Customer Rating:
List Price: $35.00
Best Price: $18.74 (new), $16.54 (used)
Availability: New (46), Used (30)
Author: Reader's Digest Editors
ISBN: 0762104201
Number of Pages: 384
Publication Date: 2002-10-24
Publisher: Readers Digest

Customer Review

The ultimate sewing resource
by Customer A2XPGNJ8YUPHM0 at August 06th, 2008
This is a big, thick, heavy book, and not exactly something you can tuck in a corner while you work. It's large and wide, though, and lies flat fairly easily, which helps to make it easier to look at while working. It includes an absolutely amazing amount of detail meant to get you from rank beginner through finely tailored clothing, and honestly I expect this book to still be useful to me in ten years from now. It's jam-packed with diagrams, color photos, and plenty of highly-detailed and very clear instructions.

Hand-sewing tips are included, as well as instructions for using the 'essential' hand stitches. This includes full-page instructions in most cases, with multiple diagrams. Each diagram comes with both an easy-to-understand explanation and a set of step-by-step detailed instructions. Essential stitches include everything from tailor's tacks to basting, backstitching, hemming & joining (slipstitch, cross-stitch, overhand, whipstitch, etc.), finishing stitches, decorative stitches, and so on. In particular I appreciate that the explanation included with each stitch details exactly what that stitch tends to be used for and why.

One of my favorite details throughout the book is the extensive cross-referencing. For example, the page that details and diagrams overedge seams provides page references to the overlock machine on page 15, zigzag stitching on page 83, and overlock stitching on p. 83. You won't have to go nuts trying to locate all the information you need. In addition, there's a side-bar at the beginning of the 'stitches and seams' section that provides a quick-reference to all provided hand stitches and their page locations.

This book can start you out as a beginner and still be useful to you ten years later. It covers everything from basic stitches to fabric types to advanced tailoring techniques, in a ton of detail with precise directions and diagrams.

« product details and checkout