When I was 12 years old and in my last year of elementary school in Victoria, Canada, we were all signing up for courses in middle school. There was an amazing selection of so-called "electives" to choose from, and I signed up for almost all of them - including woodwork, drafting, metalwork, cooking and typing. I was also really interested in taking sewing, but to this day I still remember the conversation with a friend when he said, "Don't do it, it's a girl-thing" (for some reason, typing was acceptable and cooking was 'cool', but sewing was a no-no). Unfortunately I listened to his advice... oh well, all things in their own time.

In 2004 - some 30 years later - Anke, a good friend of mine here in Amsterdam, told me she was taking sewing classes. I told her the story about how I'd always wanted to do it, and she invited me to join her in the class. So I did, and I loved it. It's exactly that combination of creativity, precision, problem-solving and practicality which I love about software development.

I started by making dress-shirts and pants, but currently I focus more sports and casual clothing like gym pants and shorts, bathing suits, cycling outfits, etc.

My Machines
Pfaff 1529 ClassicStyle Home purchased in 2005	Pfaff 4842 Hobbylock purchased in 2006	Elna 434 Coverlock purchased in 2010

My Lighting Lighting is really important to me. When sewing, I like to be bathed in light which makes it easy to see (e.g. when guiding fabric through the machine or bludgeoning my finger while sewing by hand), and a natural light which doesn't change my perception of the colours.
I've found the best lamp to be this Ikea TERTIAL lamp, which mounts with a clamp onto the desktop. I have two, so that I can have light shine from left and right without shadows. With an all-metal armiture and cap, it's an amazing deal for only 9 euro. The cap doesn't get hot, so you can't burn your skin if you accentally brush up against it.	I think I am in love with this lamp. It's a Megaman 23W Liliput (MM33315) energy saving lamp which has 5 bands of phosphor producing 1300 lumen of 6500K full-spectrum light. In layman's terms: it produces a very bright natural daylight light. It's fairly pricey, but I can't get enough of this light, especially during the winter months.

Project Gallery
A Sampling of My Projects

click to enlarge

Tips

A sewing machine may be reasonably priced, but the attachments seldom are. This can be where the bread-and-butter (or more like cream) in terms of hidden profit can be for sewing-machine manufacturers. After all, few people factor-in the cost of accessories when purchasing a machine. The presser-foot that comes with my Elna 434, for example, is next to useless - it's too long and not transparent, so it gets in the way of what you're working on. And yet a shorter, clear plastic foot can easily set you back about 35 euro! A binder can be a great accessory to have, but the binder costs upwards of 130 euro, and you need to buy the smallest binder (next to useless) as well because that's the one which comes with the special plate required to attach their binders to the machine. Universal binders are available from Sharp Sewing on ebay for only $22 or so, but then they want a whopping $80 for the plate, which is just a simple piece of metal with some holes in it. I refused to be gouged! So I ordered the binder from Sharp Sewing (quick, friendly service!), then went to my local hardware store for some 40mm x 20mm aluminium molding and a couple of 5mm nuts (to fit the bolts which come with the binder), cut a 12cm section of the molding, drilled four 7mm holes, filed the edges, et voila, I had my custom binder plate. The cost? About 5 euro for 1 metre of the molding and a couple of cents for the nuts. Here's the result:

click to enlarge

more tips coming soon...

tying the knot for hand-sewing

sewing on a button

threading a serger

ending a coverstitch

 

Stores I Recommend

Dressew Supply (Vancouver)
World famous? Well, it should be!
Huge selection, knowledgeable and helpful staff.
You can spend hours in this store!

A. Boeken (Amsterdam)
How do they fit that much into such a small space? Must be Dr. Who's Tardis.
Very reasonable prices.
An Amsterdam institution.

Jan de Grote Kleinvakman (Amsterdam)
Thread and bias in a zillion colours, zippers, needles, scissors, buttons - a haberdashery with (almost) everything you need for sewing, except the fabric and machines.

Albert Cuyp Market (Amsterdam)
Not a single store, but a big market with several fabric shops and stalls, mostly on the south side.
Here you'll find Jan de Grote Kleinvakman (listed above), which I especially recommend.

Sharp Sewing Supplies (eBay)
Fast, friendly service.