Weekend Review: Sewing for the Soul

Sewing for the Soul / Jules Fallon
Tunbridge Wells, UK: Search Press, c2021.
128 p.

This is a lovely book; it's a sewing book but also a lifestyle book. It has a specific aesthetic, and includes interior design imagery and recipes too! 

It's organized around the seasons, with each section including two or three sewing projects, then a relevant recipe. Lots of lovely photos of projects and of the general domestic mood of the book. Most of the projects are garments but there are a few craft projects including like a stocking for Winter, or a patchwork blanket for autumn. There are also a couple of ideas that incorporate embroidery or upcycling -- my favourite is the embroided woven tee in Spring, which has a border of red flowers added to the rounded neckline. Very pretty. 

The clothes -- shirt dress, woven tee, winter coat, drawstring trousers, palazzos, just to name a few, are all fairly relaxed fit, loungey kind of clothing. Easier to fit but because it's also in line with the tone of the whole book - it's about relaxing, taking things easy while still having them beautiful. I haven't seen a sewing book like this before. It's the whole lifestyle, food included. And it's full of beautiful imagery while also having practical sewing illustrations and guidelines, and a list of sewing tools and materials to begin the book. There are 10 patterns included, up to a UK size 26/US size 22.

The author is the owner of Sew Me Something, and her experience in the sewing world shows. This is well put together, nicely thought out, and pleasant to read. She has captured the atmosphere of  "sewing for the spirit" that she used as the title -- it's enjoyable to look through but also has some nice basic pieces in it. If you read it online (as I did through my library) you can also go to the publisher's page and create a free account to get the extra materials (ie: templates & patterns). This is charming and I found it a gentle nighttime read.