Member Reviews

I requested it but the file was already expired. It's a nice and inspiring book, though. I had some boring shirts in my wardrobe that now I know are calling for a little embroidery!

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This appears to be an interesting book on embroidery which I had only ever briefly learnt before. However it was easy on some of them, to do them.

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A really lovely book for any crafter at any skill stage. I particularly liked the clear and concise information that was well structured and easy to follow. I will definitely be digging out my embroidery hoop and going through my wardrobe to see what I can embroider!

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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I've been wanting to learn to sew and embroider for a long time but am only just getting started!

The design and format of this book is great for a beginner like myself. It looks beautiful and everything is shown and explained in a way that is easy to comprehend. I love that towards the end the book combines both knitting and embroidery and knitting is also something i want to try.

I'd definitely recommend this book to all my crafty friends.

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This is a very good value book. Loads of ideas for upcycling and refreshing clothes you already have or anything you might pick up from thrift stores. Designs and instructions for working them along with details of equipment needed. As well as this, several simple but effective knitting patterns with further ideas for embellishing them to make them totally unique. The author encourages you to use her designs as your springboard and be creative. Recommended for embroiderers, garment-makers and knitters, whether experienced or beginner. This is my voluntary review of a free copy of the book.

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Im just getting into sewing and this book gave me so much inspiration for upcycling clothes through embroidery. Crafty people should definitely check this book out!

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The content is good and goes over basics.. however I felt many of the patterns were too similar. I’m sure there’s many this will appeal to though.

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What a sweet little book! I was hoping this book would have more mending ideas, but it gave me a lot of great options on zuzzing up my existing wardrobe. I'm excited to try some of these patterns out on my sweaters and jeans!

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It is lovely to upcycle clothes that you have, so this book is divided into two main categories to do this: upcycle and knit.

The book explains the basic tools you require to start your project, how to transfer a pattern and stitches.

Upcycling is taking a shirt, t-shirt, or tote bag that you have or purchased in the charity shop and adding one of the patterns in the book, be that simple little hearts, meadow flowers, It covers ideas for jeans, black dresses.

The second part of the book, knit, gives you patterns to knit them embroider your own clothes, The projects range from XS to XL, include yarns required, needles, and the steps needed to make the cardigan or jumper. In the knit section, if you can't knit or have a jumper already, then the embroidery could just be added to a jumper or cardigan you have to make it unique.

At the rear of the book are all the patterns that are used in the projects, alongside an inspiration gallery.

This book has certainly fired up my imagination for a few of the jumpers and cardigans that I have. My daughter did buy a plain pencil case a few years ago and added her own embroidery to it, which her friends at school all liked.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for a honest review.

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Author Bolstad gives readers a beautifully illustrated how-to on updating your tired clothing to make them fun again. She includes embroider stitches that are easy to learn and implement. I will look to this book often for ideas as I get out my hoop and thread!

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I really enjoyed this book. The designs are beautiful yet simple. There is a lot of great information on embroidery, from supplies to how to choose recycled clothing. I thought Wardrobe Embroidery would have been just that. This book has instructions for knitters. There are several beautiful sweaters that can be made. Then there is directions for beautiful embroidery on the sweater when it's complete. The photographs were beautiful. I highly recommend this book.

I would like to thank the author, Zakka Workshop and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I live in a rural area that has at least 30 opportunity shops that are full of peoples throw away items of clothing - all in excellent condition - which is crazy with our lust for new, and our resources being wasted instead of re-using and up-cycle for our planets sake.
This book has some great ideas of using embroidery to make something old or unfashionable new again, it also has many knitting pattern, with the finished item embellished with embroidery. also many woollen garments available to up-cycle, as well as balls of donated wool which can be used to knit or re-purpose into embroidery. yarn
This book has some lovely easy patterns and lovely ideas.

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This book is mistitled. While it's called Wardrobe Embroidery it is very light on the topic. The projects are not very original, and the techniques and photos could be better. I was very surprised when the embroider section ended and became knitting tutorials and patterns.

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Get Your Flowers On… Literally!

I have knitted and embroidered for decades but have never combined the two. So when I saw this book at a book review site, I knew I had to check it out. The book is broadly divided into two sections, one for embroidering on pre-bought fabric clothes like jeans or t-shirts and another for embroidering on knitted garments. In this latter section, the author includes a few simple-silhouette sweater and accessory patterns for you to embroider. I liked the knitting patterns included and plan to make one or two of them, with or without the embroidery. Some knitting patterns have interest, like a lacy yoked raglan, a double-layer, two-color boat-neck sweater, and soft, drapey cardigans. Each sweater pattern has directions for 4 to 5 sizes, usually from S to XL with a few having XS as well. Interestingly, most sweaters used two yarn strands held together as the basic working garment “yarn.” The author seems to love animal hair yarns. She didn’t provide yarn yardages anywhere (either in the pattern section or an info section at the back), only how many skeins to use of the preferred yarn. (That drives me crazy in knitting books, as I never use the yarn suggested. With yarn weights and yardages, I can use any yarn I like.) If you intend to knit any of the book’s garments, you should be at an intermediate or advanced level. The author uses a variety of ways to make a sweater that may be beyond someone who is just beginning, like set-in sleeves, knitting in the round, knitting the entire garment from the bottom up, using double-pointed needles, and garments that have every piece sewn together. Every design in both sections has several photos so you can truly appreciate what the garment and its embroidery look like.

One strange thing was that they did not include the actual embroidery patterns with the designs in the front of the book. Rather, they were all tucked away at the back of the book in their own section. Having these with the actual garment designs would have improved the flow of the book and made it more practical. You can tell the author is enthusiastic about the topic, and she is the model for each sweater. The book starts with pages about the equipment needed, how to embroider, and the basic embroidery stitches used. After all the designs (and embroidery patterns) is a brief photo gallery of other clothes, sweaters, and accessories the author has embroidered. Certainly, a few knitted sweaters in that bunch would have been great to have in the book, like a boat-neck raglan with ribbed sleeves! Also, some seem to show more advanced flower shading techniques. By the way, if you don't like flowers, don't get this book. Except for one shape, a heart, every other embroidered element is a flower. In fact, I think this book could have been improved if it used other shapes and objects besides flowers. All in all, though, I found this to be a fascinating book about how to beautify clothes you already have, buy, or make.

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Thanks to the publishers for sharing this one. The pictures are beautiful and the instructions are nice and clear. My full review appears on Weekend Notes.

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A really nice book with floral patterns (14 floral patterns and one really basic heart pattern that I feel didn’t have to be included at all) that seem beginner friendly, however I wish there had been a few more patterns available besides floral patterns.

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Wardrobe Embroidery: Knit and Embroidery Projects for Upcycling Clothes by Warunee Bolstad. I was eager to read this book because I have been wanting to add embroidery to my clothing. The book goes over the basics of what you need to embroider (the items needed, types of needles, how to separate floss, hoops, etc.). We then get to see the various stitches with pictures. There are then projects to use on clothing with about half of them for knitted items (I can spruce up sweaters and blankets). I learned some great stitches that can be combined to make pretty scenes. There are templates to trace as well (have to get creative if reading an e-book). I liked the helpful information on how to embroider on clothing. I got some great inspiration from this book. This is a great book for a beginner (like me). It gave me an idea on how to cover up a stain my mother got on her new yellow cardigan (I see embroidered flowers in its future). I have been wanting to embroider on my jeans and this book gave me the skills to get it accomplished. I could have done with fewer knitting patterns though (and they were complex). I wanted the focus to be on embroidering clothes. I liked the pictures that accompany the instructions. They are helpful. Wardrobe Embroidery is a helpful book that provided me with good tips and inspiration.

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Are you looking for unique ways to transform your plain clothes, those that you love but don't have much to set them apart from something else? This is a wonderful book, full of beautiful photos and easy ways to transform your clothes. There are so many ways to change your clothes in this book, that I will be using it for years to come!

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Wardrobe Embroidery by Warunee Bolstad
Knit and Embroidery Projects for Upcycling Clothing

I have photographs of pants my mother embroidered for me when I was in college and have fond memories of her working on them and on other projects. I also took an embroidery class in college and now consider some of the clothing in my closet that might be upcycled with a bit of embroidery. That is why this book caught my eye.

What I liked:
* The photographs were gorgeous
* The tools required are easy to find
* The directions are easy to understand and follow
* There is variety with both cloth and knitwear mentioned to embroider on
* Patterns are provided to trace
* How to transfer patters is discussed
* The author has given a bit of her personal story within the book
* There were a variety of projects to choose from
* I have a few new ideas to try in the future

Did I enjoy this book? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Zakka Workshop for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

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An excellent book if one enjoys thread work. This book can really up your game fashion wise. And not to mention the boredom escape from.
A wonderfully detailed book with pictures and clear, concise instructions.

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