Customer Reviews

Last-Minute Fabric Gifts: 30 Hand-Sew, Machine-Sew, and No-Sew Projects (Sewing)

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

 

 

I first learned about this book while watching an episode of "Cultivating Life with Sean Conway" last month on my local PBS station. The author, Cynthia Treen, was on the show demonstrating how to felt rocks to use as paperweights and such. Intrigued, I wanted to see the rest of the book. I have not been disappointed.

The book itself is lovely - well designed with heavy, quality paper. It is divided by how long each of the 30 projects will take to make. There are 11 alone that take less than one hour, including a great zippered corduroy change purse and an adorable felted rabbit. The other projects are divided into those that take between an hour and two hours (seven); two to three hours (seven more); and more than three hours (five projects). There are gifts appropriate for children and adults; friends and acquaintances alike. There are also sections in the back that display some beautiful ways to wrap fabric gifts and a guide to tools and techniques. Beyond the projects, the book is a wealth of information about fabric, including a section in the front on fabric basics, including how to choose and care for fabric as well as a discussion of fiber types, and a glossary of fabric terms. The back contains a section with other recommended reading and sources for supplies.

There are projects to appeal to all levels. As the title says, some involve no sewing (such as fabric-covered notebooks, fabric envelopes, felted rocks); others are hand-sewing (those felted rabbits, a patterned belt, etc.); several more are machine-sewn. Some find interesting ways to reuse other textiles (a bag made out of a coat sleeve, hats made out of old sweaters, a pouch made from an old necktie), which appeals to my tree-hugging, reduce-reuse-recycle mentality. I have made a hand-sewn bias blossom and can't wait to carve out more time to try some of the other projects.

I wish you could peer inside this book to see how clean and beautiful it is. The directions are clear and easy to follow. The photography in this book really shines; it's creative and spectacular, making every project the one I want to start next.

First of all, this is not a how-to-sew book, or even a sewing book, so I don't think it should be reviewed as one. If you're looking for sewing clothes or home decor projects, there are plenty of others to look into. The title says it all: this is a book about making fabric gifts in a short amount of time using a variety of techniques. It will appeal to beginners who want learn new fabric crafting skills, and people who already have skills but are in a hurry.

--Book Contents--

The projects:

* less than 1 hour: bias blossom, coat sleeve bag, tie pouch, corduroy change purse, fabric belt, fabric envelopes, felt rabbits, fabric covered notebook, quick dish towl, bark cloth baby bib, cat toy.

* 1-2 hours: recycled sweater hats, cotton knit animals, felted rocks, fringed quest towels, patchwork pillow, red cross appliqued pillow, travel pouch.

* 2-3 hours: silk-trimmed wool blanket, hand stitched scarf, reversible hooded towel/blanket, felted silk scarf, silk sarong, tweed scarf, twig-handled tote

* greater than 3 hours: baby quilt, wool knit shibori scarf, garden playmat, inlaid wool knit scarf, tea-dyed shawl

Other:
* Ideas for wrapping fabric gifts, making gift pouches and gift tags.
* Sections on fabrics, tools, techniques, terms.

--My thoughts--

Photography and styling are fresh and crisp, and lovingly lit. The projects are small enough so that you can experiment with a variety of new techniques without investing huge chunks of time.

About the projects:

1. The projects are firstmost decorative and pretty, and only secondarily useful. In other words, something you would give as a gift but perhaps not buy for yourself! They all look very expensive, if you were to buy them, which is a good thing? See item #2.

2. The variety of project types is very limited. Several little pouches and purses, towels, several scarves. One or two toys, hats, blankets. I see them as gifts for women/girls, gifts for babies, and housewarming gifts.

3. There is a nice variety of project methods. For example: wool knit shibori scarf, tea dyed scarf, inlaid wool scarf, felted silk scarf. You'll learn different techniques in the making of just scarves, which you can apply to your own invented future projects.

4. A variety of project materials are used: felt, paper, silk, fleece. Some projects are small enough to make with bits of stash fabric. Although a few projects encourage using "repurposed" fabric, many use materials that seem to me quite posh and pricey. I'm sure you could substitute, but the effect may not be the same.

Last Minute Knitted Gifts is one of my favorite knitting books, so I bought this book hoping to find lots of inspiration for cute sewing projects. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed with it. Many of the patterns (scarves, blankets, dishtowels, a sarong) involve not much more than buying a large piece of fabric and hemming it. Some projects are not sewing projects per se, but rather involve felting (felted rocks? Seriously?), or simply using fusible interfacing to attach fabric to things. While the results of all of these types of projects aren't unattractive, I'd rather use my limited crafting time to create, rather than embellish, and I certainly don't need a book to tell me that if you hem a piece of fabric, you can call it a blanket. As for the actual sewing projects--well, some are cute, but if you can't find versions of them for free on Craftster or the crafty blogs, you're not looking very hard. There are some cute projects here--a darling felt bunny, a patchwork pillow, a hooded towel that would make a great baby gift--but overall, I think anyone who is interested in more than basic beginner-level fabric projects would be better served by Amy Butler's In Stitches or Denyse Schmit Quilts. At the very least, I'd look at this book in a store before you spend the money.

Well, the name of this book is Last Minute Fabric Gifts, not Inventive New Sewing Ideas.

Much like Last Minute Knitted Gifts, the concept seems to be a collection of fabric projects that you can complete in 1 day or less. So, yeah they may seem simplistic if you are looking for new adventures in sewing. And yeah, some of them are not sewing projects. They are fabric projects. I found it refreshing to think about the textile medium beyond the needle and thread.

But, Ms Treen has done a brilliant job of boiling down sewing to an approachable level. The projects are clearly explained. Many are unintimidating for beginners, a few are a bit more advanced. All produce a gift item that is good-looking, and most important, finished. If I had a dime for every craft-gift project that wasn't completed on time, and I ended up having to buy something instead at the last minute... Well, I'd probably have enough dimes to cover the cost of this book.

This is a great book for a sewer looking for quick and clever gift ideas that can be easily adapted to accomodate your own creativity. Not everything needs to be complicated to be interesting! The first project I tried was the stuffed sheep last night in about two hours, and it is totally adorable. Unlike other reviewers, I was relieved that it was a simple project, with materials that were easy to find and patterns that could be traced directly from the book without photocopying. I have gone on to modify the pattern to make a variety of different barn animals and I am very happy with the results. I can't wait to try some of Treen's other projects!

I am so glad I got this book! I consider myself to be a self-learned beginner sewer, and I have produced great results from this book so far! The directions are very easy to understand and the gifts are very modern and hip. The book is full of all of the products I wished were at the local craft fairs instead of the boring/dorky stuff I usually see.

This is a beautiful book. You really can make these things quickly and because they are simple, you can add your own flair. These are accessible for beginners and not boring for intermediate sewers. Some of the reviews here claim this book is too easy for them. These projects are on the basic side because they are intended to be "Last Minute". If you are an advanced sewer, you can easily use your imagination and make them more complicated!

This book is excellent, especially for the beginner. The projects are easy to follow and arranged by the amount of time they take to complete. There are even projects that take less than an hour, which is good for those with limited time. The layout makes the book easy to read and easy to use while making the projects. The material lists contain items that are easy to find. Also, the materials required are simple enough to modify to your own tastes and budget. The beginning and end of the book contains loads of basic information about sewing. The information is so complete that someone new to sewing can get started quickly and will able to navigate their way through the store to buy supplies. I made the coat sleeve bag and gave it as a gift! It was as easy as the pattern indicated and my gift was received well!
Although some have said that this book doesn't have enough sewing in it, I think it's geared for the person who doesn't know if they want to sew, invest in a sewing machine or invest in a bunch of supplies. The book is also geared for the person who considers hand-made to include just putting their time into something to personalize it. It's not a book for serious crafting, but literally for last minute things. Whether it's last minute due to time or just a project to use up scraps, I think the book has a place.

I just saw this book at the bookstore and ran home to buy it on Amazon. The book is filled with original ideas of things to sew. The author uses a lot used fabrics, sweaters, and such to create new items, which I found particularly appealing. A great book to get before the holidays. Get out your sewing machines!

I love to make handmade gifts and this gave me some great new ideas beyond belts and bags. I made the felted chiffon scarf for my mother for mother's day. I had never felted before; it came out beautiful.