The Emma Press Bound.

ISBN: 191562830X

Author: Maddie Ballard

Condition: New

a gorgeous, tender exploration of the craft of sewing and how we carve out spaces for ourselves ~ Nina Mingya Powles

Bound: A Memoir of Making and Remaking is a collection of essays about sewing and knowing who you are. Each chapter in this sewists diary charts the crafting of a different garment: from a lining embroidered with the Cantonese names of her female ancestors to a dressing gown holding the body of a beloved friend, Maddie Ballard navigates love, personal connections, and self-care, drafting her own patterns for ways of living.

I cut more carefully than usual, bothering to iron first, and lay the fabric out on the flat tiles of the bathroom rather than just the carpet. I trace the pattern off my own shop-bought dressing gown, then add a back pleat so it will float behind her and shorten the sleeves a little so they wont trail when shes making her coffee. I cut tiny rectangles of fabric to make belt loops and a loop for hanging. I cut vast pockets, for holding snacks and notebooks and her phone when she needs to flip the pancakes. I remember all the little details I would skim past if I were making this for myself. I stitch care into every seam.

• Bound. | ABISBOOK. | The Emma Press.