VICTORIAN DESIGNS FOR NEEDLEPOINT

Printed in sepia ink on off-white paper, this handsomely designed book is another of the season's many distinctive needlepoint offerings. Kluger has found her inspiration in disparate British and American sources, both expectable--a bit of Crystal Palace carpet--and less likely: a Paine's Celery Compound label. Several geometric ones--a Pennsylvania railroad bridge, an Eastlake parquet floor--could be handled by beginners; most are more difficult and a few (including a Hiroshige print of moon, waterfall, and maple) will challenge the most experienced hands. In most cases, the adaptations work well: the William Morris patterns are easily accommodated, and some Frank Lloyd Wright tilework transfers surprisingly well (although the diagram could be enlarged). Also, a gingerbread house (taken from an 1850 copy of the original), some iron tracery from Chicago's Rookery building, and a simple beadwork pattern derived from an 1847 book. A few designs are less attractively adapted but the book itself is an admirable piece of work: Kluger strays from the original colors but not from the Victorian palette, the designs convey a Victorian sense of decoration, and her asides are diverting.