The Secret Garden of Cross Stitch [Hardcover]

Thea Gouverneur (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2000

Here is a sumptuous collection of the most stylish cross-stitch designs to be published in book form. Thea Gouverneur invites stitchers to share her passion for capturing the natural beauty of flowers through the art of the needle. Her fresh style is characteristic of the best European designs and her mastery of sophisticated color blending rivals the most popular American designers.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thea Gouveneur is a Dutch cross-stitch designer who designs for her own kit company.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Merehurst (July 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1853917621
• ISBN-13: 978-1853917622
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 10 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #186,302 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Contribution, June 1, 2000

By 

MMR "Mary" (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Secret Garden of Cross Stitch (Hardcover)

Ms. Gouverneur is a well-known European designer who grew up in the bulb-growing region of the Netherlands. [The yellow trumper daffodil `Burgemeester Gouverneur' was named after her grandfather.] For those who know and cherish her work this book will not be a disappointment. For those not familiar with her this will be a wonderful introduction to a superb natural history artist.

The charted designs are beautifully executed in color and keyed to both DMC and Anchor floss. They are generous in size and very easy to read. Most importantly, the associated instructions are detailed, clear and precise. There is a section devoted to a discussion of the materials used, the execution of the stitches including clear instructional diagrams, and an in-depth discussion of techniques including embellishment with beads. A well-structured chapter describing the finishing of the projects includes mounting the embroidery, making a cushion cover and edging table linens. The listing of suppliers for the materials needed to complete the embroidery covers the USA, the UK, Australia and Japan.

While this book is an exquisite collection of charts for embroiderers it is also more: it includes lovely color photographs of the bulb, flower, herb and fruit specimens that inspire her designs. The text associated with each major section (Spring flowers, herbal gardens, wild flowers, and orchard harvest) gives a brief account that includes some historical information and lore associated with each specimen. It would be a lovely addition to any coffee table collection of art books.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 21 designs and color charts, October 6, 2000

By 

R. Haldeman "ruth" (Lemont, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Secret Garden of Cross Stitch (Hardcover)

There are so many beautiful color photos in this book, of cross stitch designs and gardens full of flowers. Each project has a sharp color photo (many have close-up detail photos), a chart in color, a list of materials and instructions. The floral variety and colors are stunning with subtle shading. Most of the designs are suited for more advanced stitchers. Projects in this book were stitched on linen.

Stitching and finishing is described, and a list of suppliers is included (US, UK and Australia). Thea Gouverneur's floral designs are stunning and very lifelike.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A most Superb book !!!, August 14, 2001

By 

HBeano (Cambridge, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Secret Garden of Cross Stitch (Hardcover)

I simply fell in love with this book. The designs in this elegant book are stylish,very beautiful and grand. The life-like designs are categorized into 6 chapters:Bulb flowers,spring flowers,roses,herbal gardens,wild flowers and orchard harvest. Each includes projects(21 in all) that are described in full detail:easy enough for a beginner to follow,sophisticated enough to appeal to an advanced cross-stitcher. My fingers are itching to start on all the projects at once. The layout of this book is SUPERB to say the least,I highly recommend it to those who love floral cross-stitching.