As many of you might already know, a fourth sewing book is in the works! It’s a book on how to adapt patterns and achieve a great fit on knit garments. And it includes lots of sewing tips and fabric info too. This time I am co-authoring the book with pattern maker Malena Hjerpe who also has her own line of sewing patterns: Pattern By Malena.
It’s been absolutely fantastic to collaborate on the book with her. Malena is a very experienced pattern maker specialising in patterns for knits, and she works for big brands such as H&M and smaller clothing companies too. So I think we complement each other perfectly.
Why are we writing this book?
As someone who loves to sew and wear knit clothes, I’ve been missing a good resource for pattern fitting on stretchy fabrics. While there are several excellent books on pattern fitting, they mainly focus on woven fabrics. They usually do not consider all the intricacies of fitting clothes made with stretchy materials. Additionally, knit garments often have fewer seams, so adjusting them can be trickier to figure out.
What type of content will be in the book?
It’s primarily a resource on how to adapt patterns for knit garments. For instance, how to make bust adjustments, fit the shoulder area, get the sleeves to fit right, adjust width while accounting for stretch and negative ease, and so much more!
And since sewing techniques and the fit of the finished garments are very much connected, there will be lots of detailed and super helpful sewing tutorials in the book too. Many of us have encountered stretched-out hems, gaping neckbands, wobbly seams etc., when sewing knit clothes, right? Things that also affect the fit. Hence why the book also includes sewing instructions.
There will also be a whole chapter on different knit fabrics, picking the most suitable fabric, understanding stretch, using the right stitches etc. Because, again, fabric plays a huge role in the result when sewing knits.
When will the book be out?
We are aiming for fall 2023. I think the book will be around 250 pages, and we have completed a little over 100 pages so far. We want to book to be absolutely brilliant and include plenty of info you won’t find compiled in this manner elsewhere. Hence why the book takes a lot of time 🙂
Plus, we do everything ourselves (illustrations, writing, book design, etc.). And yes, we have day jobs too! So no hurry, but it sure feels great to see this much progress. We are super proud of how the book is turning out.
Want to get a free book sample?
We have something special for you, our dear readers. If you fill in the form below, you will a get free pdf showing how to do both full bust and small bust adjustments on knit fabrics. Plus a free stitch guide on the best seams for sewing knits on a sewing machine, a serger and a coverstitch machine.
Hope you enjoyed this little book update. I love sharing progress reports because creating sewing books is such a lonesome project that takes forever, so it feels good to be able to actually share something now and then during the process too. Now it’s back to book editing, in fact, this is what I will spend all weekend doing. Meaning I don’t have much leisure time right now. But at least I enjoy it–for the most part 🙂
