Yesterday's mail brought me an eagerly awaited package -- copies of A-Z of embroidery stitches 2 from Country Bumpkin and Stumpwork Seasons by Kay and Michael Dennis. If I had seen them in person, I might not have bought 'em. The stitches book has a lot of ones I already am familiar with and I thought the stumpwork book was going to be more of a how to rather than do the project pictured on the cover. Despite these "failings," I'm glad to have them in my library.
What books would stitchers recommend for teaching beginners different needlework techniques (such as thread painting, whitework, etc)? I want to try some new techniques and wonder what resources are the best for teaching different kinds of needlework.
For silk or tapestry shading I would highly recommend two books:
"Royal School of Needlework Embroidery Techniques" ISBN 1-57488-269-4
"Painting with a Needle", Young Yang Chung, ISBN 0-8109-4570-3
The former teaches the European (Western) style, and the latter teaches the Asian style. They come from two different schools of thought. I finally was able to grasp the concept well after using Chung's book.
Getting into whitework is a bit more tricky because there are so many different techniques: Schwalm, Mountmellick, padded whitework, etc. If you're looking for a book that teaches fine whitework like that known in French works and the Ayrshire needlework, then I would recommend "Ayrshire Needlework" by Agnes F. Bryson, ISBN 0-7134-5928-X It is currently out of print but there are copies available out there.
Is there a specific type of whitework you are trying to learn? I might be able to steer you in the right direction, including some groups on the Internet that are focused in that direction.
For beginners and not so beginners, any of the A-Z books by Country Bumpkin are great!!!!!!!! Not only are the illustrations first class, so are the explanations.
If you want to learn more surface embroidery stitches, Erica Wilsons' books are wonderful. Most libraries have them; they can also be found at some or many, not necessarily most , second hand book stores.
Somebody will have to pry my copy of The Art of Crewel Embroidery by Mildred Davis from my cold, dead hands. I believe it went out of print sometime in the late 50s but is sometimes in used book stores.
Old stitchers die and sometimes their stash winds up in places like that.
Some of her things she made are soooo 50s, but the techniques and ideas are timeless. I like the way she shows how to isolate just a part of a more grand pattern/picture and use it.
I was really lucky. Some very nice elderly woman brought in a bunch of old needlework books to the shop - so we got to divvy some up. Mary Martin's NP book - amongst them. And a very old Erica Wilson, some others. Some quite interesting one an samplers from an English collection made by some noblewoman in the Victorian era who chose not to marry, and went about her life collecting and doing needlework. I'll have to go look at it, and put the name out there - it's pretty fascinating.
I'm late to the party, but I was wondering if anybody had recommendations for Hardanger technique books. I've grasped the basics (stitch a square, cut a hole) and I'm interested in learning more, from basic to advanced.
Yeah, razz me about living in Norway and not getting local books...but I can't freaking read them yet and they're REALLY expensive!
I'm working on my very first kit right now, and I'm already thinking about what I want to do next, but I have zero Hardanger stash and I have no real grasp as to how to guesstimate thread usage.
Janice Love. Great books. Has one called "Hardanger Basics", then a Beyond Basics, then more. I love these books for teaching, or self-teaching.
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Bishop has fabulous patterns, but....I would not recommend her stuff asa first or second attempt - especially for self-teaching. Once you've donesomething else, gotten a little base, then you could move on. The book shehas with teaching sampler, I think it's called "Marian's Teaching Sampler"(I have the book) is very difficult to follow - hand drawn charts, etc andthe instructions not so clear. But, they become clearer with more recentthings.
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