Stitch Story: Why I Love Hand Sewing
I think I owe it to motherhood for teaching me the beauty of hand sewing. Before kids, it was so easy to sit down at my sewing machine and zip through a project. But when I had babies in arms and then toddlers at my feet, it became difficult to even get to my sewing machine. Even when my sewing machine was in our living room, it was difficult to sew for more than a few minutes when my kids were keeping me company. So I'd wait for nap time or other distractions, but seldom felt very productive.
As I started to make toys for my little ones, I began to explore felt. There was something about felt that felt (harhar) unsatisfying on a sewing machine. When I stitched on a face by hand, it allowed me a little bit more control, and flexibility as to wear I worked on it. I could sit on the couch next to one of my babes and sew on some eyes and a nose. So why not stitch the whole thing? And that is exactly what I began to do.
Hand sewing allowed me to transport my creative projects anywhere. I could sew in the car. I could sew while I set up at the farmer's market. I could sew playing outside with my kids. I could sew at the park while they ran around. And I could still be present for them in a way that I couldn't entirely be while operating a machine. So I was sold!
Slow and steady won the race for me. Hand sewing took longer overall, but I could squeeze more moments into the day to work on it. And it was easier to put down and pick up again. The more I practiced, the more precisely I stitched.
While I curse every time I have to seam rip stitches made by the sewing machine, pulling out a hand sewn stitch is less of a struggle because the stitches are wider and I'm moving slower so I know exactly when I've messed up.
I still love to sew on a machine from time to time. The machine is amazing for clothes or household items, but overall much of of my sewing takes place with a needle in hand.
Have you tried hand sewing? What about crochet or knitting? It's so lovely to sit on a picnic blanket in the sunshine and put more creativity out into the world. It something you can do when you're waiting, as humans spend a lot of moments in their life doing. And each slow stitch still allows you time to daydream.
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