Celtic, Viking and Anglo-Saxon Embroidery

Jan Messent qualified as a teacher in the mid-50s and, after teaching Art, History and English, became deeply involved with embroidery as an art form. As a member of the Embroiderers’ Guild, she taught embroidery design to its members, wrote and illustrated design books, and lectured worldwide. Her last embroidery book was about the Bayeux Tapestry. She became interested in the experimental use of knitting and crochet and hoped, by her books on the subject, to open up new dimensions in the creative use of yarn. Now, having retired from lecturing, Jan writes historical fiction full-time, embroidering as a side-line, reading, painting, and listening to good music.

• A unique book that combines contemporary interpretations of ancient art and embroideries with historical narrative.Beautiful colour photographs throughout.A fabulous collection of works by one of the UK's most highly respected embroiderers.

June 10This is a large hardback book with the feel of a historical tome, which is entirely appropriate given its subject matter and content. It is a history book, history of embroidery during this period, an art study, embroidery and instruction manual all in one. Jan Messent presents us with her interpretation of the Celtic, Viking and Anglo-Saxon period in a series of works in the form of immaculately executed handmade books and artefacts. Every art form you could possibly imagine is included here - stitching, weaving, painting, dyeing, collage, line drawing and crocheting, and you can only imagine the huge and amounts of time and effort invested in these pages to create works so lovingly made and painstakingly recorded. It is clear that these pieces are all inspired by the art and textiles of the time (although the latter is not so easily preserved) and their influence is obvious, but all the work has a very contemporary look. Attention to detail is spectacular and can be seen in the stunning photography throughout. It is here that the advantage of a larger book size becomes apparent. You are able to see all the pages of the books on a double spread, which allows close scrutiny of the work. You can literally see every stitch. Coupled with the details given of how the pieces were achieved, it is a very accessible and informative book, giving ample instruction on how you could achieve (or aspire to) works in this vein. There are also patterns for some of the pieces of work, instructions on how to make them. A lot of the materials presented here are available from local craft shops, with recognisable yarns, threads and materials that the average embroiderer or textile artist would be familiar with. I can't stress how lovely this book is to look at, and how packed with information and guidance on this time of history it is. A wealth of varied art forms are contained here (too many to mention) and well as the seven major works of art featured in the handmade books. This is a book that could last you a lifetime in study; every time I have looked at it, I notice tiny details previously missed. These are the kinds of handmade books that most of us aspire to. To have a book like this documenting them in such fine detail is a must for anyone with a love of this kind of work.