A Guide to Fashion Sewing

This new edition of the highly successful classic on fashion sewing retains the large helpful illustrations and easy-to-read text of previous editions. The text is organized in a step-by-step, start-to-finish style coupled by thousands of enhanced visuals. Amaden-Crawford helps the reader create fashionable and professional looking garments for women, men and children.

The author outlines an 18-step theory, for sewing any garment, that is intended to eliminate the need to consult direction sheets. The theory may work for the majority of garments, but many pattern direction sheets offer helpful hints for assembling the pieces peculiar to the specific garment. A better suggestion would be to use the author's method with the direction sheets. Nor is the theory flawless; for example, some of the instructions for putting in sleeves are inconsistent.

Also, the book is incomplete in some areas; for example, there are no directions for putting in an invisible zipper. Nevertheless, the book has many good points; the large detailed illustrations are easy to follow and are accompanied by clear instructions. This would be a useful text for a beginning sewing class, and the experienced would find it a useful reference tool. Large public libraries may wish to buy, but smaller public libraries can skip. -- Ruth H. Dukelow, Library of Michigan, Lansing