Posts Tagged ‘books’
Questions people ask at book talks
This month The Dressmaker’s Companion turns one. While I’m no veteran of book talks, I’ve done a few since then, always with an opportunity for questions at the end. Sometimes no-one asks any and sometimes people ask questions during the talk (especially if the group is small). Read more about my publishing story here. Here’s…
Read MoreMy publishing story
Next month it’s one year since The Dressmaker’s Companion was published and I thought I’d share with you my publishing story. It’s a bit long, so settle in… The patternmaking years You may know that I trained as a clothing patternmaker, back in 1990-91. I was fortunate to find something I loved doing early on…
Read More5 books that influenced The Dressmaker’s Companion
Hello! This week I’m sharing five books that influenced my own, The Dressmaker’s Companion. Maybe you have read or own them too. The Reader’s Digest Complete Guide to Sewing Do you have this book on your shelf? We had a copy in our family. Mum must have bought it fairly close to when it…
Read MoreYar! Me book’s been pirated!
A spot of late-night Googling this week revealed that Unscrupulous Persons are offering my book (or parts of it “for review”) as an ebook or downloadable PDF. Went to bed feeling a bit sick about it. This probably happens to lots of authors, and some people are okay about it, saying It gets my book…
Read MoreThe Dressmaker’s Companion wins gold and silver!
While our athletes have been winning gold and silver at the Commonwealth games on the Gold Coast, The Dressmaker’s Companion has been on the podium in Texas, USA, at the 30th Benjamin Franklin Book Awards. The Dressmaker’s Companion won a gold medal for Best Craft/Hobby/How-to book, and a silver medal for Best Cover (large format). …
Read MoreBook review: Makery books
Makery (2013) and Makery Sewing (2015) by Kate Smith are entry-level sewing project books designed to inspire creating. I actually bought these books from our post office. I didn’t get a good opportunity to flip through them in the shop, but the beautiful photography and covers attracted me enough to buy them. The books are…
Read MoreAn embroidered interlude
A small embroidery book has captivated me. I borrowed Yumiko Higuchi’s Zakka Embroidery from the library during the school holidays. It’s a charming little book with simple, mainly botanic, Japanese/Scandinavian style designs. The book also has a French nostalgic feel about it, too, from the red haired young girl in the photos. While…
Read MoreCreating a book cover
The cover of The Dressmaker’s Companion has received many favourable comments, and you might be interested to read about how it was created. Because The Dressmaker’s Companion is a self published book, the cover was my responsibility. All the advice I read on book cover design exhorted Don’t do your own cover! This is great…
Read MoreBook review Zero Waste Fashion
The book Zero Waste Fashion by Timo Rissanen and Holly McQuillan (Bloomsbury 2016) has arrived and I’m keen to share my thoughts on it with you. I ordered it last month when I wrote Considering zero waste fashion, which has become my second highest visited post. I cannot deny a frisson of excitement went through…
Read More2 Good Reads
Lately I’ve been on a reading diet of fashion industry books, and just finished two really interesting ones. The Thoughtful Dresser: The Art of Adornment, the Pleasures of Shopping, and Why Clothes Matter by Linda Grant (Scribner, 2010) is a great book for reading in the bath while eating chocolate! It’s a book about…
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