Romantic Home Sewing by Christina Strutt

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Reported by Tracy Schultz

I'm a self-taught sewer who adores the popular shabby style, so when I received Romantic Home Sewing: Cottage-Style Projects to Stitch for the Home as a gift, I was ecstatic. But my enthusiasm faded somewhat after reading the book and trying out a few projects.

The book is 144 pages long and full of gorgeous photos and ideas on how to infuse your home with easy, cottage-inspired charm. It is divided into several sections: Living room, Bedroom & bathroom, Clothes & accessories, Gifts, Instructions, and Templates. In each section, there are photos and a brief description about each project. In some cases, the author shares with the reader her inspiration behind each project. In other cases, she mentions ways to alter the project slightly, embellish it differently than shown, or recommends a particular fabric to be used.

Some projects in this book are ones I've seen time and time again: fabric headboards, pillows, and tote bags. But there were quite a few projects that were new to me like the hot water bottle cover and fabric pencil cups. Some, like the cutlery roll, caused a light bulb to go off in my head- "Why didn't I think of that? That's such a great idea!"

After reading through the book, I decided to try making a couple projects. The first being the bolster pillow on page thirty-two. I read through the instructions on how to make it listed in the back of the book, cut my fabric out, and began sewing. But when it came time to finish the ends, I had a difficult time getting mine to turn out as they were supposed to. So instead, I improvised and used a ribbon-tie closure.



There were several other more in-depth projects I would have liked to make from the book, like the cutlery roll I mentioned. But after my experience with the bolster pillow, I was afraid they too would not turn out as planned. And I hate to waste fabric!! I stuck to an easy project for my second: the placemat and napkins on page sixty-nine. This is probably the easiest project in the book and I'm happy to report mine turned out just fine.



Pros:

• Gorgeous photos
• Range of projects from simple to more in-depth
• Ideas for all areas of your home

Cons:

• Instructions are a bit vague for some projects
• No full-size patterns
• Limited amount of photos of projects during the sewing process to help readers (like me!) visualize

All in all, this book is a nice source of inspiration to get you thinking of how to incorporate handmade items into your decor and everyday life. I would have liked to see more in-depth instructions and detailed photos to help create the projects in the book. If you don't mind improvising, then this book would be a wonderful addition to your collection. But if you're like me and prefer detailed instructions, then you might want to save your money for another book.

Romantic Home Sewing retails for $25.95 and can be found at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Quiltology.

Were you thinking about buying this book? What do you think now after reading this review? Already own it?? Then I'd love to know how your projects turned out!