Stitching Idyllic: Spring Flowers (SECOND EDITION). Ann Bernard

If you can bounce a coin on it, it is tight enough. There are nothing but pluses to be gained by adhering to this principle.

      Placing a backing fabric behind the front fabric has many benefits. It stabilizes and gives body to your stitching surface. It makes starting, ending, reverse stitching, plus long threads on the reverse side much simpler. It allows you to stitch on fabrics that are not always deemed suitable for embroidery. Each Spring Flower has a photo of the real flower. There is the thread recipe for that plant's foliage and flower, a stitching diagram and a photo of the stitched flower included. There are no patterns to follow in this book. Instead, a way of planning a garden layout and then stitching it are shown. This establishes original creativity immediately. Chloe, for example, has already bypassed cross stitch and other kits in her first venture into textile creativity.

      Right now, I would like you to meet Edna Mumford and to see the garden she stitched.

      I can thoroughly recommend Ann Bernard's Stitching Idyllic for Spring Flowers. Ann brings her training at the Royal School of Needlework to the fore by devising a whole new way of embroidering spring flowers with ordinary cotton floss.

      Her method of combining different hues of 4 or 6 strands at a time for flower stems and flower heads results in lovely raised effects which make the effort of stranding (which I originally thought tedious) very worthwhile, and gives the impression of many stitches whereas your one bold and stranded stitch is fully expressive by itself. This technique for the flowers and stems - which aims for true colours in nature - at once gives a wonderful shaded and depth effect.

      I've been an embroiderer for many decades and I was delighted with the results I achieved just doing a practice piece. Using only her techniques, I then embarked on an embroidery, of my own composition of spring flowers. Her directions 'take you by the hand' and lead you through flower sizes, growing habit, and colour to make them quite realistic. I completed my own piece of work without my usual agonies as a result, and I was very pleased to produce recognizable flowers. The directions are thorough and the diagrams very descriptive.

      I would recommend this book for any stitcher whether novice or experienced, as there is much to learn for very pleasing results.

      Sincerely, Edna Mumford

      There are many examples of stitched gardens. They all use the same stitches and thread colours but each garden is totally different.

      Some smaller projects have been developed including name tags, artist trading cards, greeting cards, phone and eye glass cases. Every stitcher who belongs to a Guild needs a name tag and it is nice to have a new one occasionally. Try wearing your stitched name tag to another event and see what the reaction is. You can even wear the official tag and your spring flowers one too. Two are better than none and you will be flattered at how many people remember you the next time you meet. They are great conversation starters too.

      Finishing and mounting are included. This process is quick and easy when you follow the directions in the latter part of the book.

      You will have created a unique item that is specifically original to you. If you really are a beginner, your stitching career is off to a flying start. If you are already experienced, you will still find techniques and ideas in this book that you can blend into your repertoire and give you another mode of expression to add to your stitching portfolio.

      Stitching freehand, but with guidance, is a wonderful experience. You can express your own ideas and there are no black lines or charts to follow. Your creation will be unique and totally your own. It is of continuous amazement to me that, using the same stitches, the same threads and the same information, that the results can be so infinitely varied.

      The creative use of these four basic stitches to express the spring flowers and plants in this book are entirely my own. I have not borrowed or been inspired by any influence other than the bounty and glory of nature. It has been a challenging process with endless trial and error as you will see in the photo of part of one of the three frames I used solely for experimentation.

      Welcome, and Enjoy.