Buttonholes can be surprisingly tricky. If yours turn out uneven, stretched, or just unpredictable, it’s often the tools making the difference. In this guide, you’ll find out what a good buttonhole really looks like, which tools help the most (from feet to stabilizers), and which sewing method makes sense for your fabric. It’s all about sewing buttonholes that look better and feel easier to make.
Think you already have all the sewing tools you need? Probably not. Many of the best tools aren’t the obvious ones like pins, scissors, or seam rippers — they’re the lesser-known gadgets that make sewing smoother, faster, and far less frustrating. In this guide, I’m sharing 17 sewing tools you might not be using yet, but once you try them, you’ll wonder how you ever sewed without them.
The gathering foot is one of those presser feet that can save you a lot of time — if you know how to work with it. Instead of sewing two long basting rows and pulling threads by hand, this foot creates gathers as you stitch, turning a flat strip into ruffles in one pass. In this guide, I share how it performed on eight very different fabrics, which settings gave me the neatest results, and which fabrics gave me trouble. You’ll find tips for getting more gathers, how to handle tricky knits, and when it’s worth switching to a ruffler foot.
Thinking of sewing a memory bear? In this tutorial, I show you exactly how I used a plastic sewing template to make a sweet sitting bear from minky and quilting cotton. You’ll learn how to work with the template pieces, sew the head, attach the limbs, and even make a tiny skirt. I also share my honest review of the Amazon template — including a few surprises — so you know exactly what to expect before you start.
In this guide, I share 17 essential serger tips that answer the most common questions from sewists. Learn when to change needles, how to fix tension problems, why differential feed matters, and how to keep your serger running smoothly. Whether you’re new to serging or simply frustrated with your machine, these clear, step-by-step solutions will save your seams—and your sanity.
Handmade gifts are sewn with love, but not every scarf or potholder gets the reaction we dream of. Teens want gadgets, kids want noisy toys, and adults… well, some think anything handmade is “cute clutter.” So how do you sew gifts that people will actually appreciate (and maybe even brag about)? In this article, I share the 7 secrets no one talks about – from choosing practical projects to avoiding the dreaded “thanks but no thanks” smile.