Sew with Confidence | Sewing, Fabric, Sewing Patterns, Sewing with Knits

Would you like to sew knit garments but you don’t own a serger? Do you wish you had a serger so in an hour or two you could have a fantastic new knit garment? Have you put off trying knits because a serger isn’t in the budget right now. What if I told you you don’t need a serger and in fact most knit garments can’t be completed with just a serger. It’s true - so let’s talk about sergers Welcome to the 25th podcast! Yes this is episode 25 and I am so honored that you are here and listening to me. Thank you so much for your support of this podcast. To help us celebrate, there was a bonus episode yesterday if you haven’t gotten a chance to listen to that with 7 tips to achieving a professional result with your knit garments. Link is below.  I am also celebrating by holding a flash sale for the Sewing Circle.   The Sewing Circle, our online sewing membership group, where you can receive support to learn to sew with knit fabrics, match pattern to fabric, and expand your sewing skills so you can sew clothes you and others are proud to wear. I invite you to check out the Sewing Circle. You can join now, jump into our current Fall Sewing Challenge, receive the rest of the year for free,  and have support for your sewing journey in 2027. Also, I will be live today in the Free Sew with Confidence Facebook group to answer any of your questions about the Sewing Circle. So if you are listening to this when it comes out, that is live on November 3rd 2026 at 10:00 a.m. eastern time. Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Sewing with Confidence Sewing Circle: https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/sewingcircle Join me live in the Facebook Group on November 3, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast   Seven Tips for a More Professional Finish When Sewing Knit Garments: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sew-with-confidence-sewing-fabric-sewing-patterns/id6786780019?i=1000799371989   Other Resources: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/toolkit Sign up for the weekly newsletter at  https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/newsletter   Ways to Connect: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Website - > https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/ YouTube - > https://www.youtube.com/@PinkHollybushDesigns Instagram -＞ https://www.instagram.com/pinkhollybush/  

Do your knit garments look more homemade than professional? Is the neckline or hem stretched out? Does the garment grow or lose its fit after a few wearings? We all love the ease and comfort of a great knit garment, but I hear from the members of the Sewing Circle and in my free Sew with Confidence Facebook Group that sewing knits and getting that great finish so that the garment is something they are proud to wear is a constant struggle. So in today’s episode I have 7 tips to help you improve the finish of your knit garments. Happy Monday! You did not get the day wrong. Today is a special bonus episode of the Sewing with Confidence Podcast. Tomorrow will be 25 episodes and I am celebrating and wanted to thank you for your support of this podcast with this bonus episode and a special Flash sale. So first we have this bonus episode today and I will be back tomorrow with our regular episode which will be  - Episode 25! I have also opened up the doors to the Sewing Circle, our online sewing membership group. If you would like support to learn to sew with knit fabrics, match pattern to fabric, and expand your sewing skills so you can sew clothes you and others are proud to wear, then I invite you to check out the Sewing circle. You can join now, jump into our current Fall Sewing Challenge, receive the rest of the year for free,  and have support for your sewing journey in 2027. I will be live tomorrow in the Free Sew with Confidence Facebook group to answer any of your questions about the Sewing Circle on November 3rd at 10:00 a.m. eastern time. Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Sewing with Confidence Sewing Circle: https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/sewingcircle Join me live in the Facebook Group on November 3, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Other Resources: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/toolkit Sign up for the weekly newsletter at  https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/newsletter   Ways to Connect: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Website - > https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/ YouTube - > https://www.youtube.com/@PinkHollybushDesigns Instagram -＞ https://www.instagram.com/pinkhollybush/  

Do you admire the beautiful drape and fluidity of a rayon or viscose fabric but are afraid to sew with it? Would you love to be able to confidently sew the  flowing dresses in lovely prints that show up in your instagram feed or on YouTube? Are you afraid of tackling this fabric or just don’t know where to start? Today’s podcast episode is the 2nd in a two part series on rayon, or viscose as it is known in Europe. Rayon doesn’t have to be scary. Let’s dive in and help you confidently purchase and sew with this lovely fabric I remember when I was first pregnant with my oldest daughter and I assumed that I needed to go out and purchase maternity clothes and I remember my mom explaining to me that it would be quite a while before I needed maternity clothes but there would be this period where my current clothes didn’t fit but maternity was still too big. So we went out to TJ Maxx - it is a discount clothing store in the US and I purchased a few things with elastic waists. One of those was a matching rayon printed shorts set. I just loved it. Well I put it in the wash machine, on delicate and it came out shrunk and the dye from the print had run everywhere. I looked at the label and it was dry clean only. I had never thought to check because who on earth would want shorts and a short sleeve blouse that needed to be dry cleaned. Both garments were ruined. Well rayon has come a long way since then, but it can still be a fabric that needs a little TLC. This is part two of a two part series on Rayon. In the last episode, I explained how rayon fibers are manufactured, the different names that rayon goes by and what those names mean, and the environmental impact of rayon manufacturing. In today’s episode we are going to cover the different fabrics or substrates that are produced from rayon fibers, the pros and cons of rayon fabric and then some tips for sewing garments from woven rayon fabrics.  Resources Mentioned in This Episode: EP 22: The Many Names & Environmental Impact of Rayon Viscose Fibers https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sew-with-confidence-sewing-fabric-sewing-patterns/id6786780019?i=1000797224322 Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Other Resources: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/toolkit Sign up for the weekly newsletter at  https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/newsletter Ways to Connect: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Website - > https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/ YouTube - > https://www.youtube.com/@PinkHollybushDesigns Instagram -＞ https://www.instagram.com/pinkhollybush/  

Rayon, Viscose, Cupro, Modal, Lyocell & Tencel - are you confused yet? I certainly am! This one fiber is known by many names and each one tells you a little something different about the resulting fiber and how it was produced. So in today’s episode, I am going to help you decipher the different fiber terms so you know what you are purchasing and next week we are going to continue this conversation and discuss the different fabric substrates that these fibers are turned in to such as challis, crepe, and poplin. I will also provide some tips on purchasing and sewing with those different fabrics next week Today I want to talk about a group of fibers that you are probably familiar with but maybe don’t know the various distinctions. I'm talking about rayon, viscose, modal, and lyocell, cupro and tencel. Now, if you have ever been shopping for fabric online and wondered why one fabric is described as rayon, another as viscose, and another as Tencel, even though they all seem to have that lovely, soft drape, you are not alone. It can be a little confusing. Are these all different fibers? Are some of them just different names for the same thing? Well, that is what we are going to talk about today. We are going to cover all that as well as the environmental impact. Knowing what these names mean can help you make wiser choices when sourcing your fabric. Resources: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/toolkit Sign up for the weekly newsletter at  https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/newsletter Ways to Connect: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Website - > https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/ YouTube - > https://www.youtube.com/@PinkHollybushDesigns Instagram -＞ https://www.instagram.com/pinkhollybush/  

 Are you one of those people who hate PDF patterns or do you love them? I have to admit that I started out as one of those people who hated PDF patterns but I have changed my mind and now I am one of those who love them. Well, love them or hate them, PDF patterns are here to stay, unless of course they get replaced by projector files, but that is a topic for another day. Today if you are one of the haters, I am hoping to change your mind and if you love PDF patterns I have a simple assembly hack and some storage ideas. So let’s delve in I remember the time I first tried a PDF sewing pattern. I had purchased the book Twinkle Sews by Wenlan Chia. The book came with a series of patterns on a CD in an envelope in the back. I know that I am dating myself now. I made a dress for my daughter from the book and I remember printing out what I think  was 70 pages for the dress. I can’t double check because even though I still have the book, I don’t have any way to print from a CD. But I remember thinking, PDF patterns will never take off. Well, I was wrong. PDF patterns have indeed taken off. I won’t go so far to say that they are here to stay because I could certainly see projector sewing files replacing them, but for today so many wonderful patterns are only available if you are comfortable working with PDF patterns. So in this episode, I am going to try and get you there! And if you are entirely comfortable putting PDF patterns together, stick around because I have a hack for you on how to assemble them quickly as well as some storage recommendations. Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at: https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/sewing-essentials-toolkit Check out the Sewing Circle at: Seamwork patterns: https://colettemedia.pxf.io/Gb5Bak Ikatee Free patterns: https://ikatee.fr/en/pages/rh-ikatee-is-hiring Tilda Blouse: https://www.maison-fauve.com/en/products/patron-couture-gratuit-blouse-tilda-pdf-a-telecharger?_pos=1&_sid=a6307e136&_s Other Resources: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Grab the Free Sewing Essentials Toolkit at: https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/sewing-essentials-toolkit Sign up for the weekly newsletter at  https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/newsletter Ways to Connect: Join the Free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sewwithconfidencepodcast Website - > https://www.pinkhollybushdesigns.com/ YouTube - > https://www.youtube.com/@PinkHollybushDesigns Instagram -＞ https://www.instagram.com/pinkhollybush/