About the Book

Chinese Embroidery: An Illustrated Stitch Guide offers a practical way into a broad textile tradition. It brings together a concise cultural and historical context with the materials, preparation and stitch structures that shape embroidered work.

For readers beginning Chinese embroidery, the book provides visual references for observing stitch direction, density, colour and surface effect. For embroiderers, textile-art readers and educators, it also connects making with the longer history of traditional Chinese embroidery.

Editions

This is one work, issued in three recorded editions. The format changed over time; the work title and core identity remain the same.

2014 Hardcover

ISBN: 978-1-60220-015-9. First published in hardcover in 2014.

2018 Paperback

ISBN: 978-1-60220-159-0. Paperback edition issued in 2018.

2024 Kindle Edition

ASIN: B0DFY2C281. Kindle edition issued in 2024. View on Amazon.

First published in hardcover in 2014, followed by a paperback edition in 2018 and a Kindle edition in 2024.

What the Book Covers

• an introduction to Chinese embroidery and its historical setting;
• tools, materials and preparation for embroidery work;
• illustrated embroidery stitches and their structures;
• practical and artistic projects; and
• guidance on selecting, appreciating, cleaning and caring for embroidery.

It is an illustrated guide and an entry point, not a substitute for every regional tradition, specialist method or advanced course of study.

Read the Book Around Your Question

You do not have to approach Chinese Embroidery: An Illustrated Stitch Guide as a list of stitches to memorise. A useful way to read it is to begin with a question about an embroidered work, then connect the materials, stitch structure and finished surface.

“I want to start, but I do not know what to buy.”

Begin with the tools and materials chapter. Look at the relationship between the ground fabric, thread, needle and support before assembling a large kit. A fine thread is not useful simply because it is fine; it needs to suit the fabric and the marks you want to make. Our tools and materials guide gives you a compact starting point alongside the book.

“I can see the picture, but I cannot understand how the surface is made.”

Move between the stitch illustrations and the finished works. Compare line direction, the way neighbouring stitches meet, areas of coverage and the ground that remains visible. This turns a stitch name into something you can look for. For a reading route through the main families, see Chinese Embroidery Stitches.

“I know how to sew. What should I look for in Chinese embroidery?”

Bring that experience to the images, but do not assume that a familiar English stitch name accounts for every Chinese term or use. Read the descriptions in their material and visual context. Ask what the chosen method contributes to the image: an outline, a textured surface, a colour transition or a change in reflected light.

“I want to try a piece with guidance.”

Use the book to develop questions and a visual vocabulary, then choose instruction around the kind of work you want to attempt. The Classes & Courses page presents the learning options and how to ask about a suitable course. It is worth explaining your experience and the result you hope to work towards, rather than selecting a class by its name alone.

If you are looking for the book itself, the edition information and Where to Find the Book section below distinguish the recorded print editions from the linked Kindle edition.

Preview: a Selected Page

The selected spread introduces straight and circular bullion knots through photographs and diagrams.

Credits

Text

Shao Xiaocheng

Works

Shao Xiaocheng and Xiao Yao

Photography

Lin Xiao

Translation

Cao Jianxin

Tuttle catalogues list Shao Xiaocheng and Xiao Yao. The formal interior credits above distinguish text and works. On this site, Xiao Yao is identified as Yao Xiao (Martin Xiao).

Publication History

• 2014: Hardcover edition, ISBN 978-1-60220-015-9. Publisher: Better Link Press.
• 2018: Paperback edition, ISBN 978-1-60220-159-0. Publisher: Shanghai Press.
• 2024: Kindle edition, ASIN B0DFY2C281.

Where to Find the Book

View the Kindle edition on Amazon

The Kindle listing is the confirmed current reference in this page. Historic print editions are listed above as edition records; this page does not represent them as currently in stock.

Related Chinese Embroidery Resources

• Chinese Embroidery Stitches: Techniques, Materials, and Historical Context
• Gold and Silver Thread Couching in Chinese Embroidery
• Shao Xiaocheng: Research, Practice and Publications
• How to Choose Silk Thread for Chinese Embroidery — A focused materials route for comparing desired visual effect with thread thickness, ground fabric, and needlework.
• How to Choose Silk Fabric for Chinese Embroidery — A focused materials route for considering the finished work’s role together with the ground, thread, needle, and frame.