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Giveaway! The Sewtionary
I have a sizable collection of sewing books, most of them 50+ years old.
Most of them just sit on the shelf and are only pulled out when I want to grab a little inspiration. The books I turn to again and again are the reference books, the ones you can pull out whenever you’re stuck and find exactly what you’re looking for. They are like trusted friends, always there to help you out of a jam.
Tasia (of Sewaholic) has written just such a book. The Sewtionary is packed with 101 different sewing techniques, all illustrated with clear photos and understandable instruction.
This is an ideal reference book for a beginner, but I think it would be handy for intermediate sewists as well! Want to add a welt pocket to a dress you’re making? Want to change up the type of zipper you’re using? Need a reminder about padstitching? It’s all covered.
Giveaway
Tasia has generously agreed to give away one copy of The Sewtionary today.
To win, leave a comment below letting me know one technique that you find yourself looking up often. I’ll choose a winner at random (using the random number generator) on Wednesday, Sept 17. Good luck!
ETA: Comments are now closed, thanks for entering! The winner is Danica!
The Blog Tour Stops
If you’d like to follow the rest of the blog tour (as I’m sure there will be more giveaways), here’s the full schedule:
- Wednesday, September 10th: Thread Theory Blog
- Thursday, September 11th: Miss Crayola Creepy
- Friday, September 12th: Coletterie
- Monday, September 15th: City Stitching with Christine Haynes
- Tuesday, September 16th: Tilly and the Buttons
- Wednesday, September 17th: Madalynne
- Thursday, September 18th: Closet Case Files
- Friday, September 19th: By Gum, By Golly
- Monday, September 22nd: Lladybird
- Tuesday, September 23rd: True Bias
- Wednesday, September 24th: Four Square Walls
- Thursday, September 25th: Ada Spragg
- Friday, September 26th: Did You Make That?
Comments
Rebecca M.
September 13, 2014 #
Darts- always darts…
Miss Marie
September 13, 2014 #
Oh no….Darts!
tina
September 13, 2014 #
Zippers, of course! I would love to have all the tips in one location.
Kim
September 13, 2014 #
I always look up all kinds of hand stitches, because I like using them, but being a beginner I always need to study some pictures before I start stitching :)
Mackenzie
September 13, 2014 #
This might sound dumb, but as a beginner I am always looking up different ways to hem and finish seams. I can never remember what is best for different fabrics!
Veronica
September 13, 2014 #
Buttonholes! I have looked up videos on how to sew buttonholes by hand, by machine, any variation. My machine doesn’t have an automatic buttonhole option, so my buttonholes always look so . . . crafty. And my hand-stitching is not the best. I would love for once to have professional-looking buttonholes.
Laura
September 13, 2014 #
I don’t make pants very often, so a fly zip is something I look up every time.
Kathy Davis
September 13, 2014 #
I am always looking up how to make quilt binding and how to start and end the binding when you attach it to the quilt.
Show and Tell Meg
September 13, 2014 #
Oh gosh, I end up looking things up all the time just to abate my nervousness at potentially messing up! I would say I check most about buttonholes and all things having to do with them – positioning, what type to use, etc. Thanks so much for having the giveaway!
Anne
September 13, 2014 #
I tend to check on techniques that I haven’t got down to a tee or techniques new to me. Zipper insertion, for sure, collars and most recently how make a lining for an unlined jacket and how then to bag it.
Sonia Ramos
September 13, 2014 #
Zippers!
Scruffy badger
September 13, 2014 #
I seem to forget Continuous laps and plackets – but the great thing about books like this is that there are a load of techniques you might never have come across. Looks like a great resource
Rhiannon P
September 13, 2014 #
I am a beginner sewer so i find myself looking up most things! What i would to know more about is elastic waistbands!
Grace
September 13, 2014 #
I always have to look up blind hemming. It’s so hard to remember how to do it so it looks right!!
Denise
September 13, 2014 #
I have been sewing for years but never have time to do it regularly. By the time I finish a project and get to start another one, I may have forgotten how I did it the last time. I make sure to look everything up again just as a reminder.
Julie
September 13, 2014 #
Zippers, bias tape, specific stitch strategies for different fabrics -it’s nice to have a source that gives you that little reminder and boosts your confidence!
Angie
September 13, 2014 #
I always have to look up the seam allowance for the French seams. Looks like a great book.
Angelica
September 13, 2014 #
I look up bound buttonholes, lapped zippers and fitting tricks all the time.
Cassandra
September 13, 2014 #
I always go back to my reference books for a fly front zip. Although not hard to do, I forget which side to start on!
Ashley
September 13, 2014 #
I’m always looking up darts. Even then, I end up ripping them out at least once! Sigh.
Kathy E.
September 13, 2014 #
The one thing I am forever looking up is how to cut and apply bias tape! ugh! If I used it enough, I might remember the tricks! I would love to win this useful book.
jul
September 13, 2014 #
zips!
Garm
September 13, 2014 #
Zippers! I’m soo glad I’m not the only one.
Lisa Izmirian
September 13, 2014 #
French Seams always find it difficult.
Marie-Therese Doutre
September 13, 2014 #
Hi I’m learning how to make trousers/shorts for my grandchildren, so I would definitely use the book to show me the best way to make them, also I always need help setting in sleeves so the book would become my bible and best friend
Vee
September 13, 2014 #
Ooh! Zip insertion. A book that could lie flat amidst the awkward wrangling sounds ideal.
Julie
September 13, 2014 #
I have never been good at zippers:( Thanks for the chance to win a great prize:)
Jane
September 13, 2014 #
Bound button holes!
Sarah
September 13, 2014 #
Zippers. I always have trouble with zippers
:p
sheena
September 13, 2014 #
I would love to get better at various neck and armhole binding techniques. Thanks for the giveaway!!
Jen
September 13, 2014 #
I look up how to use seam binding tape. I have only tried to use it recently and I like the way it looks on necklines and sleeves.
Mickey Newman
September 13, 2014 #
Invisible zippers, how to finish seams, and different types of hand-sewing.
Brigid
September 13, 2014 #
As a beginner – zips! I’m always double checking that I’m sewing it in the right way for the look I want and still sometimes to make sure it doesn’t go in backwards!
Ruth L
September 13, 2014 #
It seems I always check a reference source for invisible zippers, for welt pockets and bound button holes! It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve done it before, I don’t want to destroy something I’ve spent hours on, so it’s always worth double-checking!
Ruth L
Erin
September 13, 2014 #
Invisible zippers and invisible hems! Those invisible things are tricky.
Barbara
September 13, 2014 #
I always need to look up cutting a continous bias strip out of a rectangle piece of cloth. Ive done it a zillion times and know how, but I always pysch myself out about it and need the reassurance of a quick reference peek!
Miet
September 13, 2014 #
I always have trouble with invisible zippers.
brooke
September 13, 2014 #
How to insert a zipper! No matter how many times I do it I always want to be sure…
koreakiwi
September 13, 2014 #
I always have to double check about invisible zippers, changing zipper openings and sometimes vintage sewing techniques. Plus different hand-finishing techniques from time to time.
Nancy
September 13, 2014 #
Being fairly new probably everything lol. But seriously fly zip and flap zip.
Nicole Tzortzinis
September 13, 2014 #
I am really a beginner still, so I don’t even know what I’ll need to look up most. I have been avoiding zippers, though, so that might be the first thing.
Viv
September 13, 2014 #
Something I look up is how to do mitered corners. And proper install / resize of a zipper.
Sallie
September 13, 2014 #
This sounds like just what I need!
Sallie
September 13, 2014 #
Oops, forgot to mention the technique I look up most often, which would probably be pockets.
Sabrina
September 13, 2014 #
Lately I’ve been looking up how to sew buttonholes, even though I haven’t actually been sewing any… I blame it on inspiration garments containing way too many buttons!
zzipper
September 13, 2014 #
I love adding pockets to my outfits and have yet to venture into welt pockets!
Renee G
September 13, 2014 #
I always have to look up how to put on a binding.
Anne
September 13, 2014 #
Seam finishes….learn these, especially if you are beginning to intermediate.
You will always be amazed!
Just sew…and sew…and sew…..cutting and sewing quilts, all those little pieces was the best training I ever had….you have to learn to cut, measure and pay attention to make things fit.
The hours and results are apparent when you then turn to sewing clothes.
Just have fun and be forgiving to yourself!
debra merrill
September 13, 2014 #
This book is on my Christmas list ( yes already!) as I am just learning to sew and I love technique books. I am always looking up the skills that most sewists already know but I also like to read in the car while my husband drives me to boring record and music shops.
Karen H
September 13, 2014 #
I find myself looking up different techniques for full bust adjustments. I am a novice garment sewer, having come from a long history (decades) of quilting. Since I enjoyed hand applique so much, I find myself enjoying all the Couture techniques and often look up the methods for the “perfect” construction and finishing techniques. Your blog is so helpful and I’ve purchased several of your patterns. I think the first one I will be making will be the Hawthorn and then the Cooper Bag.
Crystal
September 13, 2014 #
I want to make a coat this winter ( ordered lady grey!) so I know there will be opportunity for some referencing ;)
Betty Jordan Wester
September 13, 2014 #
I always find myself looking up how to attach collars. I think it’s bc I love Mandarin collar shirts, so when I need to actually attach a collar to a collar stand then I draw a blank.
Tas
September 13, 2014 #
Always have to look up those darn invisible zippers or else I always end up back to front and upside down and inside out and very confused!
Kayla
September 13, 2014 #
This looks like the perfect book for me! I’m always double checking the techniques for invisible zippers and hand stitches, among many other things.
Shanni
September 14, 2014 #
I would like to get a better handle on my hand stitch techniques. Also, french seams on sleeves are daunting! Thanks for the chance to win!
Wendy Hatton
September 14, 2014 #
I’d love to look up better ways to add a collar so it’s nice and neat at the neck…and easy to do too.
Lisa
September 14, 2014 #
I’m a beginner, I lookup various techniques, althought it is my goal to perfect, buttonholes, attach the perfect waistband, invisible zippers and bias binding
Mags
September 14, 2014 #
There are so many, pockets, lapped zippers, buttonholes!
kelerabeus
September 14, 2014 #
I’m actually hoping to finally learn how to make a hand picked zipper! I’m always using invisible zippers (mostly because I find them most easy to install, wit the help of special foot of course :) ), but I would love to change that habit. Just a bit :)
Jessica
September 14, 2014 #
I’m constantly looking up everything! I started sewing this winter with the Cooper and have been trying more and more garments recently. I completed the moneta not long ago but need help sewing with knits. In between garments I’m sewing a lot of zippered pouches and constantly look up directions on how to insert the zipper…..
Jennifer Milligan
September 14, 2014 #
I am always looking up which way to encase or finish a seam. I always get confused and have to look it up frequently.
Sarah
September 14, 2014 #
Welt pockets – they terrify me!
Sally
September 14, 2014 #
Total beginner here…teaching myself zippers now.
Cathy
September 14, 2014 #
I still look up the invisible zipper insertion techniques in my Collette Book every single time!
Rita S.
September 14, 2014 #
Just getting starting sewing garments, so anything that wasn’t used in making quilts is looked up. I want to make sure I’m doing it all right!!
Thanks for the chance to win!!
Jayne
September 14, 2014 #
Those sleeve thingies. Oh what are they called, when you are doing cuff on long sleeves or the skirt bit of a shirt front dress. Plackets! Plackets are my undoing.
I always have to follow the instructions step by step & I still get completely bamboozled after a zillion years sewing & at least 40 or 50 shirts. I cannot tell you how many shirts have ended up on stages with both the plackets facing the same way, rather than mirrored.
Cara
September 14, 2014 #
Zippers!
Karen
September 14, 2014 #
Zippers!
Kari
September 14, 2014 #
I’m a beginner at sewing, so I have to keep looking everything up.
Kathleen
September 14, 2014 #
Zippers, hems and cuffs. I always review the zipper steps because I have found it goes much better than if I just try to “wing it.” I also hem and cuff my husband’s new suit pants. Usually, two or three times a year. No matter how many I have done I always seem to have to look it up. I use to feel bad and then realize there is no need to memorize the information if I know where to find it. The book does look like it would be very useful, a lot of the techniques you mentioned I would have to look up if they came up in my sewing.
Karen U
September 14, 2014 #
I would really like to become a master zipper inserter – or at least adequate and non-fearful. Thanks!
kelly
September 14, 2014 #
zippers! everything about zippers
Abfabulies
September 14, 2014 #
Getting my lining in right. My mind boggles every time.
Katharina
September 14, 2014 #
Oh, I ALWAYS have to look up hoe to fold the hem for a blind hem – It’s always so logical, but I never get it from memory. A bit annoying. Just a bit.
Eliza-sew-little
September 14, 2014 #
Collars, collars ,collars. I’m on the verge of avoiding them…
corsara
September 14, 2014 #
Fly fronts!
Maria
September 14, 2014 #
Zippers and Buttonholes!
Emilie
September 14, 2014 #
Inserting zipper… seem to always need hand-holding for that!
Leslie
September 14, 2014 #
I’m a newbie to sewing. I would love to win this book.
Gill
September 14, 2014 #
I always need help with facings – this looks a great book!
claudia
September 14, 2014 #
I always have to look up how to match plaids. Thank you
Annie Sharkey
September 14, 2014 #
Bound Buttonholes! every-time!
Jackie
September 14, 2014 #
I would like to make garments, but I don’t know anything!
Alice
September 14, 2014 #
I often have to look up how to sew zippers. But I love to learn from books.
Christianne Bower
September 14, 2014 #
I always have to look up how to sew a lapped zipper. I’m so used to using an invisible zipper that I forget how easy it is to do a lapped zip, and sometimes it just looks better.
Amber
September 14, 2014 #
I’m always referencing hand stitches for making a beautiful hem. By the time I get to the end of a project, my brain can’t remember that stuff.
Caitlyn M.
September 14, 2014 #
I always have to remind myself how to sew invisible zippers and machine blind hems. My machine is capable of a lot more than I give it credit for, and I’d love to learn new techniques on it using the Sewtionary as a jumping-off point.
Maria
September 14, 2014 #
This is a beautiful and well-designed reference book from Tasia – which I would love to win, of course. Who wouldn’t?? I have yet to try a lapped zipper so this is definitely something that I would need directions and guidance with. I’m sure the Sewtionary could help with that!
acharmofmagpies
September 14, 2014 #
Despite having done dozens of them, I still has done to look up lapped zips. I made 36 cushion covets with lapped zips for a market and thought I’d finally remember, but three months later and I have to look it up again! Invisible zips no worries, it’s just lapped ones.
Amy
September 14, 2014 #
Definitely button holes! Despite having done them so many times before, I always haveto double check!
Carol
September 14, 2014 #
I still struggle to finish off properly at the top of zips!!
Emily
September 14, 2014 #
I usually have to look up the correct way to sew on neckline facings!
Sewingelle
September 14, 2014 #
Lapped zips. When I first started sewing ( 30 + years ago) this was all I did. Then I discovered invisible zips. Now I have to recheck every time I am contemplating a lapped zip…
Heather
September 14, 2014 #
Like so many other sewers posting, I am a beginner at sewing and am still at the stage of looking up almost everything! The book looks like an excellent resource.
Melissa
September 14, 2014 #
I’m a beginner, so I look up new techniques with each new project. So far, I have probably referred to instructions on using bias tape the most.
Shelley
September 14, 2014 #
Fly front zipper…after all these years I still forget what to fold where for cut-ons. Also sleeve easing at the cap, the darn thing always wants to make little folds.
Walker
September 14, 2014 #
I am working on learning seam finishes- I can definitely see myself pulling this off the shelf to remember how to do the various finishes I’ve been trying to learn via youtube videos and blog tutorials! I love the idea of having all of this information in one easy to grab place :)
Meagan
September 14, 2014 #
I look up zippers the most
Amelia
September 14, 2014 #
I look up zipper instructions every time I have to sew one in.
Laura
September 14, 2014 #
I always go back to the instructions on invisible zips.
Mary
September 14, 2014 #
Oh goodness, after several years of sewing I am still firmly a beginner, so I look up everything.