Enchanting Embroidery Designs: Whimsical Animal and Plant Motifs to Stitch

Morita, a Japanese painter, designer, and illustrator, combines poetry and instruction in this gracious embroidery guide. For each design, Morita provides a poem about its central motif, written with the simplicity and whimsy of a children’s picture book—the text for her alligator brooch begins: “Once upon a time, on a quiet night,/ an alligator was hiding in the dark waters of a marsh.” For her coasters decorated with “Micro Micro Microbes,” she asks the reader, “See?/ They really do exist./ Look! Look closely.” Other designs include a cuckoo tea cozy, pine tree ornaments, and a blouse embroidered with contentedly grazing sheep. The chapter on tools and basics is suitable for beginners and features directions for handling embroidery thread; Morita also includes instructions for simple stitches, such as straight, back, and outline. She gets fancy with French knots that combine colors of thread and can sit close or far apart on fabric. Her diagrams and instructions are tidy, with helpful arrows and outlines. Morita set out to make designs “that are fun to do,” and any crafter who picks this up will agree she hit the mark. (Aug.)