Leanne Prain

I love love love this book. It's not a pattern book but a wonderful book of inspiration for modern-style embroidery. I think it's a great choice for someone new to embroidery too because it shows some of the wild and wonderful things you can do with a small repertoire of basic stitches.

This book is beautifully photographed and quite comprehensive (it's huge!). If you are looking for a manual on different stitches or patterns, look elsewhere.

If you need inspiration for crazy-ass stitches, this is your book. Out-of-the-box ideas abound. All profiles in the book treat each person as an artist (as they should).