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Sewing 101

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Member Reviews

I am still a relative newbie to sewing, and I found this book to be immensely helpful. In addition to the clearly written instructions supported by step-by-step color photographs, the publisher offers ten short, on-line videos to assist with basic knowledge of sewing. After sections covering sewing basics, the book offers specific projects listing what will be learned and the materials needed. The practical projects include garments as well as home decor.

While I did receive an electronic advanced reader copy from the Quarto Publishing Group via NetGalley, I also plan on ordering a physical copy as the information contained is something I want at my fingertips. I have not found a more clearly written book for beginning sewers. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review and received no monetary compensation.

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Sewing 101 is an excellent first sewing book as well as a great reference for your shelf. It covers everything from fabric, patterns, cutting, hand sewing, to projects as detailed as a jacket, vest, pillows, vest, and much more. Good directions, great tips and lots of pictures. Very well done.

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Seems like a great resource - step by step instructions, including photos, on everything from how to thread your sewing machine to installing zippers and sleeves. I'll reserve a final decision until I actually try one of the projects, since that's when instructions will either make it or break it. I do like how each project contains a list of skills you will learn, fabric hints, important things to keep in mind, etc.

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This book has a lot of great information for beginning sewers and those that are intermediate. It has information from how to set up the threat on the sewing machine, hand sew buttons, and how to cut patterns, plus so much more. This is a great book to have in your arsenal and I already have it pre-ordered so I can have a paperback copy.

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Special thanks to NetGalley and Quarry Books for allowing me to read an ARC of SEWING 101: MASTER BASIC SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES EASILY THROUGH STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTION in exchange for an unbiased review.

SEWING 101: MASTER BASIC SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES EASILY THROUGH STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTION by Editors of Quarry Books is a beginner level sewing course with 3 sections - Sewing Basics, Sewing Garments and Sewing Home Decor, along with a Glossary and Index. SEWING 101 teaches you everything you need to know for successful machine sewing. There are 20 projects supported with step-by-step instructions and full-colour photos and Tips and Quick References.
I am always happy to learn from my reading, so I was pleased to learn some new things while reading this book. Although I have experience sewing, I was unfamiliar with a bodkin until I saw the photo of a bodkin being used to thread elastic through a casing along with an explanation of the tool and how to use it. It would be much more efficient than my method of using a safety pin.
The ARC that I read did not mention getting patterns off internet. In the past I chose my patterns from Pattern books like those mentioned in this book. Patterns are also available online, so it should probably be mentioned in the book. My daughter sews beautiful clothes from sewing patterns she obtained online.
I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn how to sew with a sew machine. It also makes a great reference book.
4.5 creative stars ⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️⭐️️

Posted on Goodreads August 29/19
NetGalley August 29, 2019
Savvy Reader August 29, 2019

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A really fabulous book for anyone wanting to learn the basic of sewing. With step by step visual instructions to making T-shirt, pull on skirt, Trousers, vest and more. This book starts one off into making simple core garment, once the steps are understood, more advanced garment can be made.
There is also a section on home items such as cushions, curtains, bags and other home decorating items, all explained and easy to make.
I have been sewing for close on 50 yrs and never thought of putting double sided tape to hold zippers in place rather than pins - never to old to learn.

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Beginning sewing guide. Starts with a couple of pages on how to use the book to get the best results. Then the book covers the basics, including info on sewing machines and their accessories, how to get the machine ready to sew, tension, seams, stitches, hems, supplies, special products, fabrics, patterns, and cutting. Then there are step-by-step how-to projects for clothing (most require a pattern) and home decor (most don't need a pattern). The photos on the project pages are extremely dated, and quite a few of the items (especially in home decor) are things I would not consider fashionable any more that most people would not be looking to make. The book does cover the information, I just wish the projects and photos seemed more current.
I received an ebook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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This book is an excellent first sewing manual for learners. It presents just enough information to get started without overwhelming the reader. The projects are simple but practical. I think readers will be especially happy to make their own t-shirts and sweatpants.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the digital ARC!

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This book is a great introductory course on sewing. Starts with sewing a seam, getting to know your supplies and notions, shopping for fabrics, reading a pattern, and more. Projects include skirt, vest, pillow covers, tote bag, curtains, etc. Each project has several pages of instructions with step-by-step photos. Even an absolute sewing novice will feel confident moving through this book and learning to sew.

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I’ll start with the positives: very clear, step by step walks through basic sewing skills which make it all seem achievable.
Now. The photos. Ugly fabrics and the kind of home décor I’ve not seen for thirty years.
Despite being an advance review copy, and therefore I assumed, a new book, I feel convinced this is recycled material. For example, the internet is a massive resource for sewers, with many free templates and useful tools, but I could not find any reference to online resources in the book at all.
This would have been a good gift for a young person interested in sewing but I fear that the lack of style and the old-fashioned air, may just put them off .
Useful, but unattractive.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this arc.

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Sewing 101: Master Basic Skills and Techniques Easily Through Step-by-Step Instruction has been updated and offered in paperback. The book will be available on September 3rd, 2019 and includes online resources available to the reader.

For me, as a crafter and do-it-yourselfer, I find that Quarry Books consistently offers the books that give me all the information I need to know, in a clear, concise manner, with easy-to-follow instructions, beautiful photography, and projects I actually want to make.

Their newly revised Sewing 101 hits each of those marks. They take newbies to sewing (or those who need a refresher)and start at the beginning with the various parts of the sewing machine, what they do, how to adjust them etc. Then describe the basic tools of sewing, describing how each is used; types of fabrics with differences in how they are used and handled; various stitches and ways to finish seams, etc. You will be encouraged throughout with Tips.

The reader has several projects to choose from in both garments and home décor sections. Each project has What You'll Learn and What You'll Need lists and takes you step-by-step with photographs/illustrations of each.

I think this is a wonderful addition to their DIY craft series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarry books for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

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Sewing 101: Master Basic Skills and Techniques is a reformatting and re-release of a tutorial and learning guide for basic sewing especially slanted toward beginners first released in 2011. Due out 3rd Sept 2019 from Quarto on their Quarry imprint, it's 224 pages and will be available in paperback format. It's part of the 101 series of books for learning a variety of crafts and skills.

The way we live today means that more and more people will be learning skills by themselves, in the absence of learning them from a family member. Sewing is a wonderful skill to have and is a significant help when repairing and re-purposing clothing and other cloth items. This book does a good job of teaching the beginning sewist how to acquire the tools and supplies needed, and how to get started learning how to sew.

The book is split into workshop sections. The first introductory section introduces in generic terms the parts of a sewing machine and their functions, the accessories which may be available, and getting ready to sew. All of the instructions are accompanied by clear photographs and a step-by-step tutorial format. For complete beginners, it might be helpful to have a friend or family member to help. However, in the absence of a "guru", I believe it would definitely be possible to thread a machine which was in good working order without any other assistance than this manual.
The book shows different seam finishing techniques (note: this book doesn't cover overlock or sergers, so this is finishing for flat seams). It also covers seam allowances and tips and tricks such as pin placement, basting, hand sewing buttons and blind hems.

There's good information on fabrics, linings, fabric preparation, cutting, pattern matching plaids, stripes, and more. The book contains tutorials for both garment construction and home decor/soft furnishings. The projects, such as quilted placemats, are well written and amply photographed. There's a glossary and index, but no links are provided. A simple internet search will provide an abundance of links and retailers for sourcing supplies.

This is a solid introduction and reference for sewists. I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone interested in sewing garments or home decor. Very useful.

Four stars.

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Sewing 101 is perfect for the beginner sewing student. I learned so much from this book. It has easy directions and beautiful illustrations. It is an excellent addition to any library.

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Fabulous book to learn by and develops with little projects to graduate the learning. Found it really useful and a source of information that I can refer back to

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*** I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley. ***

Newbie sewer here! I've been looking for some explanatory books on how to sew, some techniques, and projects to do. This is an actual book aimed towards those of us new to sewing, complete with pictures and diagrams on different concepts.

More than half of the book is meant as an introduction to sewing: there are chapters on getting your sewing machine set up, how to figure out the tension, hand-sewing, doing buttons, selecting fabrics and patterns, and actually cutting out the patterns. (Honestly the pattern part is somewhat intimidating so I appreciated this section)

The other half of the book is patterns -- I'm not sure why they put garments before the home decor given that the home decor tended to be simpler than the garments. The square pillows and blankets would have been better to have before getting into patterns (shirts, etc). Some of the project pictures look dated but definitely are not, but I liked the variety of easy home decor projects that were included with step-by-step photos.

One thing that I liked was the explanation on how to do the blanket binding; for some reason it's hard to find a good step-by-step of the technique, but the way it's shown in the book is straightforward. I would suggest this for other newbie sewers.

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Sewing 101 is an excellent guide for anyone new to sewing and sewing enthusiasts.

This book includes DIY projects including sewing garments and Home Décor and offers tips and techniques on sewing.

It starts with the basics—the sewing machine and its accessories—Bobbins, Presser Feet. The author guides you on how to insert the needle, wind the Bobbin, thread the needle and so on. The reader will learn other techniques such as how to balance tension, Sew a seam (and special seams), Hand Stitches, and Hand Hems. From there the book progresses to Hand-sewing supplies ( such as threads, needles), measuring and marking tools, cutting tools (scissors), pressing tools, and additional materials like cutting boards, elastics, a bodkin, basting tape and more.
This section also covers types of fabrics, and guidelines on choosing the right one—and tips on how to store them.

Another section introduces patterns— selecting a pattern, types of patterns, inside the pattern, pattern layout and more.

The subsequent chapters cover sewing projects (skirts, jackets, apron etc) and Home décor—Raw-edge Fland Pillows. Knife-edge pillows, pillowcases, baby blankets, tablecloths, Roman shade and more.
The easy-to-follow instructions are accompanied by photos to guide the reader. Highly recommend.

Thank you to the authors and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

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I used to sew as a teen but as time and life got in the way I lost the skills and memory of the lessons I had once learned. This book is perfect for anyone who needs the basic and a refresher course on how to sew. It is perfect and easy to understand.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Quarry Books Sewing 101: Master Basic Skills and Techniques Easily Through Step-by-Step Instruction

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I recently took up machine sewing, doing a beginners course and quickly getting sucked into the world of dressmaking (I'd only planned to learn in order to recover some caravan seating). A piece of advice given in the course was to find a decent "sewing bible" to add to our kit. Well, I've found it! This book is the perfect guide to keep close at hand, no matter what you want to tackle or how experienced you are, and even has information about hand sewing too. Its clear, easy to understand and well organised. The pictures do seem a little dated, which is a shame as the rest of the design is really nice. But that doesn't take away from just how useful this book is.

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Thorough yet laid out in a manner that didn't make the instructions appear overwhelming. I am looking forward to trying out a couple of projects, specifically, the zippered pillow. I most certainly appreciated the intro to the basics, however, the section on 'How To Balance Tension' was the golden nugget for me. It seemed like every time I attempted to finish a seam, the thread would snap. Thank You! Wonderful photos and illustrations. Very good manual.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the Editors of Quarry Books for an ARC of Sewing 101 in exchange for an honest review.

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This ARC was courtesy of netgalley - all thoughts and opinions are mine and unbiased

I've been looking for some time for something like this. Interested in acquiring some skills in using a sewing machine with non experience

I'm glad I waited as this is the perfect answer

Brilliant book with lots of great step by step pictures. Covers all the basic with clear instructions for the absolute beginner like me

I now know exactly what tools I need, how to set my machine and with just projects to tackle

Loved it !!!

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