse until about the middle of the 19th century.
Apart from surviving textiles, it is documented that among the things brides (farmers' daughters) of that era in the early 19th century would bring into their marriage were all the tools needed to process the flax. Also, female farm servants' pay routinely included a certain amount of flaxseed each year, which she would raise herself. Spinning wheels were not only used to spin wool, but mostly to spin linen.
(I'm referring to a region called Hessian Hinterland - yes, really.. see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hessian_Hinterland )
@@olgahein4384 I have friends who currently have spinning wheels, though they don’t make everything from ground up. Currently they also do more yarn than flax. Interestingly though fluent in spinning and crochet, she did not know how to knit, so I had the pleasure of teaching her last year.
"I have been having way too much fun scheming of all the possible ways I can organize my online existence" I laughed so hard at this, so very Jane Austen type of humourous remarks.
Ironically Bernadette is not a fan of Jane Austen.
@@ThisIsLuisa Seriously she's not?? I can hardly believe it!
My mom taught me to hand stitch when we made a quilt together. Her obviously having done more work on it. This was a nice refresher and highly educational 😊
I am growing increasingly enamored with the concept of being able to adjust my own clothing by hand. I know a bit how to work a machine, courtesy of my mother, but I do find them somewhat intimidating. And felling is especially intriguing-I have sensory processing issues, so modern seams that aren’t stitched down like that can do really unfortunate things to me. I have a question about discomfort while sewing, though-the idea of sitting and working on something held in my lap for long hours makes my neck and back want to cry. I recently developed arthritis, because that’s a normal thing that a 24yo does, and my posture is poor enough as it is. Since I know you have spine problems as well, how do you work such that you end up in agony after half an hour of work? I really love your videos, both for the sewing content and your sassy historical style.
Get an over-lap tray on legs. That will hold your work up closer to you. The type that look like smaller versions of hospital bed trays on wheels are really good and some of them have adjustable height control.
Trying a corset while you sew helps me tremendously with posture as well!
I've seen a lady using a huge lap cushion that was cylindrical across her lap and came up to her shoulders almost where she was pinning her lace project to but I bet it would be perfect for this too
Wait-as an autistic person-the idea of having felled seams in all clothing to reduce Sensory Hell-WHAT!! WHY has nobody else ever suggested this before!!!
@@mallory1304 because, people without the issues, without anyone they love having the issues, dont even think that way. It's not part of their thought pattern.
Hand sewing is good enough for the House of Valentino, so it's good enough for me. Thank you for keeping this lost skill alive
It’s not just “good enough” for couture fashion, it’s preferred! You get more control and precision with hand sewing usually which allows for the finer details commonly found in couture.
I have been sewing more years that you've been on this earth, oh to have had your videos and instructions when I was an early teen (late 1960's) . My sewing is not craftsman ship just get 'er done. My husband bought me a treadle sewing machine early this year and am trying to patiently wait till he has time to install the new belt. This would be the second one we ordered off of Amazon, our Great Dane found the first and devoured it whilst we were at church. I'm sure he was helped by the bloodhound and 2 smaller dogs) My grandmother (who was born in 1879) had one in her bedroom and I've always wanted one. Your videos are like having a warm cup of tea with a piece of moist pound cake! Thank you!
Your dog, my cat. He eats bra straps, electric cords (nothing is left plugged in), etc. So expensive and frustrating!! But he is also the sweetest cat I've ever had in the way he brings toys to me and plays fetch. (yes, my cat). I'm envious that you are using a treddle machine!! Congrats!!
"Now that I am properly armored" sounds so heroic! I should use that phrase more often when sewing.
Oh my goodness! This is the best general guide I've ever seen for how to hand-sew! Tots forwarding any and all such questions to this video from now on!! :D
Thank you for your video... my eldest daughter and I belong to living history groups, where everything we wear and use is hand made (to the greatest extent possible) just thought it might pay to stress the need for doing final fitting of a garment before fell stitching the seam allowance down. Clothing we make for my grand children never has the seam allowances cut back, so that we can let seams and hems out as needed. Thank you again for letting us watch your journey.
kazmac cutting the seam allowance so short frightens me! if the seam does rip (from fragile fabric etc) there's no fixing it. and like u say no letting it out.
your tips are extremely useful , thank you!
a question, how do you finish your seam allowance on curves like armholes? I never understood how it works, especially if the seam allowance needs to be clipped?
@@katyb2793 in Japanese sewing videos I have seen bias strips of cotton fabric used to encase armhole seams. But I don't know if that's historically correct. I vaguely recall my mother whip stitching armhole seams for narrow butterfly sleeves though (?). Good luck on your search.
@@dcinrb8538 I frequently whip-stitch armhole seams, often after pinking the edges of the fabric. It's not perfect, but then, I am not wearing these garments inside out.
Amazing! I too had a similar memory about the seams. Mine was that the seam was ironed down flat on one side of the stitch and the cabbage was used in strips and flattened to the underside of the garment. This means that both sides of the seam were covered and tacked down. This still meant that you could let out or in the seam as needed. It also had the added bonus of being a place to hide extra fabric that might be needed for patching. Better than keeping the random fabric in a box for someone to question your sanity years later!
@@katyb2793 Most of the sewing I'm doing is either 2th or 14th century. We finish each edge of each piece individually, then seam it with eitherbwhip stitching, running or back stitching (depending on the stresses the seam will take. I love what Bernadette creates, and know she has extent garments she is working off. Different countries, regions and times used different methods. Luckily for us, most of our garments are straight seams, using gores and guests to create shape and allow movement. For tights survived seams, especially on thick fabric, we use tablet woven edging, using 4 tablets, maybe 6, to create a found edge that is strong, flexible and hard wearing. Skirts are often bound with tablet edging, so that of it wears or gets dirty it's easy to replace.
I started sewing my first hand-sewn garment seam while watching this! (It's a circle skirt waistband)
I'm so proud of myself for finally starting to do the thing I've been wanting to do for about two years 😸
I thoroughly enjoy all your videos. Even after watching only 5 of them so far, I have learned so much. I also have a greater appreciation for our ancestors who sewed without benefit of a sewing machine. learned to hand sew in high school home economics sewing class. My teacher was very particular about hand sewing and even stitches. All our garments were turned inside out for marking. Four years of being marked that way made me very good at my hand sewing. I will be forever grateful to Mrs. Myatt.
Please keep making your very enjoyable videos.
It may not be true practice but my Nana always preferred using candling wax to wax her threads. It may have just been the fact she grew up on a farm in Illinois during the Great Depression. Beeswax was prehaps not have been easily available.
Do *not* try this with modern day candle wax, you will regret so much. It clumps, it cakes, it leaves residue that will discolor your fabric. Luckily I learned this on cabbage, not my skirt.
Also free: hem guide. Goes up to 2 inches, with a 5/8 inch
And here i am on mending day, procrastinating sewing up the split pants by watching youtube ... and along comes Ms Banner, to remind me to do it, and how to do it properly.
Aye, will do.
I've been procrastinating for a few months...but winter is coming so. Nice to watch while hand stitching the hood zipper back in place. Finally figured out the thimble but instead of pliers to pull the needle out of the multiple layers of winter jacket I'm using a cheap rubber glove. It's my newest addition to my sewing area
Yes, I’ve some mending to do myself, just as soon as I’m done canning soup.
How did I never realize what a thimble was for? All of your delightful tips in this video would have saved me countless hours of endured suffering trying to teach myself to sew. You are a blessing.
I may not understand patterns nor sew (unless it’s an emergency), but I thoroughly enjoy the rabbit hole I’ve been down in watching all the historical dress videos/vlogs/channels. I appreciate all the work you put into your outfits(?) and bringing us along on that journey. I just wish I’d discovered all y’all back when we first got WiFi!
Loved this video. Very informative. I just kept laughing out loud during the video at stuff you said.
And I realised something. I could literally watch cuts of you hand stitching seams, and just chatting at us for probably days. If you ever feel the need for a video that has no specific content except for talking to us, feel free to just voice over some hand stitching. You can tell us what piece this seam was from and then go back to your topic. Here’s one vote for a chat and stitch video. 🙃
Kit DuBhran Yes!! I strongly second this motion.
Fabulous. Moved and seconded. Any objections? Say nay. All in favorite say yea.
Yea
Kit DuBhran Same here, agreed. I could just watch this for pure, peaceful enjoyment.
Dear Bernadette,
As someone who is new to sewing but not to your channel and at the same time has english as their second language, in most of your videos I am in a state of constant confusion whether I dont understand a term you use because it's a word I haven't yet encountered or because it is a odd clothing term that I wouldn't even know in my mother language (e.g. placket). In any case, I thoroughly enjoy all your videos and you might be happy to know I have started implementing your teachings in menting and altering my clothes!
EnrilOfTheGreys oh dear! I think it's a bit of both - words you haven't encountered and sewing terms. but also older terms from previous centuries that we don't tend to use these days. like I've never heard anyone actually use 'anon' in a sentence in the 21st century. apart from Bernadette of course.
maybe someone needs to volunteer to write captions in plain English!
your English sounds fabulous by the way!
@@katyb2793 Oh, thank you! I am trying to sound more like an epistolary novel and less like a tumblr post (not that some aren't a perfect example of written language).
I would love to caption her videos! Bernadette! You speak rather quickly dear for.our esl people. Can i caption ur videos?
Akasha number five Did you already caption this video? I saw that there were some included!
Thank you for showing everyone hand sewing is a thing and you don’t need a machine to sew projects.
Thanks to this video I was able to mend a pair of jeans that have been waiting to be fixed for 6 months. Am so proud of my tiny accomplishment
I think hand sewing is to machine sewing what walking or biking is to taking a car. Sure the car may get you places faster, but sometimes cannot get to all the places you could reach on foot. Plus, the journey of a pleasant walk enjoying nice surroundings may be worth it just for the love of the experience, compared to the noisy and removed experience inside a car.
Hand sewing is a meditative and pleasant hobby for me. Sometimes I feel sad when I run out of things to sew and have to hunt up a new project just to keep myself busy.
Not in the same places, anyway! lol
"Langes Fädchen, faules Mädchen" (Long thread, lazy girl), as my mother was taught in school. When she told me about it, she would always roll her eyes 😄
My teacher in school used to say that too!
in french long thread lazzy girl "une aiguillée de paresseuse" 🙄and yes, little girl i was a lazzy girl.
...my grandmother basically everytime she ever saw me pick up a needle. Glad I'm not the only one who got to hear that 😅
In romanian it's "long thread, lazy tailor"
😄 My father is from Stuttgart, Germany and used to say that in the dialect spoken in those parts whenever he saw me sitting and sewing, with my miles long thread: "Lang's Fädele, faul's Mädele..." 😂
I was 12 and I loved to do needlework (still do with 45) and was just too impatient to stop and re-thread my needle, what seemed to me to be, all the time. But in reality I had way more trouble due to the miles long thread, getting it all jumbled and knotted etc. Today, I just use a length of thread I know I can handle without getting into trouble because... I still am a little, tiny bit impatient 😎
I could listen to you talk for hours. I play your videos where my kids can hear them. It won't hurt them to learn about sewing, but it's your use of the language I really want to expose them to.
I love that Bernadette is here to teach me these things. It is a very smart thing to know these skills without having to depend on machines and keeps me saner in the process. It’s also a beautiful thing to watch. I’m often sitting somewhere like today next to the fire (in an old belle portable stove) and feel like I want to sew, but do NOT feel like carrying out a big hulking sewing machine! ❤ So thank you 🙏🏼 for all you teach us and your awesome humour too 😊
Bernadette posts painting, I spend the week sketching and painting; Bernadette posts stitching, I start plotting new sewing projects. You inspire me ❤️
Aaah, the running stitch I figured out myself as a wee girl. And then my mother taught me the backstitch, "stiksteek" she called it in Dutch, and she told, explained and showed how much stronger it was than a machine stitch. Your video brought me back quite some decades in time. Awesome.
Further, curious mind would like to know, will we find you sitting on your new table doing your handstitching?
Mevrouw Mevrouw I imagine Bernadette making a bed of her new table so she can roll onto the floor to get stuck into her projects. What a time saver!
@@narelleworks8448 a delightful idea. 😆
Please tell me the difference between the running stitch and the back stitch.
@@TheMyssTTH-cam is your friend. But I'll try putting it in words.
Let's say you want to stitch from point A to point B. And that you want your stitches to be 2 mm long on the upper side of your sowing work.
With the running stitch you thread your needle. You start at point A. On the upside of your work you go 2 mm towards point B. Then you go through the fabric and 2 mm further towards point B. There you come up again. And you repeat. You can do this several times without pulling your needle through completely, after said several stitches you do pull through completely, till you have the right tension on your stitches. And you go further like you started. All stitching in upside and backside of your work goes in the direction of point B.
This a very fast way of stitching. And on both sides of the work you'll see a line of 2 mm stitches with 2 mm spacing between every stitch.
The backstitch goes way slower. Starting just past point A on your work you bring your threaded needle up from below. And you pull it through. Then, 2 mm towards point A you bring the needle to the underside of your work. 4 mm towards point B, you bring it up and pull through till the right tension. Then you go 2 mm back towards point A, to where you had come up the previous stitch. There you point down and go 4 mm towards point B. You pull through till the right tension.
You will get a seam with a neat row of 2 mm long stitches on the upside of your stitching. And a row of 4 mm long overlapping stitches on the backside.
You'll use at least three times as much thread, because you also go backwards. You have to pull through after every completed stitch, way slower than the running stitch. And you will secure every stitch by the going backwards. So, the extra time and thread is well spent on seams that will endure tension and friction.
On the backside of your work you stitch forward, towards point B, on the upside you stitch backwards, towards point A.
@@TheMyssT Let's add some more to my answer. The running stitch is extremely easy to unravel. Just pull at the thread after snapping it at end and beginning of the seam and it will come loose, just like that. The backstitch needs to be taken down stitch by stitch. It's a pain in the posterior to unpick a backstitch. 😂
This also shows the difference in how strong they are.
If you want the speed of a running stitch, but you need more strength than the running stitch can give and are working on a seam that does not need the strength of 100% backstitching, you could opt for a running stitch seam with a backstitch after every 10 or more running stitches.
"Back stitch" is the strongest of all hand stitches. 👍🏼👍🏼
Every now and then I like to come back to this video for a simple, basic, aesthetic and stress-relief content.It helps. Thank you
My sewing plan for today was making a pin cushion to replace my old one. I was about to use my sewing machine, but I've changed my mind after watching this video ! My old pin cushion was hand stitched, as it's how I learned sewing, that's how I grew to love it, and even though my job needs modern sewing machines, I believe it's good to remember what brought me here in the first place. So, today, I sewing by hand !
Oh, may I share my newest favorite thing to put inside a pincushion? I accidentally found that those plastic hair donuts used to make a neat chignon bun makes a WONDERFUL pin cushion! It holds very well but has nearly no resistance to the insertion of a pin or needle. I covered mine with some stretch denim and it is by far my favorite pin cushion I have ever had.
I made several pincushions with rice in them (some leftover hand warmers covered with a few layers of soft felt). They're weighty enough to keep something from slipping. There's no resistance to putting in the pins and they never go rusty in the swampy Florida air! I even tested one put together with hot glue by burrito wrapping the fabric and making a hot glue base. That one is non-slip (good for when my dogs bump my tables) and the pins can't poke through to the bottom (good for my travel bag).
I put rice in mine, and it has a non-common shape, as I used squares of fabric I saw in a shape like this : lesmarottesdenath.free.fr/bricotrucs/biscornu/tn/19.jpg
Thanks for the advices ! I've heard that flax seeds are the best thing to save the pins from rusting.
@@lilykiss1145 ooow, such a prety shape!
Because of you, I took up hand sewing a few months back. As it turns out, I really enjoy it. Thank you for introducing me to this timeless art.
This handsewn seam technique is still employed by some of the very high end Italian sartorias. I have a few shirts by Kiton, Luigi Borrelli, G. Inglese, and Cesare Attolini (to name a few) that do this to at least some degree in their shirts, jackets and trousers. Each to varying degrees. Kiton and G. Inglese do all long seams this way, while the others sick to the collar, cuffs, shoulders, yoke. Admiring, and ultimately needing to fix, their little handsewn pieces of art was what got me into handsewing!
Thanks for the great tutorial. You have great skills!
"respect your patience for watching all those videos while having no clue what I was talking about" your voice is relaxing and your aesthetic is immaculate ma'am, it was my pleasure
I just want to thank you for reminding me that sewing is supposed to be relaxing. I'd forgotten that, thanks to you I have resumed basting and hand finishing seams. I have a serger, it's getting a lot less use now and my projects look and fit so much better. So thanks again.
Very helpful as I prepare to recreate my great grandmother’s favorite apron that was most likely hand sewn
Would love to see it when it's done.
that sounds wonderful.. wish you could show the finished project 😊
When I was 9 my I loved crafts and sewing. My mom saw how much I loved sewing scraps and my stuffed animals's holes in my room and she started to give me clothes in the house with holes to sew close.
I'd sit for hours with a mound and searching for holes and figuring out how to sew them close tightly.
This video reminded me a lot of the techniques I figured out when I was small watching others, like the whip stitch and the back stitch or pinning things down with pins.
As a kid though I never cut the thread from the spool and now I feel like a complete maniac. I had so many many problems from not cutting the thread from the spool!! 😂😂
Im 20 now and I don't have a sewing machine and want to get into my own tailoring not just mending. So this tutorial helped so much even three years later. Most of the other videos I find in search all involve sewing machines and vary in how beginner friendly they are...
I'm super excited to finally make good use of a pin cushion!! Thank you I'm so excited!
I'm sewing a little matching set for my nieces this Christmas and I was unfortunately in a separate location than where my usual sewing machine resides. I fought with my grandmother's vintage sewing machine for 2 days before stumbling across this video. Needless to say I've been handsewing using your presented technique and it's coming out strong and so cute! Thank you.
In some applications, I think it is actually an advantage for the seam to be less strong than the fabric itself. A popped seam is easier to repair than ripped fabric. Particularly in no-stress situations (full skirt seam, for example), a weaker seam is some insurance against a momentary accident such as catching the fabric on something sharp or stepping on one's own clothing (I wish I didn't do either but life happens).
I have been gloating over my Liberty Tana Lawn, which will eventually become the outer shell of a jacket with the magic of flatlining, so expensive yardage comes to mind as an example of a situation where I'd prefer to run the risk of popping a seam vs ripping the fabric.
GrainneDhu
That’s a good point, actually!
Also: backstitching by hand is a pain to open up again for alterations!
@@raraavis7782 Oh yeah! I just had to do that yesterday. Miserable process.
That is a very good point. ❤️
a very good point, one that i haven't thought of. thank you!
No worries of pretention-- I like the sound of "Bernadette Banner Studios!"
I loved this video! I'm a 62 year old guy who's only ever sewed when I needed to patch a hole or the occasional broken hem. But as someone who makes their own furniture out of wood, I just loved the explanation, the detail and the visual demonstration. You've got me wondering how hard it would be to actually make a pair of pants for myself.
I told my friends mom about the cabbage thing ( we all LOVE to hand stitch) and she said "How did you know that?!"
I needed this! I just started practicing hand sewing. Most tutorials I found only talk about how to do the stitches. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out how to hold the cloth or how to keep tension.
This was so informative, and helpful! This was the first time I've heard about such things as "finding the grain", and now all my slightly wonky sewing projects from distant school years suddenly make sense. I knit a lot, and although I own a sewing machine (we have a complicated relationship) I really prefer the more "hands on" approach. I'm now inspired to learn hand sewing. Thank you! Now off to watch your historical stitches - video :)
P.S. My grandma was a seamstress. She would have enjoyed watching your videos :)
I agree that the Video is greatly helpful and provided me with new learning. However the speed of the video and speaking is too fast for new-bees.
@@jewelsparrish5737 Sometimes there are ways to slow a video down a little in the settings. Otherwise I use the "stop" and 'replay' functions.
@@jewelsparrish5737 she also adds subtitles to all her videos so if you need to stop and read you can :)
I mostly do emergency stitching (seams, buttons, etc) so hand sewing is key. I also have a fear of the speed of the electric sewing machines…lol.
I am definitely in the new-to-sewing-but-have-been-around-a-while category 😅
Your channel is one of the most informative, easy to understand, and calming channels regarding historical sewing I have found and I truly appreciate it as I attempt to tackle sewing my first garment,!
I never, in a million years, expected to watch this video, much less, a video like this as repetitive as I now have... Just so you know, this video (you actually) has (have?) been the inspiration for my new artistic endeavor. I am now in the study and practice of sewing my own wardrobe. Thank you Bernadette!
Thank you! This video, the shift video from Morgan Donner and the "Keep it simple" video from Cathy Hay are all propelling me forward on my road to actually finally making a shift/underdress thing that I have been thinking about for MONTHS! At least into thinking I can actually manage to do this. Yay!
Heart! Heart! 😍😍😍
I'm too broke to afford a sewing machine. Seeing this makes me inspired to improve on my sewing skills and not be discouraged just because I don't have a certain item a lot of people own. Thank you for this, I hope there are more videos like this in the future!
Lots of love 😘😘😘
Hand stitching is such a fun and relaxing craft! For many of us, it is preferable to machine stitching most of the time. The only exception is when speed is very important and we are pressed to crank out lots of sewing all at once. But for any project with a more relaxed deadline, hand sewing can bring with it a sense of control, peace, quiet, portability, and thrift that a machine cannot match.
I can probably help you find an affordable vintage machine, if you ever decide you want one! There are lots of options, even under 200. :)
I got my machine for 40 bucks at goodwill
BERN.A.DETTTTTE!!! Oh, how you take the word allowance for any sentence, stretch out your conveyances, and take triple the time needed to express intent...I relate, and will continue to listen! Here's to the sisterhood of the paragraphical purveyances.
Thank you! You inspired me to finish a cape for my son, I got frustrated with the machine and finished by hand! All future sewing for my baby daughter I will use handsewing 💕 thank you! I enjoy your videos.
This is such a wonderfully informative video, and as someone who is new to sewing + is unlikely to own a sewing machine anytime in the near future due to lack of space, I love how detailed your explanations are
i even have a sewing machine but i think i'm gonna start finally sewing something using this instead, as the sewing machine feels quite intimidating... if it makes sense..?
How lovely that this appears just as I need to stitch closures onto my skirts!
I haven't sewn in a few years due to arthritis and old eyes. Now I have the urge to start again. Bernadette, I'll be sending you my doctor bills! 😉❤️
My grandmother, who was born in 1911 used to hand stitch complete dresses. Her stitches were amazing, very dainty, and even as though a machine had sewn them. We are British and she lived through two world wars in Wales, they couldn't afford luxuries such as electric sewing machines so they sewed all their clothing by hand. She used to get adult, used clothing that was in good condition, and make clothing for my mother all by hand without a ready-made pattern. She was truly talented. She passed away when she was 100 years old.
The music, your voice, and your beautiful stitching fills my heart with joy and excitement to sew
Thank you for the soothing background music, I'm currently watching this while sick and it's making me feel a little better. You know those 'satisfying' videos of repetitive things like soap cutting, cake frosting, etc? Watching you sew gives me the same sort of calm feelings, it really is kind of mesmerizing.
I was just searching a way to build an inexpensive cover for my pergola without a sewing machine. Now I’ve spent half a day down the delightful rabbit hole of this channel and have hopes for dozens of new projects.
I am currently hand sewing an 18th century shift, and watching this video was a great reminder of which stitches work best for good, strong seams. Thank you.
I know all the stitches by heart, but I often times cling to my modern machine. With lupus, I know that I can usually only get one seam done before before my hands swell up. And since I'm working 7 days a week at the moment, I constantly find myself with a back log of requests.
Very informative and a great companion to your earlier historical stitching thread. It's a great guide for anyone who hasn't stitched before! And Bake Off reference! And having read too many modern historical romances, I must say that bandage tearings are not so prevalent nowadays and they are more accurate with the dresses (as long as they're not the cheapo, cliche-ridden ones). Will be anticipating your website launching and it's great to see making plans about it!
aerolb
All realistic bandage ripping I have seen or read a description of has been done with a cut to start the tear, and not been done on a seam.
I have to say that I've seen a few of your videos and I am finding your voice extreamly pleasing to the ear which makes watching your videos all the more enjoyable.
I went through lots of DIY tutorials and even bought some fabrics I don't have for clothes to upgrade my closet but end up sulking because my handsewing sucks and I don't have a sewing machine. But now that I found your video, you are giving me so much hope Bernadette, especially during this anxiety-inducing pandemic ❤
Thank you for this informative tutorial. I am old enough to have taken home economics in the 1970s. And this was a lovely refresher course . You were far more entertaining than my instructors then.Recently I have started to sew again! Your timing was perfect.
I started hand sewing an 18th century shift a few weeks ago, and I'm glad I watched this video, because it turns out I was doing a few things wrong! Nothing major, just how I was knotting the thread, but I'm glad I know better now and I can continue in a more correct fashion.
Oh! Also, I ordered my 2-ply linen thread online from Wm. Booth Draper, so that's another supplier to try!
My sewing cushion is a historically accurate crochet Death Star. This is the Way.
I now find myself, out of necessity, to recreate an existing pair of pajama pants and sew it myself entirely by hand. As someone who can't stitch to save her life, I'm terrified. I made a beeline for your channel, your book and this tutorial, and now I'm slowly but a little more confidently stitching and felling my seams.
Thank-you so much. This is exactly what any ordinary person needs: a simple way to make and repair a garment that's built to last repeated wear, explained in a detailed and straightforward environment.
thanks to this video i learned how to do this stitch and execute within 5 minutes to repair a friends piece of clothing, and now i know how to do at least one stitch by hand so thank you for this !!!!