Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing

I am constantly amazed at variety of craft and sewing books that are on the market today. The desire of people to express their individuality through craft has exploded in recent years, and it’s so heartwarming to witness! Yet along with all those books of projects and inspiration, I think that any good sewing library needs a foundation of reference books that teach technique. A place to run to every time you’re unsure of how to get done what you want to get done. The Reader’s Digest Complete Guide to Sewing is my go-to book.

My copy is copyright 1976/1978, and when I bought it, it was brand new. Yea, I’m showing my age. It was a required book for my textile classes at university. It’s the only text book I kept after college and it sits on the shelf next to my sewing machine. But it doesn’t gather dust. It gets referenced often. It’s a book I recommend to everyone who sews.

Here’s the reason to own the book: the sewing instructions and drawings. Almost any bit of clothing construction can be found within these pages, step by step guides to get you through with wonderful line drawings. I think the drawings are better than photos for getting to see the details. The chapter on just necklines and collars is 40 pages long, the sleeves chapter is 20 pages. There’s also lots of foundational information for sewing draperies, pillows and slipcovers. Lots of detail!

I’ve seen other blogs reference this book with the opinion that the old 1976 edition is the best, so I borrowed the most recent edition from the library to compare the old to the new but found them very similar. They both use the wonderfully detailed line drawings that are the crux of this book and the reason for owning it. In the front of both editions is a section describing different fabric types, so the new version has a few more fiber types that weren’t around in the 70′s, but that’s minor. The discussions about needle types, tension and fitting are relevant in both books. I’ll admit the sample projects in the back of the old version are mostly dated, such as the vinyl bedspread (really?? I lived through the 70′s and I don’t EVER remember that being a good idea.) However I think the pouf pillow is cool and it reminds me a little of Amy Butler’s Gumdrop pillows. Anyway, you’re not buying the book for the projects. The bottom line is— get yourself a copy of this book no matter the publication year. You can find old edition copies on eBay and Amazon for less than $10 if you’re patient, which makes the old editions a good bargain to boot. I recently found a copy in a used bookstore for $7 and my sister was happy to adopt it. Happy Sewing!