Customer Reviews

Sew U: The Built by Wendy Guide to Making Your Own Wardrobe

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Whether you've never touched a needle and thread or, like me, have been sewing for years, everyone will find something of value in this book. I've been making clothes for 40+ years and found this book a valuable asset to add to my sewing library.

Most sewing/craft books read like an encyclopedia - dry facts with one way to do things. This book is written in a conversational style, almost as if Wendy is sitting with you, guiding you through the process. Her explanations were clear, accurate and understandable. She encourages the reader to start with the basics and expand, be creative. The only spot I found something disturbing was in the explanation of stitch length. According to the author, stitch length should be set around 2.5 - that may be true for her machine, but my machine has lengths at 8, 10, 12, etc. For someone who doesn't know what they're doing, running up against this may be a bit confusing. She also states that hand stitching is the only way to secure buttons. Yes and no. It depends on the type of button but some can be done with a machine.

The book also includes three basic patterns - skirt, blouse and pants - for the reader to work with. A huge bonus for the buyer. My problem with this is the sizing. She goes from size 0 to 12 - a wide range, but unfortunately, today's body types tend to run much larger. Perhaps in a future issue, a size or two larger could be included.

Other than these few minor glitches, I found this a well-written, well-presented book that anyone who is contemplating trying their hand at sewing should immediately pick up and put to use. This one is a definite keeper.

Reviewed by Vicky Burkholder
8/22/2006

4½-BOOKS for WUAT; 5-STARS for Amazon

I don't often write reviews, but I thought this book deserved one. I would consider myself an intermediate sewer. I've sewed in the past, I know how to use a machine and how to hand sew, done mostly quilts, pillows and drapes, but never attempted clothing. This summer I attempted 3 separate items of clothing and failed pretty miserably at all three, for varying reasons. I picked up this book as kind of a refresher and on my first time out, I came up with a skirt that actually fit!! It goes over basics that people might sometimes forget, explains the ins and outs of the machine, fabric and some sewing terminology. And it also gives you some tips and tricks that are pretty helpful. If you've sewed clothes before, I wouldn't recommend the book as it is too elementary, but for those who want to make the transition into clothing, I think it is a must. I look forward to more books by this author!

I've recently rediscovered sewing. This book rocks. It's the first book I've seen that really addresses the whole process of creating hip clothes, from storing my supplies, to choosing fabric, to altering patterns. If this book had come out a few years ago, my closet would be overflowing with fabulous things. It also includes some brilliant shortcuts, which I've since learned are standard in the "industry" -- for instance, punching a single hole to indicate darts instead of thread tracing them saved me hours, and was surprisingly accurate. The tone of the book is very straight forward and clear, and the illustrations are fabulous.

The book isn't flawless -- while making the shirt in the book, I wish there had been more detailed instructions about making the sleeve plackets and stitching the collar. However, there seem to be tons of books and websites that can help me with individual problems, but not yet one that gives such a good overall foundation for "fashion sewing," if you will.

As for the sizing, I've made the pants and shirt in the book, and found them to be very true to size -- no vanity sizing, though. An extra-small is really an extra-small. The jeans I made were formfitting, but accommadated my (real) hips. It's a shame that the patterns only go up to a size 12.

Update, 23 May 2010

My opinion of "Sew U" is essentially the same -- it's a fun supplemental sewing book with patterns that would tend to appeal more to teenaged girls and young women with casual tastes. The only thing I would add is that it IS really helpful to have the proper tools -- the author downplays this because she and other contemporary authors of beginning sewing books tend to dumb down things with the misguided idea of being less intimidating to novices.

But if you're not that experienced, it's actually helpful to have specialized tools. A professional has the dexterity to make do with fewer tools, although most pros do have well-equipped workrooms. Fortunately, apart from tools like scissors, many sewing notions are reasonably cheap. You can afford to buy several different kinds of chalks to find the one that works best for you and the job at hand.

To discuss a specific point in the book, I personally find it hard to simply lay down a pattern on fabric, weight it down and cut. The fabric slides. I obtain more accurate results if at least I pin the fabric down and cut. My preferred method, however, learned from tailoring teachers, is to pin the fabric selvages together, pin the two layers together at various places, transfer the paper pattern to oaktag, lay down the oaktag, weighting it if necessary, and to trace the outline with chalk. Then I remove the oaktag and cut the traced outline.

I know it's time-consuming, but following steps like the ones I suggested is why clothes made with professional methods tend to look better. If you decide to pursue this and hold yourself to the highest standards, you'll see what I mean.

******

I bought "Sew U" several months ago. I leafed through it and found it interesting but a little overwhelming, as I have found most sewing books. I did like the author's attempt to demystify sewing, noting that not all the fancy tools are necessary at the beginning, and her suggestions for modifications that the readers can make to the patterns. It's a nice-looking book, in a format that lays flat when open, which is handy for a crafts book.

Having said that, "Sew U" does not connect all the dots for the beginning sewer. A few months ago, I enrolled in a rigorous beginning sewing class at a famous school that specializes in fashion design. I have by far the least amount of experience in the class.

Early on in the class another person saw me with the book and said she'd liked it, but it "left things out." I didn't know what she meant until last night when I was trying to do a class project, making a fitted shirt not unlike the one featured in "Sew U." I flipped to the pages in the book dealing with attaching the cuffs and collar, but the book treats in summary fashion a fairly complicated process.

I had to ask a more experienced student, and if she hadn't been available, I'd have had to consult a truly comprehensive guide, such as the "Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing," the Dorling Kindersley "Complete Book of Sewing," or David Page Coffin's "Shirtmaking."

The style of some of the patterns isn't really to my taste, but I'm not complaining about that; you can tell from the illustrations that the style is laid back -- I figured I could alter them -- mainly, I was looking for a more concise reference book than the ones mentioned above. As noted, this book does have some deficiencies for a guide with its title.

But if you have basic sewing construction skills, you will enjoy the book. I plan to look at the "Sew U" book on knits in the future, but again, I will assume that it is not a standalone text.

Oh, Wendy.

Let me start out by saying that this is really a fantastic book that fills a great big gaping hole in the sewing world, and in my personal sewing library.

That being said, I hated it.

Don't get me wrong - I really enjoyed reading it, and I do use it as a reference occasionally. But the actual meat of the book is lacking.

Every teacher worth their salt knows that when teaching beginners, you need to be CONSISTANT with them. It's just like teaching a puppy: if you chastise them for jumping on people one day, and then praise them for it the next, they get confused. Are they supposed to jump on people or not?

SO WHY AREN'T THE SEAM ALLOWANCES CONSISTANT??? (I feel better now :-p)

I'm going to be perfectly honest here: the directions were terrible. They looked exactly like the directions in a "Big 4" pattern envelope. The only way I managed to get the skirt together properly was by reading Easy Guide to Sewing Skirts. But then when I put it on, I pulled the zipper tab out the top. Oops. And I have yet to get the shirt together, the directions make no sense at all. I managed to get it partly done, thanks to a video at Expert Village by Stephany Jess, but the seam allowances did me in.

Oh, and all the photos were photoshopped to look like sketches, which was VERY distracting, and made them hard to see.

Now, the reason I loved this book was the way she encouraged variation. She inspires people to be creative, which is lacking in most sewing books (except for the newer ones written for a younger audience, but I mostly inherited my mom's sewing books). And the fact that she includes patterns with her book! Wow! That fact alone was what inspired me to buy it. No more hunting down obscure OOP patterns on ebay just to get something SIMILAR to what the author used as an example.

I want to make something very clear here: I'm young, only 23, but I'm not hip. I dress very conservatively for my age group. However I don't want to make clothing that looks like it came from an 80s movie. So really, none of the sewing books out there truly appeal to me. Wendy's conversational style makes this book one of the closest things to a sewing instructor I've had, and for that, I thank her. This book does fill a big gap in the general sewing library, and I'm sure her next one will, too. But it's not a book for raw beginners, as I was. I'd say wait till you have a few projects under your belt before attempting the patterns in this book.

kudos to wendy on jumping in and giving us some patterns that are indeed needed in the world of pattern design. i've been sewing for a year and a half so i jumped right into the pants pattern. wendy does do some assuming, which is okay, though sometimes frustrating. i wish she were a little clearer. for instance, just have a page that serves like the back of a pattern envelope for each pattern. it'd be nice to know things like zipper size, fabric amount, etc. in one convienient area. is every curved seam allowance assumed to be 1/4" (i.e. on the fly)? i find myself flipping through the book, searching for specifics. a nice clear format would be refreshing. the text of this book is great for beginners and brusher uppers.

I liked the format of the book, and she had some really good information about techniques and terms. I also appreciate the variations she demonstrates in the chapters for shirts, skirts, and pants. They may not all appeal to me, but they show what is possible with some tweaks to basic patterns. She encourages the reader to be creative and experimental.

She really does gloss over very important information for the beginner. For example, I just finished a pair of pants from her book. Over all the instructions were fine, except when I went to make the belt loops. She doesn't actually mention how to make them! When I took my best guess based on the pattern, the material shredded as I tried to turn them right-side out. I had no idea if this was a problem with the material or my procedure!

I read this book cover to cover and it was so well written that I enjoyed it like a good novel. It is an indespensible resource for experienced and novice seamsters alike. Me being a novice, I feel it covers all the bases. It's a great book for beginners because Wendy will ensure thay you don't get into any bad habits. She supplies the reader with three solid projects skirt, blouse, and pants. It will be a challenge to complete them, but once I do I'll be well on my way to DIY sewing.

This book is perfect for a novice sewer. It includes your basic pants, blouse, and skirt patterns. The instructions are easy to follow and help you with everything starting with the basics all the way up to giving you ideas for making your own embelishments on the patterns as your skills progress. I also liked the few extra pages Wendy adds to the end of each section for making your own notes about your ideas for current and future projects. Best of all the patterns fold up and slip into a nice sleeve in the back of the book for safe-keeping.

I absolutely adore this book and the creativity that oozes from the pages! This is not a dull how-to book, but a fabulous kit that guides you through all the steps of constructing a garment (with the given patterns) and then using your creativity to customize. She presents a basic shirt, skirt, and pants pattern and then gives different project ideas to tweak each one for a totally different look. I am a craft/sewing book addict and this is hands-down my favorite new book!