Hello

[DiverDan]

Hello,

I'm Dan, I initially bought a Singer 9018 sewing machine off of Facebook last year for £20 to make a few repairs to an old  French Army canvas tent that I bought. I figured it would be cheaper than paying a seamstress. I then decided to have a go at making some pouches so that I could better organise stuff within my backpack when I'm out walking or camping, and then I caught the sewing bug. I find sewing therapeutic, and it has allowed my to make repairs and alterations to gear, as well as saving me a load of money by making items rather than buying them.

My biggest project to date is a backpack for my 4 year old son. I wanted something a bit nicer, and more outdoorsy and robust than what shops typically sell for children. I'll attach some photos below of the backpack as well as a few other things I have made. The materials I use most are 16oz cotton canvas and ripstop nylon.

Thanks for looking.

[Sheilago]

Welcome @DiverDan . What a lovely bag for a ‘beginner’. I bet your son loves the paw patrol lining! It’s so professional. Did you use a pattern or just copy one you saw?

[grndkntrl]

Hello & welcome!


Wow that's a really well made bag; very professional looking indeed. Well done!

[DiverDan]

Thank you both, Yes my son loves Paw Patrol and he loves the lining. I kept it to the lining only as he will no doubt one day grow out of Paw Patrol but the bag should last him many years of use.

I spent a long time trying to find a pattern that I liked but got so frustrated that in the end I decided to just design it myself, and with a bit of luck, it came out ok. It's a very simple design, it's basically just a roll top bag with straps.

Dan.

[toileandtrouble]

Smashing!  Those are some of the reasons the rest of us sew as well. Love the hanging 'cupboard'.

[Ellabella]

Welcome @DiverDan , that backpack is very nice, not over engineered and beautifully finished.

Sewing what you need and will make use of is so satisfying isn’t it.

[DiverDan]

Smashing!  Those are some of the reasons the rest of us sew as well. Love the hanging 'cupboard'.

That Utensils roll comes in soo handy when out an about, it has a thin rod that inserts horizontally to keep the whole thing square when hung up.

Welcome @DiverDan , that backpack is very nice, not over engineered and beautifully finished.

Sewing what you need and will make use of is so satisfying isn’t it.

Thank you, It's simplistic which is what I like, but I did purposefully overengineer on the sewing, I think I triple stitched everything, but it should now last a lifetime, literally.

Yes, it's very satisfying indeed.

[Flobear]

Wow, @DiverDan . What a very impressive start if you had never done sewing before. You obviously have a designer's brain and a knack for seeing how to make something practical.

Keep posting, it's lovely to see 'makes' that are a little different and so very useful 

[Silver Rose]

Hello and welcome @DiverDan  the backpack is excellent, your son is a lucky little boy.

[Bodgeitandscarper]

Hello and welcome.

Some great makes there, I very much like making useful things.

[Cazlyn]

Welcome Dan, loving your projects.

[HenriettaMaria]

Hello and welcome.  I too am deeply impressed by your early projects.  I once house-shared with a draughtsman who, seeing me make stuff, asked if he could have a go.  Long story short, he made an immaculate shirt for himself at the first attempt with only a bit of guidance from me on materials and how to use the machine.  Transferrable skills indeed :-)

[Bill]

Hi Dan and welcome to the forum.
You and I share similar starts to sewing. I bought one of those dinky toy sewing machines as I wanted to make a groundsheet for one of my tents and caught the bug. I've been through quite a few machines since then and have learnt quite a lot. The folks on the forum are very encouraging, friendly and pics of sewing projects are practically a rule here 
Your bag is top notch 

[DiverDan]

Thank you, everyone.

Hello and welcome.  I too am deeply impressed by your early projects.  I once house-shared with a draughtsman who, seeing me make stuff, asked if he could have a go.  Long story short, he made an immaculate shirt for himself at the first attempt with only a bit of guidance from me on materials and how to use the machine.  Transferrable skills indeed :-)

Clothing is my next big goal, in particular walking trousers. I would be lying if I said I wasn't slightly intimidated by the idea, though. I do enjoy metalkworking, I have a milling machine and a lathe at home and enjoy making things, occasionally even, more than just swarf.

Hi Dan and welcome to the forum.
You and I share similar starts to sewing. I bought one of those dinky toy sewing machines as I wanted to make a groundsheet for one of my tents and caught the bug. I've been through quite a few machines since then and have learnt quite a lot. The folks on the forum are very encouraging, friendly and pics of sewing projects are practically a rule here 
Your bag is top notch 

Thank you, well I also enjoy photography and tend to photograph all projects and enjoy sharing them as well as seeing other peoples projects.

Re. machines, this Singer is great, it's handled almost everything I've thrown at it, I am seriously impressed. But I do want to upgrade. I want to upgrade to an industrial walking foot sewing machine. The problem I have is that I build a desk in my spare room for my computer, sewing machine and other projects etc. so I don't have the room for another table so I'm either going to have to look for a suitable 'portable' walking foot sewing machine that doesn't require a dedicated table, or cut out a section of the desk I built to fit an industrial machine that has it's own table, which I don't really want to do.

[Ouryve]

The sort of machine you are after would be a game changer for you - your work is already superb. One thing you wouldn't be able to do with a straight stitch machine is the bar tacks like you have on the straps of the power rangers backpack but it sounds like the machine you have already is up to the job of adding those little details.