Gifts for Sewers, Sewists, and Sewing Enthusiasts

Hey y’all – I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving (we did). I don’t know about you, but every year on Thanksgiving, family starts asking for our gift lists for Christmas. And every year, I’m unprepared. So while I was making my wish list, I thought I’d share my suggestions for gifts for sewers. This includes what I’m asking for as well as my favorite tools, books, splurge items and even fabric I’m lusting after. So, get ready to add things to your wish list, put them in your cart, or send this whole post to anyone buying gifts for you!

Please note that some of these links are affiliate links – which means if you purchase through them, I get a tiny percent of the sale. I’ll put (affiliate link) next to each of them so you’ll know that’s what they are. 

Tools and Notions

At the top of my list is this Simplex Expanding Gauge (affiliate link). How genius is this for buttonhole markings? I want it in my stocking.

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I also want this tape measure (affiliate link)– it is self retracting, so you get a perfect snug but not too snug body measurement.

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Also, if you don’t have a tube turner (affiliate link), I don’t know what took me so long to get one.
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For twin needle stitching, I will only use Klasse Twin Ballpoint Needles (affililate link), I keep 2 packages on hand at all times.

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And since I’m a little obsessed with handmade bias tape, I love these Clover Bias Tape Makers (affililate link). They come in 1/2″ size as well.

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Books

I flipped through Famous Frocks: The Little Black Dress (affiliate link) last time I was in the bookstore, and this is on my list of want books. I will caution – this is intermediate to advanced sewing, as the directions are sparse. But the styles are timeless.

Winifred Aldrich’s books Metric Pattern Cutting for Children’s Wear and Babywear, Metric Pattern Cutting for Women’s Wear, and Metric Pattern Cutting for Menswear (affililate links) are the best drafting books I’ve read and used. I just need the menswear one to complete my collection.

Sometimes you just need a general sewing reference. I own an older edition of The New Complete Guide to Sewing (affililate link) – so old the binding is falling off. This new version also has home dec sewing, which I don’t think mine includes, so bonus!

Once you sew your patterns, you’ll want a great book on fitting to get them just right. Joi Mahon released Create the Perfect Fit (affiliate link) this year, and it’s a great (and different) approach to fitting. You can read my complete review of the book here.

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And just for fun? Keep track of all your design ideas in a Pocket Fashion Sketchpad. This book has body forms already drawn in for you to draw on top of, and the special ink they used means that when you scan or copy your drawings, their lines disappear leaving only yours to look at.

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Splurge Items

Time to upgrade your camera or lens? I love Canon cameras. I shoot on a T3i, which is a model from a few years ago. The Cannon T5i is the equivalent (and also really cool) camera.

The majority of all that shooting is done with my Tamron 28-75mm 2.8 lens (affililate link). It costs about the same as the camera, but I could live with just this one lens and be pretty happy. It’s got a great aperture range so it works well in low light  and nice bokeh (blurring of the background) and the zoom means I can get most of the shots I want without having to change my lens.

It might be time for me to upgrade my computer tablet too – I’m eyeing the Wacom Intuos Pen Tablet (affililate link). It does a few cool things my current tablet doesn’t, so I’m debating the upgrade.

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And while I’m spreading the Wacom love, I carry this Bamboo Stylus (affililate link)  around with my iPad for notes and sketching – I like to use it with the free Bamboo Paper app. This is how I sketch most of my patterns the first time.

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Fabric Lust Haves

It’s no secret that I love to sew with knits and voiles. And two of my favorite collections from Quilt Market have both! They’re not available quite yet, but will be this month. Click each image to see the full collection.