Weekend Review: 1000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts & Tips

1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts & Tips / Deepika Prakash
Minneapolis, MN: Creative Publishing, c2010.
168 p.

I picked this book up a while ago; as any sewist who is a member of PatternReview will know, it's full of great tips from fellow sewists. 

This book is a compilation of tips from the first 9 years or so of PR's existence. Owner Deepika Prakash put together this physical collection to skim through when you don't feel like being online! It is what it says it is: tips and shortcuts. Short tips from members on a multitude of topics, plus a couple of longer articles by some of the sewing experts who participate in PR as well. 

Deepika notes that it's hard to organize something like this, seeing as it is made up of a lot of random information. But she's sorted the tips out into  9 general categories -- Sewing Gear; Sewing Room; Design & Pattern Prep; Fabric, Thread & Notions; Layout, Cutting & Marking; Fitting; Sewing; Finishing; & Embellishments. There is also a decent index in the back. I found this all worked pretty well. 

It's the kind of book you're going to browse through, anyhow, not read straight through. I enjoyed it -- there were tips that I recognized that I've done before. And there were some new ones that I've missed and rediscovered! There were some that I wouldn't do, but that's normal as everyone has their own techniques and sewing habits. Also, as a member of PR myself it is fun to recognize some of the user names. 

If you find a copy somewhere, take a look -- it's entertaining and educational to browse through. Because it's a little older, some of the tips are dated -- mostly around using technology. But there is still a lot to glean here, and the five more in-depth sections by sewing experts add a lot too. 

And then if you're not already a member of PatternReview, pop on over and sign up. There's a free membership option that you can use to check it out. And if you want to take advantage of all the features, like the discussion boards and tips that make up this book, you can upgrade to a paid membership. I really enjoy my membership, and this book was an extension of that for me.