I may already know how to sew, but I am a total sucker for a sewing how-to book. Any art or craft how-to book, really. This book looked good: Learn To Sew by Alison Reid.

I can’t speak for the quality of the instructions because I can’t really tell if they’re easy to follow or not. My eye+mind can’t seem to read through sewing instructions unless I’m actually doing the activity their explaining. It’s a shortcoming of mine, I suppose. So I will give you my opinion of the projects instead.

I’m not a big fan of making something that will end up looking like a sewing exercise (worse, an exercise in futility) and projects that are doomed to look homemade (in a bad way) for a first time sewer. I think these projects, for the most part, will turn out well as long as a sewer is dedicated to getting the project finished (they are pretty involved).

Another thing I look for is whether the projects are worth making– would I want to make an apron with an adjustable hem? (No, not really.) But I think if you did, it would look good because the pattern looks like it will be forgiving to a beginner’s fits and starts.

I really liked one idea in here that I look forward to using. If you make, or just happen to have, a lot of thin fabric cord you can decorate a fabric edge with loops called rouleau loops, which I’d never heard of. It would be time consuming to add all the loops to the hem of a dress, but the idea is to then sew a piece of fabric behind the loops so it becomes a decorative detail that also adds length.

All in all, it’s a sweet little book with nice photos, but I personally don’t find the projects all that engaging. Depending on personal preference, this could be the sewing book for you.