Anyone into Sewing?

Well since i’m stuck at home, i’ve started playing with my gf’s sewing machine more. I’ve seen a few cool DIY packs on here. Whats everyone making? Where do ya’ll get your fabrics from?
 
Here’s a few of my recents.

Damn, that stuff looks pretty damn good.

I am also learning to sew gear! You've probably found this already, but the reddit MYOG page has lots of good info. Nice work!

Max R wrote: Well since i’m stuck at home, i’ve started playing with my gf’s sewing machine more. I’ve seen a few cool DIY packs on here. Whats everyone making? Where do ya’ll get your fabrics from?
 

what machine does she have? impressive work!

I don't know squat about sewing, but my GF sews some outdoor clothes and recommends: https://www.seattlefabrics.com/ 

I am looking for someone who knows how
sew webbing to climbing specs.
I have a unique design for a climbing product that would
go over well with, excuse the term, Trad Climbers.
Shoot me a PM so we could talk.

Dwain

I have used this product for many years and it works well
I had one of my old climbing friends who isn't around anymore sew the prototype
It works fantastic!

Stever wrote:

what machine does she have? impressive work!

Thanks! I still don’t really know what i’m doing. This is what i’ve been using. Think it’s pretty cheap, but works!

Max R wrote: Well since i’m stuck at home, i’ve started playing with my gf’s sewing machine more. I’ve seen a few cool DIY packs on here. Whats everyone making? Where do ya’ll get your fabrics from?
 
Here’s a few of my recents.

nice work, first time? looks like youve got the idea how to piece stuff together pretty well. the machine you posted further down isnt heavy enough to do thicker stuff most likely, you might get away with rolling the machine by hand (if you can do that with it) and sewing heavier stuff. i have industrial machines i picked up from ebay and sewing places that i use for rigging parachute stuff, so i have a bunch of nylon, cordura, and shitloads of ripstop and zero p in every color imaginable for patching canopies. unfortunately, my old lady and all her friends know i have them and i always have a bunch of horse blankets to patch from the dumbass horses ripping them, or replacing the straps and velcro.....

Thanks for the kind words everyone. Currently working on a chalk bucket. I definitely want a heavier duty machine soon. Struggling to stitch through webbing.

Post up some pics of your stuff people!

Been using Ripstop by the roll a bit lately. I've found them pretty good, yeah they sell by half a yard...Not sure how that's a big negative(?).

Made duffle bags, pouches, a backpack so far. Staying away from silnylon shelters since big pieces of slippery fabrics will probably anger me.

I've ordered plenty from Outdoor Wilderness Fabrics, they have a pretty good selection and great customer service.
I've made fleece jackets, pants, WPB jacket, several backpacks, a few chalk bags, and plenty of other gear in mind to make.  Current project is ~50L crag bag.  I still have to work despite everything around us shutting down, so slower progress.  Also tweaking my idea part way through and thinking through how to put everything together when it's not just a tube slows me down a lot.

Quest Outfitters and Ripstop by the roll seem to be the best to me for low quantity fabric and parts. I sew bags for a different sport, but make some climbing stuff on the side. Go find a used single needle walking foot machine by Juki or really even the knock-off versions. $700 and you'll be set for a long time.

Here's some of the most recent creations

Max R wrote: Well since i’m stuck at home, i’ve started playing with my gf’s sewing machine more. I’ve seen a few cool DIY packs on here. Whats everyone making? Where do ya’ll get your fabrics from?
 
Here’s a few of my recents.

love the fanny pack! nice work!

Nice work, Max et al.  I have long said that one of the best skills for an outdoorsperson of any stripe to learn is sewing.  Once someone asked me what I thought the most useful backcountry skill I had learned was, and I said, "making a bar tack."  Back in the day, of course, we all would have been ordering patterns by mail and sewing our own backpacks and sleeping bags and whatnot.  I'm not saying I'm that good, but over the years I have found that my own messy-but-functional sewing skills have allowed me to save a whole lot of gear that would have otherwise have needed replacing and also to modify many pieces of gear that otherwise would have not fit my scrawny frame as well or worked as reliably.  It has also made me the default repairer of all buttons, blown knees, and holey socks for my entire family.

A few of the items I have made or modified over the years:
-- climbing pants (added some crotch gussets before that was really a thing-- yes, they looked terrible and yes, they worked well)
-- jacket wrist cuffs
-- ankle cuff cinches
-- leather reinforcements on fingers and thumbs of ice climbing gloves
-- ice axe leashes
-- crampon bag
-- haul bucket for bolting equipment
-- ski carry straps
-- gear sled (ok, the straps were sewn; the rest was cutting and screwing and riveting aluminum & plastic parts)
-- countless stuff sacks of weird sizes
-- hut slippers
-- rope bags
-- backpack chest straps
-- ice tool holsters
-- ski pant stirrups
-- gaiters
-- stuff bag- summit packs
-- sleeping tarp
-- and the piece-de-resistance that was mostly a big silly waste of time:  my very own homemade Chinese-style conical sun hat like Kavu used to sell, made of nylon, rayon, and 1/4" closed-cell foam; man, it was dumb

Kind of digging that fanny pack you made.  Nice.

I had Tuesday off thanks to the CoVids so I took some Polartec Powerdry and Schoeller Dynamic soft-shell material I had laying around and made myself some new bib ski pants.

Nice work ... BITD before so many mfg were making gear a bunch of us sewed our own gear. We were also cheap and we could buy Gore-Tex by the roll. I made a pair of full side zip bibs some insulated over boots for climbing Denali, bivy sac, chalk bags, lots of stuff sacks, and pockets. One pocket is now nearly 40 years old and I still use it for a food bag. That thing has been all over the world and up many a hill.

I like the Rainshed too. They helped me get started about 30 years ago.

Good looking stuff peeps!

Just finished up this chalk bucket. Man sewing circles is hard, even with pins.

Very nice,
For the bottom circle, have you tried notches? Fold the circle in fourths, notch
Then notch the upper panel in 4ths leaving the seam allowance?

Been sewing since the 80's. Packs, chalk bags, the ones most proud of were insulated bivy sacs, pretty much copied Wild Things, goretex top insulated with thinsulate,polarguard, texolite combos ,great for up and overs in cascades. Not needed now when Liberty ridge gets done in 7hrs CtC.