Lifestyle Book Reviews

Book Review: Exotic Fruits & Flowers in Needlepoint by Stella Knight

By Sandy Amazeen Mar 31, 2006, 2:32 GMT

Do you love big, bold beautiful flowers; want to enjoy their bright colors and lovely shapes without having to raise them? This collection of needlepoint designs was inspired by some of the most exotic plants found scattered throughout the world. From Asia comes a stunning fuchsia Malaysian Orchid Tree cushion with a lively spiral border. The African inspired Carnival Bush spectacles case and Black-Eyed Susan pincushion are simplistic designs with almost a primitive feel while the Wild and Cultivated Flowers cushion is reminiscent of the old Berlin wool charts. The grandiose Globe Artichoke cushion would make a striking accent piece and while shown stitched with a black background, the design is strong enough to stand out on the color of your choice.

Each of the twenty designs is photographed multiple times in close-up and distance shots allowing the needle worker excellent views of the completed pieces. A nice touch is the short introduction at the beginning of each project that tells something of the featured plant. The patterns are well charted out in both full color with a color key and yarn number as well as an easy to enlarge black and white graph in the back of the book. Most of the patterns are worked with the half cross in Anchor wool and their color numbers are provided for each project. Those who have better access to DMC or Madeira tapestry wool will appreciate the included color conversion chart although there will be some subtle differences in the finished results.

Beautiful photography, clean designs and clear easy to read charts make this book a treat to work with. Who knew coffee, cashew nuts and cayenne peppers could be so colorful?