needle-craft

A woman is doing needle-craft to mend a shirt.

Definition

Noun: The art, skill, or practice of working with a needle, especially in sewing, embroidery, or other decorative stitching.

Usage Examples

• (The skill of decorative stitching.)
• (Different types of needlework.)
• (High-quality sewing or embroidery work.)

Advanced Usage

• "fine needle-craft": intricate or delicate needlework requiring great precision.

  • The lace collar was an example of fine needle-craft, with tiny stitches barely visible to the naked eye. (Highly detailed needlework.)

• "needle-craft patterns": designs or templates used for sewing or embroidery projects.

  • She followed a complex needle-craft pattern to create the floral motif on the pillowcase. (A guide for stitching.)

Variants and Related Words

• Needlework (n): a general term for any work done with a needle, often synonymous with needle-craft.
  • Her needlework includes both sewing and tapestry. (General needle-based craft.)
• Needlepoint (n): a specific type of embroidery worked on canvas.
  • He completed a needlepoint pillow as part of his needle-craft hobby. (A form of needle-craft.)

Synonyms

• Sewing: the act of joining or decorating material with stitches.
• Embroidery: the art of decorating fabric with needle and thread.
• Stitchery: a less common term for needlework or decorative sewing.

Related Idioms

• A needle in a haystack: something extremely difficult to find (not directly related to needle-craft but uses "needle").

  • Finding the right thread color for this needle-craft project was like looking for a needle in a haystack. (A very challenging search.)

• To thread the needle: to navigate a narrow or difficult path (figurative use).

  • In her needle-craft, she had to thread the needle carefully to avoid tangling the silk thread. (Literal action in the craft.)