Craft book review: Two-Hour Cross-Stitch - 515 Fabulous designs

Craft book review: Two-Hour Cross-Stitch 515 Fabulous designs

Book title: Two-Hour Cross-Stitch 515 Fabulous designs
By: Patrice Boerens

ISBN: 0-8069-0952-8

What is this book about?

This book is full of small and not too difficult cross stitch designs. There are a wide variety of designs on a range of topics including Nature, celebrations, Victorian and Children's themed designs.

Who is this book for?

I would recommend this book for beginning cross stitchers. The small and simple designs allow a new stitcher the satisfaction of finishing a project without committing to a large and daunting project.
Though more experienced Cross stitch fans may also enjoy a quick stitch inbetween projects or something to whip up in a hurry for a last minute card or present.
In addition since there is a nice variety of designs its easy to find something suitable for any occasion.

How are the charts presented?

Each chart is presented in black and white with symbols. The size of each chart is not too small so I havn't had to get my maginifier out for this one. On each page is a quick reference chart for the thread symbols and colours. However only the numbers are shown for each symbol so if using alternative threads you may find yourself relying on the photographs to the side of each chart.
It is a lovely addition to the book that beside each chart there is also an example of the finished stitch to help in picking a design to sew and to help working out what colour to sew in.

Backstitch in this book tends to line up with the holes in the Aida making the charts easier to read. However since the charts are all in black and white I have been having difficulty making out what colour thread to use for the backstitch, particularly on pages where more than one backstitch colour is listed. On many designs it can be made out from the photographs but on a few I just guessed at what colour would look the best.

Are there any extras in this book?

No not really, unless you count a basic how to cross stitch instruction. However since there are so many charts in this book I do not fault it for having no additional content.
However this does mean that this book is not going to be a complete guide to the craft and you will need to supplement it with another book or two to have instructions on what to do with your stitching after you have sewn it.

Do the stitches really take two hours?

This question will be subjective depending on the stitcher's skill and concentration. However I have been cross stitching seriously for about 5 years (though learnt to do so much younger) and found that many of the designs I sewed took less than two hours though a couple with a large amount of backstitch took a little longer however this could be because I am terribly slow at backstitch. (that being my I design cross stitch with very little backstitch)
A few of the cards I sewed from this book took me less than two of my lunch breaks (each break giving me about half an hour sewing time) This meant all of my cards were easily done in time for Birthdays and Christmas.

I will be posting the pictures of the cards I made soon so watch this space for some examples of my favourite stitches from this book. :)

UPDATE: Here are  the Christmas designs I made from this book turned into my stash of this years Christmas cards: http://buzybobbins.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/my-stash-of-cross-stitched-christmas.html

For the Buzy Bobbins Index page Click here.

Craft book review: Cross Stitch Angels: Over 30 inspirational designs

Craft book review: Cross Stitch Angels: Over 30 inspirational designs

Book Title: Cross Stitch Angels: Over 30 inspirational designs
A David & Charles book

ISBN-13: 978-0-7153-2375-5
ISBN-10: 0-7153-2375-X

In a Nutshell what is this book about?

This book as suggested by the title specialises in cross stitch designs of angels for a number of occasions. The designs are drawn by a variety of designers such as Sue Cook, Clare Crompton, Maria Diaz, Joan Elliot, Helen Phillips and Lesley Teare. This gives a wide variety of styles to choose from.

Who is this book for?

I would recommend this book for intermediate and above cross stitchers, Many of the designs in this book are quite large and detailed so could take a while to sew. The smaller card sized designs can include some fairly detailed backstitch and the inclusion of seed beads and charms. This creates some very beautiful designs but needs a little bit of skill to pull off just right.
While I would not call this a perfect 'first book of cross stitch' for those picking up the craft I'm certainly finding it a worthwhile addition to my book collection.

What is included in this book?

As mentioned before the charts in this book are all angel themed. Each design is represented with a large enough grid that I did not have to use my magnifier at all. The charts have coloured blocks with symbols only when similar shading colours are used so they are very easy to read.
There are a variety of occasions represented too such as Birthday angels for each month, Christmas cards featuring gold metallic thread and an absolutely gorgeous wedding design featuring an angel in a flowing wedding gown. This design makes me wish I was a faster stitcher I doubt I'd get this one done in time for a wedding. (maybe I can make it in advance)
With each set of designs there are suggestions on how to turn your stitching into items such as pin cushions, cards and wall hangings. As a cute bonus throughout the book are short but sweet angel quotes from proverbs to philosophy. Do you think anyone will notice if I used some of these in my next set of cards? I don't think I'll be stuck for the perfect thing to write in an angel themed card again.

My favourite project

Without a doubt my favourite project in this book is the Victorian angels A-Z. I started a few of these as cards when I felt like a challenge with backstitch and beads One thing I like is that each angel in the alphabet is different. In some alphabets I find if a motif is repeated on too many letters some names or phrases can end up repetitive but with this one you only need to take care for words with repeated letters but its not too hard to replace one angel for another or change the colour of the hair and dresses in these designs.

I made up a couple of the Angel cards for my Nan and Stepmum if you want to take a peek I have posted them here: http://buzybobbins.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/cross-stitched-angel-cards.html

 For the Buzy Bobbins Index page Click here.

Craft Book Review: Manga Cross-Stitch > make your own Graphic art Needlework

Manga Cross-Stitch > make your own graphic art needlework
by Helen McCarthy

Briefly what is this book about?
This book is about learning to design manga styled cross stitch. It includes a variety of manga styles and Japanese influences. This book also comes with a cross stitch design program and instructions on how to use it.

Who is it for?

This book is suitable for beginners in cross stitch design wanting to have a go at the art or intermediate to expert designers who want more ideas on how to include manga styles into their work.

What is included?

This book contains a wide variety of hints and tips on how to design cross stitch in a manga style. There are some very lovely features which make this book rather different to other books on designing I have in my collection.
There are also a selection of Manga style designs included ready to stitch (none of them are from established manga or anime series however) Many of the designs are actually really big they can get to nearing 10 inches on 14 count aida to just over 20 inches on the very largest designs. Some of these I'd love to sew but I cannot bring myself to tackle such a large project. At least the designs use mostly whole stitches with a little backstitch for highlights. However the charts in the book itself are very small. I had difficulty reading most of them, it is required to install the cross stitch program to view the charts. (more on that below)

The format of this book makes it stand out from other books on cross stitch design or cross stitch in general I have on my bookshelf. There is a double page spread on a selection of topics which are specific to Manga style drawings. For example pages I have found very useful include use of sound effects, use of speedlines (and different ways to chart them) and the comedy and drama manga sections which also include suggestions on how to chart various facial expressions using a combination of cross stitch and back stitch. This makes the book feel like it has such a variety of things you can try

I love the inclusion of a selection of phrases in Japanese to incorporate into your designs. There is a sampler made from Hiragana and a selection of charts which include Kanji.

Since this book is very modern it does not contain any help in designing your own stitches on graph paper or helping to chart out your own or existing alphabets with graph paper and is very oriented around using computer programs for this. So if you need info on how to design on paper without a computer (I know some people prefer to design on paper)

My favorite project in this book?

Its been very hard to choose a favorite project but I must recommend the cross stitch design of a grumpy but confused looking cat trying to find a mouse. Behind the cat is a little mouse hole above it is the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound a mouse makes. Its very simple, only one colour and I think it would make a really cute card for my friend who is learning Japanese and loves cats.
When I sew this design I'll definitely post up the finished piece to show you all.

The cross stitch design disc included:

 The cross stitch design program which comes with this book is suitable for Windows XP or Vista and MAC OS X 10.4 or later. However this program is a demo of a full cross stitch design program, either Stitch or Macstitch depending on what type of computer you have. The program contains files for many of the designs featured in the book so they are easily available for you to print off as you wish (or work off your PC like I do). The program uses all of the basic stitches, full, half and backstitch for you to have a go at your own designs.
Since this program is a demo your own creations cannot be saved until you upgrade to the full program so its not worth choosing this book just for the program but since theres plenty more to like about this book.

If you really need a free cross stitch design program there are a few online to choose from so you could use one of them instead of the demo on this disc to start your cross stitch designing on.
At the moment my favourite free Cross stitch design program is called KG chart

For the Buzy Bobbins Index page Click here.

Craft book review: Quick & clever cross stitch: Eight sampler templates with over 1,000 pick-and-mix motifs

Craft book review: Quick & clever cross stitch: Eight sampler templates with over 1,000 pick-and-mix motifs

Book title:

Quick & clever cross stitch: Eight sampler templates with over 1,000 pick-and-mix motifs
By Helen Philipps

What is it about?

This is a rather unique book of cross stitch designs which focuses on creating your own custom cross stitch samplers. The first section of the book provides a selection of templates for you to fill in with either your own designs or from the variety of designs in the motifs collection in the book. There are detailed instructions and plenty of hints on how to make a sampler with the templates and provided motifs.
The motif collections are a perfect size for cards if you just need a quick stitch for one. There is a large variety for each of the themes presented in the motif collection of the book.

Who is it for?

I would recommend this book for beginner to intermediate or above cross stitchers. The designs themselves are small but use a variety of stitches and techniques. Also to make up your own unique sampler you may need to do a little charting of your own. This may seem like a little extra work but to be honest it is very worth the effort since you will have the tools with this book to make a unique sampler for almost any occasion.

Any extra info?

I'm not sure where to begin with all of the extra info you get with this book. Along with the usual run down of cross stitch techniques I love the collection of alphabets that come with this. Not only good for the samplers in the book but for other projects. I like to use these alphabets as reference for cards and small projects.
Even though this book is about customising your own samplers there are a variety of pre-made samplers which can be used straight from the book should you wish or altered just a little for your own needs. My favourite for this is the wedding sampler on page 10.

For the Buzy Bobbins Index page Click here.

Craft book review: Fashion Trims: Customize and Create bespoke clothes and accessories

Craft book review: Fashion Trims: Customize and Create bespoke clothes and accessories

Book title:

Fashion Trims: Customize and Create bespoke clothes and accessories
ISBN: 978 1 906417 05 5

What is it about?
This book contains a fabulous selection of ideas for making your own accessories or jazzing up clothes and accessories you already have. Each project has step by step instructions with photographs each step of the way and a picture of the finished item worn by a model so you can have a good idea of what the finished project will look like.
The majority of the projects use only ribbons, old clothing and various beads making these projects low cost to make but still beautiful to wear. Other projects which can be made from scratch will need extra fabric but again if you have old clothing you wish to decorate you can use that and decorate it according to the instructions, only needing to make from scratch if you want a very particular colour or look to your items.

Who is it for?

This book is suitable for anyone with basic sewing knowledge some projects are easier with a sewing machine but a number can be done by hand if you don't have a sewing machine. I would recommend this book for anyone who really wants to add individual flair to their clothing and accessories. While each project is a starting point by simply changing the colours, types of beads or just using the techniques on different styles of clothing a very unique wardrobe can be put together.

Any extras?

Along with a few of the projects to be made from scratch there are templates ready to to be enlarged on a photocopier or manually scaled up for your own projects. I personally like this touch to make it easier to get started.
There is also a simple chapter explaining basic techniques. I have found these useful on their own as it contains instructions on how to make some of the trims out of ribbons which can be used in a variety of ways or on your own designs.

My favourite project in this book:

It has been so hard to pick a favourite project from this book. Can I cheat and pick a whole chapter?
Personally I am very fond of the chapter on bags. It contains a mix of projects to make from scratch and several ideas of how to very simply update an old and boring bag. In particular there are some awesome ideas for old woven baskets. I definitely want to use these tips from the shopping basket
project (page 100) to spruce up a picnic basket to use this summer.
I must admit this review is very positive because this book is definitely in my top ten favourites on my crafty book shelf.

For the Buzy Bobbins Index page Click here.