The Colette Guide to Sewing Knits: Professional Techniques for Beautiful Everyday Garments

This book was a very clear overview of knits from fabric selection to using a serger and making pattern adjustments. I liked that she went into using a coverstitch machine as I am thinking about buying one but I don't know much about them. I'm glad I paid the Amazon price and not the full $32 retail price, as it's a rather short book. If you are experienced with knits I'm not sure you'd get a lot out of this book, as I've done a couple of knit projects and already knew the majority of the topics covered. However for a total newbie I think this would be a great book to get you started.

I bought this not for a "how to sew" or even patterns. I bought it for knowledge and it delivers. This book goes through the difference between woven fabrics and knits. How do different needle sizes affect the fabric? What are the different types of elastics, both incorporated into the fabric and as notions? How different sewing stitches apply to the stretch of the fabric. This is much more of a why? and how? information book to help you solve those problems that inevitably come up in each of our own projects. I can follow directions all day but if I cannot figure out why? this is not working out, I get so frustrated I may abandon a project or finish it and never wear it because I am not happy with the results. Now I have a resource that has answered many of those questions and promises to be a useful resource for many years to come.

Great instructions and description of fabrics and techniques! A must buy if you're working with stretch wear! The only thing I didn't like is the formatting with some of the instructions is weird. It has numbered instructions and for the most part each paragraph is a numbered step. But on some pages, there's a step, and then it'll start a new paragraph in the middle of the step (mid sentence), and then go to the next step in the same paragraph.

The book is not an encyclopedia on knits. It's more of an overview. It includes lots of detailed information on several critical topics, however, and I will be referring back to it. I found the information on handling knits before sewing especially helpful. For example, you should not iron knits before laying, cutting and sewing them.The chapters are:1. Fabric2. Needles and Thread3. Notions and Trims4. The Serger5. The Coverstitch6. Sewing Knits Without a Serger7. Laying and Cutting8. Fitting9. Stitching and FinishingFWIW, I'm a beginning sewist who has read a few other books on other sewing topics.If this review was helpful to you, please click the "yes" button below. Thanks!

I purchased this book after having made my first article of clothing with a Colette pattern. Now I know why there is something of a cult following. I was always hesitant to sew with knits because they are so different from wovens. I own a serger, but I use it only sparingly due to lack of knowledge. This book answered all my questions about knits and how to sew them, including how to cut, finish the edges, hem, and lots of variations on each technique. It goes into detail about how to handle each technique with a regular sewing machine, serger, and/or coverstitch machine. I finished the book in one night. It's a quick read, but it is jam packed with practical, useful information that has changed my mind about sewing with knits. Highly recommended!

Colette's Guide to Sewing Knits is a beautiful book, literally and figuratively. I love sewing knits but I usually have little problems with this type of fabric every time I try to make a blouse, turtleneck or skirt from it. I learned why just by reading this gem. In fact, I learned quite a bit about sewing in general and sewing with knits by reading the Colette Guide to Sewing Knits!This book is logically organized, well-written and has illustrations galore! If you want to try sewing knits or you want to get better at sewing them, I highly recommend you buy this book, make a cup of tea and spend a few hours feasting on the information, the tips and the tricks shared here.

Wow, I am really disappointed in this book. There is no new information here. You will get better tips from a Marcy Tilton pattern. There really isn't any need at all to devote so many pages to threading a serger, for crying out loud! Sergers do come with instruction manuals. I'd love to know the reason for this decision. The photographs are very difficult to see since they're all so over-exposed. There is not much information at all on how to calculate the right length for a neck band and, even if there were, the photos are of a white t-shirt on a white-background!

I'm so new to sewing, I've been avoiding knits like people with bad breathe, but after reading this book (almost finished) I have a greater understanding of the skills and supplies needed to create a successful garment. Written in very plainly and clearly, this book will walk you through the basics of understanding the properties of knit fabrics, how to give them the once over in the fabric store, what needles, cutting tools and tips to get your pattern from the cutting table to the sewing machine. The great thing is that it covers what do do if you have a serger or regular sewing machine. I'm looking forward to tackling my first knit project and I owe it to this book. I hope it's successful and I feel it will be.

I've recently bought a overlocker (serger) and want to get more proficient in sewing knit garments. I came across the Colette website / blog and have used some of the tips there in my work. Was very pleased to see that this book was coming out - if nothing else it is easier than trying to find room for an overlocker AND regular sewing machine AND laptop on my work table if I need to refer to the instructions for a technique!It has some very helpful information about the construction of knit fabrics, and the different amounts of stretch from different fibres or construction - particularly useful if you don't have a local shop with a good selection of stretch fabrics you can touch. It is easy to find stretch fabric for sale online but daunting to buy something expensive if you aren't confident that it is going to behave in the way that is needed for the pattern.Also has good explanations of how you might use more specialist supplies like woolly nylon / stretch thread, clear elastic, stabilising tape, washaway tape etc in garment construction. Again I find I can often only find things like this online and am not very confident in ordering them (due to expense / delivery time) if I don't know exactly how they will help me.Already spotted a couple of very useful tips about things like troubleshooting overlocker tension (clearer than my machine's instruction book) and how to work corners with an overlocker (which I have consistently messed up!).Helpful section on adjusting fit, which as the book states is more needed than you might think with knits because 1 fabric can behave very differently to another (more so than wovens).The only reason I have given this 4 stars not 5 is that it is printed on matt paper which is not 'bright white', and is fairly thin with some 'show through' from the reverse. The definition in some of the pictures is a bit disappointing as a result, for example I can't make out what the pictures which attempt to show the right / wrong side of different types of plain fabric are showing, and there are pictures of white fabric on an off-white background on a white page (no picture border) which are pretty pointless. I think this could be improved upon for a future edition.

This is a very good book for sewing knits . I bought a Brother overlocker and this book contains everything I need to be able to thread and use it ina variety if ways. I would say it is one of the best sewing books I have . Yes it's not glossy and the pics could be better but I don't have any issues with them being unclear. Well worth buying .

Really handy book to have. It's in-depth but accessible and certainly beats having to refer to Google every time my overlocker gives me grief. The only reason I've not given it five stars is because the background on which the images are printed can sometimes make them difficult to interpret.

Very good book to help you sew knits, let down by very poor quality photographs.

A good present for an avid sewer