Melitastitches4fun's Blog

Except for The Needlepoint Book which was discussed previously, I’ve probably mentioned these books by Suzanne Howren and Beth Robertson more than others.

Stitches For Effect has 4 indexes including a thread index (some are probably not available now), a stitch index (in alphabetical order), an effect index (such as trees, roads, sky, etc), and a general index. Can’t say I ever used the thread index but I skimmed through it to write this review looking at just threads I use most. Occasionally, an equivalent weight to a pearl cotton is stated and that can be very helpful to save time practice stitching with a thread. I discovered that if you use 6 plies of stranded cotton, then you could use 3 strands of Floche (2:1 ratio). I have not tried combining Kreinik #8 Braid with 3 strands of a coordinating stranded cotton for a subtle shimmering effect which sounds like a good idea (stranded silk would probably work too). I will have to look more carefully next time I use Impressions because it is a 50/50 woll/silk blend and the two fibers reflect light differently creating depth. There are conversion charts to indicate a suggested number of strands/plys for use on canvases/fabric of different sizes including: 13/14, 18, 22/24, and 28. The diagrams are next to a paragraph discussing what ground, threads, and effects are good for that stitch diagram. Very interesting to read and they are excellent diagrams.

I never bought More Stitches for Effect and Even More Stitches for Effect although getting the indexes would probably be useful. Do you have and like either of these books? I’d be curious to know.

The second one of theirs I did get was Stitches To Go which contains every stitch in the three books I mentioned above. Although it doesn’t have any of the indexes, it is always by my side!