It’s the perfect time of year to start thinking about making some homemade goodies to give as gifts for the holidays. If you are someone like me, with more ambition than real sewing skills and a tendency to over-estimate how much free time I actually have (yes, wishful thinking!), you really need to choose your projects with care. I think that this new craft title may be just the ticket – it’s definitely in the “best book” stack on my review shelf…

Susan Beal’s Sewing for All Seasons is pretty close to perfect when it comes to hitting a balance of what I look for in a crafty book: lots of inspiration, modernity, realistic skill requirements and desirability of finished projects.