How do I start hand sewing?

Hand sewing has a very low entry cost and a short learning curve. The frustrations that put people off — tangling thread, a needle that will not thread, stitches that pull the fabric — all have simple causes.

What you'll need

• A packet of assorted sharps needles
• Polyester thread in black, white and grey
• Small sharp scissors
• Pins
• A thimble (optional)

Step by step

1. Buy a mixed packet of sharps.Sharps are the general-purpose hand sewing needle. A mixed packet costs very little and lets you match the needle to the fabric rather than forcing one size through everything.
2. Cut the thread at an angle.A diagonal cut with sharp scissors gives a clean point that goes through the eye. A frayed end from blunt scissors is the reason most threading attempts fail.
3. Keep the thread short.No longer than from your fingertips to your elbow. Long thread tangles, knots on itself and abrades as it is pulled repeatedly through the fabric.
4. Knot the end simply.Wrap the end twice round your index finger, roll it off with your thumb and pull — a quilter's knot. Neater and more reliable than a loop knot.
5. Learn the backstitch first.Take each stitch backwards to meet the end of the previous one. It gives an unbroken line, it is the strongest hand seam, and it is what you use for anything structural.
6. Learn the slip stitch second.Through the fold of a hem, catching one or two threads of the outer fabric. Invisible from the right side, and it handles hems, linings and closing gaps.
7. Keep the tension loose.The thread should lie in the fabric, not pull it. Puckered seams are the commonest beginner fault and they are always a tension problem.
8. Match the thread to the fabric weight.Ordinary polyester for shirts and cottons, heavier thread for coats and anything under strain. Doubling ordinary thread is a reasonable substitute for heavy thread.
9. Finish off in the seam.Two or three small stitches on top of each other on the wrong side, then run the needle through the fabric a couple of centimetres before cutting so the tail is buried.
10. Press when you have finished.It settles the stitches into the fabric and makes hand sewing look far more professional than it did a moment before.

Tips

• Thread no longer than your forearm. It is the single change that stops most tangling.
• Cut the thread end diagonally with sharp scissors — blunt scissors are why needles seem impossible to thread.
• If the fabric puckers, your tension is too tight, not your stitches too big.

Common mistakes

• Using a very long thread to avoid re-threading — It tangles, twists back on itself and wears as it is pulled through the fabric hundreds of times, so it breaks halfway through the seam.
• Pulling each stitch tight — The thread gathers the fabric into puckers along the line of stitching, which looks worse than the original damage and cannot be pressed out.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask