Book Review: Sewing in A Straight Line.

It is not often that I pre-order a book without seeing the contents first, but when I had heard that Brett Bara was coming out with a sewing book, I was really interested. I am most familiar with her work as the editor in chief of Crochet Today!, but she also contributes to Design*Sponge as well, and I just  like her designs.  So, I was intrigued enough to purchase and preorder her book, "Sewing In A Straight Line" from amazon.  Although I received it a little while ago, it took me a bit to really go through it and take some pictures to share with you, plus this is my first ever book review for this blog, and needed some time to think about how to write this post!

The premise of this book is basically to showcase how many things you can make by just sewing in a straight line ... and basically how sewing does not have to be complex, and is in fact quite easy.  What interested me most was the projects that use materials that I have not really worked with before such as chiffon or stretch knits.  I figured what better way to try out a new (to me) fabric than by sewing a project with all straight lines?  And you know I love sewing straight lines as all 3 of my sewing patterns use only straight lines.

There are 28 projects in the book, and I can honestly say that I like all of them.  That is quite unusual for me to get a book and actually like all of the projects. Liking a project does not necessarily mean that I will make it though ... sadly even though I have a ton of craft books, I rarely ever make anything from them.  I guess I just enjoy looking through them and contemplating making items from them.  There are about 11 projects out of the 28 that I am contemplating to make ... but realistically will probably only make about 2-5. 

The book is divided into roughly 4 sections.  The first 25 pages is devoted to the basics: tools, techniques, fabric basics, etc. While this section appears to be sufficient for someone who already has some sewing experience, and perhaps just needs a refresher, it does not appear to me to be detailed enough for someone just learning to sew.  I say this because there are not any step by step photographs, but rather some illustrations.  Although the illustrations are very nice looking, I think an absolute newbie is better off with actual photos.   If you are totally new to sewing, and need to actually learn how to sew, I would recommend S.E.W. (Sew Everything Workshop)  by Diana Rupp (who is coming out with an "Embroider Everything Workshop" book soon too!)... that book is really wonderful.

The other 3 sections of the book are devoted to projects and are categorized as: "straight-up chic fashion", "cozy crafty home", and "quick cute gifts".  For me, I feel that the book really excels in the fashion and gifts sections of the book.  While I like the home projects in the book, I can't help but feel like I have seen these home dec projects a million times before.  For example, there are projects for throw pillows, pillow shams, and curtains.  How many times have you seen those?  And because these are all made with just straight lines, they are not different in any way.  For example in Joel Dewberry's book, there are some pillows ... but they are made different with applique or other non-straight line sewing details.  But, having said all this, there are still a few home projects I would like to make ... not because they are new or fresh, but because they look easier to make than ones I have seen in other books.  Here are some of the home dec projects I may make ...

An ottoman cover ....

A duvet cover ...

And a bucket ...

And here are some of the other fashion/gift items that I would like to make as well ...



This one is a blouse made from chiffon.  It looks really pretty. Although I am not sure how it would look on me, it looks like a great project to try out chiffon.

A cardigan.  Who doesn't need a cardigan? I would like to make this project, once again because of the simplicity of it.  I have only worked with stretch knits once or twice before, and would like to try and use them more often, but have always found patterns that look too complex for a stretch knit newbie like me ... so this one really fits the bill.

And this dress looks really fun.  I have never done shirring before, but the author assures us that it is really easy, and she is very convincing! I think I would want to make this into a long top though, rather than a dress.

And this one is called the "one hour skirt".  Anything that claims it only takes an hour to make and looks this cute gets me interested!!

Here are some super cute little bowls that really do look easy to make and would make a neat Christmas gift.  I also like how they nest ... for some reason I am a sucker for anything that nests together like this ...

And I love this little folder, the use of the suiting fabric is really clever!

Here is a list of the rest of the projects in this book that I have not mentioned yet:

* 2 different belts
* A bag made from faux ostrich (sort of a faux leather looking material)
* The skirt from the cover
* Another dress with an interesting origami folded fabric trim
* A quilted throw that utilizes some wonky squares for a "pixelated" graphic effect
* A wonky diamonds quilt (templates must be enlarged for the diamonds)
* A striped baby quilt
* greeting cards
* A sewing kit that folds up into a cube
* A jewelry keeper for when on the go
* A "denim drop bag" -- this is a bag made from denim for men's shaving stuff, etc.
* A kitty and a bunny softies (square-ish in shape of course!)

Overall, I would give this book 5/5 stars, and will keep it in my library. Want to learn more about this book, or purchase it?

You can buy this book from amazon HERE (there are also some videos you can watch on how to make some of the projects, and some photos from the book on the amazon page).
You can learn more about this book from the author HERE.
You can learn more about the author on her blog HERE.
You can find a free project from the book (the pillow shams) HERE.

And that is it.  I hope I did okay for my first review!  Are there any new books that you have gotten lately that we should know about?