There’s a time and a place for getting feedback on your sewing. But “does this look right?” is not a useful question. First of all, there are probably several things that can be improved in the garment or swatch you’re showing, so you’re not likely to get a simple yes or no answer. Second, it’s rare that there’s one single thing that’s going wrong in a garment. For example, a twisted side seam might begin with cutting, a rippled neckline might come from pressing, and a bulky zipper area might be caused by seam allowance not being trimmed properly.
So instead of asking generally if something looks right, try to identify one thing that might be a problem and ask about that one thing. For example, you might ask about the alignment of a seam, or whether a curve is smooth. Try to isolate the feature of the garment you most suspect may be a problem.
Also, try to observe the garment flat and on the body if possible. Are there drag lines anywhere? Do any of the seams pucker or seem thick? Are the seam allowances even? All of these things are easier for someone else to address if you can first say something specific about what you observe.
In addition to asking specific questions, try to solicit feedback early and often. Don’t wait until you’ve spent hours being frustrated with something to ask for help. Instead, ask about each component of a garment before you’ve invested too much time in it. For example, if you’re having trouble with the fit of a bodice, ask about the muslin before you add the sleeves and collar and buttons. If you’re not sure about your topstitching, ask about a sample before you do it on a whole hem or waistband.
Not only will asking for feedback early and often help you avoid spending a ton of time on something that isn’t right, but it will also help you learn to see revisions as a normal part of the process rather than a failure.
Another strategy you can use to get useful feedback on your sewing is to ask what you can do about a problem rather than just what the problem is. So instead of asking whether something looks right, you might ask what you can do to fix something. You might ask what single thing you could improve that would make the biggest difference in the garment. You might also ask what you can test on a swatch before you attempt a fix in your garment.
For example, if someone tells you that your hem is wavy, you might ask whether that’s due to pressing, stitch tension, or the way the edge was handled. Then you could use their feedback to make a few samples.
Finally, samples are a great way to solicit concrete feedback on your sewing. Try choosing a problem from something you’ve made recently, then spending five minutes choosing one sewing issue from a recent piece, then ten minutes recreating that same issue on scraps. If your problem was that your zipper was puckering, try sewing two or three zipper samples and varying only one thing at a time, such as needle position, pressing, or stitch length. Then compare the results of your samples to your garment and see what might have caused the difference. When you get feedback on your garment, try the suggested fix out on your samples first to see if it makes a difference.
In addition to separating out construction and fit issues and making samples, it might be helpful to distinguish between the two when you ask for feedback. Try asking someone to look at either the construction, how the seams are made and whether they’re puckered or wavy, or the fit, how the garment hangs on your body and whether it’s comfortable and flattering.
You’ll learn more and faster if you can isolate a single issue at a time and get concrete feedback about it. And you’ll be more likely to get concrete feedback if you ask concrete questions and make it easy for people to see what’s going on with your garment.