This discovery is a gem. Look at these lovely free French embroidery patterns based on well known fables. I just love the designs.
Yes, they are lovely, they are free and there is a whole book of them!
Les Fables de La Fontaine is found, on the Antique Pattern Library web site. Scroll to or navigate to F and this book is listed as
Fables de La Fontaine, Les.
Broderies & Ouvrages de Dames Album No. 4, 32 Fables en carre de 26 cent. donné en grandeur d’exécution.
Les Fables de La Fontaine, is delivered as a PDF file which means you need a PDF Reader to open this file.
I often want to jump in and pull out some fabric and thread and try out discoveries like this but unfortunately I have hit the reality button hard and pull back from the impulse. There is only so many hours in a day and the holiday season is nearly upon us. So at the moment the breaks are fully applied. However these designs are just so delightful and are definitely on my “someday” list. Actually it’s not a list but a folder on my hard drive. I would love to find the time and excuse to stitch them. I don’t have grandchildren otherwise a series would look great running up the side of a growth chart.
I can see many of these patterns worked not only as cut work embroidered linen which of course is what they were designed for, but easily adapted to applique work on a quilt. Or a mix of both techniques could be worked on a crazy quilt.
Have you seen my Stitchers Templates?
Create your own designs with Sharon’s easy-to-use stitchers templates. Combine shapes to create hundreds of patterns and designs to embroider. It is the ultimate mix-and-match fun for stitchers of all skill levels. I created them to be as versatile as possible. I include four multi-patterned templates in each set. You will find them easy to use, totally clear to help you position them on your work, and they are nice and compact to fit in your sewing box. Each set comes with an e-book filled with patterns and designs that you can create and use as a jumping-off spot for your own designs. They are available now in our shop here!
Happy stitching!
Hi Sharon. I just saw your post…someone DID stitch these patterns just have a look here http://tuttoricamo.blogspot.it/2012/07/un-concorso-da-fiaba.html
Oh thanks for letting me know they look lovely!
Such a wonderful ‘find’, Sharon. Thank you so much for letting us know. I may have to try at least one :}
De bien beaux dessins, certains représentes les fables de La Fontaine.
They’re super-sweet, aren’t they? And with cutwork too, wow! As I like cutwork and can just about make out French (with 2 local French friend to help with any tricky points!), I’m downloading it as I type…
Thanks for the great link!=)
these are wonderful~!!~LOVE the growth chart idea~!
THANK YOU SHARON.
🙂
libbyQ
Sharon, these patterns are indeed delightful! I’ve been collecting vintage embroidery patterns for years but have never seen these! Thank you for sharing the link! Pam
Thank you very much for this link Sharon, there is a wealth of inspiration here.