Embroidered Stories


Book Description

For Italian immigrants and their descendants, needlework represents a marker of identity, a cultural touchstone as powerful as pasta and Neapolitan music. Out of the artifacts of their memory and imagination, Italian immigrants and their descendants used embroidering, sewing, knitting, and crocheting to help define who they were and who they have become. This book is an interdisciplinary collection of creative work by authors of Italian origin and academic essays. The creative works from thirty-seven contributors include memoir, poetry, and visual arts while the collection as a whole explores a multitude of experiences about and approaches to needlework and immigration from a transnational perspective, spanning the late nineteenth century to the late twentieth century. At the center of the book, over thirty illustrations represent Italian immigrant women's needlework. The text reveals the many processes by which a simple object, or even the memory of that object, becomes something else through literary, visual, performance, ethnographic, or critical reimagining. While primarily concerned with interpretations of needlework rather than the needlework itself, the editors and contributors to Embroidered Stories remain mindful of its history and its associated cultural values, which Italian immigrants brought with them to the United States, Canada, Australia, and Argentina and passed on to their descendants.




Embroidered Stories


Book Description

Samplers were embroidered pictures made by girls, and occasionally boys, as part of their education. Scottish samplers are unique with regard to the amount of information that can be gathered from them. They often include the initials of extended family members as well as details of buildings, places and events, leading to the identification of almost all of these young embroiderers. Leslie Durst, an American with a passion for Scotland, has a collection of over 500 samplers dating from the early 18th to the late 19th century; a small section of them will be exhibited at the National Museum of Scotland. This book showcases these and reveals the stories behind many of them - embroidered records of two centuries of Scottish social history. Exhibition: National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, UK (26.10.2018 - 21.4.2019). --




The Embroidered Book


Book Description

*Shortlisted for the Aurora Award for Best Novel* ‘Spellbinding’ JJA Harwood ‘An entertaining and dark read’ Stylist ‘An absorbing novel’ Guardian ‘Beautifully written’ Elizabeth Chadwick




Embroidered Animals


Book Description

A lively and accessible book featuring embroidery motifs and sewing projects that highlight the wonder and beauty of the animal kingdom with designs for foxes, cats, owls, zebras, and pandas. From elegant birds to adorable rabbits and wonderfully simple sheep, the 25 motifs and patterns in this book offer both a modern flair and an organic true-to-nature style. The whimsical animal designs--ranging from wild wolves, cheetahs, and giraffes to cuddly and cute bears, cats, dogs, monkeys, and pigs--can be incorporated into any of the sewing projects included, such as bags, pillows, bookmarks, and sachets, so that beginner and experienced embroiderers can mix and match patterns according to their own interest and skill.







Pet Portrait Embroidery


Book Description

Learn the art of thread painting from Instagram sensation Michelle Staub Cats and dogs seem to always have a paw planted firmly in our hearts. Capture the life in their eyes and the texture of their fur with a unique embroidered pet portrait! Insta-famous artist Michelle Staub puts a modern spin on thread painting with her easy-to-learn approach. Get started with 4 basic embroidery stitches, and follow the detailed tutorials to hone your skills. Capture awe-inspiring details of your pet with lessons in full-color thread painting or go clean with a simple line drawing—the choice is yours. Learn to personalize your art piece with names, dates, and decorative accents. With 20 sample patterns to customize, you can easily recreate any breed! Paint stunningly realistic pet portraits with just a needle and thread Try your hand at two styles—minimal outlines and incredible full-color renderings Make it modern with floral garlands, personalized banners, and crisp lettering Start today with 4 easy stitches and 20 customizable projects




Embroidered Landscapes Hand Embroidery


Book Description

Design and create realistic hand-embroidered landscapes, from coastlines to deserts, escarpments to plains. Judy Wilford's stunning process combines different genres, textiles, traditional stitches, and embroidery styles. Part 1 covers the materials and equipment, lays out a simple landscape, and demonstrates background layering and surface stitching. The second section contains a range of projects, each developing and extending the various techniques.




The Girl Who Wrote in Silk


Book Description

A USA TODAY BESTSELLER! "A powerful debut that proves the threads that interweave our lives can withstand time and any tide, and bind our hearts forever."—Susanna Kearsley, New York Times bestselling author of Belleweather and The Vanished Days A historical novel inspired by true events, Kelli Estes's brilliant and atmospheric debut is a poignant tale of two women determined to do the right thing, highlighting the power of our own stories. The smallest items can hold centuries of secrets... While exploring her aunt's island estate, Inara Erickson is captivated by an elaborately stitched piece of fabric hidden in the house. The truth behind the silk sleeve dated back to 1886, when Mei Lien, the lone survivor of a cruel purge of the Chinese in Seattle found refuge on Orcas Island and shared her tragic experience by embroidering it. As Inara peels back layer upon layer of the centuries of secrets the sleeve holds, her life becomes interwoven with that of Mei Lein. Through the stories Mei Lein tells in silk, Inara uncovers a tragic truth that will shake her family to its core—and force her to make an impossible choice. Should she bring shame to her family and risk everything by telling the truth, or tell no one and dishonor Mei Lien's memory? A touching and tender book for fans of Marie Benedict, Susanna Kearsley, and Duncan Jepson, The Girl Who Wrote in Silk is a dual-time period novel that explores how a delicate piece of silk interweaves the past and the present, reminding us that today's actions have far reaching implications. Praise for The Girl Who Wrote in Silk: "A beautiful, elegiac novel, as finely and delicately woven as the title suggests. Kelli Estes spins a spellbinding tale that illuminates the past in all its brutality and beauty, and the humanity that binds us all together." —Susan Wiggs, New York Times bestselling author of The Beekeeper's Ball "A touching and tender story about discovering the past to bring peace to the present." —Duncan Jepson, author of All the Flowers in Shanghai "Vibrant and tragic, The Girl Who Wrote in Silk explores a horrific, little-known era in our nation's history. Estes sensitively alternates between Mei Lien, a young Chinese-American girl who lived in the late 1800s, and Inara, a modern recent college grad who sets Mei Lien's story free." —Margaret Dilloway, author of How to Be an American Housewife and Sisters of Heart and Snow




Floral Garden Embroidery Patterns


Book Description

This book has over 100 floral and garden theme embroidery patterns. The patterns include: a floral garden cottage, an autumn cottage, bee gardens, bluebells, forget-me-nots, lily of the valley, autumn garland, winter garland, Christmas roses, strawberry flowers, bramble bee designs, cherry blossom flowers, birds, bees, butterflies, ladybirds, dragonflies, toadstools, acorns, floral arch, a flower well, beehives, flower baskets, pretty bouquets, a flower shop -- and lettering patterns for the words Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Daisy and Love. Most of the patterns use stranded cotton embroidery thread (floss), but crewelwork patterns (wool embroidery) are included. The crewel wool patterns can also be stitched with cotton embroidery thread if preferred. The stitches and thread colours are suggestions. You can of course use your own favourite stitches and threads to sew the patterns if you prefer. The patterns are ideal for hand stitching and hoop embroidery. The designs are based on De-ann Black''s original artwork. De-ann designed and stitched the patterns. The flowers are an artistic representation of real flowers. Many of the patterns have a seasonal theme including -- spring bouquet, summer lettering, floral summer bee garden, autumn floral cottage and winter garland. The Love lettering has a spring, summer, autumn & winter design. There are roses, cornflowers, sunflowers, orange blossom, apple blossom, thistles, poppies, foxgloves, iris, violet, aster, night scented stock, coral bells, jasmine, water lily, tulips, daffodils, pansies, delphiniums, grape hyacinth, Cupid''s dart, looking glass flowers, Queen Anne''s lace, million bells, trillium, chocolate cosmos, chocolate daisies, zinnia, lilac, heliotrope, hellebore, magnolia, gypsophila, a gardenia tree, gerbera, freesia, marigold, moonflower, anemone, autumn hawkbit, bellflowers and blue daisies. The book contains full-size patterns on single sided pages so you can trace the patterns on to fabric ready for embroidering. The pattern instructions are at the back of the book. Book website: The website shows detailed colour photographs of the main embroidery designs. It includes videos showing how De-ann traces her patterns on to fabric, and her methods for stitching some of the designs -- with links to her YouTube channel where you can see more of her embroidery stitching methods including: satin stitch, back stitch, whipped running stitch, whipped back stitch, stem stitch, outline stitch, French knots, Colonial knots, closed fly stitch, trailing stitch, couching, split stitch, seed stitch, chain stitch, ribbed spider web stitch, whitework, goldwork and crewelwork embroidery. A link to the book''s website is at the back of the book. Please note: This is a book of embroidery patterns. You will need to trace the patterns on to fabric. De-ann''s method is included in a video on the book''s website. Take a look at De-ann''s Amazon Author page to see her latest sewing theme romance books including: The Sewing Shop, The Sewing Bee, The Quilting Bee and The Dressmaker''s Cottage. About the Author: De-ann Black is a bestselling author, scriptwriter and former newspaper journalist. She has over 80 books published. Romance, thrillers, various fiction and non-fiction books. De-ann is also a professional artist, illustrator and designer. Fabric design, embroidery, dressmaking, sewing, knitting and fashion are part of her work. Additionally, De-ann has always been interested in fitness, and was a fitness and bodybuilding champion, 100 metre runner and mountaineer. As a former N.A.B.B.A. Miss Scotland, she had a weekly fitness show on the radio that ran for over three years. De-ann trained in Shukokai karate, boxing, kickboxing, Dayan Qigong & Jiu Jitsu. She is currently based in Scotland. Her embroidery design books & colouring books are available in paperback on Amazon.