#needlework patterns

Looking for a new hobby to take up during the quarantine? You could do baking, finally pick up that ukulele you bought years ago, or perhaps take up a hobby that has experienced quite the resurgence in the past 5-10 years, needlepoint!  Taking a cue from #ColorOurCollections, we’re offering #CrossStitchOurCollections! All of the patterns we’ll be sharing come from books in our collections and we welcome you to make a sampler or craft a design using these historic resources. 

Some of our staff will be doing this also and we’ll share our work. If you are inclined, please join in and share your work with us -- we’d love to see and feature it!

Thanks to our colleague @les-bibliotheques​ for the lovely idea and for pulling all this together!

Here’s our first selection

Johann Friedrich Netto, Taschenbuch der Strick- Näh- und anderer weiblichen Arbeiten : ein nöthiges Bedürfniss und Geschenk für junge Frauenzimmer : nebst einer vollstängiden und gründlichen Anweisung zum sogennanten Englisch-Zeichnen, oder der neuen Art die Wäsche zu nummeriren, statt der sonst gewöhnlichen mit Kreuzschenschrift. Leipzig: J.C. Hinriche, 1802.

Special Collections General & Rare TT 753 .N48 1802

Piecework, Fall 2019

As its subtitle reads, Piecework is dedicated to “Preserving the Legacy of Needlework.” So, if you have ever pondered an old needlework book or museum piece, this is the magazine that will offer you a chance to understand and to even make some of them.

This issue is keen on knitted projects. The top French Trellis Shawl is red borrowed by Carolyn Wyborny from a book dating to 1890 and is explained in text and charted. So are the Magpie Gloves designed by Angharad Thomas accompany an article on the history of knitting with photos of gloves from all the places where people get really cold in the winter, like Norway, Estonia and Scotland. The pattern itself combines both traditional and modern elements. The green Lace-Leaf Pocket Cardigan by Quenna Lee is part of a section inspired by the return of Downton Abbey and aims to capture the loose look which became so popular in the 1920s when waists disappeared. The nice things about these modernized patterns is that they are easier to read than many of the old books with tiny type, corrected when need be, or simply created to echo old ideas but in modern sizes.

Enjoy our latest installment for #CrossStitchOurCollections! 

Looking for a new hobby to take up during the quarantine? You could do baking, finally pick up that ukulele you bought years ago, or perhaps take up a hobby that has experienced quite the resurgence in the past 5-10 years, needlepoint! 

Taking a cue from #ColorOurCollections, we’re offering #CrossStitchOurCollections! All of the patterns we’ll be sharing come from books in our collections and we welcome you to make a sampler or craft a design using these historic resources.

Some of our staff will be doing this also and we’ll share our work. If you are inclined, please join in and share your work with us – we’d love to see and feature it!

Thanks to our colleague @les-bibliotheques​ for the lovely idea and for pulling all this together!

Here’s another selection from 

Johann Friedrich Netto, Taschenbuch der Strick- Näh- und anderer weiblichen Arbeiten : ein nöthiges Bedürfniss und Geschenk für junge Frauenzimmer : nebst einer vollstängiden und gründlichen Anweisung zum sogennanten Englisch-Zeichnen, oder der neuen Art die Wäsche zu nummeriren, statt der sonst gewöhnlichen mit Kreuzschenschrift. Leipzig: J.C. Hinriche, 1802.

Special Collections General & Rare TT 753 .N48 1802

Sweet needlework patterns and stitch along discord if you are interested.

They regularly post free ones including a lot of anime themed ones.