Welcome to the Fanciful Stitches Blog Tour Book Review
and
GIVEAWAY!
1- You want this book because it's a fun read.Laura Wasilowski's wit and personality shine through in her writing as well as her whimsical artwork. Instead of a dry academic tome from CSOF's dean, I found myself chuckling at titles such as "Couching Thread/ Hidden Needle." It's not all fluff though. When Laura talks about creating a stitch plan she mentions design elements and principles in a lighthearted and easily understood way. She explains what a focal point is and helps you see where you might want to add pattern, texture with your stitches.
2- The instructions are clear and well illustrated.
If you are a newcomer to fused quilts or to embroidery, have no fear. Laura walks you through each step with photos and explanations. In fact - when it comes to showing you how to make the actual embroidery stitches, the pictures do ALL the talking. Illustrations of each step of the stitch are paired with Laura's wonderful artwork so that you can see the stitches in action.
3- Patterns, Patterns, Patterns!
Each of the wonderful and whimsical quiltlets that illustrate Laura's stitches is fully laid out in with pattern and instructions so you can make your own little neighborhood of stitched wonderfun!
Now for the fun part
Leave a comment here telling me what you love about hand work. Personally, I love it's portability, it's improvisational nature (I don't plan ahead much) and spending so much time touching pretty things. On Friday I'll pick a winner from all the comments left on THIS POST. Make sure you leave a way for me to get in touch with you. Oh - and (I'm really sorry about this) this is sadly only for North American residents at the publisher's request.
Make sure to visit each of the other blogs on the tour and leave a comment on their specific tour date. That's a lot of chances to win!
April 19 - Annie Smith http://simplearts.com/blogs/
April 24 - Jane Moxey http://moxeymusings.blogspot.com/
April 26 - Judy Coates Perez http://judyperez.blogspot.com/
April 29 - Jane LaFazio http://janeville.blogspot.com/
May 3 - Frieda Anderson http://friestyle.blogspot.com/
May 4 - Connecting Threads http://quiltwithus.connectingthreads.com/
121 comments:
Hand work is quiet. Let's me think.
Thanks,
:Diane
I find handwork meditative. I can bring it anywhere and be taken to my own place where things are calm and move at a relaxed pace.
Thanks for the opportunity to win this lovely book.
sharon.bourque@sympatico.ca
I find that I absolutely CANNOT sit and watch TV without some kind of handwork going. My husband thinks I'm not watching the show, but I do a lot of listening and just look up when I really need to!
Handwork can go anywhere and I mean anywhere. I'm gathering up some right now to take to Cincinnati. We are going to babysit GD#3 while her parents go off on a little get-away. Maybe she'll have a sibling soon. LOL
Please throw me into the pot. thanks.
I find handwork calming. It's a nice way to slow down and unwind from a harried day.
bsherwood (at) cox (dot) net
I love that hand work is not so perfect...machine stitching is nice, but hand stitching has the love in it.
While it is very enjoyable to stitch away while listening to audiobooks, I think part of the pleasure is also collecting threads and related materials (like books!). Visiting a new area includes the sewing stores. Looking at the rainbow of different threads is inspiring!
I love doing hand embroidery. It's great to do in the evenings while watching television. I love all my embroidery threads and watching the patterns evolve as I stitch.
Handwork is meditative, it lets me contemplate what I'm doing and why. I love that it keeps my hands busy, yet lets my mind wander off it go where it wants. Thanks for the opportunity to win this book.
I really would like to learn how to incorporate handwork into my work. This would be a great opportunity to learn! Please enter me too!
This looks like a delightful book. Would love to have it to enjoy!
I love handwork because of its portability. I sit and watch TV while I stitch, or knit (although I am not a very good knitter). The good thing about handwork is that usually you don't need too much for it, just some thread, a needle, and something to work on. I keep some wool applique handy by my TV so I can grab it when the mood strikes and I have nothing else to work on.
Oh, by the way. I'm in Canada. I'm sending this comment your way in the off chance that we are considered North American too! Wasn't sure if it was meant to be for US residents only.
Thanks Lyric. Best regards,
Ana
I would love this book as well. I'm all for fast, fun projects that I can make for gifts (and actually complete in a reasonable amount of time)
I agree with you, potability is my real reason for hanwrk. My problem is so many partly done projects . . .hexagons, yoyo's, embrodiery
I like handwork because it is a quick pick up. You can steal a few minutes here and there to work on handwork and can even do it while participating in other activities - watching tv, riding in the car/on the train, etc.
jen (at) mark-martin (dot) com
Handwork is what everyone needs - especially on long road trips!!
During my father's final illness, I had to move back home for several months. I took some handwork with me. When I wasn't dealing with lawyers or medical professionals, I found handwork a way to deal with the stress and feel like the entire world was upside down.
Thanks,
Donna
I want to try every technique in this book....but I need the book. Thanks to Laura for preparing it for us!!
I'm trying to enjoy handwork again...a book with instructions for fancy stitches would be terrific!
I love to do handwork with friends sitting around close together talking and sharing wisdom and life.
I love the look of hand work. You cannot duplicate it with a machine. I think it shows a human made this more so than when you use a machine.
Yes, like Lisa said, it's the authenticity - it is clear (especially when I do it!) that it's not machine made. I'd love to try to do a piece ala Laura W.!
I find handwork so relaxing. Playing with different colors and textures really gives me a lot of joy!
bpier12(at)aol(dot)com
I'm with you, Lyric. I love work that I can take with me so that I am never without fiber to touch.
I love Laura's style, would love to learn more, and would love to win this book! My email is: kalfarwig @ bellsouth dot net.
Hand work is just satisfying plus has the added appeal of being doable anywhere.
thanks!
I love doing hand work since I can do it in my comfy chair while I watch tv. I find it relaxing and I love being able to use threads to embellish pieces that I can't do on a machine.
Debbie
I love Laura's sense of humor and her great sense of whimsy. I love hand work, it helps me to slow down and to experience the beauty of the materials and the tactile qualities. Thanks for participating in the give away. I would love to add this book to my library.
briggs_cindy@hotmail.com
I love doing handwork...expecially in the evenings while watching TV. It's a nice medetative way to end the day!
I love handwork when watching tv. Gives me something else to do.
Claire
I would love to own this book! Thanks for the opportunity.
Lyric, thanks for sharing with us. First of all I love the bright, happy colors, and then, how whimsical all of her projects are, of course, the size is wonderful for portability and the fact that you can be finished (no UFOs!!!) faster and start a new project.
Mostly, my handwork consists of hand-sewing binding on quilts. My favorite part about it is that it means I'll soon have another finished quilt!
When we used to move around the country all the time, handwork had the calming effect of focusing my world into a few square inches where I could exercise a little control. I certainly had no control of the rest of it. Laura's colors fill me with that same calm and happiness. I would love her book.
I guess I'm into the Zen of Handwork - it's very soothing and meditative to do. Easily portable of course, and allows me to make _something_ with my hands ... but really I love the peace and quiet. :)
Linda
I love the portability of hand work, but most of all, I love the meditative quality.
Handwork puts a little skin in the game for me. When I see handwork, when I do handwork - I know a real person, who could have well chosen to spend the time doing something else, felt strongly enough about a project to devote precious self to it. Chris
Handwork is so peaceful and gentle. It can be done in total silence and you can be alone with your thoughts.
Handwork reminded me of when I was very young and made a cross stitch comb and brush holder for my mother.
Carole Hoffman
What I love about handwork: I never ever have to have "fidgety" hands while watching TV. My cuticles appreciate that, too :-)
I love handwork because it allows me to feel productive when I'm sitting and watching TV.
Even as a young girl I would bring an embroidery project along on long car trips. Seat time like that is always valuable creative time for me. Over the years it has varied from embroidery, knitting, crocheting, drawing, writing, cross stitching, quilting, sewing... whatever my current project is. I look forward to seeing the new stitching designs in Laura's new book!
margaretklute@gmail.com
I like handwork because it doen't take up much room and you can take it with you. Would love to have Laura book.
dw7645@charter.net
I enjoy hand work and I can do it with two young kids running around. My lastes project (just blogged about it) it adding some embroidery to some felted easter eggs.
I love hand work because it allows me to "work" beside my husband, wherever that may be (couch, car, bed, beach, patio, park bench), as opposed to alone in my quilt studio.
Phyllis
phyllisjoconnor@gmail.com
I love hand work and I'm just now getting back to doing much more of it on my pieces. I love the fact that I can take it with me and do it on the go! Also the tactile interaction is very zen, and it really wisk me off to another place even when everything around me is busy busy! Thanks for offering the book! harwell77 at gmail.com Thanks! Debby H.
I always have some sort of handwork going. I seem to be at loose ends if I don't have something to do with my hands. It's very relaxing for me.
carol.claytor@yahoo.com
I love the relaxing part of hand stitching and the design element that the machine just cannot touch
I love to do handwork in a quiet mode and in the midst of activity going on around me. It is centering.
Love Laura's new book
Carolyn
crowkeeper924@yahoo.com
hand embroidery takes me back to elementary and junior high school days, when I was obsessed with learning dozens and dozens of stitches, when the rhythm of needle though fabric kept me company through school lectures... it soothes me until my old hands and shoulders start to ache!
edie
roadhomequilting@yahoo.com
Handwork is an opportunity for fun fancy detail! Thanks for asking :)
PS: Congrats on your new award. I read your interview with Morna. I appreciate your teaching mission. Best!
I like hand work because it allows me to really bond with the piece I am working on.
Hand work allows me to relax and feel calm - whether just sitting or watching tv. Thanks for the chance to win Fanciful Stitches as would enjoy learning fusible applique from a master.
To me handwork is meditative. I seem to get into a zone and become very relaxed.
Kathy
kathyangellee@gmail.com
This book looks like just the inspiration I need to add a bit more whimsy and handwork to my art quilts.
To me, handwork is *awesome*. It's portable, there when *i* want it, peaceful and something that helps me to slow down.
I would love to win Laura's book! Thank you so much for doing this blog-hop give-away!
=-)
lupansgirl(at)gmail(dot)com
handwork is relaxing!
Thank you for the chance to win this great book!
I always like to add handwork to the finishing of my art quilts. I think it's the textural quality that it gives besides the enjoyment of sitting in a comfy chair and stitching by hand. It's meditative.
Hand work allows me to do something slowly and allows my mind to settle and calm.
Deb Thuman debthuman@zianet.com
I love all the gorgeous threads - like the colors of a rainbow - makes me very anxious for spring! I have enjoyed her other books so would love to add this!
Handwork leaves time for contemplation. Also I like the fact I can take it anywhere. I've even done handwork on board my sailboat. If you want to be sitting with family in the evening and still get something done, all you have to do is pick up embroidery.
Hands to work, Art to God!
Of course I give my heart to God as well
Handwork is great because of its portability and its truly improvizational nature. Who says those stitches must be straight? Why should a button be attached with two straight lines when three diagonal ones look so much more interesting? Handwork definitely humanizes a project.
Ann Turley
annturly@yahoo.com
Handwork makes me feel connected to the long, long lineage of seamstresses not only in my family (I learned from my mother, who learned from her mother, who learned from . . .) but also to the vast human heritage (those few folks who appear in the cave paintings are wearing clothing). Such a simple thing, with such a profound heritage.
Handwork gives me something to escape to while hubby watches TV.
Handwork is my connection with my past. I was an embroiderer long before I began quilting. I can't remember if it was my mom or my grandmother who taught me the basic stitches. Probably my GM to keep me occupied during the summer visits. Nancy C Cook
I like that I can do handwork anywhere, even if the power is off as long as I have some form of light (like my "headlight")
Hand work gives me the broken lines that I crave and cannot make with my machine. I am moving into using a combination of both in my pieces. I also love hand stitching my bindings. Most people either love or hate this task. I love it because it slows me down and lets me really feel the texture and softness I have always loved in quilts. :)
I like it because I can do it anywhere with a minimum of carrying stuff! Can't wait for Laura to be in St. Louis for a workshop in a few months! whoob@aol.com
Fusing is hard to do while traveling, now I can add hand stitching to my fused projects!!
Thanks Laura,
Sara
Laura's books are wonderful and I love her hand dyed thread!
Thanks for offering the giveaway.
Laura's such fun. Would love to win her book!
Handwork takes me beyond my present situation, allows me to think in a quiet state, and brings me joy!
Mary
marit1219@yahoo.com
I like the direct connection with the fiber in hand and up close!
artsifartsi@triscartsi.com
thanks for the giveaway!
Looking forward to getting my hands on this book!
This book just looks fun! I love handwork, makes me happy!!
Portable work is something to do while I am waiting at the doctors.
designerann@yahoo.com
Handwork is good therapy...it helps you block out everything else (gas prices!?, ha!) and allows for peace and contentment while giving you a sense of creative accomplishment. And with all the beautiful fabrics, threads, ideas out there, who can possibly resist! A great book like "Fanciful Stitches" opens another door to great possibilities just waiting on the other side. Thanks for the opportunity to win!!
Handwork is relaxing. I remember doing this in the 70's.
Dates me doesn't it.
THanks for the chance to win Laura's book.
Mary Ann
Hand work allows me to get into a zone where time stops or slows down. My breathing slows too. I become centered and at the same time equally creatively charged! It's like a therapy session for me. The threads move where they will and as I lay color and texture down a story is told. Often I look at my work after it's completed and marvel at where they came from. The emotion and oneness I feel with a piece lingers on after I am through, I only have to look at my handwork to feel that depth and the story emerge again. I do love a good story. Laura Wasilowski's stories are whimsical and her bright colors are cheerful. I'd love to add more fused work to my hand work, but I often get stuck both figuratively and literally.
82 comments!
I NEED this book because I have Laura's other two books, and even a small fusible quilt top I made in one of her classes in Paducah years ago... guess what it needs? embroidery embellishment! That's why I NEED this book!
I find hand stitching relaxing and like the fact that you can correct a wayward stitch right away instead of having a lot of stitches to rip out.
I love Laura's style and her sense of humor. Thanks for the opportunity to win her book - it
looks inspiring.
Emmy G.
Handwork is portable and can be carried throughout my busy days, to be worked on in the snatches of time that would otherwise be wasted.
I like the sense of accomplishment and pride that comes when I complete a project of handwork and can say, "I did it myself, by hand!" The energy that goes into it is mine and so is the process of creating. Thus, the project is an extension of myself.
jdpottinger@yahoo.com
Handwork in the evening is very relaxing. I would love a copy of Laura's new book.
I realized that I didn't have a space to include contact info. If perchance I get picked (fingers crossed) my email is fourdogs@gmail.com
Thanks for the great review, Lyric. I've read so much about Laura's book on her blog, too, and would love to own it. Handwork can be done in any relaxing position, anywhere you want. No need to sit up straight at the sewing machine. I have a New Jersey mailing address. Thanks for counting me in.
I love Laura's work and her fight song is impressive! I won a copy of her book on Jane Moxey's site on Easter and I'm thrilled but had to tell you that I really like your blog. I love to do handwork as it is so calming and brings down my stress from my day job. Also I'm going on a road trip next week and will take my new book and do some hand work:)
Laura T
Handwork focuses me and can be done quietly.
sellison@berkeley.edu
Pick me, I love Laura!
Handwork adds a unique design element that is beautiful and personal. It also can be done watching old movies on rainy spring afternoons.
Hand work is my escape from the world. My shoulders can be tired and my head (and heart) can be heavy, but, let me do handwork and I am free.
I started my love of thread doing hand work as a kid. At 13, I could whip up a mean satin stitch. We lived in the boonies, so I often had some project to work on during long drives to anywhere. Now I like it because it seems simpler than sewing or art journalling. And reminds me of being a kid again!
Heather
Heather at obscure.com
I love how portable hand work is, I get antsy so I always have something with me to work on. Hand work is a settling and rythmic process.
Love the zen quality of hand quilting and of course it is very up close and 'hands on' (pun intended).
I'd love to win Laura's book.
I find hand work a great way to keep my busy hands working in the evening. It helps me relax
Hand work is wonderful in that it lets me sit down and prop my feet up. pjgraber at juno dot com
I'd love a chance to win Laura's book! Handwork gives me a chance to spend time with my family while still working on something.
Hand work is like your fingerprint. It is TOTALLY yours. Each stitch, color, and detail is a little gift of yourself left on your work. Love it.
A few years back I organized a class by Laura with my embroidery guild--it was the most fun ever and we still talk about it. Thanks for the opportunity to win her newest book.
http://moonsilk-stitches.blogspot.com/
I enjoy the calm that comes with handwork.
Would love to try something from Laura's book.
I find that when I sit & do handwork, I can also sit still & listen. Also nice for portability when traveling, so I don't go through sewing withdrawals!
Laura's work always puts a smile in my H♥art !
hugs,
Gerry
Wow! Here handwork really makes those quilts sing! I would love to win a copy! Thanks for the chance.
Laura's work has inspired me to start adding embroidery to my quilts. Love it, just ordered some thread on the weekend, can hardly wait for it to arrive.
Bev
I love handwork because I really suck at it, so i can only improve! It's also good TV time work when it won't stop raining outside :)
I love to lose myself in handwork - most relaxing! Thanks for the chance to win this beautiful book of inspiration!!
I like to keep my hands busy so that I am accomplishing something even when I am watching television.
Thanks for the chance to win such an interesting and fun book.
Warmest regards from Western Canada,
Anna
I love the simplicity of the outline style of handwork. I love the texture of traditional embroidery.
Handwork leaves a personal touch. You were there in the moment.
I love Laura's work and have one of her small pieces in my sewing room. Thanks for an opportunity to win her new book.
Meg
I just put this book on my next purchase list and this is just too sweet a chance to win it. Handwork is relaxing and calms my world.
I love handwork because I can do it anywhere, it's small and (as you stated) portable.
I too, love the meditative quality of handworked stitches.I like to think about all of the women before me who have stitched beautiful things before they had a machine, or all of the women in other countries hand stitching. It's like the stitching connects us all as women.
Wow philosophy..where did that come from?
Thanks
Carrole
I am obsessive compulsive about not wasting time. I love to do two things at once. So handwork is my way of doing something else while I watch TV or ride in the car.
Handwork keeps me in The Zone, present and alert without much conscious thought, truly in the moment. When it's really good, I become one with the piece and sewing is being done, colors are being called for, lines make themselves known without much imput from Me. I just need to keep the hand moving and get out of the Way!
Jan
jhodgman@zenjan.com
I love the portability of handwork and the way that it slows me down.
Hand work is controllable. It is At-Your-Own-Speed. It is friendlier to embellish. It feels more personal. I'm learning to slow down and enjoy it!
Sheryl
I like the embellishments that can only be added by hand work, plus I can take it when I know that I may have to sit and wait for an appointement, etc
I have always loved to stitch by had. My mom and I worked on a needlepoint together and she taught me to knit. Hand work is so relaxing and once it's finished you can take pride in the work because it was made with your very own hands.
I would love to win lauras book......linda from lansing
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