SEWING KIT PART I

My sister has given me a great many presents but the ones I find I could never live without would be my Merchant & Mills dressmaker scissors and my Merchant & Mills sewing kit.

Together, the scissors and kit are everything I need to sew. I take the sewing kit with me wherever I go and I keep it together so every time I sew I can just grab it and begin.

A good pair of dressmaking scissors, used ONLY with fabric are an absolute must.

Making a good cut of the fabric is vital as it helps to make the stitching straight, and hemming a dream.

I can’t handle the time wasting and frustration of trying to cut fabric with dodgy scissors. Buy a good pair of scissors at your local craft or sewing shop and keep them away from anyone who will use them on anything other than fabric.

My sewing teacher had a saying, “whoever uses a pair of fabric scissors on paper, or vice versa, will get their arm chopped off with those scissors.” And in that sewing class those scissors were used for fabric only or paper only.

All wrapped in a canvas pouch, the Merchant and Mills Sewing Kit comes with a packet of needles - all different sizes, a box of pins, tape measure (with inches and centimetres) and a pair of embroidery scissors.

All of these items I use every time I sew. In fact, in addition to the Merchant & Mills kit I have several embroidery scissors, and types of pins and rulers to keep at all my sewing stations, (sewing machine, ironing board and cutting area) to make it so much easier.

The one thing missing from the sewing kit though, and something which we all need no matter what stage of sewing we’re at, is a quick-unpick. It is absolutely, completely necessary. I was very lucky to be gifted a gorgeous ‘Madeline’ quick-unpick which I adore and is a little too special to use, but I love it.

Then I have my sewing machine and I can get on with my sewing.

You can find all these bits and bobs at your local craft shop or even in your supermarket. Just take a list of what you need and try to pick out the best of what you can find and afford.

Basic Sewing Kit:

Fabric Scissors

Pins - you’ll need lots of pins so pick up a big box and I like a mix of silver heads and ball heads. It’s also good to have the mix of short and long pins.

Needles - Find the best quality as sharper needles make hand sewing considerably easier. You’ll also need thick and skinny needles for different purposes, like fitting through button holes or sewing thicker fabrics.

Tape Measure - even if you work in inches or centimetres, having both on your tape measure means being able to convert on the spot.

Embroidery scissors - make sure you can actually fit your fingers in the handles.

You can add to your sewing kit as you go along but as an initial investment it’s best to just buy what you need and see how you go.

To see all the other handy things I like to keep in my kit head to Sewing Kit Part II.

*Post is not sponsored, unless you count my sister who gave me these great items.