Saturday, July 5, 2014

Review: Stitch it Simple: 25 hand sewn projects to make and share


The only way Beth Sheard could have tiled her collection of fun and whimsical projects more honestly than "Stitch it Simple," would be to call this the "Stashbusting Guide to Ditching That Craftersblock."

My sewing dungeon hadn't hardly seen me for anything more than some sorting and absolutely necessary dress alterations for the last four months when I cracked this open, and while I've found a lot of things that almost put me in a sewing mood lately, the combination of extreme simplicity, whimsical print, and a bold fun aesthetic in Stitch it Simple actually had me looking at my fabrc stash thinking, "hey baby, you're no Kaffe Fassett, but you and your friends there would make a glorious set of alphanumeric pillows, and oh, the sweet bunting you could be. Bonus points for extremely easy to follow instructions.

I'm a stickler for easy to follow instructions. In the last week I've been trying sort one simple patchwork technique, and I turned to five printed sources on my shelves before giving up and letting youtube explain it. (Seriously, Cathedral Windows write ups have a tendency to be serpentine.)I really don't have the energy to compare instructions from multiple sources in order to begin a project. It sucks all the joy out of the creative process for me. So, I doubly appreciate that the directions printed in Stitch it Simple really were quite simple. 

Of course, I first picked up a needle and thread with the intent to become their master when I was nine, so if you've never picked up a needle before, the beginning overview of basic techniques may feel like a graduate course, but I felt like it was a good springboard for talking about the uncomplicated projects that followed.

I liked it, and moreover I liked that I now feel compelled to add some more color to my world.

Happy reading, and happier sewing.

I received an e copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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