YouTube Tutorials vs An Online Sewing Course
Today I am back looking at a common reason why sewing beginners do not buy online sewing courses – and why they actually should!
I have had a YouTube channel for years, and there’s a decent amount of tutorials that have helped folks learn pattern making… so you may be wondering why I would create online courses when people can learn from me on YouTube for free.
And the reason is… commitment. Let me explain.
The Benefits of Learning From YouTube
I love YouTube. I have three YouTube accounts, with each one dedicated to specific topics so that I don’t ‘mess up’ the algorithm – they serve me specific topics for each of my accounts.
- The Creative Curator – I’m shown all things sewing, which helps me spot what folks are getting interested in / excited about as the ‘trend’ is rising.
- Evie Diva Doodles – I create and watch all things art and illustration based, and only get shown art based videos.
- Eve Tokens – the ‘everything goes‘ account, where I get Pinterest marketing, business growths hacks, political news updates etc. It’s a random smorgasbord of videos.
I also pay for YouTube Premium, because I don’t want to be interrupted by ads when I am watching a YouTube video, whether it’s educational or entertainment.
1. Saving Costs
One of the benefits of learning via YouTube videos is that it costs nothing. We can watch the videos from creators and we don’t have to pay anything, other than our time. They get paid via the ads served to us, we get to lap up the content.
2. Videos on Demand
Can’t sleep at night? Grab your device of choice and pop on YouTube – with billions of videos at your fingertips, there’s something for every sleep deprived person… I happily admit to having fallen asleep to at least one YouTube video each month (and not because it was boring…) for a while now!
3. Finding ‘The One’
We all gel with different personality types, and spending tie on YouTube eats we can find the one that we gel with the most. And with so many creators making videos for YouTube, the choice is greater than ever before!
But…
Why Learning From YouTube Sucks
While it is great to learn some things ‘for free’… there comes a point where you need to realise that YouTube sucks.
Content created for YouTube only really benefits YouTube – which in March 2025 was valued at a whopping $550 BILLION company!
Poor Pay For Creators
All those people making videos for YouTube? They get PENNIES from ad revenue.. I started my main channel in late November 2013… and almost 12 years later, it has earned the grand total of… £699.16 from ad income. Screenshot below for those who don’t believe me!
If we look at the number of years my channel was eligible to earn (4000 watch hours, 1000 subs and monetized on 10th October 2023) that works out to being 687 days (at the time of writing this) and that dear friends is just over £1 per day on average. Shocking.
Would you ‘work’ for just £1 per day?
Obviously I could create more videos and increase that daily amount of ad income, but earning £1 per day on existing ‘back catalogue‘ of videos tells me two things:
- Advertisers are not paying much for the audience I have – generally ‘low tier’ countries that are not the USA, Canada or UK.
- My time creating the kind of videos that would engage the audience they want would be better spent developing my own products. Which is what I have been doing.
This is just ONE example of how creators do not win when relying on YouTube for an income..
Lack of Learning Consistency
Another reason why learning from YouTube is not the best idea – learning consistency!
With so many options available to us on the platform, choosing and learning from one person is really hard. And when those folks create only quick, entertaining videos? You’re really going to struggle to catch the ‘how’ of what they’re showing. It’s all about showing you ‘the what’ and ‘the why’, so you will never truly learn ‘proper’ skills from YouTube.
I stand by this… when I re-started my art learning, I started with YouTube. I watched Emma Lefebvre for her watercolour technique, Sarah Burns for her gouache technique and Drifter Studio for his Procreate skills.
Do you know what I learned from all of the free videos of these YouTube artists? Very little! Yes I was entertained, but I didn’t actually gain much other than a lack of confidence in being able to recreate what they had created…
Paying For Online Classes
Which brings me to actually investing in your dreams.
I have been paying for online classes for the last 18 months, and also joined a couple of art based Patreons too.
In doing so, my art skills have rocketed. I now happily take a sketchbook and art materials out with me and sketch in front of people. I create videos for my arty YouTube channel showing my drawing and painting process (to entertain and inspire, not teach!)..
It is the PAYING for knowledge that others have, that has had a huge impact on my skills when it comes to art.
But when we pay to learn something, we see that cost as an investment into something we want to learn – so we’re more likely to put in the time to learn.
And this is why I am firm in my belief that learning from online sewing classes or online pattern making classes will ALWAYS be for those who are determined to learn a skill.
If you feel like learning to sew is what you really want to ‘get done’ this year, join my online sewing course Learn to Sew. I created it for sewing beginners. And it is – hand on heart – the only online sewing course you will ever need.
Yes, there will be future courses I create which will be great for you to further your skills, but if you never took another sewing class again, my online Learn to Sew course would give you all that you needed to start sewing, and with confidence.
I changed the payment plan so that there is a four months option instead of two, because I had an email from one person saying it would help them out. If it helps you out, that option is there for you too.
Let’s work together to get you sewing before the year is out. I cannot wait to help you on your sewing journey!
