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jamethiel posting in

sewing

Hi all,

I'm currently taking sewing lessons and making a coat (tailored, with horsehair interfacing and pad-stitching and all!). However, I'd like to read up a bit more on the subject. My teacher says all her learning is in her head, and I'd like to read about it.

So I'd like reference books! Specifically books on

Tailoring
Fit and how to see what's wrong with a garment and how to fix it
couture finishing techniques

What are your recommendations?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

ducened

My preferred fit & tailoring books:
Fit for Real People, Pati Palmer & Marita Alto
Fantastic Fit for Every Body, Gale Grigg Hazen
Fast Fit, Sandra Betzina
Fitting Finesse, Nancy Zieman

As for coture, I use Clotilde's Sew Smart (ISBN: 0-9748217-0-5)

From:

jamethiel

Thank you so much! I've been searching for all of these books and not knowing if there was anything GOOD. It's so reassuring that you'd rec these.

From:

havocthecat

My meager sewing skills are all "okay and you do this" from people who are master-level SCA seamstresses or cobbled together from reading a bunch on the internet, so I have no recs, but will be following your posts on the subject eagerly, for sure.

From:

ysabetwordsmith

That sounds fun. Some best-of booklists to browse:

https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/sewing

https://www.goodreads.com/list/tag/sewing

https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tailoring

https://www.goodreads.com/genres/couture

https://www.thecreativecurator.com/sewing-books/

If you have a local fabric store, check there. Usually they have several how-to-sew books from major pattern companies. That way, you can look at the books and see which has the most content you would use. With luck you might even find one from a couture pattern company, though most of the books I've seen have been from places like McCalls or Simplicity. Some fabric stores have a bookshelf where you can just buy the book you liked best. If not, just write down the title/publisher and order it online later.

Also, hit the used-book stores in your area. Many older sewing books assumed that everyone would make their own clothes, instead of just being a hobby, so they include some information that doesn't always appear in modern books. The capsule wardrobe thing is actually old, not new, and there used to be a lot more advice on tailoring or troubleshooting.

Moving beyond books, I recommend that you look for slopers, which are sort of all-purpose patterns meant to be modified. I have found many posts about these online, some with printables, some with instructions for making your own.

Allfreesewing is a great online resource with a searchable database of patterns and tips.

https://www.allfreesewing.com/Sewing-Tips-and-Tricks/Couture-Sewing-Techniques

https://www.allfreesewing.com/Basics-and-Tutorials/How-to-Sew-Basic-Clothing-Alterations

https://www.allfreesewing.com/Basics-and-Tutorials/Easy-Basic-Bodice-Block-for-Beginners

https://www.allfreesewing.com/Bottoms-to-Sew/DIY-Pants-Alterations-NSM2022

Getting into my own work ...

Learn How to Sew has many links for different subtopics from basic to advanced. "How to Simplify Fashion" has a section on sewing a capsule wardrobe that will mix-and-match, among other topics.

"When Life Throws You Some Curves," "What Survives the Whole Process," and "What the Scissors Have Cut Asunder" are poems about sewing/clothes, whose notes include references you might find useful.

Oh, and I recommend buying a roll of butcher paper or other large, long craft paper. Tissue is fine for a pattern you only want to use once, but heavier is better for repeated use and splicing together pages or paper bags gets tedious. My grandmother put some of her most-used patterns on single-ply cardboard, like from cereal boxes.