My mother was a wonderful seamstress, but she didn't have the patience to teach me to sew. I learned in junior high. I had a wonderful Home Ec teacher. I remember picking strawberries and beans to earn enough money to buy a sewing machine. Besides my teacher I learned from doing and making mistakes.

my mom sewed since we were little.... (not so much now)
but form 6-8 in school we had home ect, (everyone, even the boys) 1/2 yr sewing 1/2 cooking......

Both of my grandmothers sewed. Mom's mother sewed baby clothes by hand for a company in New Orleans and she taught my mom. Mom is 86 and still sews the baby clothes by hand. She's sewn clothes for hundreds of babies in her life. I learned to sew by hand from her and by the machine on Dad's mom's treadle machine. I was in 4-H and had to make an apron for my first sewing project in fifth grade. Sewed from then on and made a lot of my clothes and my daughter's. Quilting was started so I could make hand made gifts. I don't have the patience to do the hand work my mother does. After she's gone there will be no one that I know of to do this kind of work.

I only vaguely remember learning how to use the machine. I was probably 6 or 7? When I was 4 or 5 Mom used to give me a piece of fabric, a threaded needle, a jar of buttons and her pinking shears to make "clothes" for my Cabbage Patch doll. I'd make sure the fabric could go all the way around the doll, then make armholes and a buttonhole (sometimes they were in the right place, usually they weren't) and slap on the biggest, gaudiest button I could find.

My first real sewing project was a pillow I made for my first year in 4H. It was black satin with a purchased filet crochet picture of a horse stitched to the front. That stupid satin wouldn't hold the stuffing in the corners, and I've hated satin ever since.

In junior high, we learned to sew in Home Ec class. Our first project was tote bags; I proved to the teacher that I was good enough to choose my second project from the "advanced" section of the project catalog (everyone else had to choose a "beginner" project). I made a stuffed banana with floppy peels and a lot of hand-embroidery. My mom probably still has it.

I did a lot of costuming in college, and I continued making clothes for myself afterward. I like sewing clothes, but I don't like how commercial patterns don't do a good job keeping up with modern fit. I usually have to lengthen tops and shorten the rise in most pants. And I'm kinda chesty, so I almost always have to alter patterns to nip in more below the bust. I don't sew clothing near as much as I used to for those reasons.

My mom taught me to sew, but it's been so long since she's done any herself that I had to give her a brush-up lesson on using the machine when I loaned it to her last weekend. ;)

I learned in the 7th grade in Home EC.

i started sewing in 4-H when i was 8- by the time i was in high school i made all my own clothes-including winter coats- and when i was 13 i made all 3 of my brother's 3-piece suits for Easter (that year my mom made sister & my dresses- i was busy making suits.
i really fought off the quilting bug for years- made one for each of my children as babies- but did not want to quilt- still made everything else- clothes and home decor--
about 12-15 years ago i guess (boy time flies) i saw a bom quilt at an on=line shop in Arizona and fell in love with it- read about what a bom is- signed up and by the 3rd block i was signing up for classes at the lqs- and going bonkers!...and that bom---the 12 blocks are done- have been for years---in a box- on top a cupboard---i've tried to get it out and finish it a number of times can not seem to do it- i tried last year to package it up and send it away- but gosh i still really love the fabrics- the quilt- and it was a very expensive lesson- haven't been able to part with it yet---and i did (unload) about 22 ufo's last year by sending them to other quilters who may like to finish them- but this one...can't finish it- can't part with it- so it lives in a box ... anyhow---sorry got a bit (off-topic)

My Home Ec teacher taught me to sew in 1969! I am so sorry we no longer think this class is "necessary" in American education!

I, too learned to sew in Jr High Home Ec. I took Home Ec again in high school as an elective & had a great teacher who really sparked my interest. She taught me how to sew on knits (stretch-n-sew) & from then on I made most of my clothes. I think my interest in quilting was a natural progression from sewing- especially after my kids were older & I wasn't sewing for them anymore.

The neighbor ladies.

The story is that my grandma was babysitting me and my 2 younger brothers. I was not quite 4 yet and I liked to hit my brothers. She gave me a scrap of fabric and a button and taught me to sew it on to give me something constructive to do with my time. Then my other grandma gave me sewing cards and I would match the color of the strings to the picture and carefully stitch them in and out in a running stitch. Both Grandma's ran into each other inthe grocery store and they each asked did you see what she did? The 2 of them decided that I would learn to sew from them. I learned things from each one of them and I think of them often when I'm makling something. My mom sewed too so I was around sewing my whole life. I still love it! Neither of my grandmother's quilted except one made a crazy quilt and I have that. Its a treasure to me!