My publishing adventures began in 2004, when I began writing about and illustrating embroidery projects designed and produced by myself and my school, Filofilò. Writing a manual is never easy; and writing about embroidery, whose details are often unknown even to keen and skilled needlewomen, is a special adventure, if not a risk (not to mention translation into other languages). However, I have had the backing of my experience and my passion, and that of some of my students who have become friends while embroidering together, and who have developed and tested their skills under my guidance and encouragement. The best feedback comes today, many years later, in the form of comments from many embroiderers during Shows, Fairs, Ateliers and Courses: that such-and-such a volume is very useful and user-friendly because it’s “well-explained”. I have heard this (or read it warmly expressed in emails) from many people, including the French, especially at the Aiguille en Fête event in Paris, where I have been going regularly every February for the past few years: often people who do not know me comment enthusiastically on one or other of my books (which are all published in three languages: Italian, French and English).
For my convenience and to simplify distribution, the first five books are recognisable by a number, which refers uniquely to their print series, so that no. 1 is the first and no. 5 is the fifth. The subsequent manuals also have a number, but implicit, and still referring to the print series. In any case the following descriptions which I have written for each book explain the contents and features, thus facilitating the purchaser in her choice.
