Mrs. Archibald Christie has written in her book Samplers and
Stitches (Bataford, 25s. net) a most practical guide. She has not scorned to give examples and diagrams of the simpler stitches, such as chain stitch, couching, knots, blanket stitch and so forth. But she has also given an account of some remarkable composite stitches, many of them apparently of her own working out. The aesthetic side of the book is as satisfactory as the technical. All the designs, whether for samplers or little isolated motives, which she gives are patterns which could be executed satisfactorily in no way except by means of embroidery. Everywhere we see the interaction of design and technique, and the photographs of her finished works show us that she never achieves the rather odious effects of the " embroidery picture " where the stitches whose variety should bo intrinsically beautiful merely give the effect of badly laid on paint.
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