Garment Lab: Simple Alterations, Fridays, May 15th & 22nd, 1:30pm-4:30pm

Instructor: Colleen Connolly

Skill Level: Beginner & up*, ages 15 and up

Sessions: 2 Sessions,  3 hours per session

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Do you have a garment that you love, but wish the hem wasn’t so long or you had a pocket for your phone? Maybe you want to make a simple adjustment to a garment you own, but you’re nervous to make the change? Well, now is your chance to learn how! 

During this Lab you will learn the basic alteration skills needed to:

- Adjust the hem of your garment (ie. lengthen/shorten a pair of pants).

- Adjust the width of your garment (ie. color blocking segments of your garment or add in gathers or pleats to change the waistband size).

- Adjust a neckline.

- Other simple alteration skills (ie. sewing on a button and adding on a patch pocket). 

You’ll have hands-on practice with instructors’ guidance to diagnose fixes and alter your clothes. The first session is formatted to learn about common alterations for changing garment length and width and diagnose fixes for your garments. The second session is designed in an open sew format to work on the garments you want to alter! 

Please bring a selection of garments you’d like to alter for the first session, we may be able to dig right into alterations on day one!

Be prepared - purchase your supplies online or in person before class begins! Class supplies are available for purchase at Modern Domestic. Please note that our store hours are Monday-Saturday, 10am-5pm. Class supplies cannot be purchased when our shop is closed. 

To purchase supplies in store, we recommend allowing at least 45 minutes to shop. Please note that our store hours are Monday-Saturday, 10am-5pm. If purchasing materials online, please purchase supplies at least two days in advance to allow for prepping. 

Supply List:

- 1-3 Garments, you’d like to alter. You are welcome to bring in more to choose from if unsure, please limit to 5 garments the first session! 

- Pen, Pencil, & Notebook (Optional: Bring a color pencil set to record changes in color.)

- Thread (coordinating to each garment you would like to alter)

- Fabric (if adding length, width, pockets, etc. it is recommended to bring pre-washed fabric in the appropriate weight and style) If you are unsure what is needed fabric can be purchased after the first class, for the second class. 

*Skill Levels: Beginner & up - You’ve taken a class or two and are starting to get comfortable with the basics. You know what a seam allowance is, you’ve sewn a little on your own, but you still need a little help with remembering how to thread the machine and wind a bobbin. These classes usually have little if any homework to complete outside of class time. The prerequisite for any Beginner class is a Sew Basics class, Learn to Sew class, or equivalent. This skill level is not for people who have never used a sewing machine before.

Modern Domestic Labs: You're interested in sewing in a group setting and prefer to have an instructor's guidance on specific techniques and/or skills that are proposed in the Lab's topic. You have the ability to sew at your own pace, the expert help to keep you on track and sewing along, and a variety of options (sometimes endless!) when it comes to choosing the project you want to sew.

Please Note: This class focuses on altering pre-existing garments, not completing the construction of a new garment. 

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