Customer Reviews

Sewing for Plus Sizes: Creating Clothes that Fit and Flatter

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book is a masterpiece of practical information for those who would sew for any size person. Barbara Deckert has geared it to the "plus size" person, but the information it contains about line, design, fabric selection, equipment for sewing, and pattern alteration is applicable to anybody. The book has many very useful illustrations of various body shapes and the way various styles will look on them, along with suggestions for modifying garment styles to make them the most attractive on those shapes. Her attitude about clothing is that it should be enjoyable to wear. She doesn't advocate stuffing the plus size body into a drab gray box, and the pictures of her and her models that the book contains demonstrates that bold, attractive colors can be worn to great advantage on it. Her section about fabric selection, both fiber content and design contains a wealth of information about the way to expect various materials to behave, along with practical guidance for selection of certain fabrics for some things and not for others. She dmystefies the arena of sewing tools, stating which are essential and which are not, along with tips such as "Don't use bright, contrasting colors (for tailor's tacks) because some threads may crock, or bleed color onto the fabric, or small fiber pieces from colored thread can stick to and discolor light fabrics." The book is totally understandable and practical. Barbara devotes a large part of the book to pattern alteration for figure irregularities. This section contains a wealth of illustrations for changing the shape of purchased patterns to accommodate various physical differences, whether they relate to size or asymmetry. Her understanding of the way the body tissues behave and change shape from standing to sitting and the way for the sewer to allow for these changes sets this book strikingly above the general run of sewing books. I would heartily recommendd this book to ANYONE who sews, whether for plus size or not.

I REALLY found this book helpfull! I am a large-size woman and have been very frustrated with ready-made dresses. This book gives practacal, very candid advice on what will look good on My body type and how to achieve the effect I want. The authers understanding of what it is like to live in, and dress a plus-size body (what our thighs do when we sit down for example) is really helpfull... she knows what she is talking about. The pictures in the book are beautiful, they raise hope that we large-size girls can look both businesslike and sexy as the occasion demands! The dicussion of fabric types and how they will act on my body is very helpful for someone like me who is not as knowlagable as someone who has been sewing for a long time.

I am so sick of buying cheesy catalogue clothes for fat people that are poorly made and look like bright tents. I discovered that sewing for myself was the only way I was going to be able to find a suit for work that fit and looked good. Unfortunly, patterns different fit me because I'm short and fat; the book really taught me how to adjust my pattern and what body type I am. So, now I don't have short sleeves past my elbow and short skirts past my knee, I adjusted them from what the book taught me. This is for all the fat girls!

This book encourages you to stop sewing apologetically for your body, and to dress expressively regardless of your size. Other reviewers have commented that the author's recommendations regarding fabrics with large or bold patterns, or lots of fancy bling-bling are inappropriate for large women. The author makes it clear early on that dressing to look slimmer isn't the ultimate objective here.

The author models a lot of clothing in the photographs. She is brashly large and beautiful and clearly has no intention of trying to fade into the background, as so many large women are tempted to do.

I also love her language and her matter-of-fact way of handling large-women issues, such as extra strain on certain seams that should be reinforced, and fabric choice for our comfort. There's nothing giggly or abashed about it - in fact, it points the finger at the clothing industry for its insufficient and lame attempts to satisfy our clothing needs.

I also appreciated her explanations regarding why commercial patterns never seem to fit. First of all, designers aren't trained to design clothes for real women - they only work with size 8 mannequins. Secondly, pattern manufacturers generate plus-sized patterns simply by expanding out proportionally a "regular" sized pattern - and that's not how we're shaped. When we gain weight, we gain a lot in some areas and not so much in others, and we all do it differently.

I also now know that even if I don't have the exactly correct sized pattern, I can alter it to fit my measurements - something I haven't been as good at before. Now I can buy a lot more of those cool vintage patterns on Ebay!

Warning: Please be advised that this is the paperback book of Sewing for Plus Sizes: Design, Fit, and Construction for Ample Apparel. I did not see this info on the site and made the mistake of ordering both. After deciding paperback or hardcover you can't go wrong with this book. It was a Godsend for me. Being self taught in how to sew this book contained all the info I needed regarding pattern alterations for plus sizes and other tips I didn't even know I needed. Thank you Ms. Deckert!

Sewing for plus sizes actually explains the importance of paying attention when we get dressed in the morning, and especially when we go to the store for patterns and fabric. The clothes in the catalogues are so bad! This book actually tells you all the stuff about sewing that nobody else will tell you.It is a great resource for us big gals who like to sew.

As a sewer for many years, one of my bigges frustrations was that the pattern companies seemed to think that all large and super-sized women are the same shape and have huge bustlines. This book really helped me understand how to alter patterns to fit ME and MY shape. I also like that the author explains how to take just about any size pattern and alter it using your specific measurements. Great for those times that you find a pattern you love, but not in your size!

I purchased this books after I had such a difficult time with constructing a top for a very plus-size client and while I had trouble getting a pants waistband to fit my own not-so-svelte body. Barbara Deckert's book definitely helped me to get those pants done right. Her instructions and illustrations on the various kinds of elasticized waistbands were perfect. A lot of the information that she provides throughout the book, for all kinds of garments, is not available anywhere else. Most people do not bother with this size group, but thank God she did. If you are a designer or sewer of custom-made clothing and want to tap into a neglected market, this is the book that you'll need to help you understand your customer.

I read this book from start to finish, almost without stopping. Ms. Deckert tells us how to make designs more flattering by adding simple trim, moving or enlarging a pocket, or even modifying the lines of the pattern. She tells us how to choose the fabric and patterns that are comfortable and fashionable and explains how to keep these from being mutually exclusive. She then tells us how to measure ourselves and fit the pattern to our bodies (not some size 4 model), and how to fit the basted garment, thus correcting even more problems. It's worth the price of the book for her detailed description, with pictures, of how to correct many specific fitting problems. I am now confident that I can fix the sleeve on the last dress I made, which pulls in front. After reading her chapter on design elements, I think I'll add some trim to the neckline as well. We all know many of her design suggestions and fitting solutions, but she pulls it all together in one book and shows us how to look fabulous.

As a plus size woman who sews in self defense, it is great to be able to find a book that takes into consideration the things that happen when we sit down or move. It is really hard to find a pattern that fits right, this book helps you to figure out how to fix the problems. As the sewing site guide on bellaonline, I have read alot of the sewing books on the market and this one is GREAT! I recommend it to the sewers out there that are having problems fitting things right for their bodies.