review by jean of Bead Embroidery, Stitch Samples by CRK design and Yatsuko Endo and a giveaway!

 Note: A giveaway on this blog of this beautiful book is being offered! Sign up by commenting here, below in the comment section. The giveaway will last a week, and end next Tuesday, November 3. 
The lucky winner must be U.S.-based, with a valid street address (vs. P.O. Box addresses). Please provide your blog (or email name) so I can contact you if you win, to get your address.  Thanks, jean! 

Bead Embroidery 

Stitch Samples

by CRK design/Yatsuko Endo

Embroidery is much loved in the craft world. It is wonderfully adaptable. 

This delightful book combines embroidery with beads, which makes it even more special. You will love what you can do, using Bead Embroidery, Stitch Samples! You can add your own personal touch to almost anything made of fabric. Try it on accessories, such as socks and hats, or even your Keds! Blow your friends away with the stunning look you have created by adding lacy white beaded edging to a starched white shirt. Make your place mats and napkins stand out with your stitchery. The list of what you can do is endless. 

When you look at the designs and the sample stitches in this beautiful book, you are going to want to bead, embroider, and stitch your whole world!  

The delicate appearance and intricate patterns of beaded embroidery change up and add tons of interest to many different sorts of crafting projects. Wait until you discover what combining beads to the stitches does!  The beauty factor goes off the charts.

With this book, by CRK design and Yatsuko Endo, the reader gets a wonderfully comprehensive introduction to the basics of embroidery and how to add beads to the craft. From the simplest starting point of thread and beads, Bead Embroidery takes off in elegant flight. 

What fun to pour over this book and decided which project to try first.

The lessons are clear and easy to understand. The beaded embroidery projects are presented very clearly, with wonderful photographs as well as excellent tech illustrations. You will not get lost, no matter how much of a beginner you are. Yet the designs and projects offered are as sophisticated as any embroidery enthusiast or bead lover could want. 

Whether you want to make gifts for your friends or decorate and embellish outfits for your baby or your teen, there is plenty to choose from.

Bead Embroidery, Stitch Samples is set up in lesson form. First there is the Basic Lesson, which leads off the book. Within this section, the reader will learn all about materials and tools, and the basics of embroidery. Then the first project is offered and wow, is it fun! Get ready to learn how to customize a T-shirt! This project is darling. It also has many fun variations as it can be applied to all sorts of tees.

Following this, the reader is introduced to bead embroidery, with a chapter called "Let's Start Our Bead Embroidery Stitches". Within follows an introduction to running stitches. There's a great photo of samples of this stitch, and a clear explanation of how to add beads to it. Ready or not, you are now embroidering with beads! 

The beads used throughout the book are Tohos, which are very high quality seed beads.

 After the basics comes Lesson One. It opens with a cute little girl's flax sundress and beribboned hat, all embellished with bead embroidery. Here you learn four more types of embroidery stitches. You will be instructed how to add beads to each one. The incentive to learn is great, as the projects to which you will apply the authors' teaching will be your own clothing and outfits you already have. Bead embroidering on ready made apparel and fabric items is quick and easy. The designs by the authors will completely charm you. 

Lesson Two offers a great compilation of all sorts of stitches (back stitch, straight stitch, and more). Once again the authors clearly teach you how to add beads to the embroidery stitches. There are plenty of gorgeous photos to inspire you, and some great creative ideas are offered. You will be seeing super pretty socks and sweaters which have bead embroidery added. There are great photos of the beaded stitches in sampler you are learning. It is hard to imagine not falling in love with this book, even if you have never threaded a needle in your life. All the motivation you need is right here. You won't find this difficult or frustrating. Everything you will want to try is very clearly pictured and explained.

Lesson Three covers lace motifs, edging stitches, and filling stitches. Here you will also learn to stitch one point motifs. This chapter is totally gorgeous. You are going to see the prettiest adornments and edgings for your outfits and accessories! The filling stitch using beads adorning a T shirt, shown in one of the photos in this lesson, is vibrant and enchanting. Just a small addition like that can have a lot of impact.

Lesson Four is all about design charts. The reader will learn to stitch the alphabet with beads. The beaded alphabet sampler shown is terrific. Even more terrific is the fact that you will be able to take each letter and make monograms on anything you want! Your tote bag never had it so good! The other focus of this lesson is Nordic Motifs. These are broken down for you in chart form. Suggested ways to uses these motifs are in a sampler or for borders. The tones of blue, with platinum beads, are very striking and truly convey the feeling of Nordic style.

There are Lesson notes on how to stitch with beads at the end of the book. It is a huge collection, illustrating every stitch and how to add beads to each one. The authors really did this up right. 

Bead Embroidery, Stitch Samples is one of the prettiest books I have seen on the craft of embroidery and embroidering with beads. Even beginners will learn how to make dreamy projects. Whether your style is folkloric or fashionable, lacy or flowery, it is all in here! Expand your crafting repertoire, create new dimensions as you stitch, and join in the fun when you embroider with beads!

Bead Embroidery Stitch Samples

By CRK Design and Yasuko Endo

Interweave/F+W; $17.99

http://bit.ly/PNlNKs

Be sure to check out the price when you follow the link. It's lower as this book is presently on sale--jean