Sewing machines, once one of the “three major items” in the homes of the older generation, have now re-entered the lives of many young people. Unlike in the past, people relied on sewing to make a living and support their families. Nowadays, many young people pick up needlework mainly to relieve stress and make clothes that suit their own aesthetics. The New Yellow River reporter learned that with the increasing number of sewing study rooms and handicraft experience stores, coupled with the spread of social platforms, sewing has turned from a niche hobby into a new consumer trend. Some people just come here to check in and experience it, while others invest a lot of time in studying the craft and gain emotional satisfaction from the practical operation.
Online popularity is booming, offline stores are popular, and sewing has become a new leisure trend
At present, sewing crafts are completely out of fashion among young people. Social platform data shows that Xiaohongshu’s #SewingDaily# topic has more than 1.81 billion views and 6.58 million discussions. The #SewingMachineXiaobai# topic remains highly popular. Countless young netizens share introductory tutorials, daily sewing routines and original works, and content related to hand sewing continues to flood the screen.
The offline consumer market is also hot. Take the Shanghai Citizen Art Night School as an example. The junior class of sewing machine and fabric art has started the “second light” mode. Young people wait at the registration channel on time just to seize the few study places. At the same time, a large number of sewing DIY workshops and self-service sewing study rooms have emerged in many cities. New business formats and new packages cater to young consumers with different needs.
After searching on Meituan and other platforms, New Yellow River reporters learned that the price gradient of sewing experience consumption is clear, and it is suitable for two types of people: early adopters and in-depth practice. The price range for zero-based small items experience in the Shanghai store is 69 yuan to 89 yuan, and the price range for high-end experience classes on fabric bags and ready-made clothes is 129 yuan to 599 yuan. The price range for zero-basic teaching experience classes at the Hefei store in Anhui is 59.9 yuan, self-service sewing self-study is as low as 29.9 yuan/hour, and there is a full-day learning package for 188 yuan. In addition, Internet celebrity sewing study rooms in many places offer self-service service at RMB 35 per hour, which does not include forced teaching or social pressure. It is popular with many young people seeking relaxation and is often full even on weekdays.
Unlike traditional tailor shops that accept customized clothes, these stores do not accept orders for ready-made clothes. They mainly open sewing machines and equipment to consumers and provide simple teaching. When consumers pay, they are more likely to get a place where they can concentrate on doing crafts, temporarily free from the interference of all kinds of information on their mobile phones.
Unlock multiple reasons for entering the trap, reject assembly line garments and control aesthetic freedom
Young people gather together to learn sewing for multiple reasons, both practical and emotional. Nowadays, many ready-made clothes have problems such as unreasonable styles, confusing sizes, and uneven fabric quality. It is difficult for many people to buy clothes that fit them well and suit their needs. Doing it yourself has become a way to get rid of the limitations of assembly line products. Many novices in sewing start with simple items such as hair ties and storage bags, and gradually try to make dresses and underwear. They select their own fabrics, adjust the size according to their own body shape, avoid various problems of mass-produced clothing, and make clothing that is unique to them.
In addition to pursuing independence in dressing, doing handicrafts has also become a channel for many young people to release stress. Sewing requires the coordinated operation of hands, eyes, and feet. When doing manual work, people have to put their mobile phones aside. Many enthusiasts say that the satisfaction brought by actually making an object is difficult to obtain by swiping a mobile phone, and their inner irritability will also be relieved.
In this handicraft craze, young people from different professions and different situations have found their own joy in sewing. On September 25, new mother Lin Xiao said in an interview with the New Yellow River reporter: “The styles of children’s clothing on the market are all the same, and the quality of the fabrics is also uneven. I just want to make clothes for my children myself.” She uses her free time to teach herself sewing, hand-picks skin-friendly and soft fabrics, and sews exclusive small skirts for her daughter. “Watching pieces of ordinary fabric turned into a small skirt, the moment the child puts it on, the sense of satisfaction is something you can’t get when buying clothes.”
Xiao Zhou, an overseas student studying alone, said in an interview with the New Yellow River reporter: “I often have empty moments of solitude abroad, and stepping on a sewing machine has become my way to relieve loneliness.” In her spare time, she makes bags and small fabric accessories. “The small items she makes can also be given to people around her from China and other countries. Classmate.” Ayue, a young pet lover, said frankly in an interview with Xinhuanghe reporter: “Most of the pet beds and clothes bought online are of the same size, and it is difficult to fit them perfectly, and some fabrics are not breathable.” She has taught herself sewing and customized clothes and sleeping mats according to the body shape of her dogs, and selected safe and skin-friendly fabrics. “When making things for your furry child, you don’t need to pursue exquisiteness. The process of doing it by hand is very healing.”
Chen Xi, an office worker, told reporters in an interview with the New Yellow River reporter that he hopes to slowly develop his sewing hobby into a side job. “After work, I follow online classes to practice my craftsmanship and polish patterns. I hope I can take on some clothing modification and customization orders in the future.” But she is also very clear-headed. “Sewing looks simple, but the actual threshold is very high. If you want to make money from this, you have to practice and accumulate for a long time. You can’t just do it casually.”
Behind the hobby: The entry barrier is not low, and relieving stress is more important than making a living.
Sewing may seem like fun, but it actually has a high barrier to entry. Almost all enthusiasts have to go through a process of trial and error, and it is difficult to make a perfect finished product from the beginning.
For novices who are new to sewing, thread breakage, skipping, and crooked thread routing are commonplace. Many people started working with enthusiasm, but in the end the finished product was out of shape and had rough edges, so they had to dismantle it and start over. If you want to sew straight stitches and master hemming, cutting, and pattern making, you have to practice repeatedly on scrap fabric. Faced with such learning costs, young people involved in sewing naturally divide into two categories. Some people only have a superficial experience and do not pursue mastery of skills. They take the time to go to a handicraft shop to make small objects to relax as a low-cost pastime.
Another group of in-depth enthusiasts are willing to invest more energy and purchase household sewing machines ranging from a few hundred to two to three thousand yuan at their own expense, stock up on fabrics, zippers, and various accessories, and enroll in online or offline courses for systematic learning. Even if I often make bad works, I will continue to adjust and practice, and slowly grow from scratch to the point where I can independently make clothes and renovate old clothes. The overall atmosphere of this handcrafted circle is relatively tolerant, without being overly critical of the quality of the finished product, and it also makes many novices willing to keep practicing.
In recent years, handmade experience projects have been on the rise. From bean-making and crocheting to the now popular sewing, more and more young people are willing to spend money to relax and relax. The older generation mostly sews to make ends meet and support their families. Nowadays, when young people come into contact with sewing, most of them do not have a strong utilitarian purpose. Some people want to temporarily escape from the complicated information on the Internet, some want to make well-fitting clothes that are not available on the market, and some simply enrich their spare time and make handmade items for their family and pets.
Whether it’s a quick taste or a long-term study, there is no difference between the two. The pace of life is getting faster and faster, and sewing provides young people with an option to slow down. The stitch-by-stitch operation process is not only a return to craftsmanship, but also reflects the current life attitude of some people.
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