Discover the techniques behind museum-quality pieces and treasured
heirlooms with this guide to antique needlework and handcrafts.
Originally published in 1859, The Ladies' Hand Book of Fancy and
Ornamental Work offers well-illustrated instructions for making the
kinds of highly decorated items prized by Victorian homemakers: quilts,
doilies, cushions, and ornamental knick-knacks as well as embellishments
for collars, hair ornaments, purses, and other items.
More than 262 engraved patterns, drawn from English, French, and German
sources, encompass a tremendous array of handcrafts: applique, bead
work, braiding, crochet, embroidery, knitting, knotting, lace-work,
netting, patchwork, quilting, tapestry, tatting, and many other
techniques. A rich source of authentic patterns, this volume also
provides a historic view of the lives of nineteenth-century women in
terms of their pastimes and their forms of creative self-expression.