Wow, I totally dropped the ball on blogging this week. The first week of the semester started at my 9-5, and life got a little crazier than expected. I’ll get back to normal posts next week.
Today, I’m sharing a more lighthearted post that’s been on the back burner for a while. While I love sewing, there are definitely things I kinda hate about it. Here are the top 5:
1. Cutting fabric and pattern pieces: UGH, UGH, UGH. Especially anything that has tiny pieces. Switching from cutting fabric with scissors to a rotary cutter makes life much easier, but it still sucks hardcore. I take a ridiculous amount of time to cut, so I normally set aside a whole day to cut as many projects as possible. I swear, if I could pay someone to cut fabric for me, I totally would.
2. Pre-treating fabric: I don’t know about you guys, but the second I get a piece of fabric, I want to take it to my machine and start sewing. With costumes, I can typically get away with not pre-treating most fabrics, especially satin and spandex, since they only get spot cleaned (Febreeze is the best, seriously). But for my normal clothes, I have to wait for that nonsense to wash and dry. Boooo…
3. Threading my serger: Dear lord, I hate threading my serger. After a year of constant use, it takes me closer to 5 minutes to thread it compared to 30 when I first started serging. And if I have to change colors in the middle of a project? Massive suck fest. I use the cheater’s method of changing serger thread as often as I can. And if a thread or needle breaks in the middle of a seam? Flip all the tables.
4. Hand stitching: It’s taken me a long time to appreciate hand stitching. I actually don’t mind it if I’m not in a rush and can chill out with some tea and Netflix for a few hours. Still, I’m not great at it and I always feel like my hand stitches look like a big ol’ bowl of first project home economics crap (looking at you, Captain Marvel gloves). So anytime instructions tell me to hand stitch something, you can bet I’m going to try to make it work with a machine first.
5. Setting sleeves: I swear, I can never get sleeves even. At least, not without a ridiculous amount of easing and seam ripping. Learning about the flat construction method used in RTW clothing blew my mind. I try to incorporate it everywhere I can. Because you suck, round sleeve setting.
Even with the suck of these things, I still love sewing! I’m actually in the middle of a couple of projects right now, so I’ll have more finished projects to share soon!
What are some of the things you love/hate about crafting?
The Geeky Seamstress 
I’m loving your costumes–they’re so well done! Cutting interfacing. It’s so floppy! I don’t mind fusing interfacing–that’s vaguely satisfying, but cutting it, including trimming it afterwards is annoying.
With your sleeves–do you sew with the sleeve on the bottom and the back/front on top? The feed dogs will help eat up some of the ease that makes round sleeve setting so difficult.
Thank you! Haha, I’m not a fan of cutting interfacing either. That is how I normally sew my round sleeve settings. It’s really getting the gathers even on puffy/gathered sleeves that drives me crazy. I’m a perfectionist, so having the gathers uneven drives me nuts!
Oh, how many the sleeve that I’ve walked away from in frustration!
I’m with you on the sleeve thing. My pet peeves are buttonholes, zippers and remembering to knot and clip all my loose ends. I always have the best of intentions, but as I near the end of a project I get lazy.
Oh, buttonholes. Hate those too. I keep wanting to make a nice winter coat with bound buttonholes, but UUUUUUGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH.
I’m with you on number 1! I’m weird, because #2 doesn’t bother me. I like doing the laundry. So. Weird. #3…we’ll see since I just got my first serger earlier this week. I have to change the thread out for a project I’m working on this weekend. I hope it goes well. I’m using that cheat method. 😉 #5 was something I hated until I found out about the flat set method, like you. Now it’s replaced by zippers. UGH: unpick, unpick, unpick. So. Horrible. Any tips on those? 😉
Haha, oh zippers. I mostly prefer invisible zippers. I “baste” them with Wundertape. I also found that running an iron over the tape really helped me get neat stitches. Best of luck with your serger!
This made me smile as, when I (finally) learn how to sew, I know that certain things will still frustrate me.
(Also, I don’t mind hand stitching but I’ve only ever done a few seams)
Ah, I’m so jealous you don’t mind hand stitching! I’m such a creature of instant gratification, and I’m just so slow at hand stitching! It’s a very handy skill to have, though. And it makes for beautiful hems and zippers.
Today is my day to cut out patterns and prewash fabric. Right now I’m ready to burst into flames.
Argh, I feel your pain! I put off so many projects because I hate cutting patterns and prewashing.
You make amazing costumes! I am so with you on the sergers and the cuting out. Tracing off patterns too. Probably the reason I make so few things. 🙂
Thank you! ❤ Ugh, I almost included tracing on the list. I get the point of it, but it's still the absolute worst. I almost never trace unless I absolutely have to. Though that's partly because my pattern collection is ridiculous.
I hear ya on the handstitching and cutting! Threading the serger/overlocker isn’t so bad if I can do it the cheat’s way, but when a thread slips out at the last minute and I have to do it all again the proper way……HULK SMASH
Oh, and fitting. Why can’t patterns fit?! I know every body is different, but if I could get a bodice to fit even marginally close to a RTW bodice, I would be a happy sewist.
Oh man, I had that happen to me last night! Definitely sucks.
Haha, fit is a bear. I have a love/hate relationship with it. I very rarely find a RTW bodice that’s long enough for me, so being able to build in length is fabulous.
All of these things are on my list. Especially hand sewing (and slip stitching). I would add deciphering pattern instructions as well, but these days I tend not to follow them too much. Pinning goes on my list too … If I think i can get away with it, I dont pin. But many times it is necessary. Ugh. Btw – flat sleeve method is the BEST!
Oh slip stitching is so awful. I will totally blind hem on my machine instead if I can get away with it. And yes! adore the flat sleeve method!
I completely agree with you about cutting pieces. Just getting the fabric to be on grain drives me bonkers. Hemming is also something I hate. When I’m so close to being finished with a project, pinning and hemming take up too much time: I want to be done!
Oh, hemming for sure. Especially having to wait for days for circle skirt hems to set. No thank you!
Oh serger threading. Once I did it properly first time. It was amazing! Every other time it’s time for a game of find the tiny mistake!
Also cutting. And hand-sewing.
Getting it right the first time is fantastic! I always want to do a little happy dance when that happens.
Hand-sewing! Errr, I have project that sit until I am in the right mood for hand sewing (that is a very fleeting mood!). Preaching doesn’t bother me unless I don’t have a load of laundry to do…the ironing afterwards is what kills it for me!
Ugh, ironing afterwards. Ew. Especially cottons. So many wrinkles!
A fun lists 🙂 Luckely I don’t mind these things so much, even though I try to avoid hand sewing if I can. I always forget how long time it takes “I’ll just wip this together before I leave tomorrow” Ha! I hate doing zippers, because I can never get them right. But the absolute worst are the finishing touches. Once I’ve sewed all the pieces together and done all the main work I feel done with the project. Going over the hems, cutting off loose threads and doing the little fiddly bits is just so uninspireing.
The things I hate about sewing are: tracing patterns, adding seam allowances to pattern pieces when not included (big hate here) and hand sewing. I still haven’t learned to appreciate the latest one. Maybe in due time…
Ooh, adding seam allowances really bugs me too. So irritating. I almost never use Burda patterns for that reason!