Customer Reviews

Creative Publishing International-Sewing 101: A Beginners Guide To Sewing

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This is a solid book recommended by the Sewing Association & after getting this I can see why. There is an intro the machine and hand sewing and then the all important hemming lessons. From there you start with t-shirts! Yes we're off and running already with garments. I was not prepared for this thinking I would be doing pillows and potholders and other nonsense, but no let's get practical. Garments like t-shirts, wrap skirts, pull on pants/shorts head the list. They tell you how to read the pattern and then guide you thru making the actual garment giving you hints and tips to making an easy & wearable piece.

After garments we go home dec and do the pillows, curtains and shades. There are enough projects in here to keep you busy for about 6 months at which point you should know the basics & know where to go from there on your own. Daunting, eh? Well I was impressed and got going immediately. I got really psyched and I think a project a fortnight is doable. They recommend making more than 1 garment of each type to solidify what you know so unless you're very industrious a project a week is a rough haul. This book is easy, approachable and most importantly, inspiring, so much so instead of using my old high school one I actually bought a brand new beginning machine (A Viking Huskystar 207).

If you've been thinking about sewing buy this book and take the plunge. Until I got this book I never realised how much was based on the simple t-shirt (pj's, sweats, turtlenecks). Enjoy.

Sure, your sewing machine retailer may offer lifetime lessons, but what about actual sewing projects? Was the last time you attempted sewing in middle school Home Ec? This book is the answer. It is very well-written with useful photos and highlights important information in a way that it becomes your working knowledge. It offers detailed instruction for window treatments including Roman shades, rodpocket, and grommet curtains, as well as a few clothing pieces. It also offers a section on reading sewing patterns, which can be intimidating to the novice. Other books I've seen have too much information, that it becomes confusing. This is perfect. If you have recently purchased your first machine OR want to do more with your sewing machine than let it collect dust but don't know where to begin, this is the book for you.

If you want to learn how to sew women's garments or home decor items, then this may be a good book for you. But if you want to learn sewing basics using a sewing machine, or want to also sew men's garments, then buy a different book. The "Sewing Basics" section is about 50 pages long, half of which consist of descriptions and photos of tools and supplies. Instructions for basic sewing techniques are limited and brief. There are no comprehensive instructions on the various types of stitches.

More than half of the book consists of "Home Decor" sewing, so, if that's what you're interested in, I recommend that you instead just buy the book "Home Decor Sewing 101" by the same author. I also bought this book, and while there doesn't appear to be overlap between the two books in regards to the projects featured, the Home Decor book is more comprehensive.

I would have given this book an even lower rating, but, it deserves a few stars simply for the nice layout and copious color photos that accompany every page. Additionally, the spiral binding allows the pages to lay flat when open, which is great for using right at the sewing machine.

In summary, if you want a book full of beginning sewing projects, then this book fits the bill. But if you're looking for a good beginner's sewing book with basic techniques, another book might be better.

I ordered the Sewing 101 and Home Decor Sewing 101, and highly recommend both. I received a sewing machine for my birthday, had no idea how to use it, but really wanted to learn to sew. So, I ordered these two books, and let me tell you, they are wonderful! I read both books the day I received them, went and purchased fabric and notions the next day, and thanks to these books, was sewing in no time. These are great for the person who has never sewn or even seen a sewing machine up close before receiving one. I am so glad I purchased these. There are great practical home decor items in both books, which is exactly what I was wanting to learn how to make since the selection in stores is so poor. Now I can make my own custom items, and they will be much better quality than the overpriced, unattractive items I always find in the stores. If you know someone who wants to learn how to sew, but doesn't have the time to go to a store for lessons, or they don't have anyone to teach them, these would be the perfect gift!

I particularly loved this book for the color photographs which accompanied the step-by-step instructions. I also appreciated the projects in the book. They were a nice change from the '60s,'70s, and '80s rejects one usually sees in these things. As a novice at the sewing machine (as in, "How do you thread this thing?!!"), I feel better prepared to face my sewing monster-er, machine.

Sewing 101 is an excellent reference for the beginner. After buying my sewing machine on Amazon last week, I was still confused as to how to get started sewing even after sorting through the machine's manual and instructional video. This book has given me the confidence to get started! This book starts with the basic concepts (needle types, threading needles, winding bobbins, adjusting tension, stitch types), explains sewing lingo (selvage, backstitch,etc.), and has lots of hints, tips, and explanations to get you sewing. Even though the first portion of the book is devoted to sewing basics, the majority of the book consists of projects to help you learn different sewing techniques. These projects become more advanced as you progress through the book. The projects are divided into projects for the home and for clothes making. Personally, I will be doing home decor sewing so this book was great...other books I perused seemed to concentrate primarily on clothes making. I would definitely recommend this book for those just starting out sewing!

For years I wanted to learn how to sew but was intimidated by the mechanics of the sewing machine and sewing terminology, reading those darned patterns, fearing zippers, buttonholes, etc. This book explains it all in easy to understand language and plenty of clear pictures to show exactly what is being described. Not a lot of time is spent with the theory of it all; you'll get down to sewing right away on simple projects and then build upon the skills you've learned. Within a matter of days I went from knowing nothing to building confidence steadily. The beginner projects are really good, practical ones that include both clothing and home decor items. I am primarily interested in home decor sewing for my own home, and the projects contained in this book are all I personally could ever want: for example, even though this is a beginner book, some of the drapes you can make have that expensive custom look!! I really liked the fact that the book is spiral bound and lies flat so you can easily have it open to refer to while working. I just wish I had known about this book a long time ago--I could have been making curtains for my kids' rooms as their interests changed through the years!! If you want to take the plunge into sewing but you're very intimidated by sewing the way I was, do yourself a huge favor--get this book!!

I have recently decided that I wanted to learn how to sew. I bought a very basic, inexpensive sewing machine, and other than being completely ignorant of sewing, I am ready. (HA HA!) Enter this book....it is wonderful! It has very simple, very basic instructions, perfect for the absolute novice. The pictures are clear, and nothing is assumed. An easy to understand glossary is included in the back, as is a panel of helpful tips on almost every page. I HIGHLY recommend this book for beginners.

This is a very, very basic book for absolute beginner sewers. It seems deliberately simplified, perhaps to avoid scaring newbies. It's very heavy on pictures, and very light on explainations or details. For example, it shows pictures of a few common types of fabric, but doesn't say anything about why you would pick one over another, what stiches to use on each, what ironing heat or steam setting to use on each, or how to clean them.

I purchased this for my sister, when she received a new Janome machine from her father-in-law for Christmas this past year. She had absent-mindedly said within his hearing that she'd like to learn to sew someday---and he obliged, by purchasing the machine as a gift. Wasn't that nice?

That machine can do absolutely anything. Unfortunately, she couldn't even thread a hand sewing needle! She had no idea how to wind a bobbin (or what a bobbin was) or thread a machine, so I gave her this book along with Simplicity's Simply the Best Sewing Book (the newest edition--I wouldn't give up my older copy that I've had since 1991!).

Both together got her sewing in less than a weekend. I am more experienced as a sewer and crafter, so for me, the book isn't as helpful. But for her, it was the best gift she's ever gotten--besides that new sewing machine.