When you open a Sew What Box ready-to-sew kit, you'll find everything you need to make that project, including your fabric pieces, already precut and ready to go.
To keep your project flowing smoothly, it's helpful to label your fabric pieces so you can quickly grab the right one and keep moving forward. This simple trick works especially well with Sew What Box projects, but it can also make almost any sewing project easier to follow. Below, we'll show you how to identify and label your pieces so assembly is straightforward and enjoyable.
Step 1: Identify Your Pieces
Sew What Box kits identify the pre-cut fabric pieces with letters such as A, B, C, and so on. Those same letters are used throughout the written instructions and referenced in the video tutorial.
Note: Some earlier projects may not have labeled fabric pieces in the insert, but you can easily still use the technique below.
When you first open your kit, lay out your fabric pieces and use the dimensions listed in the instructions to identify each one.
For example, if the instructions tell you that Piece A is 4"x16.5", measure your fabric pieces until you find the one that matches.
You may be able to identify some pieces by their size, shape, or fabric print, but measuring is a great way to double-check that you have the right one in case some are similar.
This same technique can be helpful with other sewing patterns, too. If your pattern provides the dimensions for each piece, use them to match your cut fabric to the corresponding pattern piece before you start sewing.
Tip: If you have several pieces that are the same size, look for other details in the instructions that distinguish them before labeling (like directional fabric prints or mirrored pieces).
Step 2: Label Your Pieces
Once you've identified each fabric piece, mark its corresponding letter/label directly on the fabric.
There are a couple of easy ways to label your pieces.
Use a Disappearing Fabric Pen
A disappearing fabric pen is a handy tool for temporarily marking fabric.
Write the letter on your fabric piece somewhere you can easily see it while you're sewing. When you're finished, remove the marking according to the pen's instructions.
This also works just as well when you're cutting your own fabric. Once you've cut out a pattern piece, simply mark its corresponding letter or number on the fabric.
Always test your marking pen on a scrap of the same fabric first to make sure the mark behaves as expected.
Mark Inside the Seam Allowance
Don't have a disappearing fabric pen? No problem.
You can use a regular pen or pencil and write the letter or number inside the seam allowance.
This gives you a quick way to label your fabric pieces without worrying about removing the marks later. Once that edge is sewn, the marking will be hidden inside the seam.
Step 3: Follow Along Without the Guesswork
Now your pieces are identified, labeled, and ready to sew!
When your Sew What Box instructions tell you to sew Piece A to Piece B, you don't have to stop and figure out which pieces those are. Just find the fabric pieces with the corresponding labels and keep going.
The same goes for the video tutorial. When you hear, "Take piece C," you can quickly grab the fabric piece marked C and follow along.
If you're working with a sewing pattern without pre-labeled pieces, you'll still have the same advantage once you've added your own labels. If the instructions tell you to join pieces 4 and 5, you'll know exactly which pieces to pick up.
Labeling is especially helpful when:
- Several pieces are similar in size or shape
- Your project has lots of pieces
- You're working with several different fabrics
- You want to focus on learning a new technique
- Your instructions refer to pieces by letter or number
- You will be revisiting the project over several sewing sessions so you don’t need to relearn all the pieces each time
