The Kew Book of Nature Samplers (Folder edition)

Foreword 6

Introduction 8

What is needle painting? 10

Tools and materials 10

Preparation 16

Mounting your embroidery in a wooden hoop 20

Stitch instructions 22

Outlines 32

Raised embroidery 34

Natural dyeing 36

Stitching the projects 40

Useful advice before you start 40

SIMPLE PROJECTS 42
Starter stitch sampler 44, Poppy sampler 54, Wildflower Sampler 60, Sacred lotus flower sampler 68, Breadseed poppy sampler 76

INTERMEDIATE PROJECTS 88
Barn owl sampler 90, Bunny sampler 104, Butterfly sampler 118

ADVANCED PROJECTS 134
Pelargonium sampler 136, Dragonfly sampler 152

The templates 168

Using iron-on transfers 176

About Trish Burr

Trish Burr is a self-taught and renowned embroiderer. Through research and practice she has developed this individual technique of surface embroidery. She is the author of several highly successful books including The Kew Book of Embroidered Flowers and Trish Burr's Embroidery Transfers. Trish lives and works in Cape Town, South Africa. For more information on Trish and her work visit www.trishbembroidery.com

Customer Review

This book is absolutely stunning and bigger and much more extensive than I was expecting. I have a number of embroidery books now and although some are really good, Ive never found one that had everything in that a beginner needs to know. I think my search for that is over as Im yet to think of a single thing that Trish hasnt covered in this amazing book. It really is a one-stop-shop and while it assumes you know nothing, its also not patronising or over detailed and so Im sure it would suit any skill or experience level because theres always something new you can learn.

The book itself is a hardback folder design with an elastic strap closure which keeps the whole thing together or can be used as a make-shift bookmark to mark your place. On opening the folder the left sleeve contains the iron-on transfers. Ive not yet had a chance to use the iron-on transfers but having used them in the previous title in this series, theres a bit of an art to using them but they work really well if you follow the included instructions and dont move the iron whilst pressing them as this causes blurring. There are detailed instructions in the book and on Trishs website which explain two different methods to get a good transfer. These arent single-use and Trish says that they can be used 2 or 3 times each which is ideal when practising. The back of the paperback book is tucked into the sleeve on the right side of the folder so it can either remain where it is or be removed to use loose.

The book contains absolutely heaps of photos, information, tutorials, tips and so much more. It covers everything from how to naturally dye fabric, what fabrics and threads to use, to step-by-step stitch instructions, how to mount, frame and display your pieces as well as loads of information about what to do and not to do and crucially, why. Often in techniques books it feels like a lot of rules and theyre not really explained and Ive been left feeling silly wondering why it has to be done that specific way. Trish has explained a lot of these things as well as showing where things are preference rather than a better or worse way of doing something. It contains such a wealth of information, experience and knowledge, its just jam-packed and so well curated!

The designs themselves are absolute works of art. They look so real and lifelike and while they look very overwhelming to attempt, the step-by-step instructions accompanied by thread lists, stitching details and loads of in progress colour photos of the work, mean that you cant go wrong stitching along. The book contains 10 projects which doesnt sound like a great deal but one of them actually consists of 11 different elements. The patterns include lots of different flowers and seed pods, a bee, some butterflies, an owl, a hedgehog, a rabbit, a wren and some insects so individually its actually more like 54 projects (plus 9 aspects of the stitch sampler to practice) when you break it down. Theyre arranged into 3 different difficulty levels and they range from simpler projects to large, advanced samplers that are packed with detail and technique. It would be an amazing project to work your way through all of the tutorials and Im sure it would massively improve your technique.

Overall, I cant speak highly enough of this book. If you only want one book on the subject, this is most definitely the one to get as it tells you everything you could possibly need to know, I love it!

Customer Review

Whether you are a beginner or experienced embroiderer, this book will guide you through the various stages of creating beautiful samplers. It has certainly encouraged me to take up embroidery again after many years. Not only are there photos of the various stages to creating a beautiful piece of work, but also samplers to trace and there are also iron-on samplers included. What a treat for anyone who loves to embroider.