Honest Review of the Matchy Matchy Sewing Book
Book by Amy Gonzales and Theresa Kuo. Review by Martha West.
The cover of this book is so appealing that I decided to try some of the patterns and write a
review for you. The book has 12 patterns, most for clothing, that are fairly easy to sew and are
really fun and colorful.
The authors’ design patterns are intended to use up scraps of fabric you may have in your stash or perhaps can find in the remnant bins at your local fabric store.
Fortunately, the book includes early, excellent chapters on how to successfully combine fabrics/prints/stripes/checks into subsequent designs. It also includes instructions for combining pattern pieces to create larger fabrics that can be cut from the included pattern pieces.
The book’s patterns have a huge size range, from XXS (33” bust/35” hip) to 6XL (64” bust/67”hip).
However, the patterns must be downloaded from the book’s website. Instructions for downloading and assembling the patterns are included and excellent.
The projects are simple in shape but cleverly designed - most are for confident beginners to advanced stitchers. I made two items from the book using leftover fabrics from my stash. I
found the instructions to be easy to follow and clear. The Rodeo pants pattern and instructions
were without error. I made the size medium – which was the recommended size for my
measurements. I am super comfortable in these pants! However, I also think I could have
made a size small for a slightly less baggy look. I will definitely make them again.
I also made the Pillowcase Tote. It’s the first thing I ever quilted so that feels like a victory.
However, the instructions had an error in the length of the ruffle. The pattern lists the finished
length of the ruffle AFTER it has been gathered. I cut my ruffle almost twice the recommended
length and I think I would have liked it better at 2.5 times the recommended length. It’s nice to
have the finished length so you know how much to gather, but I think the missing “pre-ruffle”
length is a pretty big error. Mind you, the tote would be cute using finished length (no
gathering at all) but it wouldn’t look like the tote in the pictures.
Overall, the Matchy Matchy Sewing Book is both cheerful eye candy (really, so cute) and a good source of new patterns and information. You’ll especially like this book if you like patchwork and/or have an interest in combining your scraps into garments. Honestly, I can recommend it for the Rodeo Pants alone!