Vintage Craft Book Feature: Faces and Figures in Embroidery (1979)

 Another of my many needlework hobbies is the collection of vintage craft books. Found in dusty corners of second hand shops, in pride of place in used book stores, these old tomes often contain beautiful nuggets of crafting wisdom, and a heaping helping of vintage charm. Reviving the techniques, tips and retro projects is just one more way for us to bring back the wonders of the handmade.

Faces and Figures in Embroidery 1979

This book is one of my favorite finds, and a big reason for that is the awesome picture on the cover. It reminds me of some old videogame like Pitfall! 

In all seriousness, this book is really awesome as an inspiration for embroidery design. While it does have some instructional bits for actually stitching, it is much more of a design book. 

It has some great historical examples of different ways of creating faces and bodies in stitches.

And it's also got some really great contemporary examples. Many are very textured and three dimensional like this, but a variety of other styles are also showcased.

There are a lot of line drawings to work from, and examples of how they could be stitched. Throughout are guides on how to place design elements, how to utilize texture and color, and many more tips and tricks.

All in all, this book really gets you looking at embroidery with different eyes! (No, I'm not sorry at all about that lame pun!)

Mom's Hug Shrug

 It's Free Pattern Friday! This time it's a crochet pattern, designed by yours truly! This one is truly simple, as I am a beginner at crochet, but it's as warm and comforting as a mother's hug!

I used K&C Element yarn (which is discontinued), but any worsted weight will be fine. I used a size H crochet hook, and size 6 circular (or dpn) knitting needles. I used 4 balls of yarn or about 400 yds

So, starting with the crochet hook, chain enough stitches to be about 20" long. Exact count doesn't matter, so long as it's an even number. Hdc in each chain across for the first row. This piece will be worked back and forth as a big rectangle.

For the second row: (hdc twice in the same st, then skip one st) - repeat across

Third row: (skip one st, then hdc twice in the same st) - repeat across

Repeat these two rows until you have a long rectangle.  Measure it on yourself by holding it across your back between your hands, and keep going until it reaches just short of from wrist to wrist.

Once it's the length you want, sew the long sides together to make the sleeves, leaving a gap in the middle for your torso. (I left the yarn connected and used slip stitch to make the seams, but you could also cut the yarn and use a yarn needle if you wanted.)

Now, using the knitting needle, pick up about 36 sts from the wrist edge. Exact number doesn't matter as long as its an even number and evenly spaced around. Join in the round and work k2p2 ribbing for about 10 rows. Cast off all sts, and repeat to make the cuff on the other side.

Weave in any ends and enjoy your snuggly shrug!