There are quite a few books
that give you ideas on how to use scraps left over from craft
projects, or even those from everyday life. This book goes
one further and shows how you can also incorporate antique
and vintage items into your stitched work.
Give old family items or things
from flea markets a new lease of life by combining them with
modern materials to create quilts, wall art and more. If you
like crazy quilting (or have always fancied trying it) this
book will show you what can be accomplished. It is certainly
lovely to look at, and filled with the author’s personal
work based around his own family history, plus lucky finds
while out browsing. There is even a useful guide to shopping
for vintage items and looking for things that “speak”
to you rather than just hoarding. Discover what tools and
materials you need to work with the old as well as the new,
learn some basic stitches and delve into Mr Haggard’s
wonderfully inspiring projects. I wouldn’t recommend
this book to the total beginner as it assumes some level of
knowledge regarding basic sewing methods, but the lushly photographed
stages are not hard to understand for improver-level stitchers.
All the text reads as though the author is talking directly
to you, which is a great feature, and makes it all seem easier
than it might otherwise. He likes neutrals, but there are
some colorful projects too and it is all about finding the
look that appeals to you; essentially this is a book of guidelines.
As well as quilting skills and some basic embroidery, there
are projects that make use of photo transfers, 3D work and
at the back a rather more useful gallery than the usual pages
of briefly captioned photographs. All these pieces, by both
the author and others, come with more lengthy explanations
as to how and why they were made. This does take up a chunk
of the book but this is part of the appeal; getting the reader
to think about what they want to do with what they have. Even
the five projects are more about getting under the skin of
a piece, and as they are all so personal, they encourage going
beyond mere copying. It certainly got me thinking, and fishing
around in my own loft to see how I can incorporate antique
photographs and fabrics into projects that will give them
a new lease of life. A very inspiring and imaginative book.
If you cannot find a good
range of embroidery and needlecraft materials locally try
www.searchpress.com for a list of suppliers.