The Mary Frances Sewing Book 100th Anniversary Edition: A Children's Story-Instruction Sewing Book with Doll Clothes Patterns for American Girl & Othe

The Mary Frances Sewing Book was originally published in 1913 and recently reprinted in the late 1990's. An Edwardian girl staying with grandma for a few months during the summer meets the "Thimble People" (needles, scissors, pincushion, etc.) who engage her in weekly sewing lessons. The reader can work through the lessons, from learning stitches to sewing doll clothes with Mary Frances as directions with illustrations are given throughout the text. One practical aspect of this book is that basic hand sewing stitches are taught with descriptions and illustrations. I found this part very educational since the only sewing stitch I learned in childhood is the "running stitch". I had no idea there were so many stitches for hand sewing that can be applied to hand sewing garments. I also learned the strawberry tassle on my tomato pin cushion is an "Emery Bag", which can be used for cleaning needles as you pull them through the little bag. If you purchase a copy of this book sold in its original condition, it comes with patterns to make the garments Mary Frances makes for her doll. However, based on illustrations and the time period, Mary Frances' doll is a 16 inch doll with a composition body and a porcelain head. While the fashions are appropriate for this kind of doll, they are not necessarily appropriate for a modern doll. There are many more current pattern books and pattern sources to sew for both modern dolls and antique/antique reproduction dolls. The only use I would see for the patterns is for use by the individual who would like to specifically work through the book. That said, I loved this book! I am not going to stop sewing doll clothes on my machine or start dressing my modern doll in Edwardian fashions. I loved this book for what it is-an example of structured sewing lessons used by girls 100 years ago, when girls practiced their skills on doll clothes but would one day use them for sewing and mending their family's clothes. I also enjoyed the story "sewn" into the lessons. The talking scissors and pincushion, etc. argue with each other like siblings; making the characters more interesting and adding a bit of spice to the story. The sewing bird talks in rhyme; carrying the text along quickly. Mary Frances misses her family while at grandma's house, and has a few other brief adventures inside and outside of her sewing lessons. If you enjoy sewing for dolls and have a taste for a nostalgic, old-fashioned childhood, then this book will be priceless!

This book is essential for all little girls (and not so little girls!) learning to sew. There has yet to be a childs sewing book as well done as Mary Frances and the Timble People.If you think this book, written in the Edwardian era, would probably be too hard or full of too many confusing terms for a child, think again! The projects are direct, simple, fast, and most of all, fun. With parental assistance, children as young as seven could easily work through this book, and very young children could enjoy the story by itself without even doing the projects. The doll patterns are charming and work up quickly, the style simple and straightforward, and the little story about the 'Timble People' is utterly adorable. 16 inch dolls are hard to come by, and I know this is one drawback of the book. However, you can easily re trace the patterns to fit an 18 inch ('American Girl' or 'Gotz' doll.) Take your pattern peice(s) and retrace on another peice of paper, adding one inch to every side. Follow instructions as usual. For loose fitting patterns like the apron, the pinafore, etc, this wasn't even nessisary.An all around wonderful book!

While all the Mary Frances series is excellent, I found the sewing book the best of the bunch. The basic premise is that various sewing implements come to life for Mary Frances, a girl of about 9 or so, and they teach her how to sew, beginning with outfitting a sewing basket, then learning 10 or so basic stitches using the kind of cloth that people do counted cross stitch on, then progressing to a sampler, and then on to doll clothes. The Art Deco style of the illustrations is very reminiscent of the L. Frank Baum Oz series. One can enjoy the book just as a delightful fairy story, or one can use it as the basis of a hand-sewing curriculum. I used this to teach my 9 y.o. daughter, and she enjoyed it thoroughly, often waking in the morning and working on her sewing while sitting on her bed; I look forward to teaching other groups of girls in 4-H or at the Waldorf school that my daughter attends.

i have the whole set of mary frances books (in hard cover). they are reproductions. these books are so wonderful, its hard to put into words. the books are a special piece of history and i highly recommend all of them. the mary frances sewing book is esp. charming.

i have done all types of needle work and sewing since i was 5 yrs old. i also had a needlework shop for 20 years. this book is absolutely enchanting and the illustrations are delightful. the sewing information is so well presented that anyone of any age should be able to learn to sew, and enjoy every minute of it. i, too, hope they will re-publish some of the other books by this author. dee wolfenbarger, [email protected]