Book Review – Embroidery Cat In My Pocket – Contemporary Embroidery & Textile Art Inspiration

Embroidery Cat in my Pocket by Hiroko Kubota

We’ve got an exclusive code to get a 20% discount on Search Press books as well as free postage! Just enter the code DD71 to take advantage of this groovy deal!

Introduction

Wow, this will be a dream for all cat lovers! As someone who is heavily allergic to the creatures, I myself have to keep my distance from the real thing…so I appreciated this publication in a different way to most! Lets see what it has to offer…will embroidery cat be for you?

Who is it aimed at?

Well, if you are into dogs, then maybe you have picked up the wrong publication….

In all seriousness, we feel that this is a book for those who really want to create a picture with thread, using embroidery to create a ‘cat painting’ as it were. It may seem like a dream on first view; yet the projects are achievable; given practice. Thus those who wish to carry out the techniques need to have an understanding of embroidery and some experiance.

About the artist

The publisher tells us:

Hiroko Kubota is a Japanese embroidery artist of extraordinary talent. At her son’s request, she began embroidering shirts with cats, mostly peeking out from a breast pocket. After posting pictures of the shirts online, her work went viral, and the rest is history. See more of Hiroko’s work on Instagram.

Content

This publication has ten projects, as well as a number of templates and learning sections.

The artist uses a niche technique, with single thread strands and a number of needles. Thank goodness for images to describe her way of working!

embroidery cat contents list — Four chapter sections – ten projects for us to trial.

The book has a complex vibe – yet the author breaks it down into smaller chunks, often illustrated. We like the boxed ‘tip’ sections, giving us easy to swallow advice.

All embroidery cat projects have detailed diagrams, writing and illustrations to copy.

There are teaching sections which include how to position our embroideries when embroidering on clothes. It might be a new skill for many of us.

Photography

Its one of those books that you flick through with envy – how can a person stitch ‘that well’?! We will either feel the need to give up before we start or get an inner fight – we can be that good with practice….