How did you learn to sew? Were you taught by a parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle? Did you learn in school or 4-H? Most sewists have fond memories of their first sewing project and the person who taught them to sew. Many want to pay it forward by launching a new beginner. They are wondering, what should be in a beginners sewing kit?

A basic sewing kit for beginners should include tools for cutting, such as sewing shears, pinking shears, small thread snips, rotary cutter, and seam ripper. The sewing starter kit will need tools for measuring: a ruled cutting mat, clear ruler, measuring tape, and hem or seam gauge. Other essential sewing tools for beginners are straight pins, a pincushion, sewing clips, hand sewing needles, and a fabric marking pen or tailor’s chalk.

Another consideration for beginning sewists is sewing machine tools. An essential lesson for new sewists is learning to choose the correct sewing machine needle for the job. Beginning sewists also must learn how to use the presser feet that come with their machine. The all-purpose foot, zipper foot, and buttonhole foot come with most basic machines. A walking foot is helpful for basic quilting with a home machine.

Missouri Star offers sewing kits for beginners that include the sewing hardware accessories needed for the project. You might enjoy guiding a new sewist through the process of making a Zippity-Do-Done™ Insulated Lunch Box Tote which features the Zippity-Do-Done™ zipper. These clever June Tailor zippers have two finished layers on both sides of the zipper teeth. To install the zipper, you simply sandwich the raw edges of your project between the two layers on one side of the zipper and stitch. There is no need for a zipper foot. Repeat on the other side, and–presto–you have installed a zipper! Sewing zippers for beginners can be frustrating. June Tailor Zippity-Do-Done™ zippers are a unique type of sewing hardware that make the process much easier. Watch Liz from Missouri Star assemble the Insulated Lunch Box Tote in the tutorial below:

In addition to the Lunch Box Tote, several other June Tailor Zippity-Do-Done™ kits are available at Missouri Star. We also carry Zippity-Do-Done™ zippers in a variety of colors for use in projects that you design. These are great sewing hardware notions that allow beginning sewists to create a professional-looking product.