Issue March - April 2018 (2025)

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PieceWork is the only magazine for those who love all things made by hand and the history behind them. Every issue explores the life and work of traditional needleworkers, takes an in-depth look at historical needlework techniques, and gives instructions for making heirloom-quality projects of your own.

in this issue

DepartmentsCelebrateWelcome to PieceWork’s 25th -anniversary celebration! We are so happy you are with us to mark this milestone. Linda Ligon, founder of Interweave, started PieceWork in 1993 for those who care about handwork and who value its past and present roles in the ongoing human story. To bring you poignant, inspiring, and entertaining articles on the history of handwork traditions and the people who created the work, with how-to techniques and step-by-step projects using those traditions, has been and is PieceWork’s mission. A LOOK BACK Arrayed here are the previous March/April issue covers. A lot has changed over the years, but much hasn’t. Veronica Patterson’s moving words that graced the first issue’s cover are as true today as they were twenty-five years ago. Thank you to all who have been…1 minDepartmentsCalendarEXHIBITIONS Phoenix, Arizona: Through May 13. Iris van Herpen: Transforming Fashion, at the Phoenix Art Museum. (602) 257-1880; www.phxart.org. Berkeley, California: April 6, 2018–October 2019. The Fringed Shawl, at the Lacis Museum of Lace and Textiles. (510) 843-7290; www.lacismuseum.org. Denver, Colorado: March 25–July 22. Drawn to Glamour: Fashion Illustrations by Jim Howard, at the Denver Art Museum. (720) 865-5000; www.denverartmuseum.org. Baltimore, Maryland: Through June 10. Beyond Flight: Birds in African Art, at the Baltimore Museum of Art. (443) 573-1700; www.artbma.org. Lowell, Massachusetts: Through April 21. Quilts Japan: The 13th Quilt Nihon from Tokyo, at the New England Quilt Museum. (978) 452-4207; www.nequiltmuseum.org. New York, New York: Through April 14. Norell: Dean of American Fashion, at The Museum at FIT, Special Exhibitions Gallery. (212) 217-4558; www.fitnyc.edu/museum. Bedford, Pennsylvania: Through March 25.…2 minDepartmentsNecessitiesColorful Cords Discover a traditional Japanese braiding technique with Halcyon’s BraidersHand Kumihimo Disk Kit. The lightweight and portable kit includes everything a beginner needs to create intricate braids: a 6-inch (15.2-cm) wide kumihimo disk made of dense foam, instructions, eight EZ bobs, and eight strands of 1-yard (0.9-m) long bamboo yarn.www.halcyonyarn.com. Warmth for Spring As winter gives way to spring, cool evenings still require a warming wrap as one dashes about town. Arranmore Light yarn from Kelbourne Woolens knits up into cozy but lightweight knitwear to keep the after-dusk chills at bay. The merino, cashmere, and silk blend, milled in Northern Ireland, is spun up into tweedy colorways, which evoke the Irish coast.www.kelbournewoolens.com. Brilliant Hooks Denise’s Interchangeable Crochet Hooks Kit-Brights offers crocheters a colorful option for hooking both traditional and…1 min

ColumnNasca Cross-Knit LoopingSeveral years ago, I chanced upon a book of astonishing needlework that started me on a quest for more information about a little-known technique. Alan R. Sawyer’s Early Nasca Needlework is a lovely book filled with photographs and diagrams of the needle arts used by the precursors to the Incan civilization on the south coast of Peru. The particular technique that interested me has been called by various names, although the most commonly used and most accurately descriptive one seems to be cross-knit looping, which is the term I have chosen to use here. (Other names include looped-needle netting, needle-looped fabric, single-needle knitting, and eyed-needle knitting.) Although I have been researching cross-knit looping since I found the book, I’ve found that it is not a mainstream technique! (When you Google…7 minColumnCreations in Cross-Knit LoopingInspired by the preceding article Cross-knit looping is an adaptable and easily learned technique; it’s also easy to transport and a good way to use short bits and pieces of yarn or thread. With nothing to cast on, cross-knit looping can be added as trim to any type of fabric. Below are details for making flowers and a three-dimensional figure in cross-knit looping. Photographs of a hat and another scarf embellished with figures made by this technique are in the preceding companion article. SCARF MATERIALS • Wool or cashmere broadcloth, 1/ 3 yard (0.3 m)• A selection of crewel wool or other needlepoint yarn, pearl cotton thread, or yarn/thread of choice• Tapestry needles, large• Embroidery hoop, small INSTRUCTIONS Hem or finish the side edges of the broadcloth, if needed, or…3 minColumnThree-Dimensional and Other Shapes in Cross-Knit LoopingForm a slipknot and work an odd number of buttonhole stitches into it. Work a row of buttonhole stitches into the first row, catching under the crosses formed by the stitches in the first row. Depending on the steepness of the bowl shape desired, increase the roundness of the form by adding an extra buttonhole stitch through every other loop. After the equator of the form is reached, you may decrease by catching two crosses instead of one every other stitch. You can form a straight-sided tube by continuing to stitch under each cross and not increasing or decreasing at all. Make a dragon, bird, or lizard starting with the head and stuffing with cotton batting as it is made. This saves fuss and fuming, especially if there are constricted…1 min

Issue March - April 2018 (2025)

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