Sewing, knitting, embroidery, easy and fashion blog

You start sewing and looking for help to learn to sew online? We offer today a small blogs and websites overview  for beginners and more savvy dressmakers to help you answer all your sewing questions:

• Thread & Needles :

Thread&Needles Thread & Needles is the reference community website for sewing and knitting. The site was created in 2010 by passionate about sewing, now the site has been widely enriched. Very interactive, volunteers regularly publish articles on the blog:

♦ Keeping you informed of the latest patterns and sewing books releases,

♦ Introducing a seamstress or a tailor with interview,

♦ Giving desire with projects that inspire,

♦ Showing a technique, sewing or knitting tools,

♦ Presenting an artist, an exhibition related to sewing or knitting.

As a community site, the big advantage of T&N is to offer an account where you can post your sewing & knitting projects. You add a title, an image, a link to your blog and other people in the community can interact with you via comments and private messages.

Your project is then referenced in the gallery. Each member may vote and may become the "popular of the week" project.

The website also contains very active sewing and knitting groups. Notably by region, allowing you to organize or to meet other real dressmakers or knitters in your corner.

These groups can also allow you to answer your questions about sewing or knitting technical problems.

The + : Thread&Needles is a very complete website as you will understand. It allows to virtually or actually meet bloggers through project presentations.

• Artesane :

Artesane is a new website created by the talented blogger Annie Coton . The principle is to offer sewing and knitting online classes and it will increase with arts and crafts.

Several recognized teachers therefore propose a course related to their field of choice.

The platform Artesane is beautiful and well done. Most courses are paid (and that's normal considering the work) but you will also find free lessons. Many videos workshops will emerge during 2016 have to watch closely!

The +: Artesane also contains a nice "newspaper" including clear tips on cloth or special sewing techniques, in particular. The illustrations are very well done and the approach discusses in depth techniques.

• Couture Débutant :

This blog was created in 2015 by a young sewing instructor Margaux.

Couture Débutant, is first to overcome the issues and redundant problems of its sewing beginners students. It notes that the problems of sewing beginners are always the same and there are very few site dedicated to the first steps.

Since then, the blog growed and Margaux offers:

♦ Super simple sewing DIY to not be afraid to begin it,

♦ Its patterns and magazine testing,

♦ Its best addresses both on the web than real,

♦ A Youtube channel offering basis support for amateur fashion designers.

The +: The universe of its blog is cool and pleasant. It makes you want to put it right away now even if you were born with two left hands, with these step by step tutorials, you are sure to get there!

• Crafty Bitches :

This vintage and quirky look blog is full of good sewing ideas with supporting tutorials.

There are as well many basic sewing lessons as customization DIY.

There you will find a wealth of information to choose your sewing machine, sewing a particular fabric, but also make everything simple accessories like a headband, a collar, etc.

The +: the blogger's humor. The articles, both for sewing in mood editorial or general web articles are really funny!

• Petit Citron :

Petit Citron is a small community sewing site. It was created by Perrine Colignon in 2007. She wanted to set up as a virtual sewing club.

The site offers in image sewing techniques, but also free simple patterns.

To participate, send your projects, technical ideas, etc. Just create an account on the site.

The +: the Petit Citron blog is full of tips and inspirations for sewing. It is a mine of information interesting when you start!

Winter begins to be felt timidly in this early 2016 ... the perfect time to get back to knitting!

Since I give knitting lessons (it's been 6 years!), I had a lot of people completely beginners, ie which start from zero. This allows me to make you a basic tips small summary if you feel the urge to begin knitting.

1/ The basis

What do you need to start knitting?

- A pair of knitting needles

- A ball

- A very easy pattern

2/ The pattern choice for beginners

Very important ! It's the first thing you need to find. It is important to start knitting small as this can be very frustrating to quickly begin a long scarf and realize in the middle we lost the motivation to finish it.

I suggest you start with adult accessories or ultra-easy baby clothing. The easiest beginners stitch is the garter stitch. You can also test the jersey stitch but for the ribs, you'll see it later!

The snood (or neckband) and mittens are ideal to start. See eg  Sorlin Snood with needles 15 and Triad mittens with needles 6. It's straight on and all in garter stitch. No reduction or increase but a quick super nice finish!

For a baby clothing, I recommend the Paul vest, slightly more complicated than the accessories (you will have to increase by several stitches) and needles are a little finer but clear explanations will guide you easily to the final sewing and you will be proud to offer this little jacket to a baby. It is also available in kit.

3/ Select the ball

Choose what is commonly called  the "wool" is not so obvious. You will find balls in many haberdasheries with very pretty colors but unfortunately not containing 1 gram of wool!

- The material:

I made the choice to offer you on the website, only knitting threads with a majority of natural material.

The material may be: from the sheep wool  (mostly merinos, very soft), recycled yarn from different materials, alpaca (slightly hairy and warmer), mohair (cloudier), cotton (lighter for summer) or even cashmere and silk.

For beginners I suggest you buy a ball of 100% wool, 100% recycled or 100% cotton (if it is for the summer or for a baby). Other wools are more expensive and sometimes it is less clear to observe our meshes or unravel without nodes (alpaca and mohair particular).

Our special beginners knitting balls:

- The thread size:

It is very important to well choose the thread thickness to begin knitting! It is even essential.

The wool ideal thickness that I recommend to begin knitting is for needles 5 mm up to 15 mm.

The needle number is always shown on the ball label (see below):

4/ Choose the pair of knitting needles

The pair of knitting needles number depends on the yarn you've chosen (and if you were paying attention, so printed on the ball label). The knitting needles numbers match their diameter in millimeters. They range from 2 mm to 25 mm or even 30!

There are also  différent needles shapes: straight, circular, double-pointed ...

The circular and double-pointed needles have been developed for seamless circular knitting: hats, gloves, mittens, socks, etc. But interchangeable circular knitting needles new lines (Knitpro line for example) can be very practical to knit straight works (in two-way) and circular, no need to buy both straight needles and circular needles! They need a small starting supplementary budget but they be used all your life.

For beginners, if you do not yet know if you and knitting that's for life, I suggest you opt for straight knitting needles 25 to 35 cm long. 25 cm is a minimum and for small works for babies and children.

You will also have the choice in the knitting needles material! Increasingly type of needles exist and that's good.

There are metal needles, used since time immemorial, they have the advantage not to break but can be heavy (in addition to knit), too slippery to begin, noisy and cause allergies.

You can choose also in wooden needles: bamboo or birch.

Wooden needles are much lighter than metal and do not let slip the stitches. Bamboo remains fragile for small sizes needles (2 to 3.5mm) but the birch is one of the toughest! See our range of 100% birch Basix Birch Knitpro needles. In addition, the wooden needles are very pretty!

It remains plastic needles that I prefer not to propose, they cling too much wool, stitches do not slide well and the feel always appeared to me unpleasant. By cons they do not break and are also very slight.