annieb123
Written on Mar 13, 2019
Sewing Shirts with a Perfect Fit is a new comprehensive technical design and sewing guide for shirts. Released 20th Dec 2018 on Quarto's Quarry imprint, it's 144 pages and available in ebook and paperback formats.
Anyone who has sewn from purchased 'standard' paper patterns knows how much fiddling and fitting is necessary to achieve really good results. This book takes a vital wardrobe staple, the shirt, and shows how to drape, fit, create a pattern muslin, choose fabric, along with thorough construction and finishing information. The instructions are very well photographed and the tutorials are very clearly written in a clear step-by-step manner.
The book is peppered with sidebars covering fitting and compensating for common body anomalies such as uneven and rounded shoulders, 'bodybuilder' shoulders/arms, protruding abdomen, and others. After an explanatory introduction about shirts, their parts, and different outline shapes, there are three chapters on creating loose-fitting, close-fitting, and tight-fitting shirts. The book also includes four design projects. There is a cross referenced index and resource list.
Although this book presupposes some familiarity with sewing, a keen beginner could follow the directions (especially if they have occasional access to a sewing mentor/friend). Advanced sewists will also find value here for getting the best results. I admit that I'm quite guilty of wanting to rush ahead and finish a project RIGHT NOW. I'm the bad sewist who cuts into the 'good' fabric without fitting or making a muslin. I'm the bad knitter who generally skips gauge swatching before starting a new project. This book really has inspired me to do better and drape fit my next shirts as well as creating good muslins/slopers.
Five stars. This is a superlatively written book.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.