West Coast Love Embroidery Book Review

A few month's ago, Megan from Studio MME asked for volunteers to help stitch patterns for her upcoming embroidery book based on the West Coast of the USA. I've always loved her patterns so jumped at the chance. The book has now been launched and looks GORGEOUS!

In Megan's own words: "West Coast Love lets West Coasters stitch up their local pride. From the Golden Gate Bridge to the Seattle Space Needle, this 100+ page digital pattern book gives you a tour of the seaside states. In addition to man-made landmarks, you can stitch up iconic birds, alternative state flags, and national park monuments. West Coast Love is the first pattern book by Megan Eckman, the designer behind Studio MME. Her patterns are simple to sew but intricate in their design, letting you curl up on the couch with a beer while you stitch something beautiful."

The book is beautifully laid out, with very clear patterns and a beginner-friendly stitch guide. It also includes extensive instructions on transferring the patterns to fabric and finishing the projects, which are shown as hoops and pennants. The patterns themselves look really impressive once stitched up, and I love the cute introductions to each section of the West Coast, and Megan's interpretations of the state flags, including a grizzly bear for California!

You can see the level of detail she has included here, for a hoop showing the Golden Gate bridge. It's really easy to see which stitches to use to get the same effect as the picture, and the suggested colours work really well.

I love the sketch-like effect of the grass and plants in the Hollywood sign pattern, it's really representative of Megan's style.

I was sent the Santa Monica Pier hoop to stitch. It was a new challenge for me as I haven't done much stitching involving straight lines, and there were lots of them in this pattern! I used Fabri-Solvy to transfer the pattern (not one of the transfer suggestions in the book) and had a few problems with it (more on that next week) but the pattern itself was really fun and easy to stitch.

I've never been to the West Coast (I've only been to New Orleans) but so many of the landmarks in these patterns were immediately recognisable. I've also only been on a Ferris Wheel once and I thought I was going to throw up every time it went over the top. I'm not great at fairground rides...

You can buy the book on Megan's site at: http://www.studiomme.com/shop.html. She has kindly provided a free pattern from the book for you to try, the stunning Stellar's Jay - download it here. I think this is my favourite pattern from the book, but the California bear flag and palm tree pennants aren't far behind.