Review – Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger

Review - Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger | Cover

I am so excited to review Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger because it’s probably the most beautiful craft book I’ve ever seen! If you love to cross stitch (and if you don’t you can learn how to cross stitch here) you need this book in your life. Read on to find out why.

What’s it about?:

Review - Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger | Inside Pages

The full title of this book is Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch – French Charm for your Stitchwork. It features many pages of cross stitch charts as well as project instructions for how to turn your stitching into useful and beautiful objects. The author, Veronique Enginger is an illustrator who has written other cross stitch books. A quote from the book says “Her designs often focus on helping the charm of our memories enrich our current-day lives” This is definitely true! Three chapters separate the cross stitch charts into different genres:

  • Fables – eg. The Ant and the Grasshopper, The Tortoise and the Hare
  • Fairy Tales – eg. Puss in Boots, The Nutcracker, Jack and the Beanstalk
  • French Nursery Rhymes – eg. A Hen on a Wall, Do You Know How to Plant Cabbages? (I hadn’t heard of most of these, but they still look so adorable!)

As well as charts, the book also includes chapters on how to cross stitch, project instructions and patterns for the project pieces.

Tried and tested:

Review - Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger | The Tortoise and the HareI decided just to cross stitch a small motif from one of the larger designs. As I really like tortoises, I chose the large tortoise at the bottom of The Tortoise and the Hare chart. All the charts are designed to be worked up with DMC embroidery threads. I didn’t have the exact ones listed, so I had to improvise with threads from my stash!

Review - Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger | Project

This little tortoise was so easy to cross stitch. The colours are quite blocky, which means that it’s quick to work up. My favourite part of the design is the shell as you can really see the 3D texture. I love how cute his face looks and the backstitching really brought him to life. It took me about 2 hours to stitch this small section. I recon if you’re a cross stitch pro, you could maybe do a whole, large chart over an uninterrupted weekend.

Final thoughts:

Review - Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch by Veronique Enginger | Final Project

I can’t tell you enough how beautiful the designs in Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch are. Each one is very detailed but at the same time, is relatively easy to cross stitch. As the charts focus on fables and fairy tales, I think they would be perfect for a nursery or christening gift. They would also make great gifts for older relatives who may have told you the stories originally.

What I really like in Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch and something that I haven’t seen in many other cross stitch books, is the range of the projects. The back sections of the book show you how to turn your cross stitching into things such as tote bags, wall art, aprons and storage boxes.

Although I was viewing a digital version of this book, I already plan to buy a copy for myself and as gifts for my crafty friends. I am also eying up some of the projects to make and give as gifts. If you get a chance to own Fables & Fairy Tales to Cross Stitch for yourself, definitely do, and let me know which projects you can’t wait to make!

I was given a digital copy of this book to review by the publishers. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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What do you think?

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