Mum's magazine

While going through my little craft library I found a magazine I had 'borrowed' from my mother some time ago. It's a  collection of Yugoslavian embroidery patterns published in 1978 by the Spanish publisher Realce that specializes in needlecraft pattern books. Their magazines used to be the most popular source of motifs for home linen embroidery (tablecloths, bedlinen, towels)... in the  60s and 70s, and my mother, being a professional embroiderer, had quite a  lot of them. I have checked their website now and not only they still exist but they seem to keep publishing the same things after all these years. So if you are looking for very traditional embroidery patterns for your wedding trousseau that place could be a reference for you.

Yugoslavian embroidery was a very popular technique in Spain at the time this was published. The motifs in this magazine are mainly borders and the most common application of this technique -at least in Spain- was decorating the edges of tablecloths. My mother made a huge tablecloth for herself that took years to complete. At the end she was a bit desperate and my sister and brothers had to help her finishing the embroidery. We still use it every Christmas.
Years ago I made a small placemat for my friend using one of the borders from this magazine. I loved the geometry of the pattern and the subtle gradient of colours, but and it took me ages to finish it, although it was only a placemat. But it is nice to see how the pattern builds up after every row of stitches.