In the world’s current climate, the future can seem uncertain as we all adjust to a new way of working and spending leisure time. The country is currently in lockdown, and many people including the team at Fabrics Galore are looking at ways to help others who may be isolated or worse off than ourselves. At the same time, sewing encourages mindfulness and reduces anxiety, great for keeping our minds in a positive headspace, which is essential at the moment.
So, we would like to propose our “Sewing for Others” initiative in case any of you are wondering how you can put your sewing skills to good use and feel good about your decision to buy material online at this time.
1. Sewing for Charities
Help to make a quilt
Linus Quilts – Fabrics Galore has supported this charity for quite some time by keeping our shop scraps for the global charity Project Linus. An initiative which started in the US, the Linus ladies make quilts and blankets for children in hospital all over the world. It’s the perfect way to use up scraps and the stash we know everyone has. However, a lot of the ladies who make them like to use the batik cottons because they are bright and fun, perfect for perking up a children’s ward. To date they have made and donated 438,089 quilts. If you wish to donate fabrics to the Project Linus charity, take a look at the Fabrics Galore online range of quilting fabrics.
Making dresses for girls in Africa
Little Dresses for Africa - This organisation does what it says on the tin, organises people to make pillow case dresses for girls in Africa. You can use lightly used pillow cases to make the girls dresses, but we have many customers who buy fabric online choosing from a range of our cotton fabrics to make them too. Sturdy cotton is preferred, with no zips as they are harder to repair in the villages. Our plain coloured cotton fabrics would be good for this. http://www.littledressesforafrica.org/blog/
2. Sewing Projects as Gifts
If you are finding yourselves with more time than usual for sewing and want to be able to give more meaningful gifts to friends or family who may be feeling lonely at the moment, what better way to surprise them than with a home-made gift? It doesn’t have to be an elaborate or expensive dressmaking project, you can make lovely hair scrunchies with our stretch velvet fabrics which you can buy online in vibrant different colours. Or you could make beautifully soft eye masks with our gorgeous Liberty prints which would make the perfect gift for friends.
Buy material online in a variety of different colours and prints then enjoy matching them with friends and family on your birthday list.
3. Sewing with Children
Teaching your children to sew can be incredibly beneficial, as learning a new skill and gradually mastering it can greatly improve a child's self-confidence. Kids have a very powerful imagination, and creativity and imagination go hand in hand with each other - as sewing requires a combination of the two. Sewing together is a really great time to sit and chat, providing them with a positive, confidence-building and creative learning experience.
As so many parties and fun activities have had to be put on hold for the time being due to Covid 19, why not making bunting for all those parties when they do finally happen? Or use the bunting to brighten up your home or your kids’ bedrooms? This is a perfect activity to do with the kids as part of home schooling and an easy sewing project. Buy your bunting fabric online choosing from the Fabrics Galore spot print collection.
With all our fun jersey patterns perfect for kids, it might be handy to whip up some joggers for kids who aren’t having to wear school uniforms for quite some time. These are some really good ones from Made by Jacks Mum and the PDF pattern is still available on the Foldline. https://thefoldline.com/product/baby-child-high-kick-harem-joggers-pdf/
How to buy fabrics online
As it is not possible to shop for fabric in person and you don’t have the opportunity to visit any dressmaking shows for the foreseeable future, the only safe way to buy is in online fabric stores. If you find yourselves at home with more time to sew, we have an extensive online shop for you to browse. From animal, botanic, geometric, or spots, craft fabric and striped printed fabrics or simple plain fabrics in beautiful colours, we have a selection of fabrics for everyone. No matter the style of project you are looking to create, at Fabrics Galore you can be sure to find incredible materials including linen, chambray, jersey, cotton poplin and plain cotton - all in solid colours - as well stretch velvets in new colours. We are currently re-stocking many of our dressmaking fabrics online while we have more time away from the shop, so feel free check out the New In collections regularly over the coming weeks.
