Stuff Sack

I just finished my first sewing project! I’ve had a love for backpacking for the past year or so. Gear is an important part of exploring the backcountry. I have been hoping to get into ultralight backpacking, and I have seen that many ultralighters are also DIY-ers. I finally finished my first project.

I grabbed an old Singer sewing machine from Craigslist. Seems like most sewing machines last forever; mine is all metal. I found instructions online for sewing a stuffsack, seemingly the easiest project possible, and thus the best introductory project with the least potential for me blowing up my apartment. I ordered silnylon from eBay, picked up 100% polyester thread and a #10 needle from my local fabric store, and grabbed cord and cord locks from outdoors stores. Then, I began sewing!

Sewing…really wasn’t that bad after a bit of practice. Silnylon definitely did not make my first experience any easier. It slips very easily, so when I was trying to sew two edges together, the top and bottom edges would occasionally slip. Still, I was able to create a functioning stuff sack. Some lessons learned:

  • Keep tension on the silnylon as you guide it.
  • Easy on the gas.
  • Backstitch.
  • How to set up the sewing machine (sans bobbin thread, which I will have to learn eventually)

I’m excited to take my new stuffsack on a trip! It may break, but hey, shouldn’t be too hard to replace.