If you have several gadgets around the house or office, you may wonder how you could organize and find chargers quickly. In this tutorial, the author outlines how to use various scraps of fabric to create cord holders. Additionally, the author outlines various ways to adapt the patterns depending on the fasteners you have available and/or the skills you have.

Degree of difficulty: Easy to Moderate depending on the fastener selected 

Skills Demonstrated 

This is an excellent project for those who are new to sewing. As students complete this project, they are demonstrating their abilities to

• Read and follow directions
• Measure fabric
• Transfer pattern markings
• Cut fabric
• Modify directions
• Measure and mark seam allowances
• Seal raw edges of the ribbon
• Clip corners
• Turn fabric
• Use interfacing
• Sew straight seams
• Press fabric
• Attach fastener
• Problem solve
• Think critically

Cord Holder Tutorial

https://craftyforhome.com/2021/02/11/diy-fabric-cord-holder-tutorial/

Cross-Curricular Involvement

Students involved in this author’s apparel production course were invited to facilitate “Sewing with a Twist” days where they taught new skills to other college students who were pursuing a degree in elementary education. The sessions were offered two times, with each session building on previous content knowledge. In the first session, learners were introduced to the sewing machine, the parts of the machine, how to use the machine safely, and how to thread the machine properly.

The cord holder was the final product for the students to make in their final “Sewing with a Twist” session. Through this assignment, the students in the apparel production course were actively demonstrating their abilities to teach others. At the end of the sessions, learners were invited to complete a google form reflection where participants evaluated the effectiveness of their assigned teacher and gave feedback regarding the learning process. The following anecdotal quotes reflect the themes that emerged from the analysis of the data:

• “I had so much fun! I can’t wait to come back!”
• “My teacher was great. She knew what she was doing and was able to help when we needed it.”
• “She was a great teacher… very helpful and kind toward my partner and me.”
• “She was great! She taught it to us well and was very attentive helping us if we messed up. She gave gentle reminders of the right way to do things.”

As you facilitate apparel production laboratory experiences in your courses, you are encouraged to seek partnerships with others, creating opportunities for your students to engage in the skills of teaching sewing. It is one thing to know the skills of how to construct a garment, but how to teach others is an entirely different set of skills altogether (Deaton, 2021).

References

Deaton, S. (2021). Teaching Apparel Production. Presentation.