Friday, July 3, 2009

A Quaker Pattern Book by Dixie

A Quaker Pattern Book is an accordion-style book inspired by old pattern books. In addition to the front and back cover, there are eight more pages of stitched alphabets, borders, and motifs. The motifs in this book are from Ackworth School, one of the most famous Quaker schools. The school is located in Yorkshire in northern England.

I worked my model using cross stitch over one linen thread on 28-count Antique Ivory linen from Zweigart, Inc. with one ply of Milady's Teal from Crescent Colours. The book could also be stitched over two linen threads to create a larger version. Another suggestion is to stitch and frame the pages individually.

Silk satin ribbon forms the book hinges. Because there are so many wonderful fiber choices, I suggest you first select your ribbon, and then chose a fiber to either match or coordinate with the ribbon instead of first choosing your fiber and then trying to find the right color ribbon.

The photos below are from Dixie in Houston, Texas. Her first two photos show the book opened, and the last one shows it partially closed.

Dixie used the same thread and ribbon colors that I used on my model. This is another example of Dixie's beautiful workmanship.