This book, with over 400 colour and almost 100 black and white illustrations, is the result of years of research. It is the first published history of the tools and accessories used by needlewomen in Holland, from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century, describing how they were used and also who would have used them. Many of these tools were beautifully made by craftsmen from precious metals, treasured by their owners and handed down through generations. Others were very simply crafted out of wood, individually carved and decorated by the artisan. Thimble collectors will be delighted with the abundance of illustrations of thimbles, from those simply made of brass, to gold ones decorated with gemstones. Collectors of other sewing tools will welcome the inclusion of chapters on sewing sets, chatelaines, scissors, needle cases, pin-cushions, tape measures, thread holders and winders, tambour tools and knitting accessories. The final chapter is particularly useful for collectors, as it contains a unique list of the makers of Dutch silver and gold needlework tools, with drawings of their marks to aid identification. The book will be especially interesting to collectors outside Holland, as many of the beautiful sewing tools made there have found their way to other parts of the world. They were exported to the Dutch colonies in America and South Africa, and in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries families took all their household chattels with them, including family heirlooms, when they emigrated to America, Canada or Australasia. Overseas collectors may well discover that some of their treasures were in fact made in Holland.
