Foolproof Flower Embroidery: 80 Stitches & 400 Combinations in a Variety of Fibers; Add Texture, Color & Sparkle to Your Organic Garden

by Jennifer Clouston

Stitch your very own garden Explore your stitching versatility with this comprehensive guide by learning to use any thread and embroidery stitch you desire! Jennifer Clouston shares how to make the most of the thread you already own by introducing hundreds of stitch and fiber combination options to create your own unique flower garden. From textured stems and leaves to colorful bunches of flowers- your end result will look and feel like a true artistic and organic garden.

Genres: Crafts, Nonfiction, Reference, Art

273 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2021

Reviews

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you want an embroidery book that gives you fixed patterns with instructions and colors, this is not it. Clouston instead creates a wonderful dictionary of stitches and how to apply them to various botanical work. As a reference guide, it's absolutely invaluable, especially for those who make their own patterns or don't use patterns with scripted stitch types. Clouston provides full color pictures of hundreds of stitches in action and then cross-references the dictionary of instructions in the back. Her guiding ethos around embroidery--"start where you are and use what you have"--is an incredible breath of fresh air in a world of "Buy a kit! Use these color threads from this brand! Never use anything but six-strand cotton!" (okay, I'm definitely exagerrating, but the vibe is there.)

The stitch instructions are great, though if I'm honest some of these I will definitely have to cross-reference with video instructions (My process is "watch a video but always use written instructions as cross-reference", so I still suspect I'll get plenty of use from the book.) Clouston's incredible mixed-stitch style (using everything from crewel to ribbon to boro stitch) shows what's possible when you don't marry yourself to strict methods and is invaluable for those interested in visible mending work (her background is as a crazy quilter and it shows).

As I've been learning embroidery, I've noticed there's really two types of embroiderers; those who want to do big thread-painting pieces with expertly worked split stitch and those who want to use "trick stitches" (is there a technical word for this?), usually variations on chain and knot stitches to create various effects and patterns. Clouston is firmly in camp #2.

[Janyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book with tons of examples on how you can use different stitches, and different threads to do numerous flowers, leaves, buds, stems and even twigs. The author also encourages you to use what you have and experiment with all the different combinations. It has really inspired me to try to do my own experiments!!!

[Doreen Prentiss Gabriellini · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author does a beautiful job in book. Any one who is interested in embroidery will find this book extremely helpful. For those who are seasoned embroiderers will find the photos, colors and stitches absolutely irresistible. This book would be a welcome addition to any stitcher's library.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shows some beautiful stitching ideas but the instructions -drawings- are confusing to me. Photos might have been better. The author does provide some video tutorial sites at the end of the book.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An inspirational embroidery book for people just like me who freeform stitch and don't love patterns. I have a heap of stash already to play with, and can get inventive by following these guidelines without feeling like there's a right or wrong way to embroider.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely!

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic resource with new-to-me stitches and ways to use new-to-me materials (silk ribbon, I'm looking at you!).

[Lisa Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely lovely. One for the home bookshelf, not just library borrowing.

[Gretchen]

It is far more about textures then patterns and isnt very great about showing you how to make the flowers and vines they show

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is basically a stitch dictionary. I thought the sampler project presentation of each section was very clever.

[Vivian Wiltshire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started following Jennifer on u tube and just loved her embroidery style and designs. I realized this book was available and just had to have it. It's jammed packed with awesome designs and tutorials and it's also so pretty to look at. I love everything about this book. So far it's my favourite embroidery book and can't wait to try all the stitches. A definite 5 out of 5 stars.