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Thread Comparison + Recommendations for Armenian Needlelace
Perle Cotton Perle cotton, also written as pearl cotton, is a low-twist embroidery thread made of two non-separable strands. Because the twist is loose, it feels very soft and often appears fuzzy. It comes in several sizes and many colors, and is readily available at craft stores. Crochet Thread Crochet thread is usually made of…
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The Sampler Before The Sampler
It’s the practice sampler, if you will. I have about a dozen unfinished projects right now, but after (finally!) completing the reticello needle book, I couldn’t wait to explore more reticello motifs. I have three of Guiliana Buonpadre’s incredible embroidery books: Il Reticello, Punti a Giorno, and Fior di Reticello. They are certainly not cheap,…
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Adventures in Reticello
This time last year, I enrolled in an EGA correspondence course to learn reticello. I grossly overestimated the amount of free time I would have as a grad student, and the course got put on the back burner while I finished school. I finally got around to starting the project this week and it was…
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Aintab Embroidery Musings
To say I’m fascinated by drawn thread embroidery is an understatement. I love lace in general, but there’s something extra mesmerizing about geometric open work designs. I first read about Aintab (sometimes written as Ayntab) embroidery in Alice Odian Kasparian’s book Armenian Needlelace and Embroidery, which has beautiful pictures of drawn thread linens, some unfinished.…
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The Secrets of Marash Embroidery – Book Review
I started exploring Marash embroidery in September of 2020. Instead of focusing on my classes, I spent many Zoom lectures trying to understand exactly how the different layers of stitching fit together. Marash embroidery looks intimidating, but at its core it’s interlaced herringbone stitch and learning a few rules about stitching order makes everything click…
Digin Haiganoush 