10 Tips for Sewing with Fabric Scraps

If you're anything like me, you probably have a fabric scrap pile (or several) full of pieces that are far too good to throw away but you have absolutely no idea what you're ever going to do with them.

Which is exactly why Oh Scrap! exists!

Throughout August, we're digging into those leftover bits of fabric we've been lovingly hoarding and challenging ourselves to turn them into something we actually want to wear.

And scrap sewing does require you to think about things a little differently. You can't always lay out your pattern pieces exactly as the instructions tell you to or decide what you're making before you've even looked at what fabric you've got.

So before you start chopping into your scraps, here are a few things I've learnt from making with mine...

1. Get everything out

Yes. Everything.

It's very easy to look at the top of your scrap basket and think there's nothing useful in there, while completely forgetting about the massive piece of linen hiding right at the bottom.

Get it all out and have a proper look at what you've actually got.

I like to roughly sort mine by size as I go. You'll probably find you have more usable fabric than you thought.

2. Start with your biggest scraps

Find the biggest pieces first because they're going to give you the most options.

Could one become a bodice? A sleeve? The front of a pair of shorts? Half a skirt?

Once you've figured out what your bigger pieces can do, you can start filling in the gaps with your smaller scraps.

3. Stop thinking in metres

This is probably one of the biggest mindset shifts with scrap sewing.

Normally we'd look at a pattern that says we need 2.5 metres of fabric and immediately think, well, I don't have that.

But you don't actually need 2.5 continuous metres of fabric.

You need enough fabric for each individual pattern piece.

Suddenly that 70cm leftover from one project and 50cm from another start looking a LOT more useful.

4. Your fabrics don't have to match

In fact, I'd argue it's much more fun when they don't!

Mix your prints. Clash your colours. Put stripes next to florals. Use a completely different fabric for your sleeves.

You're making something from scraps so you might as well lean into it!

If you're nervous about mixing fabrics, start with a colour that appears in several of your scraps and use that to pull everything together.

5. Think about how the fabrics behave

Matching colours are optional, but matching fabric properties? Slightly more important.

Before you start combining everything, think about the weight, drape and stretch of your fabrics.

A lightweight viscose and heavy denim are probably going to have very different ideas about how your garment should behave.

They don't have to be exactly the same fabric, but ideally you want them to play nicely together.

6. Add a seam

Got a piece that's almost big enough? Don't immediately put it back in the pile.

Could you split your pattern piece and add a seam?

This is where scrap sewing gets really fun because suddenly the problem becomes part of the design.

You could create panels, add a contrast section or piece several scraps together to create one larger piece of fabric.

Nobody needs to know you added that seam because you couldn't quite squeeze your pattern piece on there (and I've done this to make patterns fit even when not sewing with scraps!)

It's a ✨design feature✨

7. Don't forget about the little pattern pieces

Not every scrap needs to become half a garment.

Pockets, pocket bags, facings, collars, cuffs, waistbands, ties and binding are all brilliant places to sneak in smaller pieces.

And there's something very satisfying about having a completely unexpected fabric hiding inside your pockets.

8. Let the scraps decide what you're making

Usually we choose a pattern and then choose our fabric.

For Oh Scrap!, try doing it backwards.

Pull out a few scraps that look good together and ask yourself what they could become.

You might spot a combination you'd never have thought of if you'd started with the pattern first.

This is your chance to experiment!

9. Don't try too hard to make it look 'normal'

Your garment doesn't need to look like it was made from one continuous piece of fabric.

That's the whole point!

Let the seams show. Use the contrasting pocket. Put one sleeve in a different colour. Make the colour blocking really obvious.

Sometimes trying to disguise the fact that you've used scraps makes things much harder than simply embracing it.

And you'll probably end up with something much more interesting because of it.

10. Remember: there are no scrap police

There isn't a minimum scrap size, your fabrics don't have to match, you don't need to use every last tiny thread, and your finished garment absolutely does not need to look perfect.

Oh Scrap! is about looking at what we already have and getting creative with it.

Those leftovers have already been paid for. They've already been produced. And they've probably been sitting in your sewing space waiting for their moment for months or, let's be honest, years.

So get them out and make a mess. Try combinations you wouldn't normally choose and see what you can create from the fabric you already have.

Your scrap pile isn't rubbish; it's just fabric you haven't decided what to make with yet 💛