I think you should have been sewing for at least one year, or feel extremely confident to complete a garment on your own, to participate in the Fair Fit Method courses.

However, due to the video modules, the step by step instruction, and the expressive and intuitive approach I teach you with the sewing and the draping, if you are a creative type and love learning a new process - then you will love the Fair Fit Method.

My students in Baton Rouge who are beginners have the opportunity to learn in person with me, so they do have an advantage over beginners who learn with me online. Having a teacher in your presence does give you a lot of confidence, and it does help to have me standing over you and stop you if you are headed for trouble. I wanted to feature some of my student's thoughts and insights for those of you who are eager online learners and want to know more about the experience that students are having with the course materials and pattern.

The Fair Fit Method Sewing + Design - What the Courses are Like for Beginner Sewists

The Fair Fit Method is a sewing skill builder unlike any other class or pattern on the market. It incorporates proficiency in draping, muscle memory, material handling, and a sculptural approach to sewing while teaching advanced sewing techniques that build better coordination. I want to help beginner and intermediate sewists leap into more advanced skill sets, while rounding out your skillset, and providing new ways to approach future garments after learning the methods.

The courses are not easy, but even beginners have had a lot of fun and grown from learning the different methods. In this post, I interviewed two local Fair Fit students and captured their insights and experiences of learning how to sew and participating in the Fair Fit Method live workshops held in 2017. Hopefully their thoughts and examples will help you provide some insights be beneficial to anyone considering enrolling in the courses.

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Working with Beginners

Erika and Melissa started working with me in January 2017, and their love of contemporary clothing, and desire to grow and learn in their sewing made them perfect candidates to try out the Fair Fit Skirt and Top courses.

The Fair Fit Method - What the Courses are Like for Beginner Sewists

As a rebel maker myself, I love folks who have an enthusiasm to learn and adventurous spirits. They would do their homework, they were practicing on their own, and they knew that they could fail- but didn't let that stop them. What I also appreciated about both of them is that they have a lightness about their approach, they did not have an excessive perfectionism or fear of failure, and if they did mess up they were willing to try again and not get frustrated. Here are some of their thoughts and experiences of learning how to sew this year and working with the Fair Fit patterns.

Erika Kampden

Why Erika learned how to sew

"I love to buy clothes, but my waist is really small and my hips are really wide, so finding skirts and pants and things to fit me properly is difficult. Especially finding skirts that are going to fit me how I want them to fit. I was determined that I was going to learn how to sew and make my own instead of buying them.

Fit was a motivator to start sewing as was my frustrations with clothing in the store. I realized that to buy the clothes I love, I would pay a lot of money and still have to pay a lot to alter them.

Now that I have some projects and classes under my belt, I feel really good now about trying new things and figuring it out. I feel like if I tried a project now I feel pretty confident that I could back track and figure it out to make a garment I can wear."

Erika's Experience Learning Draping

"Draping was really fun. It was interesting playing with a dress form and shaping the garment first, and them putting it on the body to test it out. Learning when to step back and compare, and put it on ourselves to test it was valuable to learn adjustments. If I hadn’t taken the class, I wouldn’t have thought to use a form or know how to use it properly.

I had no idea how much you really need to use your hands, how you bend and pin fabric to move the garment and shape it. I feel more confident and I have more control over what the fabric does now that I know how you hold it, pin it, and sew it into place."

Using the course materials and resources

"In all of the preparation, I had a few doubts, but I trusted myself and knowing that I can make good sewing decisions, trusting my gut really gave me confidence to take on more projects. Now that I have made my first top, I kind of wish I had gone a little more crazy with it and experimented more with the stitching. At first I was nervous and then I realized I can just go at it.

Now I look at garments differently, I have the confidence to look at an item and think about how its made and understand if I can make something similar. If I do decide to invest money in something it is for a specific reason, because I can analyze clothing and know if I can 100% go home and sew it on my own."

Melissa McHugh

Why Melissa Learned How to Sew

"I’m a short person, and I’m athletic, I have a tiny waist and huge butt. I always had to have a smaller top, bigger bottom, and nothing fit right. I was always having to take apart my clothes and alter them to suit my passion for clothing. I was always around sewing, my mother is an expert seamstress, I just decided it was time that I learn more about it."

Melissa's Experience Learning Draping

"Draping is totally a 3D thing, and knowing where my body is in relation to the garment and pattern was really helpful. I couldn’t see that with a sewing pattern before, because its just flat, and now I have an idea of where darts go for me and how the shape of the garment relates to my specific body and where.

I appreciated learning draping because now I know more about what I want to do, because in my craft I can hone in on my skills and feel comfortable if I mess up knowing how to fix it. Especially with draping, I learned that if it doesn’t fit I can move the piece over a little or insert a dart."

After the workshop

"Now that I have my base garment, I want to change the neckline, and change up the back. I think it would be really cool to make a more open back, or a keyhole or racer back to make it more sporty.

My key takeaway was knowing the freedom that I can customize and do the customization in my own way. Instead of thinking about perfect lines, I was confident to go at this project artistically, which was really fun for me. After the class now I think I have more confidence to customize and really make something the way I want to make it. I feel like I can take something basic and make it my own."

If you are interested in taking courses in the Fair Fit Method, the next opportunity to enroll begins soon. You can visit https://www.fairfitmethod.com/ to learn more and read all about the program and full curriculum. If you want to know right away when enrollment opens again, sign up below and you will receive email updates, articles, and notifications when registration begins.

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