Embroidery on ribbons - new book!

Anna Castagnetti from Verona has released her latest book: Ricami sui Nastri [Embroidery on Ribbons] through the ever-expanding "Lace and Embroidery" collection from Nuova S1 in Bologna.

Anna is now the author of many Italian embroidery books and she shows no sign of slowing down or running out of cool ideas.

This is a translation of what it says on the book's page at Nuova S1:

Zigzag ribbons are very versatile: they can be found in many colours and in various widths and, being flat and of a compact weave, are perfect to apply to fabric and embroider on effortlessly.

Starting with this simple ribbon the author offers many ideas with detailed instructions, accessible even to beginners, for decorating your creations.

The zigzag ribbons, I know as Rickrack trim and there are other trimmings used like grosgrain ribbons and gorgeous velvet ribbons alongside coloured embroidery threads.

Guest towel project from Ricami sui Nastri by Anna Castagnetti.

The book is 64 pages and contains diagrams for a few decorative embroidery stitches used in the embellishment of the projects of which there are 14 of various complexity. Delightful guest towels, bags and purses, cushions and placemats which all serve to get your creative juices flowing and lead you to think of a million other things that you can apply these ideas to.

It is chock-full of step-by-step large and close-up colour photos. The text is in Italian but there is enough here in the way of diagrams, illustrations and photography to help you figure out what to do especially if you already have some sewing and/or embroidery experience.

You can see a preview of a few pages here.

Simple and quick but enough to personalize. I admire the way that Anna can always do these kinds of things that are just perfect for today's embroiderer who has less time than previous generations but who still wants to create with needle and thread.

This book is available now and you can contact Anna through her website or Nuova S1 (I believe they take PayPal now).

Needlework adventures

One day back in the spring of 2011 I received an email from a Canadian reader who was looking for someone to teach her travel group an Italian needlework technique while they were on holiday in Italy. They planned to go in the fall of 2012, rent a place to stay and wanted a teacher who spoke English to come and teach them.

I suggested a few names and sent a few emails but the reader had some medical problems which ended up preventing her from making the trip as planned and I didn't think much more about it. Then in the spring of 2013 the same reader contacted me again saying she was all healed and was trying again to organize the trip she had been planning before.

Her group were stitchers of varying levels of experience and they liked to travel to different countries and learn a local needlework technique while there. They had already travelled to places like Ireland, Scotland, England and France.

Villa Saraceno in Finale di Agugliaro where the ladies stayed while in Italy.

They had rented the Villa Saraceno near Verona and this put me in mind of Anna Castagnetti who I have mentioned a few times here. The trip was planned for the spring of 2014.

I'm delighted to say that Anna was available and she put together an introductory class on the cutwork part of Punto Antico for the ladies.

Anna also took the group to the Don Mazza museum in Verona where they were delighted with the fantastic needlework collection there.

I received equally enthusiastic emails afterwards from both the reader and Anna about the whole experience. It seems it was a marvellous time for all involved and I'm very happy to have played my part in it! Many thanks to the ladies for sharing their experiences with us!

Hemstitching - New Book!

Anna Castagnetti of Ricami a Fili Tesi has been busy! Her latest book is on Hemstitching and is a gold mine of different stitches and edge treatments.

Over 60 pages of closeup step-by-step photos and diagrams make this volume easy to follow even if you don't read Italian.

Edge treatments include:

• mitred corners (two ways to do it)
• folded hem (including corner treatment)
• rolled hem (including corner treatment)
• buttonholed hem (including corner treatment)
• buttonholed hem with picots made of bullion knots
• long and short blanket stitch hem (including corner treatment and a couple of ways to dress up this type of hem)
• cat's tooth hem (it's like nun's stitch - including corner treatment)
• looped fringes like those used in Assisi Embroidery
• folded fringe hem with one variation and including a tasseled corner
• looped and knotted hemstitch (including corner treatment)
• flystitch hemstitch
• round hem with needle lace triangles
• triple buttonhole arcs with picots
• embellished fringed hem (including corner treatment)
• overlapping buttonhole arcs (including corner treatment)
• bull's head stitch
• fringe with embellished four-sided stitch
• joining two pieces of hemmed fabric together with simple hemstitch (including corner treatment)
• two methods for appliqué borders (including corner treatment and embellishment stitching)
• method for making your own bias tape and applying it to a hem (including corner treatment)

Anna's good taste and expertise shine though in this volume which, as you can see from the content list above, is very thorough.

You also can see more of Anna's beautiful hemstitching in Mani di Fata's latest hemstitching issue: Punti a Giorno 7.

In Europe Anna's latest book is available directly from the publisher NuovaS1 via money transfer. Overseas, contact Anna (she speaks English) and she'll let you know how to get it.

Veronese Crochet Lace - prizewinner

Every year I long to attend (but never have) the Hand Embroidery and Weaving Exhibition at Valtopina in Perugia. I search the internet for reports from attendees and drool over photos posted on blogs and websites. The region of Umbria is rich in embroidery history and there are so many interesting local techniques. One day I really must attend, if for no other reason than to satisfy my longing to do so.

Along with the various exhibitions at the show, there is always an open competition and this year's theme was Green Monuments of Umbria - the trees. This year, participants were required to demonstrate the development of their ideas for the pattern on paper and then to produce a tablecloth big enough for six settings (hemmed measurement: 140 cm x 160 cm) along with matching napkins (hemmed measurement: 40 cm x 40 cm) with their embroidery or lace ideas applied.

The category of lace was split by two winners using the techniques of Veronese Crochet Lace and a needle lace from the Apuglia region called Punto Maglie.

I wrote to Anna Castagnetti of Ricami a Fili Tesi to congratulate her and asked if she would share some details on the prize-winning piece of Veronese Crochet Lace she made together with Donatella Granzarolo. Here is what she said:

"Donatella made all the Veronese Crochet Lace pieces and I joined them together with needle lace bars covered in buttonhole stitch, after having prepared the holes in the fabric. Each tree is made up of eight pieces (three leaves equal one piece) and the trunk. At the four corners of each insertion there are a further four pieces (the sets of leaves). The insertions are finished around the edges with a cording or overcast stitch surrounded by a row of four sided stitch. Threads used were: DMC Cordonnet Special no. 80 for the buttonhole bars; Anchor Lace no. 20 bobbin lace thread for the Veronese Crochet Lace; Crochet Cotton no. 60 for the rest. I can't tell you how much time it took to make it all, we worked together which doubles the execution time and as we live 50 km away from each other, additional time was required for travel."

Below is a picture of one of the inserts:

Congratulations Anna and Donatella! Thank you for sharing the details of this piece with us and for the great photo!

Broderie Suisse - Chicken Scratch Italian Style

In the last couple of years, what we know as Chicken Scratch Embroidery has become very popular among Italian stitchers. In Italy (and France) this technique is known as Broderie Suisse. Swiss Embroidery. It is also known by several other names in English, as is the fabric that it is stitched on: Gingham, Vichy, Checkerboard, ecc.

Origins are unclear and I can't tell you why the French and Italians call it Swiss Embroidery however, they have adopted it and the applications are very attractive and imaginative.

The Italian firm of Fratelli Graziano has many styles of Gingham fabrics (under the name Riviera) suitable for the technique of Broderie Suisse, a larger selection exists in Italy than what we can get in North America. One noticeable difference is their Gingham fabric is made of linen, not cotton. You can however, still find cotton or cotton blend Gingham in Italian fabric stores.

Anna Castagnetti of Ricami a Fili Tesi has her finger on the pulse of embroidery as usual and has just released a book on Broderie Suisse.

A sample page from Broderie Suisse by Anna Castagnetti.

This volume of just over 60 pages (text in Italian) is packed with large, close-up, coloured photographs featuring numerous step-by-step series of many of the basic stitches and some innovative combinations, finishing instructions for 9 projects - each with several different combinations of patterns to choose from. Projects include bags of various sizes and uses, cushions, towel borders and Christmas tree ornaments. Colour choices are vibrant and eye-catching - there is no end to Anna's imagination!

Anna is not constrained by geometry and she applies Broderie Suisse stitches as filling stitches for curved shapes as well as traditionally squared patterns and even produces some three-dimensional ideas!

You can purchase this book on Broderie Suisse from Tombolo Disegni (look under Libri/Libri di Ricamo/Ricami Particolari-ricamo svizzero), send an email to order.

Openwork Embroidery - New Book!

Surprises in the mail are always welcomed and this time I want to tell you about Anna Castagnetti's latest book on her Ricami a Fili Tesi or Openwork Embroidery.

Progetti Moderni per Ricami a Fili Tesi [Modern Projects for Openwork Embroidery] is packed with fun, colourful projects for you to try your hand at this intriguing style of needlework. I especially like the cover photo which shows a table runner with a fun flowered vine broken up by some lovely hemstitching.

Anna likes to combine traditional techniques like Hedebo, Reticello, Drawn-Thread work and traditional embroidery and simplifying the more complex procedures, she always comes up with attractive designs. In this volume she has added other textile techniques to her projects like quilting!

While this time the text is only in Italian, the photos are clear and concise and you should have little trouble following them:

There are many little motifs to try and this is nice, in case you just want a little taste of something different to add to something you already have on the go.

There are 13 exquisite little flowers, 3 Christmas panels, the table runner from the front cover and 2 purses to keep you going. Stitch diagrams and patterns for assembly of the projects are all included.

This book is a lovely follow-up to her first volume. You can purchase it from Tombolo Disegni, send them an email to order.

Veronese Crochet Lace Samples!

Just before I left for Italy I received a delightful package in the mail (I just love getting things in the mail, this strike is killing me!)

Donatella Granzarolo, one of the authors of the book Pizzo di Verona - Veronese Crochet Lace, sent me the above samples that she had made so I could see for myself the loveliness of her work.

I love the intricacy of this lace. Anna Castagnetti, another one of the authors of the book sent me the crochet and cro-tat hooks used to make Veronese Crochet Lace... sizes 1.0 and 1.5!! They are **so** tiny!

Speaking of Anna, there is a lovely little video of her explaining about her work on the Italian program Voce delle Donne [Voices of the Women]. Even if you don't understand Italian, you can see her passion for her work in how she talks about it and the woman interviewing her shows some of Anna's finished pieces of embroidery and lace.

p.s. If you go to Anna's website, you can download the original books on Veronese Crochet Lace published in the early 20th century!

Veronese Crochet Lace - Il Pizzo di Verona

I can finally tell you some exciting news!

If you've been wondering why it's been so quiet on my blog lately, part of the reason is that I've been translating a fascinating text on a nearly-forgotten Italian needlework technique from the early 20th century called Il Pizzo di Verona or Veronese Crochet Lace.

The book will be published in about a month or so and presented at Palazzo Forti in Verona on March 12, 2011 at 11 am. I greatly envy you if you can go!

Bianca Rosa Bellomo will present the book during a lecture about historical events in Verona in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and how they impacted the creator of this lace, Laudomia Spazzi-Gonevino and her family. She will no doubt fascinate you with the story of how the authors of this new book (Anna Castagnetti, Donatella Granzarolo and Bianca Rosa Bellomo herself) researched this technique and it's creator and her family, starting from two all-but-forgotten booklets published in the early 20th century edited by Amelia Brizzi Ramazzotti for the Sonzogno publishing house in Milan.

Also from March 8th - 12th there will be free demonstrations of how to make this exquisite crochet and needle lace during the show Verona Tessile: "Le vie della seta si incontrano a Verona" [Verona Textile Show: The silk roads meet in Verona"].

March 8th is also International Women's Day which is widely celebrated in Italy so it is fitting that there be a celebration of a woman's life at this time.

This new book has some historical information as well as step-by-step instructions and photos for creating this beautiful crochet and needle lace, the text is in Italian and English. It is published by the NuovaS1 publishing house in Italy and I have no doubt that Elena at Italian Needlecrafts will have it for sale as soon as it becomes available. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy!

Italian Openwork Embroidery - New website

Anna Castagnetti of Ricami a Fili Tesi in Verona has opened up her own website!

Click on the British Flag for the English version and have a look around.

On the "Courses" page, be sure to click on the title of each technique that Anna teaches (so many!) to see photos of her beautiful needlework.

Here is an example of her Hedebo stitching:


For intensive courses over a weekend you can invite her to teach at your place - I would love to bring her to Canada to teach! I've just got to work out that airfare...

Contact her (anna.castagnetti@ricamiafilitesi.com) if you want to bring a small group to Verona for classes.

This is my favourite option: Art-embroidery courses. Besides teaching your selected technique, Anna will take you around Verona to see important artistic sites (yes, she speaks English!). This I can tell you is fantastic. Anna and another lady from Mantua took me to the Don Mazza Museum in Verona and I have to say, if you love needlework and are in Verona, you shouldn't miss this little place. I have posted many times about the needlework in this museum and I still haven't showed you half of what is there. See Italian Stumpwork, Embroidery on Tulle in Verona, Fine Italian Whitework and Samplers.

Also to check out on Anna's website is a free Stumpwork project to download (instructions in English!) on the "Projects" page.


Included in this project are the instructions for those lovely tassel-buttons used on many different types of Italian needlework. The pdf file is loaded with excellent close-up photos.

You can read more about Anna and her needlework here and here.

Openwork Embroidery - Italian Style

It's here! It's here! I can finally talk to you about the latest book that I helped with!

Ricami a Fili Tesi - Openwork Embroidery by Anna Castagnetti of Verona, Italy:


Late this past spring Anna contacted me and asked if I would do her the favour of correcting her English on a book she was writing. Of course I agreed! I have had the great fortune to see Anna's needlework many times in the Italian needlework magazines RAKAM and Ricamo Italiano and also at her house in Verona.

Anna likes to fill voided spaces in her embroidery with needle laces stitches from techniques like Hedebo, Reticello, Teneriffe, Aemilia Ars and other needle lace techniques.

This book is filled with a great many step-by-step instructional photos and Anna includes little tips and tricks for achieving better results along the way. There are four different projects, each with a variety of different filling stitches all explained in great detail. Included also are photos of some of Anna's embroideries executed in this technique. There is something here for everyone, from elegant designs to cute ones like the Tortoise on the cover. Text is in both Italian and English.

You can read more about Anna and her needlework activities here and here.

For an extensive book review, go here.

The book is available from Elena at Italian Needlecrafts.