Thank you, NetGalley for the preview of this digital ARC.

Hand Sewing Magic by Lynn Krawczyk is a wonderful book for a beginner like myself. This book teaches us how to have fun with sewing. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. Thank you, Lynn Krawczyk, for this amazing book. I definitely recommend it to everyone who is interested in sewing.

Not just a 'dry stitch guide,'Hand Sewing Magic is handy book about hand sewing. The magic comes from the application of the stitches in fun projects. The beginner level smartphone holder is adorable and the negative embroidery tote bag is just FUN.

The book is well organized, beginning with suggested 'equipment and materials,' Lynn shows the most basic stitches, then adds outline and filler stitches. It gets more complicated with decorative stitches and dimensional stitches. Photos are clear, colorful and helpful. I especially like the tips from the pros in each section! I recognized many of the stitches from my crewel work days in the 70s. She introduced stitches I had never seen that I'd like to try. I'm delighted to see resurging interest in hand work crafts.

Krawczyk encourages the magician to slow down and not be too critical of one's work. Part of the charm of hand sewing are its imperfections - its voice saying, "someone special made this."

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All opinions are mine: reader, learner and crafter.

Having only recently diving into the world of hand sewing / cross stitch this was a beautiful reference which has greatly increased my knowledge.

I've just started getting back into hand sewing. I've never quite liked using a sewing machine so I found myself just not sewing at all, until I thought I'd try out a bit of cross stitching and maybe some embroidery along the line. I much prefer to do things with my hands than use a machine. This book has inspired me to pick up my needle and thread and just get going and trying new things. All the hints and tips are really useful for someone like me who hasn't doing anything like this in such a long time. I very much look forward to creating some of the designs seen in the book and the maybe one day, I can start trying out my own random designs. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interesting in some crafty makes in their spare time!

Whenever I pick up a craft book, either for a craft I do regularly or one that just looks interesting, there are certain details I look at...certain things that automatically earns one bonus points. One of the biggest ones that I have found not enough books offer is a reminder of selfcare, and even less often, a list of tools to help eliminate as much strain to the body as possible. This book offered such tips, and it definitely earned it an extra star in my mind.

The book offered a lot of great informational breakdowns, including detail explanations of the different types of threads, fabrics and alternative materials. There are extremely detailed instructions on how to do a variety of stitches. The issue I had with it was that projects, while practical in their ability to help new hand sewers practice what they've learned, still looked and felt a bit *childish* in their finished form. Not quite inspiring to go out and attempt bigger projects That's the thing that lost this book a star in my opinion.


I would definitely use this book as a reference guide if I wanted to hand sew more often, and would give it as a gift to someone who expressed wanting to learn.

This has a lot of interesting projects as well as stitch how tos. I learned how to do many more stitches than I did before. Very informative and easy to read! I also loved the vivid pictures!

Thank you for giving hand sewing a new life. I prefer hand sewing and appreciate those who put in the effort to make an item so personal. This book provided some great tips as well as detailed pictures of stitches. What a good reference book this will be for those who are just starting out or for those like me, who do hand stitching, but need a visual reminder now and then on how to complete a stitch that I don't use as often..
The author makes the information in this book easy to understand. I would highly recommend this book for all stitching abilities.

I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Hand Sewing Magic by Lynn Krawczyk is a craft guide done right! It’s unlike any sewing how-to book I’ve ever seen but what I’ve always wished for. It is full of information, clear instructions and new ideas.

Krawczyk has created a lovely guide perfect for beginners and for people who have been hand stitching for decades. I’m an avid cross-stitcher and have been hand stitching for more than 30 years. I found the ratio of information in this book to be about 15 percent I already knew and 85 percent brand new information.

The book begins with a list of supplies and tools the hand stitcher needs. Most craft guides begin with information like this, but Hand Sewing Magic explains a lot more than just listing supplies. It explains quite a bit about different fibers, how they are created and treated and trouble-shooting options for common fiber problems. The author gives complete instructions for creating a fiber storage system, offers an “Embroidery Hoop 101,” explains different needles and fabrics and suggests some extra tools that are helpful for hand stitchers. She also explains how to transfer patterns to begin a project and gives tips to avoid stitcher fatigue.

And then we get into the heart of the book – stitch guides. The different stitches we learn how to do in this book are divided into several chapters covering concepts such as utilitarian stitches, filler stitches, decorative stitches and more. Each chapter concludes with instructions for making a couple of projects using the stitches we’ve just learned. Complete instructions for about three dozen stitches – including some interesting alternatives to the French knot and some very neat 3-D stitches – are included. I had only heard of about a third of these stitches before. I have several embroidery stitch reference books, and I don’t remember ever seeing most of these stitches, but none of the books I own explains stitches in such concise, simple terms as Hand Sewing Magic. The photographs of each stitch’s steps are very helpful, and each stitch is made easy to understand.

I’ll be honest and admit I didn’t actual make any of the projects because they were all a bit “modern” for my taste. But the instructions all looked to be clear. I did practice several new-to-me stitches on scrap fabric, and they were easy to pick up because of the clear instructions in this book. I think the Eskimo laced edging and rice stitch are my favorite stitches I learned from this book.

Another thing I would mention about this book is when it covers the more well-known, tried and true embroidery stitches (ie cross stitch, running stitch, chain stitch), some examples and ideas are shown to mix these stitches up into something familiar but with an interesting twist.

I think this book is simple and complete enough for a beginner just picking up a needle for the first time but has such a variety of interesting ideas and good information the most experienced stitchers can definitely get their money’s and time’s worth with this book.


(I also posted this review on Amazon, but I don't have a link available to share for that.)

Hand Sewing Magic is a great tool for anyone interested in sewing. There are lots of instructions for different stitches. There are lots of project ideas. I can’t wait to get started.

I have owned lots of books about crafts and sewing over the years, so I wasn't sure that this could add anything to my knowledge or repertoire. I'm glad to say that I was mistaken. This book is clearly laid out with very good detailed photographs that leave the reader in no doubt what they are meant to do. The projects look fresh, modern and appealing. I think this would be good for a complete beginner due to the clear explanations but also appeals to someone who has spent decades sewing in one guise or another.I like it so much I'm intending to buy a paper copy of this book to keep for reference.

4.5 Stars! This is a really great book for anyone that wants to learn hand sewing/embroidery! There are lots of pictures & easy to follow directions! I’m a newbie to hand sewing/embroidery and I found this book easy to follow with tons of helpful photos and tips! Anything & everything you need to know is included! Including 10 projects you can follow! Great book for an introduction to hand sewing/embroidery!
*I received this book at no charge from NetGalley!*

Nice book containing detailed descriptions and instructions on various stitches. Found the instructions easy to follow and this would be a perfect guide for beginners to hand sewing and embroidery.
The projects seem a little simplified however, and the templates given don't seem very professionally done (they look hand drawn). However, good instructions and fun ideas to start off sewers.

Hand Sewing Magic is everything you could ever want to know about hand sewing and so much more. It is divided into easy to follow sections, with clear, concise instructions including tons of pictures and tips. I really enjoyed going through it and will be using it for reference for many years to come. Thank you, Lynn Krawczyk for this wonderful book!

I really liked this book! It is perfect for people who don’t have much experience with stitching and would like to know more about it.

The book is nice, colorful and pretty easy to understand and follow.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

In this book about embroidery, we are shown through all the stages from beginning with a kit list and supplies needed to guides of stitches and projects to follow and try out.



Embroidery personally I find super fun and relaxing as well as rewarding when you finish your work and this book shows just how easy it is to get started with and I know when I was a beginner this would've been a great little guide to follow then too!



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

Greatbook. Full of knowledge which is geared towards beginners but anyone can gain from owning this book.
10 wonderful projects. Guides to needs, thread, storage, hoops and more. A must for new stitchers

A nice introduction to hand sewing with good photos showing basic stitch techniques and a few slightly fancier ones. Some of the 10 projects included don't really appeal to my personal taste, but I can see adapting the cellphone holder project in particular into a book sleeve and making some for myself or as gifts. Maybe that's what all the readers in my life will get next Christmas.

I read #HandSewingMagic by Lynn Krawczyk and published by Quarto via #Netgalley.

I read blessed with grandmothers who both sewed, quilted and hand stitched decorative items. They taught me and I passed it on to my daughter. This book was still able to teach me things i didn't know and to remind me of things I had forgotten. There are color photos and detailed instructions. The instructions even list types of supplies best suited for projects. I plan to purchase this book for my daughter.

I really like a book that has new and old stitches plus tips on how and where to use them. This book has both. Instructions are very clear and makes a great take along book. Thanks to NetGalley for the free download and to the author and publisher.

I loved this book! It's a wonderful introduction to embroidery with great illustrations and easy-to-follow instructions. I like the examples of stick variations with photographs.