What Equipment Do You Need to Start Your Sewing Career?
It might have been a dream of yours to start your own business as a fashion designer or dressmaker. While you might already know how to sew or may just be learning, it is important that you know what equipment you need to start your career off right. So, what do you need to begin your sewing career?
The Basic Equipment
The basic equipment you will need to start your sewing career off right include items such as a sewing machine, a tape measure that has both centimeters and inches on it, pins, sewing needles, sharp dressmaking scissors or shears, a seam ripper, a ruler and pencils, and an ironing board and iron. These are the basic equipment needs for any designer or dressmaker.
When you must mark your fabric prior to sewing the material together, you can use several items. You can use tailor's chalk or chalk pencils, with which you can match the color of the pencil to the fabric so the marks won't show. You can also choose a more traditional tool and use a soapstone marker from a company such as Soapstone Plus. A soapstone marker is made of talc and is not permanent, meaning that once the clothing item is washed, the marks you made will disappear.
Other Equipment
There might be other pieces of equipment you should have that you might not think of when creating your studio. For example, it's a good idea to have a large artist's paintbrush for cleaning debris from your sewing machine, or you might not think to have a pressing cloth to prevent shine on your fabric when you are ironing it. You might not have pinking shears or even a pair of cheap scissors you can use to cut paper or patterns with so you aren't using your fabric scissors. It is also a good idea to include magnets and pushpins to keep your important papers within view but out of the way of your work area.
Another great tool is a rotary cutter, which enables you to cut multiple layers of fabric without having to separate and cut each one individually. This saves time and effort. If you use a rotary cutter, however, make sure you cut on a large cutting mat so you don't cut the surface of your work space.
Computer Programs
While you still can create your patterns on paper or buy ready-made patterns from a store, if you want to have a business as a dressmaker or designer, you will need specific pattern-creating or -designing software. Take the time to research the programs that are the perfect fit for you. An example is Edraw, which is great for designing suits and dresses and creating textures. A more advanced option is CAD fashion-design software, which is perfect for the pro.
