| Last
year I reviewed this author’s first book The
Seasons in Silk Ribbon Embroidery on this site. This
was a book with the wow factor in spades, a rare treat for
the more advanced embroiderer. A year on and here is another
such book, this time showing what crewel embroidery is capable
of when inspired by fairy tales.
The
main project in this book is a larger piece entitled Tree
of Happiness. Each section of this is also featured as
a smaller design elsewhere in a different colorway, and each
of these sections was inspired by a different fairy tale.
Ms Popova is from the Ukraine, so the tales are more varied
than they would be from an English speaking author. Andersen’s
The Wild Swans are featured as is the Wizard
of Oz and Cinderella, but there are also Polish
and Russian stories plus a ribbonwork owl, the inspiration
behind the author’s website name. To learn the stitches
start at the beginning where you will find some very clear
and foolproof staged photographs. There are also many tips
here, and a gallery of photographs showing the whole tree
plus all the separate elements. Each of these is also shown
paler with a numbered key showing which stitch goes where
with a handy page reference. This is a large format book and
there are plenty of good-sized photographs with close-ups
so you get a good idea of what the work is supposed to look
like. Each chapter covers a different element, and as well
as the expected key and list of materials there is a brief
description of the story plus a personal reminiscence about
how the author was inspired to choose it. This makes for interesting
reading, and also caused me to ponder on what gets my own
creative juices flowing. The embroidery uses Appletons wools
or DMC threads which include stranded cottons (including variegated)
plus pearl cotton sizes 8 and 12. The instructions are clear,
but despite the author’s claim that beginners can tackle
the projects I imagine most newbie embroiderers would be better
starting with simpler work. Turn to the back for the outlines
and advice on transferring to fabric, including tips for working
on patterned material. This is definitely one for that keeper
shelf, and my favorite book of 2020 so far. I can’t
wait for book three!
If
you cannot find a good range of embroidery materials locally
try www.searchpress.com for a list of suppliers.
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