Chic on a Shoestring

March 19, 2012
British milliner Baxter’s first book is a delightful grab bag of unique projects that will add vintage dash to any crafter’s wardrobe. She writes that her ideas are “the doorway to a different world, one in which your creativity will flourish and your purse strings won’t snap.” Many of the projects encourage hand-sewing accessories, so this book will find favor with readers who want to sew a bit, but aren’t interested in complicated clothing patterns that require sewing by machine. Chapters begin with simple instructions on customizing one’s existing wardrobe with vintage trims, bows and flea market jewelry, such as sewing on new buttons or making a no-sew collar. Later chapters cover hats, traveling accessories, and jewelry, but Baxter’s stand-out section is devoted to creating flowers. Throughout she offers designs that are different from what’s floating around the Internet, as inexpensive as promised, and lovely to boot. The book also includes basic instructions on how to sew by hand and machine, and is beautifully illustrated in a magpie, tea party style that will particularly thrill Anglophiles. Full-color photographs.

June 15, 2012

Baxter, a UK-based milliner, is passionate about vintage style and high fashion. In this guide to vintage accessories, the focus is on repurposing articles from thrift stores, flea markets, and even readers' own wardrobes using basic hand and machine sewing. With projects ranging from embellished shoes and handbags to brooches and hair accessories, the book has ample variety, and most of the projects are easy enough to complete in a day or, at the most, a weekend. VERDICT Like most collections of vintage-inspired accessories, this one is hit-and-miss, but the hits are quite nice and the recycled/ecofriendly approach is easy on frugal fashionistas' pocketbooks.

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.