This giveaway is now closed! Congratulations to our winner, comment #176 Lindsay of A Design Story. Lindsay, please check your email for information on how to claim your prize {free pass to Home Ec Online for you AND a friend!}. xoxo
One question frequently sent my way is, “How did you learn how to sew?” It was just over four years ago when the trade of sewing caught my eye, and without anyone nearby to teach me I headed off to the library to check out about 30 books. Some books were amazing + filled with the right teaching style {lots of large photos + easy to understand text}; others made me want to pull my hair out. I kept on with learning the trade and found myself searching YouTube any time the process felt hopeless, just like many of you :)
I quickly learned the value of a well-taught sewing lesson, like Home Ec Online. And ooohhhhhh, if only I would have learned how to sew by taking Home Ec — I can’t quite imagine how lovely that would have been :) I’m a former student of Home Ec and absolutely love how beautiful the eCourse is laid out, not to mention easy to follow.
Read on to read more about Home Ec + Leigh-Ann’s inspiring words — and be sure you read through to the end, we have something fun to offer two of you!
xoxo, Gussy
While working on a craft project in 2010, I made a YouTube video that walked beginners through the first steps of sewing, How to Use Your Sewing Machine! A few months later, I visited my YouTube channel and saw there was over 200,000 views on my sewing video! I took that to mean that a lot of people are searching for How to Sew, and I wanted to help! So, I designed and co-taught (with Rachel Denbow & Courtney Tucker) an e-course that teaches you how to sew, from your own home! Home Ec Online has had a huge response and it’s been a really fun journey :)
2. Tell us a little bit about the Home Ec eCourse?
In the Home Ec eCourse, we begin with guides to gear you up, then we teach at least one new sewing skill in each of our 28 sewing projects. Our sewing projects are fun, easy to follow and practical! We start super easy and we consistently use step-by-step instructions (ours are written with plenty of example & progress photos) that break a project into manageable steps with everything you need to know and do. As you move through the Home Ec projects, you’ll gain a toolbelt of sewing skills, practice what you’re learning and get more and more comfortable using a sewing machine and creating handmade sewn goods!
Take a look at all of the projects Home Ec Students make during the eCourse:
Visit Home Ec Online and take a look at our Course Outline, FAQ’s, Student Testimonials and Registration/Printable Gift Cards!
3. How much does Home Ec cost and how can our Gussy Readers register?
The Home Ec eCourse has a one time fee of $50 and your registration does not expire (this way you can take it at your own pace and refer back to the projects and tools at any time). If you want to learn to sew, you can register for Home Ec here.
{click here to register for Home Ec Online}Yes! I love receiving proud emails & pictures from Home Ec students saying “LOOK, I just made this!”… it’s so cool :) I follow a gal named Sarah on Instagram who had no sewing experience, took the Home Ec eCourse 5 months ago and is sewing pretty things out of ying yang (quilts are her fave). The Home Ec eCourse has been a powerful tool for Sarah and thousands of women, men and young adults who registered and jumped right in. Plus, a cool aspect of the course is that we allow students to take the projects we teach and reproduce them for Commercial Use. This means that if you have a small business (or have always wanted to), you can expand your range of products and potential!
Sneak Peek: This year, I’m working on a way that Home Ec students can share their progress pictures with each other!
5. What sewing projects/techniques are your favorite?
I love piecing fabric together… I call it casual quilting and I can’t get enough of it. Most of all, I love projects that are useful, like Home Ec’s bags & purses, hemming jeans, dress making, shoe organizer, home decor and my fave… organizational stuff!
6. Where do you draw personal inspiration?
I love connecting with people that have things in common but do it differently from each other (for example: My friend Jill and I have grown our companies alongside each other since 2006, but we have different businesses, styles and ideals). I am very inspired hearing about a.) the processes of things and b.) peoples stories. My favorite sources of inspiration are autobiographies, blogs about people and businesses, documentaries, tv shows and articles about how things work. I’m really visual and I gather a lot of inspiration from the small details around me and from collection websites like Pinterest. I can’t get enough of Pinterest.
7. Help us get to know Leigh-Ann a little better :) Where do you live + work, what’s your day-to-day like, what are your hobbies?
I have a cottage-y house in Winnipeg, Canada (born & raised) and Kyla Roma + I own a web design company called Freckled Nest Design :) I get to work with creative people and small business’ every day, creating online spaces that tell their story and represent their brand. It’s the dreamiest career and I really love what I do :)
I’m a big fan of Technology and Pop Culture, Crafts (album making, sewing, embroidery and things that make life better) and I love inventing things… making ideas come to life :) I have a small black lab named Lola, a close family (we’re building a big cabin together and it’s brought us even closer) and my business is my baby.
I’m a fun-loving person, introvert, quoter of TV characters, passionate about small business, and I love sharing about the creative things I’m consumed by!
I tweet instagram, pin, sell handmade, design, teach and blog… come say hi :)
Thanks for having me Maggie and Gussy readers!
xo, Leigh-Ann & the Home Ec Team
GIVEAWAY DETAILS // Open to all residents {U.S. + outside countries}, Leigh-Ann is giving away 2 *free* registrations for Home Ec, one for you and one for a friend! Simple leave a comment below and you’re entered {$100 value}.
ADDITIONAL ENTRY // Share this giveaway with your social media communities. Simply tag myself {@GussySews on Twitter or @Gussy Sews on Facebook} + include this post permalink: http://bit.ly/VaIAw2. Don’t forget to leave an extra comment for your additional entries!
EXTRA DETAILS // Up to two additional entries can be gained for this giveaway for a grand total of three entries {leave a comment below {mandatory #1} and share across two social media platforms {optional #2 + #3}}. This giveaway will be open through Thursday, January 31st and a winner will be announced at the top of this post + emailed on Friday, February 1st. Good luck + have fun!
Love this! I need all the sewing help I can get. :)
This course sounds like lots of fun!
This is so cool! I teach “Home Ec” (now called FACS) at the middle school level!! Last year, I wrote a grant and got some money to buy 20 sewing machines for my students. It is such a fun experience to teach them how to sew and watch them learn a new hobby that will last a lifetime! I would love to learn a little more and share this giveaway with my BFF who just got a sewing machine! Hope to win!
Cool! Would love to win.
I would love to learn to sew!
Love these projects!
I got a sewing machine last christmas and have yet to use it! Soooo need this!! :)
Thank you!
The sewing course sounds great!!! I’m in that ‘check out 30 book from the library stage’! :)
I have bought a second hand sewing machine and a cabinet to put it in. My dad is having to make some adjustments to make it work as the cabinet is old and the sewing machine is not. I can’t wait to get it set up and I definitely need a course. What inspired me to want to learn? A love of vintage aprons. I would like to mix and match my own choices in fabrics. Just walking into Joann’s gives me a high…the colors, the prints, the textures! Oh my!
I got a sewing machine for Christmas, but haven’t had the time to learn how to sew yet. I would love this!!
Maggie, I tweeted and shared but don’t know how to tag you on FB and am a novice on Twitter. LOL But I shared the message! Happy Friday!
I would love to win this!
Would love to win this!!!! I am just getting started into the world of sewing. :)
What a fun course!
I tried teaching my daughter how to sew last year and the crotch of the pajama pants ended up at the feet so it looked like something mc hammer would wear but much worse. Sooo needless to.say I need a little refresher course.
Love this!
I would love to win this eCourse!
Great giveaway! I could use some tips since I know there are a ton of things I should know but don’t. :)
I’ve tried on my own … and other than a straight line, failed. I’d love for someone to teach me … with a crazy, busy travel schedule for work, I feel like this is a great way for me to just unwind. To be able to offer a 2nd class to someone I care about … is a great bonus. Thanks for the opportunity … and thanks for sharing.
What a great idea and it looks like so much fun! Would love to dig my sewing machine out and find out what I am actually supposed to be doing with it!!!!
Oooooh!!!! I want to win!!!!
Oh my gosh I would live to have this and give the second one to my sister. Thanks Home ec and gussy sews!
So excited! I have little ones that I would love to sew more for! Hope to win!!
I come from a long line of seamstresses but can’t even thread the machine! Help!
I would love to learn how to sew…better. I have blindy made my way through a few butchered projects and need help! This looks like the perfect solution for me!
Hi! Would love to win this. I have 2 kids that I would love to be able to make things for them.
I’d love to win this!
This is a blessing for someone! Best of luck to all entrants!
My sewing machine has been used three times since I bought it last summer! I would LOVE to win and I have a new mom friend who would love the class too! (Not that she isn’t busy with a new baby, but she wants to sew as well!)
Would be estactic if I could learn to sew!! Yay!
LOL! Hit the wrong button the first time! Once, again, this course sounds like lots of fun!
I’m a new sewer and would love to learn more with this class!
I would love this! My mom tried to teach me how to sew years ago but after a while her Parkinson’s got too bad to sew anymore, and I’ve pretty much forgotten all of it! It took me almost a year to figure out how to thread a bobbin! I use my mom’s antique 1940’s singer and it’s sitting in my room, looking lovely, but not being used like it should. I do know it still runs awesome though!
Please, please pick me! I just got a Bernina 350 for Christmas! I have made a few projects but only w bare minimum knowledge! I would love to win!
What a wonderful opportunity! Thank you for the generous offer. I’m a newbie to sewing, and look forward to learning :-)
Honestly, last time I did any sewing WAS in home ec class 25 years ago! I have a brand spankin new sewing machine still in the box and need to learn now to use it! This class would be such a blessing!
Such a cool giveaway!!! Sounds like soo much fun!!! Would love to win.
I’m a new sewer, so this would be perfect!
Share this giveaway @ whitneyivystaggs on Facebook.
This sounds like an awesome e-course! I’ve always wanted to learn to sew just never dove in and tried it…maybe now is the time!!!!
It’s would be so amazing! I have been playing around with the sewing machine for about a month and need something like this to get me functional. Our kitchen is in remodel mode and so there will be curtains and slipcovers and pillows in my future. My daughters are little and I want to give them the gift of self-sufficiency. In part that can be by teaching them to sew.
Oh yay! This is on my bucket list this year! Perfect timing!!!
Would love this! I’ve always wanted to learn how to sew!
I so need to win this giveaway! I love to sew, but most of the time (ok, all of the time) have no idea what I’m doing. Thanks!
Shared on my facebook wall as well!
I would LOVE to win this eCourse. I am a visual learner, so this is perfect for me!! :)
I just told my hubby that I wanted to learn to sew! This would be amazing to win. I’d love to be able to sew little dresses for my baby girl. Thanks for the chance!
This would be so perfect for me. I am a self taught sewer and so many times I get frustrated when I hit a snag. I would love to inprove my skills and learn easier and better ways to accomplish what I want to sew.
My Mom and I have always wanted to learn to sew together. I would love to win this giveaway and share it with her!
I would love to take this ecourse! I bought a sewing machine a year ago and sadly, it’s just gathering dust now.
I have talked so much about wanting to learn how to sew that my husband got me a beautiful new machine for Christmas. This course sounds perfect!
I would love to learn to sew!
Okay, this is perfect. I was going to take the nicole’s classes sewing class but the pressure of it being 4 weeks has been killing me. I LOVE that this is self paced with no start or end so I’m going to sign up for this instead. THANK YOU!
I would like to enter! ! Thanks!!
This would be an amazing class!!!
Fun! I can sew, but would like to learn new techniques and have ideas for a few more projects. This course sounds perfect. Thanks for the opportunity to win!
I already know how to sew, but it is always good to return to the basics and just have fun-which these projects look like they are! Thanks Gussy and Home Ec Team!
this sounds wonderful!
This is just what I need! Looks wonderful :)
So cool! Thanks for the chance!
I would love to learn more about sewing!!! Thanks!!!
I would love to learn how to sew!
i would really like to win this!
I recently taught myself to sew (with books & blogs) this is an amazing opportunity to learn more!!!!
I sew a bit and am mostly self taught. I always love learning ‘new’ techniques and the correct and usually easier way to do things. :)
I would love the chance to have a refresher course in sewing. The last time I had a class in sewing was in junior high, which let’s just say that was a while ago. Would love to get back into sewing now that I have a young daughter who is always in need of new clothes or clothes for her dolls.
I’d love to win!
Love to learn
I would love to win! This is awesome!
I’d LOVE to win this for my sweet Mom and I! She’s a fantastic sewer, but I’d love to take this along side her so I can learn more too!
I want to learn to sew so badly. I get books from the library but still having issues. this would be a HUGEEEE help! :)
I took home ec in 7th grade, a loooong time ago. I would love to take an online course. Thanks for the opportunity.
This would be so awesome, I would love to win!!!
This would be awesome to win! I want to learn to sew so very badly!
Oh my gosh this is what Ive been looking for. I just started learning to sew on the weekends at my moms. I saving up did my first sewing machine. Even if I don’t win I am signing up! Thank you!
What a fun idea! I’m always looking for sweing skill improvement and I have a friend this would be perfect for
Thank you for the opportunity to win!!!!! Would love this!
I would love to better my sewing skills. Thanks for the opportunity.
I would love to win this for myself and my daughter. We would have fun learning together and getting to spend time with her is a plus. :)
What an encouraging and inspiring post! Would LOVE to learn!!
I’ve had my eye on taking this course forever! I’ve been wanting to improve my sewing skills and have even considered taking a class in town, but this would be perfect since I just had a baby :)
I want to win so bad!!! I wanted to my husband to sign me up for this class for my birthday but my birthday has now passed and he never signed me up. He did get me a very old (1930’s???) sewing machine that I want to try out but I really only know how to do a straight stitch. I want to learn how to make cute stuff :)
oooooohhhh i would love to learn how to sew :)
Love this idea! My mother in law bought me a sewing machine for mothers day and I have only used it twice. I would love to use it more.
Thanks for sharing Home EC, I sew but would love to learn more! I will share this with my friends who are interested in learning..
I have a lovely sewing machine from my Grandma, who was a seamstress, but have never truly gotten the hang of it. I would love to learn to sew! I crochet currently, but sewing would be a blast too :)
What a great opportunity!
I would love to win. I already sew fairly well but would live to work through the projects and learn a few new tricks.
I would love to further my sewing skills! Thanks for the chance to win!
I would really love to learn how to sew! I see projects all the time that I would love to do but am not able to because I don’t know how to sew.
Oh how I would love to win this class! I really want to learn how to sew. Thanks for the chance!
This would be so wonderful! I’m still a newbie–trying to figure it all out on my own–and this would make my attempts much less pathetic :)
I would love to win this prize
Lovely giveaway. I jus told my husband a few weeks ago that I wanted to learn to sew. This would help to jump start it! :)
So exciting! I would love to take the e-course!:) Thanks for sharing this fun post!
I would love this!
I’d love to learn how to sew better.
Pick me! :) I’d love to take this course!
Pick Me! Pick Me! Super excited about this!
I taught myself how to sew a couple of years ago, but haven’t ventured far from the straight stitch…I’d love to learn more about how to use my machine!