5 Reasons You Should Learn To Sew

Hey y'all! One of the most frequent things I hear whenever I share something on Fresh Modesty that I have made myself is, "Oh, I wish I knew how to sew!" or "If only I could sew like you!"

I feel the same way when I see someone has beautiful handwriting or has -yet again- pulled off cooking for a crowd of 75 with grace. But I firmly believe that every skill can be learned with enough effort. After much practice, my handwriting may look wispier than originally intended and I may realize it's more my style to do chili instead of pizza for a crowd, but nonetheless, I've acquired a skill that is incredibly useful, worth the effort, and is a big blessing to others. So, if scrolling through Pinterest isn't enough motivation for you, here are my top 5 reasons every woman should learn to sew:

1. Tailored clothes should not be a thing of the past. I don't know exactly where along the line we adopted the mindset that clothing should fit right off the rack, but I do know this is a fairly modern concept and frankly just causes frustration, messed up body image, and a generation of women obsessed with yoga pants. Sewing allows you to either adjust ready-made clothing to better suit your body or to create custom garments that put your best foot forward. 
2. Modest dressing is so much easier. Being able to adjust shoulders, necklines, hemlines, and weird trims to fit our personal standards makes life just that much smoother. It also encourages me towards excellence by not just throwing up my hands and layering awkwardly out of frustration.  
3. Formal wear is more economical. Truth is, fabric is pretty expensive these days. But when it comes to formal wear, you can still make a modest dress cheaper than you can easily buy it, even from overseas. 
4. The math/ geometry/ handiwork/ critical thinking skills translate throughout life. I've never been naturally good at math, but the practical application of sewing has really helped me better understand complicated concepts. Becoming more skilled at working with your hands is always a good thing. 
5. Sewing your own clothes (or altering second-hand) makes you less dependent on Fast Fashion, sweat shops, and global economies. The more I learn about the $70 billion/year industry that fashion is, the more I am motivated to take a step back and get out of department store shopping. 

Being real, sewing can be easy but often it is just plain gritty hard work. It hurts your back, it boggles your mind, it can be inconvenient, there's "wasted" fabric and time. But girls, it is so so so so so rewarding. 

I'm writing about this today because a picture from 2010 popped up in TimeHop this morning that reminded me about the lengths I used to go to get sewing time in. 

I was making a tunic top from a dress (more details here). Watching my baby brother who was just old enough to make a huge mess of my sewing area of course made it more challenging, but you know what? That hour and a half or so yielded a tunic that my sisters and I have worn a hundred times over the last 5 years. 

I may be sliiiightly more naturally inclined towards sewing than some other girls, but the misconception that my skills have come easy to me is way off base. I've just put in the work. 

It is one of my goals in life to see sewing become normal again. I've created two resources already, "Creating Custom Swimwear" and "How To Sew Denim", and don't be surprised if you see more from me in the future. ;) 

Whatch'all think? Do you sew? Do you find it useful? 

Oh, and P.S.-- I'm hosting a sewing camp at our guest house September 28th-October 1st, 2015. There are two more spots available-- email me at FreshModesty@gmail.com if you're interested!