Celebrating the Stitch: Contemporary Embroidery of North America

by Barbara Lee Smith

This text presents an embroiderer's workshop full of inspiration, tips and techniques, and includes a series of designs to encourage creativity.

240 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1991

Reviews

[Brent Woo · Rating 5 out of 5]

You would not believe just how many ways there are to stick a needle and thread through fabric. This volume strikes the perfect balance between critical discussion of the work as art as well as fine technical analysis. That means it appeals both to those who mainly appreciate the finished product versus those who mainly appreciate the process (and those who appreciate both, of course).

Rather than hide the magicians' secrets, Smith exposes them wide open, including interviews with the artists themselves about their process. There are fantastic illustrations of the actual stitches and processes showing exactly how to weave a soumak, or dovetail two or three colors in needlepoint, so you could even try to emulate the artwork presented here. There's an illustrated glossary at the end that includes a dozen or so stitches so you can see why a seed- is different than a runnning-stitch. Awesome!

The most important thing with a book like this is you come away from it every time with inspiration. It's so hard to read through because even after a 5-minute perusal I just want to get away and start stitching!

[Phyllis Burstein, DePaul Art Education · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book to show students how fine artists approach needle work and fiber arts.