Embroidered Embellishments--A Review

Embroidered Embellishments: Innovative Ideas for Machine Embroidery by Lynne Redman. Published 2005 by the Embroidery Studio. 82 pages, spiral-bound soft cover, full-color illustrations. Includes CD with three designs used in the book in the following formats: .csd, .dst, .exp, .hus, .pes, .pcs, .jef, .sew, .art. The CD also includes a JPEG file of each design with thread colors using Robinson-Anton thread colors. This book is self-published and is only in available from The Embroidery Studio.

This is a delightfully different book on machine embroidery from somebody who is a self-declared "terrible seamstress." Coming from a long background of doing many assorted crafts, Lynne Redman has developed her artistic ability into both embroidery design and embroidery embellishment. Other than the machine embroidery itself, many at the designs in this book have no sewing attached to them. Lynne has developed them using different glues or other sewing aids. She uses her embroidery designs to embellish scrapbook pages, photo albums, Christmas ornaments, and other decorative items. With this book you will learn to use many of your bits and pieces of craft items such as beads, extra fabric, vintage linens and other supplies from your craft area to create unique and exquisite projects.

In this book the author assumes that you already know how to embroider, so there's no discussion on appropriate needles and stabilizers and how to hoop. She does discuss some basic techniques that she uses in making her projects and also some items that are handy to have for the different projects in her book such as rubber stamps, decorative scissors, plastic templates, different types of glues and adhesives, and her favorite Steam-a-Seam. She also tells you how to make an inspiration Journal, using pictures that you find in magazines, different fabric and threads, beads and assorted other bits and pieces.

She has found that she uses the same creative process as she works through her projects and explains each one of them in a different chapter with projects that illustrate the concept. They include layering, embellishing, composing, and coloring. She is not afraid to combine several different techniques in one project, which makes them look like they were very difficult to do, but they are not as she explains the techniques. Many of them are fairly quick and easy once you understand the philosophy and technique behind them.

I was especially interested in the chapter on coloring, as it explains the color wheel philosophy, and why depending on your background color, you may need to change the colors in your embroidery design. I know many people are scared to take that leap and change things from what they're told to use. But sometimes just changing the shade of a color will make all the difference in making a designs stand out.

At the back of the book is also a one-page bibliography of books that she likes to use for instruction and inspiration. Most of them have to do with color.

I enjoyed reading the book and found it quite inspirational. I would highly recommend it, especially for those who want to use their embroidery machine but do not want to be sewing up large projects. The fun of an embroidery machine many times is letting it do most of the work while you concentrate on designing your project. I look forward to using some of the techniques in this book for my own projects.

Please remember this book is only available from the embroidery studio web site.