Anchor Book of Ribbon Embroidery

I have all six books in the series, and I love them all. They are well written; the directions are clear; and the pictures and diagrams are easy to follow. Buy them all!

The Anchor Book of Hardanger Embroidery has an excellent step-by-step (number sequence) illustrations of stitches, basic instructions, cut- and drawn-threads, and few color samples of pictures and free patterns to learn how to stitch your own hardanger. It's great for the first time beginners in Hardanger. Enjoy!

I enjoy this book, but I have one quibble... it is inconsistent in the depiction of the klosters. Sometimes they are five stitches, sometimes six! I learned with 5 and all my other items have 5. Once I worked around seeing the 6, I was ok. I teach Hardanger now, and I recommend this book to students, but with that caveat.

This book is great for beginners and advanced stitchers. The pictures and graphs are clear and the directions very understandable. In addition, there are stitch combinations in this book that aren't usually seen in most Hardanger literature. For example, the Fly Stitch Pine Tree Border on page 51 is worth the purchase price of the book if you like pine trees! Page 46 is the first time I have ever seen French Knots used with Hardanger and it's an interesting and effective idea. Also included on page 58 are the directions for the Lace Filling Stitch which figures prominently in the earlier DMC publications. And the Knotted Star Lace Filling Stitch on page 78..... trust me, buy the book!

This book is all you need if you are a beginner or advanced stitcher. The introductory background explains the materials needed. A diagram with instructions is provided for each stitch. There are also about 7 different projects with complete design charts. I have the whole set of books -- counted thread, free style, crewelwork, and ribbon embroidery. The size format of the books is a real plus -- it's very convenient to drop into your sewing bag without taking up too much room. This set is my #1 reference on any kind of embroidery.