Sashiko 365 Book Review

Susan Briscoe (David & Charles), 2022, ISBN: 9781446309254, $24,99

Sashiko is a traditional form of quilting from northern Japan. It’s enjoying a resurgence currently, and needlepointers can easily benefit. Although Sashiko is done on cloth, it is a highly countable form of embroidery, often based on square or diamond grids. The threads used in Sashiko are cotton and matte in texture and are sized to work for needlepoint.

The idea behind Briscoe’s latest book is to provide a year’s worth of patterns to be stitched on small blocks and assembled into a quilt. For needlepointers, most of these patterns can be translated into either Blackwork or Running Stitch. After a short introduction, the patterns are given. The patterns are classified into groups that are similar in structure or theme. At the top of each page are short descriptions of the pattern type.

On each page, three patterns are given. Each is pictured both stitched and charted. The stitched samples use different thread colors to show the parts of the pattern; this is very helpful for deciding how to stitch the patterns. The charts show the underlying grid, the stitches of the pattern, and the direction of stitching. The grid is particularly helpful for translating the patterns to needlepoint.

When the grid is square, it’s easy to translate them to needlepoint because canvas also has a square grid. When the grids are circular or diagonal, you’ll need to experiment to find a good translation. The vast majority of patterns translate easily.

Towards the end of the book, there are patterns based on kanji, family crests, And pictorial elements. These are not charted. Instead a line drawing is given for each of these patterns. These drawings can be sized for your project and traced onto canvas.

If you are looking for exciting new patterns for your Blackwork on needlepoint, pick up this book.