Home / DIY

Here’s Where to Find Thousands of Sewing Patterns for Fashion-Forward DIY

Sewing Patterns

Stock Photos from UfaBizPhoto/Shutterstock
This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase, My Modern Met may earn an affiliate commission. Please read our disclosure for more info.

When you ask people if they sew their own clothes, the answer is often no. Who has time for that? But don't overlook this valuable life skill; with patience and know-how, you can create fashionable frocks that are a fraction of the cost of what you’d pay at a department store. Plus, stitching garments by hand fosters a more thoughtful attitude toward clothing while giving you the sweet satisfaction of knowing that you made an entire outfit yourself.

Thanks to the internet, there are many online crafting stores where you can buy cool sewing patterns from independent makers. And for more challenging designs, there are communities to offer guidance and support. You might be sewing alone at your machine, but you aren’t far from the kind words of other stitchers. Once you’re done, share your sewing victory with your craft companions for some virtual high-fives.

There are thousands upon thousands of sewing patterns available online, but we’ve narrowed your search with online sites selling curated selections of designs.

Sewing Patterns

Stock Photos from EKramar/Shutterstock

Suggested Materials for Sewing Patterns

Sewing Machine If you’re serious about sewing your own clothes, you’ll want to invest in a sewing machine. Depending on your budget, you can get a home machine that can perform a number of different techniques. But at the very least, you’ll want a machine that can stitch forward, backward, and complete a zigzag stitch.

Fabric Shears Get a nice pair of scissors that are for fabric and fabric only. This will ensure they stay sharp. Be sure to look for shears with a straight bottom blade so that you can cut your fabric in an even line.

Straight Pins These are essential for cutting out the pattern and then piecing fabric together.

Sewing Thread When stitching clothing, you’ll want to match the color of the thread with the fabric as closely as possible. It’s hard to do an exact-match with home-sewn clothing, but with this set, you can get close. As long as your thread and fabric isn’t a complete contrast, you’ll be fine.

Bobbins Bobbins are what feeds your thread to the machine as you sew. Make sure you have several so you don’t have to switch out the thread.

Rotary Cutter If you are cutting layers of fabric and want to keep them consistent, you’ll want to buy in a rotary cutter. Keep it sharp, and it will evenly and neatly trim your fabric.

Self-Healing Rotary Cutting Mat Get a self-healing cutting mat for when you use your rotary cutter. Once sliced, it will magically heal itself so that the surface is smooth again.

Fusible Interfacing Fusible interfacing isn’t for all patterns, but it’s used in many things (like shirts) to make them more rigid and give them structure.

 

Next: The best sites for finding contemporary sewing patterns.  

Page 1/2

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled "Embroidered Life" that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
Become a
My Modern Met Member
As a member, you'll join us in our effort to support the arts.
Become a Member
Explore member benefits

Sponsored Content