By Lorna Knight
128 pages
Paperback
Jan 2021
Overlockers and Overlocking: A Practical Guide by Lorna Knight is a fascinating and informative book ideally suited to those who want to know more detail about how to get the best from their overlocker.
It’s good but not the best book we’ve seen for very nervous beginners but brilliant if you are a little more technically competent or have a very basic understanding of how to use an overlocker and want to go a little deeper.
This is a must-have book to keep with your overlocker as a reference book for when you’re trying out a new fabric or project types. It gives excellent explanations of the settings for each type of fabric as well as an understanding of what exactly each fabric is and how to work with it. This bit of the book is so good it's worth getting for this alone!
This is not an expensive book and it's not a book you’ll quickly grow out of, but continue to use for reference. Even if you’ve been dressmaking for years, the fabric explanations or construction techniques section, for example, will tell you things you didn’t know.
The book is split into 6 main sections: 1 Overlockers explained; 2 Tools equipment and maintenance; 3 Threading and stitching – the basics; 5 construction techniques; 6 Troubleshooting. There are also appendices that detail fabric types and a stitch reference chart as well as information on manufacturers and suppliers and even, of course, a glossary.
Lorna Knight, the author, runs workshops, which include using an overlocker. Her website says by the end of the workshop you’ll have made a T shirt and you can even borrow an overlocker if you haven’t yet got your own to take along!
by Pati Palmer, Gail Brown and Linda Wisner
Paperback
Originally published 1985, last published 2004
128 pages
Sewing with Sergers: The Complete Handbook for Overlock Sewing is the book for you if you have a basic understanding of sewing in general and like a no-nonsense inexpensive book without lots of glossy baby-step pictures. If you’ve been given a serger / overlocker without a manual this book could really help you.
Although aimed at beginners this book is probably better for someone who has at least some kind of sewing experience. This book is ideal to sit alongside your serger / overlocker handbook to complement it or maybe as a replacement if you are given a serger / overlocker with no manual. It’s a fairly inexpensive book and as its been around for a while you may even be able to pick up a second hand copy.
There is a lot of very useful detail, plenty of examples as to how and when to use the serger / overlocker with practical advice and projects for you to try out your serger / overlocker.
Notably, there is helpful advice for sewing real items of clothing that you might actually want to make and not just twee projects, and there is plenty of advice for performing specific functions such as cornering, using the knife to cut as you stitch, the feed differential etc.
This book has been around for sometime so some of the illustrations look a little dated now, maybe that’s part of the charm of this book, but the information and explanations are sound and the book is well written, easy to read and logical to navigate. You won’t find the tiny dummed-down baby steps that has become the modern trend and if content matters more to you than a modern presentation this may well be the book for you. If you are a complete novice to any kind of sewing and you like a big glossy book with photographs of every tiny thing then this is not the book for you.
After you’ve been using your serger / overlocker for a while then you might want a book which goes into more technical depth and if you’re very competent this won’t add a lot to your knowledge.
By Jennie Rayment
Nov. 2006
Paperback
120 pages
Size: (A4) 20.9 x 0.7 x 29.8 cm
Serging for Softies: Black Cats and Overlockers is FUN! So many overlocking / serging books or manuals are informative but dry but here’s one that is completely different, its positively fun! If you’re new to overlocking / serging this is a great book to give you confidence, to get you going and to actually make overlocking /serging fun!
Treat yourself or the overlocker / serger in your life to this book! This would make a great gift!
The book has lots of enjoyable and amusing anecdotes all throughout and Jennie Rayment can certainly tell a story very well! She gets you to relax and really enjoy your overlocker / serger. This book not only takes the fear out of overlocking / serging but it positively makes it fun!
Jennie does take you through how to use your overlocker / serger and also gives you ideas to see what is possible with an overlocker / serger. There are lots of tips and little short cuts as well as some excellent projects which encourage you to be creative.
Jennie tells you about her mistakes when overlocking / serging which helps you learn to serge / overlock better without having to make those mistakes yourself.
There are lots of how-to manuals on the market which are useful but a little dry. This is the only one we’ve seen which is actually fun and may change your whole approach to overlocking / serging!
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