Schwalm Heart Needlebook Finished

Here is the completed Schwalm Heart Needlebook. This was a fun project. It's a nice introduction to something entirely new for me and now I have yet another needlebook. On the left you can see where I stitched a line of blue coral knots on the spine to cover up the handstitching on the outside. 

The leaves of the needlebook are strips of wool challis, a lovely, fine fabric which is available from Heirloom Sewing for Children for $17.55 per half yard (internet special) or from Martha Pullen at $38.96 per yard. I made up the needlebook with three strips instead of the recommended two as I didn't want to waste a bit of this lovely fabric.


So, on to the likes and dislikes:
This was one of many classes I've taken from Claudia Newton. She's a great teacher, knows her subject very well, and uses high quality fabrics and threads with well illustrated instructions. This class was an excellent introduction to Schwalm Embroidery which was made a bit easier by using the blue threads on white linen. There was nothing to dislike at all, except for the dark room we had for the class, but that wasn't Claudia's fault! She might be teaching the bonnet at the next SAGA Convention, in Atlanta in 2012.

She even gave us references, both of which are available on Amazon:
Fernau, Renate. Schwalm Whitework: The Exquisite Regional Embroidery of Germany
Bishop, Christine. Schwalm Embroidery: Techniques and Designs
See also:
Luzine Happel. Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework.  Follow this link to read Mary Corbet's review and find out how to order it from Germany.

Have a great Sunday!