I’ve been a fan of Alisa Burke for a while now, her blog is in my daily feed and I have another of her books. I’m crazy about her messy graffiti style and the way she uses and layers color. In Sew Wild, Alisa still uses her messy layers, colors and even some lettering and graffiti but she’s added a new element to her work… thread! That makes me happy! So happy!
A few things you might want to know about this book:
- Soft cover
- Includes an instructional DVD
- 143 pages
- Sew Wild has 5 major sections – Materials and Tools, Color, Pattern and Inspiration, Surface Design Techniques, Stitching Techniques, Projects
- There is also a Resources and Recommended Reading section as well as an Index
- The MSRP is $26.95 (USD) and can be purchased for $17.79 at amazon.com here
The beginning of the book is full of great information. In the Materials and Tools section Alisa shares her list of basic tools – She says that she’s a big believer in using simple supplies and often uses what she has on hand rather than making a trip out to the store for special items. She also spends several pages explaining color and pattern so if that is something you aren’t comfortable with just yet she’s got you covered.
Close to half of the book is devoted to surface design techniques, including the stitching, with great photos and step by step instructions. It’s chock full of great information!
And if you need more inspiration or instruction there is the DVD. The DVD covers several of the surface design techniques and really allows you to see how the free motion stitching works. It is definitely valuable information!
And finally, at the back of the book are quite a few fabulous, colorful, layered projects. They are all pretty simple (Once you already have the fabric done) and the instructions are easy to follow.
This scarf with the leaves really caught my eye and was the inspiration for my own leaf!
I really had a great time with this book once I got into it. There is a part of me that, while I love to create, has a difficult time getting my hands dirty. But I read the book, watched the DVD, dug out my supplies and just let myself go WILD!!
I have to say too that I never even knew that my 24 year old Singer sewing machine could do free motion stitching! I had to borrow the correct foot from my neighbor and dig up the manual for my machine online to figure it out. But let me tell you, I’m madly in love with this technique now!!
I got so wild, in fact, that I made SEVERAL of the painted fabric leaves and made a centerpiece/table runner (it’s not really a table runner because it’s round, right?) for my dining table. The candy dish just gives you an idea of how it might look with a vase in the center…. or gourds, or pumpkins or… you get the idea!
If you want to see more of a step by step of how I put the leaves together visit my blog post; Blog Book Tour: Sew Wild by Alisa Burke – Fall Leaves Table Runner
And as part of the Blog Book Tour I have an interview with Alisa; Blog Book Tour: Sew Wild by Alisa Burke – An Interview with Alisa
All in all I truly enjoyed Sew Wild and the bonus DVD. I think I waited entirely too long to get messy with paint and stitching!
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[…] fact, I like the book so much that I did a full-out review of it over on Craft Test Dummies Book Review: Sew Wild by Alisa Burke and I have an interview with Alisa as part of the Blog Book Tour Blog Book Tour: Sew Wild by Alisa […]