book review // never been stitched

I have no words! That's never happened to me before!

When I think of the movie Never Been Kissed, Drew Barrymore's ecstatic line above is what comes to mind. And of course, when I heard the title Never Been Stitched, that's right where I went. I have no words! Except, when you look through this new book from Amanda Carestio (who worked with a great group of designers!), you will have words. Words like these: Wow! Great! Brilliant!

Before we get too far, I want to announce that this book review is a little bit biased (Amanda is the editor that I'm working with, and Lark Crafts sent me a free copy of the book), but also completely honest. I promise!

On to the book!



The idea behind Never Been Stitched is to present you with projects that require minimal or NO sewing. So, even if you aren't very accomplished with a sewing machine, you can still make all of these projects! Some use glue or fusible interfacing, some use just a few stitches here and there, and some are just very cleverly constructed so you don't need anything special to make it work!



And on many of the projects that do call for sewing, there are tips that tell you how you can adapt the project to avoid the stitching all together. Even if you love sewing, these can come in handy!




There's a really nice variety of projects in here, from wearables and home decor to bags and gifts. Some are very easy, others are more complicated, but each is doable. Oh, and considering that these use very little (or zero) sewing, I have to say how happy I am to see some classy work here. These don't look cheap or badly done like you sometimes see with projects of this nature.




Like most craft books, I know I won't make everything in here. Hey, sometimes it's hard for me to even fit in one or two extra projects in with all that I already make. But there are a lot of solid things, and especially when it comes to gift-making, I know I'll be going to this title for help and inspiration along the way.



This amazingly simple skirt is one of my favorite things in the entire book. I must, must, must make it. And I won't give away its secret...but I'll tell you, I would buy this book just for this one idea.



So there you have it. My definitely biased, entirely honest, completely positive review of Never Been Stitched. Thanks, Amanda and friends for so many easy-to-make projects!

Find Never Been Stitched at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or at your favorite book seller.