The Point of the Needle

Tens of millions of people sew for necessity or pleasure every day, yet the craft is surprisingly under-appreciated. Now available in paperback, The Point of the Needle redresses the balance: this is a book that argues for sewing's place in our lives. It celebrates not only sewing's recent resurgence but sewists' creativity, well-being and community. Barbara Burman chronicles new voices of people who sew today, by hand or machine, to explore what they sew, what motivates them, what they value and why they mend things, revealing insights into sewing's more intimate stories. In our age of superfast fashion with its environmental and social injustices, this eloquent book makes a passionate case for identity, diversity, resilience and memory—what people create for themselves as they stitch and make.

‘Burman was the coauthor of the well-received book called The Pocket: A Secret History of Women's Lives, but in this new book, she has a much bigger canvas: to rescue sewing from the twilight and to celebrate it as a fundamental human activity... This book is a much broader one that seeks to shine a light on the extraordinary human endeavour of stitching.’ Haptic & Hue, Book of the Year 2023

‘[Burman] pulls off turning a lifetime's research, including her own Our Sewing Stories, into a book by having a strong, thematic narrative, fluent style and empathy with the more personal aspects of needlecraft... The book charts the social history of what is still perceived as a "gendered practice". It also explores needlework's moral and religious associations and the benefits it offers to well-being... At a more sensory level, evocative descriptions of scissors crunching through cloth, "earthy and seductive" Harris tweed, silk pleated "into rills like the delicate underside of a field mushroom", "swishy, flowy" synthetic jerseys and old-fashioned lutestring, fustian and dimity will resonate with lovers of haberdasheries.’ Country Life

‘Chronicling the intimate stories of people who sew today, this "trenchant" argument for the importance of sewing in our lives looks at identity, diversity, resilience and memory as it explores why we sew, what motivates us and why we mend things.’ Bookseller