Thursday’s Book Review:
Complete Guide to Needlework
by Reader’s Digest

Book Cover

Rating
4 stars = Satisfactory

Description
A complete guide to the many arts of needlework, including embroidery, crocheting, knitting, quilting, and lace-making.

Liked
This book is both comprehensive and easy to understand, making it a rarity among textbooks. Suitable for dressmakers, quilters, and historic costumers, it covers a wide array of needlework arts and each subject is presented with clear instructions and step-by-step illustrations.

Instructions For Blanket-Stitching ~ Reader's Digest, © 1979

The chapters on embroidery have been quite useful to me. I taught myself to embroider many years ago using this book, and I glance through it whenever I need a refresher. There are several chapters on lace-making, as well, which should provide hours of entertainment for historic costumers who want to make their own trims.

Bobbin Lace ~ Reader's Digest, © 1979

Disliked
The book was published in 1979, so the photographs are obviously dated. Not many people are into macramé these days, or appliquéing their maxi-dresses with needle-lace butterfly yokes, so some of the projects might not appeal to everyone. The instructions themselves, however, are quite sound and still applicable today.

Dated Illustrations ~ Reader's Digest, © 1979

Conclusion
If you can overlook the unfashionable projects and illustrations, you’ll find quite a lot of useful information in this book. It’s a great textbook for all manner of needle arts. I give it four out of five stars, simply because the dated photos and projects are unappealing. Otherwise, it’s a fantastic instruction manual.

Buy Now: Reader’s Digest Complete Guide to Needlework

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Have you used this book to teach yourself embroidery, crocheting, or any other needlework? What do you think of the book—is it useful or outdated?