The New York Times Book Of Needlepoint

Description for THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF NEEDLEPOINT by Elaine Slater:

Whether you are a beginner or a veteran, if you were to choose one book on needlepoint of the scores available, this is the one to have. Elaine Slater is not just an expert on needlepoint; she is also a teacher, and stitches are not merely described, they are carefully taught. Her own experience in her classes in Toronto teaching hundreds of women(and numerous men!) has given her a clear view of the pitfalls and difficulties most frequently encountered. She does not abandon the student at the end of a row, or when a boundary of crystal-clear graphs---almost like a strip of movie film---illustrating just how a stitch is done. THIS and NOT THIS graphs show the mistakes most frequently made. As Mrs. Slater covers all the problems confounding the beginner, she also goes on to explain how each particular stitch may be used in simple and advanced design ideas.

In this book, as in her classes, Mrs. Slater used the time-honored teaching technique---the sampler. The student begins by ruling the canvas into 25 squares. Ten decorative stitches are learned and practiced. These are: Brick, Old Florentine, Parisian, Hungarian Point, Encroaching Upright Gobelin, Hungarian Ground, Upright Cross with Back, Mosaic, Basketweave, and Continental. When the student finishes the book she or he has not only a thorough grounding in the craft, but a stunning piece of needlepoint.

Elaine Slater firmly believes that everyone has a creative potential and the key to its release lies in the mastery of skills. She provides the reader/student with those needed skills, at the same time encouraging originality in execution.

The student will be amazed and delighted by what she or he has invented by Chapter 2, the second lesson. For once a stitch is mastered, the fun begins in planning textures, colors, juxtapositions of stitches and design ideas. The possibilities are endless and color photographs spur the imagination.

Mrs. Slater's book is infused with her boundless enthusiasm for needlepoint, now reclaiming its place as the art form it was centuries ago. "But be warned," she says. "Once you begin your sample, dinner may burn, the children go untended, work pile up on your desk. Needlepoint will no longer be a pastime, but a passion."