Upcycling guide. Image via Sew Daily shop.


Do you subscribe to Sew Daily’s email newsletter? The Sew Daily site is a product of Interweave, a publisher of sewing and other craft books.

The newsletter highlights projects and books designed to keep creative juices flowing. A recent email featured “Cut-Up Couture,” a book on upcycling men’s garments, which are easy to thrift and frequently have fabric to spare.

According to the email, projects include:

  • Capelet (from sweatshirts)
  • Tunic (from twin T-shirts)
  • Trompe l’oeil jumper (from a men’s T-shirt)
  • Ruffled dress (from men’s shirt)

Reviewing the images in the newsletter, I don’t know if these garments exactly are my speed. But they could be low risk and cheap to create and a good way to brush up on sewing skills and to try out different silhouettes. Plus, the Japanese aesthetic (the author is Japanese) is intriguing.

What sewing books are you fawning over these days?