Customer Reviews

Embroidery

5 star:		(3)
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I originally saw this book at one of the bookstores in the Louvre. It was all in French and was pricey (95 Euro - or about $135 U.S.dollars). The photographs are beautifully detailed on glossy pages. The close-up shots allow you to see the detail of the embroidery. If you are interested in the type of embroidery that is done in fine houses like the Ecole Lesage, then this is the book for you.

After receiving a strong recommendation from a knowledgeable friend, I managed to track down a fantastic copy of Federico Rocca's book down on Amazon's U.S. site..... I only wish it was freely available in the U.K!!!
I can wholeheartedly say that every single person I have shown this book to has totally drooled over its content!!!!! It is a fantastic visual of all the astounding embroidery work that is going on in Italian Fashion. It is already a most treasured possession!!!

This book was exactly what I was hoping for. The photos of the garments and close up details are excellent. Even though the book focuses specifically on Italian designers, there's more than enough inspiration to keep one going for years. Many fabulous Italian designers contributed commentary on why couture embroidery endures and continues to appeal (even through the excesses of the 1980s).

Minor complaints: the book design does not do credit to the content (the cover lettering is embroidered into the book cloth in fluorescent lime green! Yaagh!!!); the text is oversized, printed sideways on many pages, and runs into the spine of the book, all of which make the book awkward to read. The book is large and quite heavy, but pages stay open without having to be weighted, which is nice when your hands are busy beading!

If you are interested in couture embroidery and beading or Italian designers, this would be a fine addition to your library.