Assembil

Simple fashion resources. See our books for sewing and pattern making on www.assembil.com

27/10/2026

Would you like to win a sewing book?
Show me something you are working on for Halloween or tell me a spooky sewing story to win a free sewing book. 👻😈🧙

When I first made the cover art for the book “How To Start Sewing” 10 years ago I played around with different options in Illustrator. One of those options was a weird green colour on the hands, so ever since I thought it would be fun to do a special Halloween edition of the sewing book.

The special Halloween edition of “How To Start Sewing” has all the same great content as the original, complete with small patterns to sew up the techniques. This new spooky version just has some updated fonts, a new witchy cover and some little Halloween jokes and pictures hidden in the pages.

To enter:
- In the comment on this post: Show me a costume you are sewing OR tell me a spooky sewing story OR the weirdest / scariest thing that has happened to you when sewing
- Be following Assembil on Instagram
- Enter before Midnight Friday 30th October (UKTime).
- Winner will be announced 31st October.
- Prize will be sent out shortly after, so note that you won’t have it for this year’s Halloween sewing but remember it is filled with sewing information you can use all year round.

Good luck!

23/10/2026

Assembil is also now on Substack

22/10/2026

Is this the hardest part of pattern making?

How do you turn something round into something flat? Fashion designers (and pattern makers) do it all the time and it’s called pattern making.

One of the toughest skills to master when you are learning pattern making isn’t block drafting or fitting. It’s more fundamental than that. Can your brain switch easily between 2D and 3D? Can you see something round and turn it into flat pieces? And can you do it in reverse? Can you look at flat pattern pieces and imagine how they interlock and curl around a 3D body?

In the Assembil book, ‘How Patterns Work’ , we introduced pattern making terms in detail and broke pattern making down into simple repeatable processes. But you can also unpack and learn from shapes that we have around us every day - which is why I’ve created a small series of videos about fruit.

If you have ever found pattern making confusing, then thinking about the body as a basic shape without worrying so much about measurements can help your 2D to 3D vision click.

But also, if you are just looking for more inventive slants on your current creative pattern making practice, then stepping away from the “usual” way of splicing up the body can unlock new pattern making experiments to try.

Of course, this approach is fun for fashion, but if you’d like to follow along, this also applies to product designers too.

Books from the video:
- ‘How Patterns Work’ by Assembil

19/10/2026

Going to keep working on these linen napkins today in between some video editing. I’m finishing the corners with mitred corners on a turn and turn hem (or double turn hem). If you have the Assembil book ‘How To Start Sewing’ then this is covered in Exercise 37.14.

I’m going to finishing pressing and sewing all of the corners of all the napkins as one batch, and then check my tension and edgestitch them all at the end.

I feel like sewing some nice homewares is an easy way back into sewing if you can’t think what to sew for yourself.

14/10/2026

On the cutting table today, some green linen napkins.

I started these yesterday because I felt like some sewing alongside video editing. I thought to myself, a nice simple project, just some square napkins with mitred corners and turn and turn hems. Easy right?

Don’t ever belief them when people say sewing is “so quick and so easy”. I spent two hours checking the fabric size I had, googling napkins sizes, working out what size I would make the pattern (plus SA for the hems and mitred corners), drafting out a pattern, making a pressing template out of cardboard for the hems and doing a quick test on mitred corners on calico.

Was it quick? No. In my head it would take half an hour. But it was satisfying because when I walked in this morning the pattern was done and today I can cut them out.

13/10/2026

Less witchin’, more stitchin’.

Assembil Books Presents:
How To Start Sewing: Halloween Edition

Available now on Amazon, only until 31st October 2026.

A great Halloween gift for teenagers (or adults!) getting into sewing and upcycling.

Maybe you only dust the cobwebs off your machine once a year to sew a costume? Or maybe you need a little help with your sewing wizardry all year round. Here is the original Assembil book “How To Start Sewing”, given a spooky twist. All the same sewing content and sample patterns as the original book, now with a little pinch of Halloween-flavoured design spice. Something to ward off the sewing machine gremlins when the weather turns cool or the burning sun makes you want to retreat into your sewing lair. Expect creepy fonts and spooky surprises hidden in the pages, little treats to find between the sewing tricks.

“How To Start Sewing : Halloween Edition” is a special edition sewing book with a new cover, updated Halloween design elements, and some Halloween treats hidden on the pages. It does not feature specific Halloween projects, because these sewing skills are for all year round, not just for the spooky season.

About the sewing book:
“How To Start Sewing” was written for all types of sewers. Whether you are a fashion design student, a complete beginner, or an experienced self-taught sewist, this book is designed to serve as a complete sewing course or as the perfect reference guide to refresh your memory on garment-sewing techniques. Thousands of sewers around the world find the book helpful for its straightforward language, in-depth explanations of the how and why of sewing and a focus on helping you to level up your sewing for professional results. Follow along as more video tutorials are added on Instagram to support the book.

13/10/2026

Such a sunny day in the studio today

23/08/2026

Pattern Basics: Don’t get stuck on blocks

When you first learn about blocks, it may seem like there is only one method for each block type: bodice, skirt, trousers, etc.

You make the core blocks to the measurements you want, check the fitting, and then start designing from them. One step after another, right?

But then with more knowledge can come more confusion:

- There are lots of block methods, so which one to choose?
- What body measurements to choose?
- Have you compared body measurements to similar brands?
- Do you agree or disagree with their measurements?

If you are sewing for yourself at home, you can simply choose your own measurements, but maybe you still get confused about which block methods to follow.

It may be even more confusing if you are about to start your own label and are a designer / pattern maker / founder / sewing pattern brand.

My advice would be to do a little research, make your best guess at your measurements across your size range, pick a block method from a pattern making book that is well regarded... and then just start drafting up blocks. Start turning them into test toiles and start designing with them. Blocks can be an easy excuse to procrastinate over, but you have to try to get past that stage and get on with it.

Blocks make much more sense once you start seeing them in 3D, toiled up in calico, or finally designed into a garment. Don’t let blocks get you too stuck!

This is Part 6 of a short video series about pattern blocks. The full video with all chapters is also on Youtube .

The block draft shown is the Bunka adult sloper for womenswear from the book “Fundamentals of Garment Design” by Bunka Fashion College.

09/08/2026

Pattern Basics: Can you mix and match blocks?

This is a simple idea, with potentially far-reaching consequences for how you want to build out a pattern block library.

You might want to make your blocks as modular as possible so that you can mix and match blocks to create different designs. For example, maybe you want a fitted sleeve that fits into a shirt dress and a shirt? Maybe your brand has key details that have their own blocks, like a signature pocket?

This is Part 5 of a short video series about pattern blocks. The full video with all chapters is also on Youtube .

The block draft shown is the Bunka adult sloper for womenswear from the book “Fundamentals of Garment Design” by Bunka Fashion College.

11/07/2026

Pattern Basics: How to make blocks a useful tool?

At the beginning, you are drafting out pattern blocks and get caught in lots of questions. Do you need seam allowance or not? Are you meant to include wearing ease? What hem height should they be? You get caught up in what is right and wrong instead of what works for you.

Blocks are a tool, so make them useful for you. Ultimately, you want to create a block that is like a pattern making shortcut.

This is Part 4 of a short video series about pattern blocks. The full video with all chapters is also on Youtube .

PLEASE NOTE: The Assembil book “How Patterns Work” does not cover block drafting. That is why this video series allows me to introduce you to books that do include block drafting methods.

Books from the video:
- “Fundamentals of Garment Design” by Bunka Fashion College

Address

London

Website

http://www.assembil.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Assembil posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.