Next to reading, stitching is my favorite thing to do in my free time. Once in a while I will show something I finish that I have stitched, but I thought I would share some interesting projects that I hope to undertake this year, and if you are a booklover, too, you might appreciate these! On the left is a design called "Petit Carnet d'Ouvrages, Livre I". I plan on starting this very soon. It is an accordian style book that was inspired by old pattern books. In addition to the front and back cover it has eight more "pages" of stitched alphabets, borders, and motifs. It can be folded closed like a book and tied with a ribbon. In the past stitchers had small paper booklets (Sajou) with these same kinds of contents that they would use for samplers or to monogram their linens, etc. Actually if you can find these little Sajou now they are worth money! Unfortunately I have none in my needlework collection. The design on the right is another accordian style book of Quaker motifs. This is just a modern design--I am not aware of any antique booklets of Quaker motifs. Quakers were also very big on stitching, and Quaker designs are very popular now amongst stitchers.
This is an actual antique "souvenir" book in one designer's collection that dates from 1895. Per the article in Samplers and Antique Needlework Quarterly, "souvenir, which means 'to remember' speaks to the Victorian craze for collecting, documenting, and showcasing everything from autographs to ferns to exotic baubles from foreign places." The cover of this original souvenir book is silk and the pages are canvas stitched with wool threads.
This design has been reproduced for stitchers today to stitch. Ellen Chester of With My Needle has charted this design using the original motifs. She did make some changes including slightly different floss colors. I think this is the coolest (stitched) book, and I hope to eventually stitch this one as well. The first two are fairly small books, but this one is closer to the size of an actual book. Perhaps these are not your standard kind of book, but I love all sorts of books, and these combine both my appreciation for books and my love of needlework!