Book Review The Home Sewer's Guide to Practical Stitches

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An ideal worktop companion for home sewers, The Home Sewer’s Guide to Practical Stitches is a complete and illustrated resource of hand and machine stitches. What’s the best stitch to hand set a zipper? When should you use a diagonal basting stitch? What are other uses of a blind hem stitch? Whether sewing clothes from published patterns, designing your own sewing projects, or executing simple repairs, The Home Sewer’s Guide to Practical Stitches is the most comprehensive and ready reference consolidating all the most useful and practical information sewers need to choose and use every kind of sewing stitch.

While sewing patterns come with instructions on what stitches to use, they don’t actually include the instructions on how to do those stitches. With machine stitching, using these recommended stitches is contingent on that stitch being available on your sewing machine. If it isn’t, would you know what would make an appropriate substitute? Now, with The Home Sewer’s Guide to Practical Stitches, not only do readers have a complete resource of step-by-step techniques for every stitch, the directory style advice also arms them with all the information necessary to make their own choices according to the fabric they are using and what they wish to accomplish.

• Publisher: Apple Press (6 Feb 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845435168
• ISBN-13: 978-1845435165

About the Author

NICOLE VASBINDER owns and operates the California based sewing studio StitchCraft. She has designed and operated the independent accessory line Queen Puff Puff since 2003 and sells her designs to stores all over the United States as well as stores in Japan, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Nicole’s designs have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Adorn Magazine, JoAnn Magazine, Venus Zine, and Craft. She has authored two other RotoVision titles; Sewing Solutions: Tips and Techniques for the Savvy Sewist and Sewing Machine Secrets: Master Presser Feet and Make your Machine Do More.

                                                                                                                                         

Contents

How to Use This Book

Section 1 
Matching Stitches
Straight Stitch
Tacking Stitch
Zigzag Stitch
Three Step zigzag Stitch
Stem Stitch
Triple Straight Stitch
Ric Rac Stitch
Straight Blind Hem Stitch
Stretch Blind Hem Stitch
Manual Buttonhole
Automatic Buttonhole
Rounded Buttonhole
Keyhole buttonhole
Stretch Buttonhole
Eyelet Stitch
Bound Buttonhole
Button Stitch
Overcasting Stitch
Stretch Overedge Stitch
Double Overedge Stitch
Closed Overlock Stitch
Slant Pin Stitch
Reverse Overcast Stitch
Shell Stitch
Crescent Stitch
Serpentine Stitch
Fix Stitch
Auto Backtack Stitch
Bartack Stitch
Darning Stitch
Honeycomb Stitch
Cross Stitch
Walls of Troy Stitch
Feather Stitch
Faggoting Stitch
Rampart Stitch
Appliqué Stitch
Reverse appliqué Stitch
Asterisk Stitch
Ladder Stitch
Lattice Stitch
Pin Stitch
Double Triangle Stitch
Quilt Stitch
Arrowhead Stitch
Banner Stitch
Bead Stitch
Diamond Stitch
Domino Stitch
Decorative Stitch

Section 2 

Hand Stitches
Backtrack
Backstitch
Running Stitch
Tacking Stitch
Blanket Stitch and Buttonhole Stitch
Overcast Stitch
Whipstitch
Blind Hem Stitch
Slip Stitch
Ladder Stitch
Darning Stitch
French Tack
Bartack
Tailor's Tack
Diagonal Tacking
Pad Stitch
Prick Stitch
Catch Stitch

Section 3 

Tools and Equipment
Hand Needles
Machine Needles
Thread
Presser Feet
Computerised Sewing Machines
Vintage Sewing Machines with Cams

Glossary
Further Reading
Index
Acknowledgements

                                                                                                                                          

The Home Sewer's Guide To Practical Stitches is a great reference book to have in your sewing library. The book is in three sections, the first section is all about machine stitches, the second section is all about hand stitches and finally the third section is all about tools and equipment.
This book has over 60 machine and hand stitches with photographed examples, including fully illustrated step by step instructions. This book taught me that many of the stitches on my sewing machine was for a specific purpose to make certain sewing tasks much easier and faster rather than a decorative purpose. This book shows you hand stitching and learning couture techniques that cannot be accomplished on a sewing machine. This book is full of practical tips, techniques and advice to sewing seams, hems, dart and much more
Both a beginner and an experienced sewer would find this book useful. This book is the perfect size to have right next to your sewing machine for reference!

The Home Sewer's Guide To Practical Stitches is available from Amazon

Disclosure