I wish I had this book when I first started sewing seven years ago, though I still find it very useful. It covers pretty much everything you need to know as a fresh sewer: machines, fabrics, stitches, equipment, techniques. My only complaint about the book was that on some of the pictures there were too little contrast. A photo of white fabric on a white background placed on a white page made some of the examples a bit hard to see. But otherwise a really useful book if you're getting into sewing or already have some experience.