A Couture Embellishment Guide | Episode 22

Embellishment expert and teacher Ellen W. Miller talks about
writing Creating Couture Embellishment, a reference for garment
embellishing techniques, in Episode 22 of Sewing With Threads.


Her 400-page book is based on a couture details class she taught
at Boston School of Fashion. She shares her painstaking process
of photographing and writing step-by-step instructions for a
whopping 174 embellishment techniques. It took her well beyond
her initial time frame of two years.


"I wanted to show them in all of their glory, she says of the
embellishments. "That guided my exploration into it."


Ellen explains three ways to complete each technique in the book,
and she talks about the one she found mentally challenging. She
also notes which embellishments she left out and discusses
another book idea she is considering. Among the techniques
featured in the book are grommets and lacing, and manipulated
tucks.