A-Z
of Stumpwork
By
Various Contributors
In
the 17th century, stumpwork was the last and most advanced form
of needlework a young lady learned. Now, it is still one of the
least-known of the needle-arts and needs a bit of positive publicity.
I wanted a book that would teach me the stitches and give me projects
that kept the beauty of the earlier works while at the same time
being modern yet timeless. That book seems to be this one!
Firstly I think this is a real keeper
that might well spend some time on the coffee table. This is such
a beautifully produced book, with its lush layouts and lovely incidental
motifs of old botanical prints that seem to be a feature of how-to
books produced in Australia. The stitches are explained in so many
clear stages that even a relative beginner could probably learn
them, and there are some truly breathtaking projects that ought
to make any embroiderer worth their salt grab a needle and get stitching.
Only two things marred this otherwise lovely primer. Firstly, I
had hoped for a brief history of stumpwork but this was entirely
missing - why? Secondly, the book goes straight from the stitches
to the projects, which are all quite advanced. There is no beginner's
piece to ease the stitcher in, or to explain the composition of
the projects, and this is a pity.
I
guess that this is mainly due to the fact that the book is not the
work of one person, and it made me think of the old joke about a
camel being a horse designed by a committee. But this aside, just
like the young ladies of old, you too, can learn stumpwork - but
I would tend to recommend this lovely primer more to those who are
fairly experienced in embroidery.
Visit http://www.searchpress.com
for a list of suppliers.
|
The
Book |
Inspirations Books (distributed in UK by Search Press) |
February 2005 |
Paperback |
0975092057 |
How-To
Books/Needlecrafts |
More
at Amazon.com |
Excerpt
|
NOTE:
|
The
Reviewer |
Rachel A Hyde |
Reviewed
2005 |
NOTE:
|
|