A Gem from a Used Book Store

My dear husband has a deep love of books. His very favorite thing to do is go to book stores -- this is often our date night activities. Either we spend hours and no money or we spend hours and come home with some lovely prizes. But it is best when we find a used book store and can dive into shelves of books that we may have never seen before. Recently, we went to a local used bookstore and I went straight to the sewing/knitting area. The gem I brought home was Every Sewer's Guide to the Perfect Fit by Mary Morris & Sally McCann. This book, published in Australia in 1997, gives detailed instructions on how to take measurements exactly and then adjust a store bought pattern to accommodate those measurements.

Morris and McCann state that: "Good fit is characterized by a garment that follows the shape of the body with no indication of stress or wrinkling; the shoulder; the curves at the neckline, armholes, hips, and waistline following the natural contures of the body without either binding or gapping; and the length of the sleeves and hems being smooth and consistent around the entire width and falling at the most flattering point." The wonderful thing about the book is that is shows you how to achieve that "good fit" step by step.

Good measurements are the basis of a good fit and this book gives great pictorial instructions on how to get exact measurements. In fact, before reading this book, I didn't know that you took all of these measurements! But the best part was the instructions on how to make adjustments to off-the-shelf patterns. In the past, I have made adjustments, but they have not always worked out and I often did not like the results. But the adjustments suggested in this book look logical and easy. I cant wait to make adjustments to my own patterns!

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to go to the next level in their own sewing. Making an outfit from a ready-made pattern will be so much more satisfying when the results are great!

Happy sewing!