Learn to Sew, Stitch, Repair & Create
Anyone can learn practical sewing skills one step at a time. Every lesson here starts from zero, shows where the needle goes, and tells you what a good result looks like.
Choose what to learn
Embroidery
Outline, fill and decorate fabric with sixteen classic stitches.
Cross-Stitch
Count squares, follow a chart, and build pictures from tiny crosses.
Hand Sewing
Thread a needle, sew a seam, attach a button, close a hole.
Clothing Alterations & Repairs
Hem trousers, take in a seam, patch jeans and fix what has come loose.
Looking for the sewing machine course? Sewing Machine Basics. Alterations have their own section too: Clothing Alterations.
Never held a needle? Follow the pathway.
Seven stages take you from threading a needle to hemming your own trousers. Work in order, or jump to anything that interests you.
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Get comfortable with the basics
Learn decorative stitching
Discover cross-stitch
Learn the sewing machine
Repair clothing
Make simple alterations
Running Stitch
The simplest hand stitch: the needle weaves in and out of the fabric in a straight line. It is quick and is used for light seams, gathering and mending.
Featured projects
A Simple Embroidered Flower
Your first complete motif: a daisy with a knotted centre, a stem and two leaves. Uses four stitches.
Cross-StitchTiny Heart
A 9 by 8 stitch heart in one colour. The ideal first chart: small, symmetrical and quick.
Hand SewingMake a Simple Drawstring Pouch
Sew a small cotton pouch with a casing and two drawstring cords, entirely by hand. It uses running stitch, backstitch and a hem fold, and suits a beginner who has practiced those stitches. Lined pouches and thicker fabrics need more advanced technique.
RepairsPatch Jeans With an Outside Patch
Cover a worn spot or hole with a fabric patch stitched on the outside of the jeans. Machine topstitching is stronger. Hand sewing is easier on a knee or in a narrow leg where the machine will not reach.
AlterationsShorten Trousers
Shorten a pair of unlined woven trousers while keeping the leg straight and the hem level.
EmbroideryEmbroidered Details on a Denim Jacket or Tote Bag
Add a small motif to a pocket, collar or bag front. Covers working on thick fabric and making stitching that survives wear and washing.
A beginner's essential sewing kit
The few things that handle buttons, small seam repairs and hems. Costs little and fits in a shoebox.
- Hand-sewing needles, mixed sizes 5 to 10. A pack of assorted sharps; size 7 or 8 does most jobs.
- All-purpose polyester thread in black, white and grey. Three spools cover most dark and light clothes; add colours as you need them.
- Sharp small scissors. Embroidery scissors or snips to cut thread cleanly.
- Seam ripper. Cheap and needed on day one for unpicking and mistakes.
- Measuring tape. A 60 in (150 cm) double-sided fibreglass tape.
- Pins in a small box. Glass-head pins, 1 1/16 in (27 mm), about 100 pins.
- Assorted buttons. A mixed tin of buttons or a few spares in common sizes; skip special sets for now.
- Needle threader and thimble. A diamond-wire threader and a metal thimble; the thimble can wait until you sew denim.
Popular tutorials
Sewing on a Button
How to sew on a two-hole or four-hole button and make a thread shank, which is a short stalk of thread that lets the button sit above the fabric.
Hand SewingBackstitch
A strong stitch where each stitch goes back to meet the last. It looks like a machine seam from the front and is the best hand stitch for seams and repairs.
EmbroideryFrench Knot
A small raised dot made by wrapping the thread round the needle before going back down.
Cross-StitchThe Basic Full Cross-Stitch
The X-shaped stitch that makes up almost every design. Learn it one at a time, then in rows.
Sewing MachineThreading the Upper Thread
The general path the top thread follows from the spool to the needle, and why the presser foot must be up while you do it.
Sewing MachineFixing Common Stitching Problems
A checklist for the most common machine problems: thread nests, skipped stitches, broken thread and loose or tight stitches.
AlterationsShorten Jeans and Keep the Original Hem
Shorten jeans by moving the original hem up the leg, so the heavy stitching and the faded edge are preserved.
RepairsClose a Small Hole in Woven or Fine Knit Fabric
Close a hole up to 1/2 in (12 mm) across, such as a snag or moth hole, from the wrong side. By hand is preferable, since you can control tiny stitches. A fusible backing adds strength where the fabric around the hole is thin. The mend shows as a small line close up.