What do you do when your favorite shirt loses a button or your pants get a hole? Knowing how to sew can be a lifesaver, especially for college students. BYU offers sewing classes tailored to all skill levels.
Stacey Nelson, the instructor for the beginning sewing class, outlined what exactly the students do in their first sewing class.
"They are learning how to read patterns, the basics of the sewing machine, basic stitching, interfacing, how to construct clothing," Nelson said.
Hannah Hayward, a teaching assistant for the sewing classes, said that students come away from class with a lot of practical knowledge.
"You go from ‘what is a sewing machine' to 'I can make an entire skirt, I can make a shirt, I can make pajama pants,” she said.
Hayward also said that she personally loves sewing because it teaches you how to pivot when things don't go to plan. Sewing also lets you personalize your wardrobe, she said.
"You save yourself so much money with being able to repair your own clothes instead of having to buy new and throw away clothes whenever they get the smallest imperfection,” Hayward said.
Some students in the class are taking sewing for the first time ever. Others are picking it back up again.
Abby Ferre, a student in the beginning class, has already been sewing for years. Her grandma and mom were sewers and taught her.
"I wanted to know the correct way of doing it because I’ve just been making it up as I go,” Ferre said.
But Ferre seems to know more than most beginners.
"I’ve gotten really into it in the past few years. I made my wedding dress and so many things of mine that are so valuable to me are things that I made. It’s so fun to have the ability to do that,” Ferre said.
Many first year students would not be able to sew an entire wedding dress, but Ferre said she loved the challenge.
Stacey Nelson loves working with students of all skill levels, from Ferre down to students who didn't know how to thread a needle.
“We have students that enroll in this class of all other majors, so it becomes a really fun, eclectic group of different levels of sewers and different types of students, all learning together.”
The School of Family Life at BYU offers many sewing classes, ranging from basic skills to more advanced techniques, like sewing tents and backpacks.
These classes are open to students of all majors, interests and skill levels.