Altering Women's Ready-To-Wear

I bought this book along with some other sewing books a few years ago when I was teaching myself to sew and totally ignored this book. It doesn't have glossy photos and a flashy title, but is chock full of good advice. Fast forward to today's tough economy and this book has become so helpful. I have been losing weight and not wanting to shop for a new wardrobe for each size I drop. So I have been taking in some of my clothes and altering clothes that I bought at thrift shops. This book is full of illustrations that shows various fitting problems with the solutions. For instance, the illustration will show wrinkles in a garment, then another illustrations show where the clothing needs to be taken in or out to get the proper fit. Even the best suit your money can buy won't look good if it has a bad fit. The book also discusses what to look for when shopping and what makes a garment a good candidate for altering. The book is written for people looking to start an alterations business, so it does assume some basic sewing skills, so be forwarned on that. What the book offers is where to add a dart, where to sew to change slacks from a wide to narrow leg, how to shorten the sleeve on a blouse or make the shoulders smaller on a blouse or jacket. It also shows how to rework and out-of-date collar into something more appropriate for current styles and how to repair a zipper and properly hem pants and skirts.