Fabric Swap Picnic
THE Q & A SERIES
HOW TO FIND YOUR SEWING COMMUNITY
Q: Awww I wish I had a sewing community like this! 😭 - Ingrid
A: Hi, it's Courtney here. As well as working with Emily for In the Folds, I run The Sewcial Connection, hosting sewing meet ups in Sydney and sewing retreats in Tokyo, Japan. I hear this comment all the time from other sewists that are craving more connection with likeminded people and if this is you, I'm here to help! Sewing is often imagined as a solitary hobby. One person, one machine, one quiet room. But many sewists quietly long for connection. Someone who understands fabric obsessions, half finished projects, and the strange satisfaction of a well pressed seam. If you have ever wondered where other sewists are hiding, here are some suggestions to find your sewing community both in person and online.
IN PERSON
Spend time in local fabric stores
Independent fabric shops are often the heart of a sewing community. Noticeboards, classes, and casual conversations with sewing obsessed staff, can open the door to meeting new sewing friends.
Take a class, even if you don’t need it
Workshops and short courses create an easy starting point for conversation. Learning together removes pressure and gives you something shared to talk about, even if the class itself is not strictly necessary. I made my first IRL (in real life) sewing friend, Loretta, at a ‘Jeans Making Workshop’ I signed up to with no desire to make jeans. Years later, we now live in different states, but this friendship has led to many wonderful sewing connections, even at her wedding last month when I met a new sewing friend!
Look for social sewing days
Simply sewing alongside others is often enough to feel connected. The beauty of social sewing is you can bring your own project and choose whether to be chatty or productive, depending on your energy levels. For me, these events usually involve a lot of unpicking and not a lot of sewing because I’m having too much fun chatting! Search for these through makerspaces, community centres, libraries and sewing studios. I have met a lot of great sewing friends this way.
Hosting my first social sewing night with Loretta I met some amazing friends, including Alys!
Start something small yourself
Loretta and I started our own social sewing group a few years ago with low expectations, a post on instagram and some hummus and crackers. Alys, who many of you know from In the Folds, came to our first one.
Community does not need to be too serious. A coffee chat with someone you know who sews, go fabric shopping together or organise a local fabric swap. Low pressure and high reward, remember two people can equal community.
I tend to organise more ‘sewing adjacent’ activities these days, because that’s what I enjoy! Sewing adjacent events could include:
Drinks & Sewing Trivia - meet at the pub and have prizes
High Tea - an afternoon of sewing chat, tea and cakes
Picnic - BYO snacks to share and sewing stories to share
Fabric shopping - often there’s a few in the same area, so make it a ‘Fabric Hop’
Fabric Swap - your stash might be someone else’s treasure
Sewcation - go away for the weekend and sew together
Pattern club - sew the same pattern as friends and share notes and encouragement
Sewing club - choose a theme to sew and show! My friend runs this and last month’s theme was ‘buttons’. We each made a garment including ‘buttons’ and met for a picnic to show off our makes.
I first met Emily at this sewing trivia and drinks night back in 2020!
Textile tourism
Imagine travelling with likeminded people who would never rush fabric shopping for souvenirs. I ran my first sewing retreat in Tokyo last year and it was so incredible. We quickly went from strangers to friends as we wandered through Tokyo Fabric Town, ate delicious food and learnt traditional crafts. If this sounds like something you’d like, join me next time!
P.S. I’m working on a newsletter for top tips for fabric shopping in Tokyo without overwhelm! Keep your eyes peeled.
Visiting Tokyo’s Fabric Town with other sewists is SO FUN!
ONLINE
Love it or hate it, technology can make the world a small place, helping us to connect regardless of location!
Use Instagram intentionally
Ahhh the good old days of Instagram where the algorithm was kind and hashtags worked! It’s called ‘social’ media for a reason, so rather than just scrolling, why not have fun with it and be an active contributor by:
Commenting thoughtfully on posts that inspire you (real comments, not just emojis).
Replying to stories you watch and enjoy.
Following people with similar aesthetics, skill levels, or values.
Start your own ‘sewing only account’ on Instagram. It’s free to make multiple accounts, so keep this one as a record of your makes, mentioning what patterns and fabric you used and share your tips for others. You never know who will start following you or what sewing friends you’ll make from around the world.
Connection happens in comments and messages rather than posting constantly.
Thoughtful engagement and genuine curiosity often lead to deeper relationships than polished content.
Don’t overthink it, just share a rough and ready mirror selfie! It’s refreshing and relatable.
Join an online sewing challenge like Me Made May or Sew Over 50
Threadloop
Threadloop is an online app designed specifically by sewists for the sewing community to track, share, and reflect on handmade wardrobes. It’s gaining in popularity and worth checking out if you haven’t heard of it. Here’s a guide to show you how to get started.
Join private Facebook groups
Smaller groups tend to feel more conversational and less performative. Pattern company groups, slow fashion communities, special sewing interests (like projector sewing) and location based sewing groups are good places to start. Reading quietly still counts as participation. We offer an optional private facebook group for members of Making, Again.
Explore slower platforms like Substack
The blog is back baby! Substack is essentially a blog-like platform for reading and subscribing to newsletters, either by email or in the app. Some creators also use it to host paid content or small communities. For sewists and creatively curious, it’s a quieter, slower alternative to social media. Commenting feels more conversational and personal, you can share sewing related articles on your account and you can start up a chat with other members. You don’t need to write your own newsletter to use Substack. You can simply subscribe, read, comment, and connect at a pace that feels manageable. Check out Emily’s Beyond the Folds substack here
Join an online sewing community
Making, Again is our newest online sewing community for makers who are looking for something more intentional, less overwhelming and craving connection without pressure to produce or perform. Join us for a free trial to see if it’s for you.
Emily sharing her wardrobe tracking with the Making, Again community
I hope some of these ideas help you find your sewing people. Just as sewing a new garment can take time, so can finding or building your community. Most sewists are a little shy and quietly hoping someone else will make the first move. Will it be you?
Hope to meet you in the sewing community one day.
Courtney
For more issues of the Q & A series, you can check out the archive here.
