Sunday, November 06, 2011

Woman without fingers learns to cross stitch

A Chinese woman has learnt how to create intricate cross stitch designs despite having lost her fingers in an accident. Peng Jiangya, 24, lost all her fingers when she fell into a blazing fire stove at home while her parents were out. The family was too poor at the time to afford the expensive surgery necessary to reconstruct her hands.

Ms Peng lives in a village of the Yinjiang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County at the foot of the Fanjing Mountains on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. "When I was a child, I was unable to hold chopsticks. My parents taught me for a long time. It was really difficult, but I overcame it. It dawned on me that one has to put great efforts into what one is doing," Mrs Peng said.


YouTube link.

As a child she saw cross-stitch patterns and became determined to learn how to create the art works herself. She uses her arms to hold and thread the needle and through many hours of practice she has now attained a speed faster than that of many able-bodied artists.

Peng's hometown of Yinjiang Tujia at the foot of the Fanjing Mountains on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau has become a tourist attraction. Of her future, Peng Jiangya said: "I will gather a few other people to embroider the beautiful landscape of our hometown as a souvenir and lasting memory for tourists. At the dame time, we can earn more money."

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