Professor Pincushion’s Beginner Guide to Sewing: Garment Making for Nervous Newbies

What a wonderful introduction for the new sewist, offering everything readers could want to know in an attractive graphic presentation. Opatrny, from the Professor Pincushion website and YouTube videos, covers all the essentials here: gathering the most important tools, getting to know the sewing machine (a step often overlooked until problems happen), distinguishing between different types of fabric, and reading the information at the end of a bolt of fabric. The section on reading patterns and determining size is particularly strong—pattern sizing has nothing to do with ready-to-wear sizing. It covers reading the pattern envelope, preparing the paper pattern for use, and laying it out on the fabric. Instructions are also given for downloading some of the patterns; the project for upcycling T-shirts is a confidence builder. Then the author gets into sewing—only simple things here, such as pajama shorts with an elastic waist and a T-shirt.