Notes from a new seamstress. (It seems that sewist may be the preferred term. I don't like how it feels in my mouth, so I shall cling to seamstress. ) I am also perhaps more than a little tipsy as I kiss 2020 goodbye.

1. Sewing is carpentry with fabric. I hate, despise, all string based activities. My mother knits lace. I feel fortunate if my shoes stay tied. I avoided sewing for years because it is clearly string centric. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. If you do it half right you will barely touch the dread stuff. This is construction. Screw knots. We're talking joinery.

2. The first thing I will be upgrading is my iron. Seriously. And it is a decent iron. I want one that breathes fire. A steaming dragoness curled at my side.

3. Just fucking do it. Everything is reversible except for the cutting. That part is pretty permanent. Go with your gut. See what happens.

4. Remember in driver's ed? When you were supposed to do a checklist before driving? Actually do it for sewing. You're new. Make good habits. Check your settings. Needle down. Hold your threads. Slap your hand when you start to turn that wheel backwards. Eyes off the needle.

5. All things are possible with YouTube and a decent thrift store. YouTube is the keeper of knowledge. Not all fabric comes off the bolt.

6. Read. Read your manual. Like, actually read it. As if it is interesting. Read your pattern. As if it makes sense. It will soak in. It will begin to take root. You will wake up thinking about the best way to approach your project. You will begin to understand.

7. Prep. It is all in the prep. Like baking. Putting the bread in the oven is just one facet. Treat each step with respect, with care. Plant the seeds for fruition. Let that dress rise.

8. Take something apart. Rip out the guts. High school biology. Look at how it was constructed. Look at the individual pieces. Every time you get dressed, look at your clothes. Look at the seams. Understand how the parts became the whole.

9.  Understand how you learn and how you think. Get the tools that will translate that to sewing, skip the rest until you feel the call. One of my first purchases was a quilting ruler and I grabbed my small carpenter's square from the garage. Because I needed to see. I needed to know that my measurements were accurate, I needed to have faith in square and true. Seeing is believing for me. You know your mind. Give it what it needs to put thought on fabric.

1. Revel in your creations. Just...stand back and behold. You, you, have taken fibers, woven from plants or the souls of dinosaurs, and turned them into...things. Things you can use. Or smile at. Or share. You've used the secrets of your mothers and grandfathers beyond count. You made a thing. And it is fucking fantastic.