Being an independent, walk-to-the-beat-of-my-own-drum kind of person who shies away from anything that resembles a group, a scrolling adventure on Facebook lead me to signing up and joining a sewing club.
You don’t need to do a very exhaustive search to discover the many clubs, guilds, and sew-alongs available on any given day however, if you are interested in joining a group or club, it pays to understand your sewing or quilting style.
Joining a sewing club is a commitment and you want to be involved in projects that speak to you. If not, you will quickly lose interest in the group and may even lose interest in quilting or sewing altogether.
Before joining a sewing club here are some things to consider:
1) Are you willing to share your projects on social media?
2) Are you curious about other’s sewing or quilting skills?
3) Do have tips or techniques that can be shared with other’s in the group?
4) Is an online environment enough for you to be able to achieve your sewing or quilting goals? If not, you may want to consider in in-person group or club environment.
5) Are you drawn to certain projects? Small (totes, wall hangings, table runners, etc.) or large, i.e., quilts. Do you like variety or just one particular type of sewing project.
True, I consider myself a quilter but lately I’ve found myself drawn to making pouches, tote bags, and project bags. It is the simplicity of many of those smaller projects AND the fact that I can finish one in a day or two as opposed to a month or more with a large quilt that I find hard to resist.
As far a my quilting / sewing style goes, I need a mix of both large and small projects. A large quilt that takes a long time to finish also saps my energy and motivation to do another one. When the usual strategies have me feeling to stressed and stifled, slipping in a quick project bag or tote gives me the motivation to tackle the next big quilt.
Before joining the Clover and Violet Sewing Club, when I wanted a small project to work on my go-to patterns were those by Minki Kim and ByAnnie.com. Examples of those smaller projects can be found here.
Below are examples of projects I’ve made since joining the Clover and Violet Club back in January of this year:
Take Out Boxy Bag:
This was the first time making a bag like this. It was challenging learning new techniques and at the same time, a lot of fun sewing in hardware.
For people who knit or crochet and want to carry their projects with them when traveling, the option to carry with a handle or use the shoulder strap, makes this a perfect on-the-go bag.
Molly Bucket Bag:
I will be forever amazed this bag turned out as well as it did. This actually my second attempt . The first was so awful. A project like this teaches you the importance of selecting the right fabric and necessity of following the instructions.
What’s more amazing, my version of the Molly Bucket Bag earned me $50.00!
Maisie Tote Bags (Large and Small)
By now, you are probably noticing a common denominator – I LOVE the ‘My Summer House’ fabric line. I purchased this beautiful fabric to see if I would be able to look at it every month for a year while participating in the Designer Mystery 2024 BOM.
Turns out, I’m having a hard time wanting use any other fabrics.
See the group picture below:
A recent project / sew along, the Hyacinth Travel Case, ended last month.
My version of the case is a loose translation of the pattern. I had left over fabric from another project that I HAD to use. Then life happened – a room remodel and moving furniture between three different rooms and not having access to my printer – meant I had to make some modifications to the pattern.
After seeing so many great cases made by others in the sewing club, (and life back to normal), I am hoping to find time to make the Hyacinth Travel Case as it was intended to be made. For now, here is my version.
Hyacinth Travel Case:
Front
Back
Inside – View 1
Inside – View 2
All printed fabric used are retro inspired fabrics designed by sewcus_pocus (Caleb Gray Studio) via Spoonflower : Groove Dots, Bebop Boxes and Groove Stars, each in the Sunset colorway.
Yes, this whole design is a total departure from the original pattern but I so needed to work with fabric colors and design motifs that could, in some small way, lift my spirits. I was in dire need of “Happy” and this seemed to be the ticket.
I will say this, this case is very substantial. It will hold many items of various sizes and weights without causing any bulge or misshaping. The handles (which do need to be re-worked a little) are able to distribute the weight of the bag and it’s contents with ease.
Tell Me More
This is only a very small sampling of the benefits of belonging to sewing club that speaks directly to your heart.
In addition to at least 2 challenging and unique projects each month, you have an opportunity to join in live discussions and tutorials, join a swap (something I haven’t tried yet), be part of interesting and informative discussion threads on Facebook and Instagram. Oh, and each month, there is the opportunity to win a gift certificate if your project is submitted to a social media site and is selected the winner.
To summarize:
Joining a sewing club allows you to:
1) Learn new skills
2) Expand your sewing / quilting repertoire
3) Compete for prizes
4) Socialize with like minded individuals
5) Structures your time so get more done
Let me know in the comments your thoughts on belonging to a sewing club!
