After my Sewing 101 class a couple of weeks ago, I really wanted to take another class ASAP before I forgot everything I learned. Luckily, there was a Saturday tote bag class that wasn’t full, so I had my second sewing class this weekend.
Here’s my finished tote bag, hanging out in our dining room:
Things I learned from this class:
- How to use interfacing, both sewn and iron-on
- How to insert a magnetic snap
- How to make the bag’s bottom corners neat and tidy (I had been doing it ALL WRONG)
- How to sew the lining to the bag, so everything is facing the right way when completed.
- Where to sew the straps so that, again, everything is where it needs to be when it’s all put together.
These are things I probably could have learned from a book or website, true. Again, though, having someone show me made it SO much easier. Especially the linings - I just couldn’t grasp the concept from a few illustrations in a book, I needed to see it first hand.
I know I’m going to be making a lot of these bags in the near future, now that I have the basic shape figured out. It was all I could do to stop myself from buying a ton of pretty fabric from the shop on the way out. But I still have a few pillows to sew for the living room, first.
Again, for those in the Chicago area who would like to take a sewing class, I highly recommend the Needle Shopin Bucktown. Great fabrics, great instructors, and a wide range classes - fabulous.