in the mail: HOME SEWN

Last night my copy of HOME SEWN (from the NZ Fashion Museum) arrived, well the card to say that it was down at the post office arrived; so this morning I raced down to the post office to pick it up.  As soon as I got into the car I ripped open the packing and started flipping through the patterns. 

The book is about the same size as a Japanese pattern book and comes with ten free patterns. In one size only.  And each pattern is a different size with no obvious consistency.. which is a bit strange, but all the patterns are pretty simple and not overly fitted so I don't think they would be too hard to adjust.  

The book is divide into 3: a history of home sewing in NZ, profiles plus a pattern from ten NZ fashion designers (including the Miss Chalmers Skirt from Papercut Patterns) and a 'how to ...' at the back also written by Papercut Patterns.

Now for the designs, here are some of my favourites:

I really like this one, although it's now really my style... but you never know!

A cute little skirt which I might make.

A cute little top which looks sooo super easy. This I will definitely make when I'm looking for a quick bit of sewing gratfication.

 I think I'll make this top too.  I can see it working winter or summer.

This dress - the feature on the front is probably the most interesting of all the designs. I'll be keeping this in the back of my mind. I don't have an occasion to make this yet, but again, you never know.

If I'd seen this book in a shop and had a chance to flick through the patterns, rather than just buying blind over the internet I probably would have still bought it.  It has a lovely aesthetic, it supports NZ fashion and there are enough patterns in there to keep me interested. Usually if I make one pattern from a book I think that's a good buy, although that is probably a low benchmark! I've certainly spent $40 on less interesting pattern books and having the Miss Chalmers Skirt in it is definitely a bonus.