The Book of the Thread Blends Arts, Crafts, and Evil Dead

Evil Dead 2: The Book of the Thread, created by Rebecca Martz-Burley and published by Source Point Press, combines 2 of the most opposite, albeit groovy as hell, things: the art of cross-stitching and Evil Dead 2. Back in May, when Dead Entertainment ran its farewell to Ash Williams giveaway, we more than lucked out by becoming connected with one of the winners of the contest, Rebecca, who happened to be a fellow horror creator with her own book.

Thus, we’ve been exposed to quite possibly one of the most creative ways to appreciate Evil Dead 2 in all its glory, and we are so appreciative of it! Stitching for 10 years now, Rebecca has perfected her art, as you can probably tell from the images above and throughout the rest of this article. Evil Dead 2: The Book of the Thread is a work of art through and through. Notably, our author had to get permission from the king himself, Bruce Campbell, to use his image. Needless to say, he liked what he saw.

Throughout the first chapter, you learn about the different tools of the trade, from fabrics and needles to scissors and more, to get you going, along with suggestions of what brands are recommended. Also included in this section is a primer on how to cross-stich in the first place, thankfully so for those of us who appreciate the art but would be as lost as Ash Williams before he becomes a Deadite-slaying badass with a chainsaw arm.

This section goes into detail, with pictures (again, thank you), on the different types of stitch patterns from the ”basic” to the “French knot” all the way to how to end the stitch. This section is more informational but has some great instructional images as well as severed hands and dislodged eyeballs, as one normally does when explaining stitching. Love it.

The next 5 chapters are amazing. Rebecca uses her imagination and love for Evil Dead 2 to churn out some incredible original stitch-art pieces for all to recreate. Staying true to her instructional set-up in the book, we learn how to stitch everything from simple “Home Sweet Home” pieces to His and Her towels, all the way to my favorite piece, “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Groovy.”

It is impeccable how intricate and amazing these works turn out, and how simple Rebecca makes it to recreate for readers, cross-stitch enthusiasts, and horror lovers alike. Groovy always wins in my book and the imagination and creativity shown in these chapters are sure as hell groovy. We are also introduced to the chainsaw scale of difficulty here. Yes, chainsaws. 1-5 chainsaws indicate how difficult your journey to hell is about to be.

In chapter 6, the dead find a way. This chapter is all about those famous scenes from Evil Dead 2 in all their iconic glory. Here, we learn how to stitch the “Ultimate Chainsaw,” “Deadite Ash,” the “Evil (severed) Hand,” “Henrietta in the Cellar” (who helps you throughout the whole journey of this book), and a few more classic images from the film.

As with Ash’s hardships through all of these scenes, each of these designs are a 5-chainsaw difficulty level. However, commit to these and you will NOT be disappointed at all. These are some of the most wicked-looking patterns I’ve ever seen in the medium of cross-stitching and we are thoroughly impressed.

While it's true that none of us here at Dead Entertainment are skilled at cross-stitching, going through this book made us feel like we could be, and gave us a damn good reason to want to try, being the horror fans that we are. We would like to thank Rebecca for the opportunity to check out this book and ultimately feature it on the site. Your passion for your craft, as well as Evil Dead 2, is unmistakable.

Once again, if this book is up your alley, and it should be, you can snag up a copy from Source Point Press. Also check out the official Demon Monkey Craft Etsy and Facebook pages while you're at it. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have some cross-stitching to do.

About the Author

Joe Antonucci

Joe’s love for “terrible” B-horror/sci-fi films started way back when he was young. When he isn’t watching the classics like Chopping Mall, Ice Spiders, or Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf, he spends his time gaming, playing with his Yorkie-Poo, and traveling with his wife. Joe always tackles life in the way that a grizzly bear, his favorite animal, would: with a loud roar, a raging charge, and a good night’s sleep.

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