White Threads » historical embroidery

Booking classes

yvette — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 20:46:27 +0000

Just a note to those who are likely to want me to come and teach for their shop, community or guild group next year. I am taking a lot of bookings – it seems people really want to learn Portuguese Whitework! – so if you’re interested, get in quick.

I do limit my quantity of teaching as I have a young family, and taking me away from them increases the load on my husband and extended family.

While classes on Portuguese Whitework seem to be the flavour of the month at the moment, I also teach Hardanger, Mountmellick, Merezhka Poltavska, left-handed embroidery, and stitch exploration classes.

If you’re interested, please email me with details of your requirements. I look forward to hearing from you!

Portuguese Whitework book cover

yvette — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 20:27:34 +0000

Well, I really wasn’t planning on putting this up on the blog just yet. After all, its still way more than six months until the book will be released. But just yesterday I found a black and white picture of it on someone else’s blog. I can’t say I was pleased. However, I can’t withhold the picture of it from you if others aren’t. Sigh.

So, without further ado, here’s the first COLOUR version of the cover of “Portuguese Whitework: Bullion Embroidery from Guimarães” by Yvette Stanton (me!) that you will see anywhere on the internet!

'Portuguese Whitework: Bullion Embroidery from Guimarães' by Yvette Stanton, due for release in early 2012.

If you’re interested in going on my special email list just for this book, to receive updates about its progress, you can still sign up. Just let me know in the comments section, or through the contact page on the website.

I might just take this opportunity to remind people of copyright laws. You *can’t* just rip a picture off someone else’s blog, website, book, etc and reproduce it on/in your blog, website, book etc. That is breaking the law. If there is a picture that you want to use, you need to ask and gain permission to do so. Otherwise you are breaching copyright laws.

If you have nicked some of my pictures from my (or anyone else’s) website, blog, books etc, you need to have permission to reproduce them. You have two options: either take them down and just have the text, or ask for my permission. Sorry to come down like a ton of bricks, but it is the law and it exists to protect copyright holders’ rights.

If you are one of those who has asked my permission, thank you for your upholding of the law. Usually I do grant permission.

Mountmellick: knitting with four strands

yvette — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 22:02:18 +0000

This is a technique that was discovered by one of my students up at Maitland recently.

For the traditional Mountmellick embroidery knitted fringe, we generally use four balls of knitting cotton together to provide a very full fringe. Rather than dividing a single ball into four, the student wondered if she could use two balls, and take the ends from the outside as well as the inside of the ball, thereby knitting with four strands.

So she got herself two balls, and went home that night to try it out. By squashing the balls and folding up the cardboard tube inside the balls, she was able to make it small enough to pull the tube out from the centre of the ball.

She was then able to successfully knit with the outside ends and the inside ends of the two balls, thereby easily using four strands. An ingenious method!

We have knitting cotton that is perfect for Mountmellick work, available from Vetty Creations’ online shop. It is completely matt, is not fluffy, and has a good twist. By purchasing two balls, you can try out this fabulous technique!

Each ball comes with two patterns for making the Mountmellick knitted fringe. Our book Mountmellick Embroidery: Inspired by Nature by Yvette Stanton and Prue Scott, also features a third method which is the most traditional method of producing the fringe (NB: only the edition with the cover shown has this third method – the first edition does not). It has step-by-step instructions, with words and diagrams for each step.

Thanks to Judy for working out this great technique!

drawn thread work done!

yvette — Wed, 25 May 2011 20:45:08 +0000

I did it! Last night I finished the drawn thread work for the tablecloth for my Portuguese whitework book. What a feeling of accomplishment! One only slightly dampened by the fact that I now have about a million and one bullion knots ahead of me…

The drawn thread work base just by itself looks gorgeous – really elegant. However, I know that with the bullion embroidery and eyelets on the drawn thread work squares, it will look even more gorgeous.

The fabric I am using for this project is 20L linen from Portugal, sent to me by a lovely Portuguese friend. All pressed and ironed, it looks so good! It irons up really well (no stubborn creases), and makes a very pleasing result.

My *aim* (and that means it may not happen!) is to have a corner of the surface embroidery on the tablecloth completed in time for the Sydney Craft and Quilt Fair from 22nd-26th June. I’ll be exhibiting on stand K39, and will have a range of embroidery on display to inspire you, including some of the Portuguese whitework. Of course, I’ll also have my books, kits and embroidery supplies for sale!

My colleagues (Janie of Janie Hubble Designs and Belinda of Cassis Craft) and I will be demonstrating various craft techniques throughout the day, depending on our specialties. Of course, my demonstrations will be embroidery techniques! I will also be running a Craft Circle each day from 1:30-2:30pm on Basic Embroidery for Left-Handers. Prebooking for the Craft Circle is required at stand K39. The class is free, but $5 payment for kit cost is required when you book in.

Now, hopefully I’ll get the chance to start the surface work on the tablecloth today. In amongst cooking a huge amount of Ethiopian food today (for a special Ethiopian night tonight), maybe I’ll get my hands clean enough and find the time to get on with my whitework! Must remember that turmeric and berbere spice mix don’t go well with white thread and fabric…

beautiful merezhka

yvette — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 20:40:34 +0000

Merezhka bellpull from Ukrainian Drawn Thread Embroidery by Yvette Stanton. Beautifully stitched by Lisa in Canada.

Lisa from Canada emailed me last week to show off her latest finished project: its the bellpull from my book Ukrainian Drawn Thread Embroidery: Merezhka Poltavska. Hasn’t she done a sterling job? You can’t tell the difference between hers and mine… oh, except the black thread ran on my when the steam iron spurted on it… Happily, Lisa’s doesn’t have any such blemishes!

Congratulations Lisa – its beautiful!

If you have photos of any of your finished embroideries that are from my books or my designs, please share them with us! You can email me at yvette at vettycreations dot com dot au, changing the words to symbols, where appropriate.

If you’d like to make one of these bellpulls for yourself, you can find the pattern and full instructions in Ukrainian Drawn Thread Embroidery: Merezhka Poltavska by Yvette Stanton (me!).

Portuguese love

yvette — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 19:30:36 +0000

I’ve been steadily working on my next Portuguese embroidery for the book, and I know I say this all the time, but I am just loving it! It is one of the prettiest styles of embroidery that I have ever seen. It is just so appealing!

Everyone that I show the embroideries to, comments on how pretty it is. There is something about the combination of drawn thread work and bullions that works so very well.

I’ll be teaching this style of embroidery at All Threads Embroidery in Brisbane next Friday, and its not too late to join the class. Just contact All Threads. I will be taking my other examples of the embroidery with me to inspire further, and I’ll have lots of photos of the Portuguese town where it originates, from my trip to Portugal a few years back, to give context. We’ll have a great time, with me in my unending enthusiasm for the style!

snail kit

yvette — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 20:10:39 +0000

Stitch this snail for storage!

Some time back I told you of Trish Nguyen’s project of stitching a reproduction snail from an old pair of embroidered gloves to raise money to house a collection of gloves. I ordered the kit just before Christmas and then promptly forgot about it, in the Christmas busyness.

A few weeks ago, I had a lovely surprise in the mail when it turned up! I pulled the envelope out of the mailbox, noticed the unfamiliar US address, was a little confused, and then a light went on. “Oh yes, I know what this is!”

I thought you might like to see what is in the kit. I bought it to help with the fundraising, but mostly because I wanted to see some of these threads I’d heard of but never seen.

The kit includes:
6″ x 6″ piece of 34 ct Oaten Scone linen from Lakeside Linens
Silk fabric, blue checks
Silk gimp, light blue
Silk wrapped purl, gray blue
DMC stranded cotton, #931
Au Ver a Soie de Paris, 3226 dark gray
Au Ver a Soie Soie Ovale: cream, 2623 rust orange, 4622 pink, 2541 yellow (this one already twisted into cord)
Silver plated No 6 Wire Check, by Benton and Johnson
Tire silk, #86
Beading needle
No 8 embroidery needle
No 22 crewel sinking needle

If you’re interested in purchasing a kit, I’ve just checked Trish’s blog to see if she’s put an update to say that they’re all sold. She hasn’t given any update like that, but so she may still have stock, but maybe not. You can purchase one here (and seeing the link is still up, I assume she must have them still available).

beautiful close-ups of old embroidered gloves

yvette — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 19:13:18 +0000

Stitch this snail for storage!

If you haven’t been to visit The Embroiderer’s Story lately, I suggest you do. Tricia has a number of posts featuring close up photos of gorgeous old embroidered gloves from the Gloves Collection Trust, courtesy of the Fashion Museum, Bath and North East Somerset Council.

They are simply stunning, and to see them in close up means that you can really see the stitching and the threads they’ve used.

In support of old gloves, you can also Stitch a Snail for Storage, and thereby help raise funds to rehouse a collection of beautiful old embroidered gloves. You purchase the kit from Tricia, and some of the funds go to the glove storage project. See Tricia’s blog for more details.

Netting

yvette — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 19:28:31 +0000

The other day my husband (who is a school librarian) was telling me about a final year student and her textiles project. She wants to do a whole mermaid/under the sea themed outfit. Part of this was that she wanted to create a fishing net.

He asked me to put it on my blog to ask if anyone knew of where instructions for making a fishing net could be found. I told him that I could probably do one better as I was pretty sure I could find the instructions for him on my bookshelf.

When we got home (we were out to see the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs performing Monteverdi’s Vespers – a very wonderful performance!) I went to said bookshelf and found my copies of Weldon’s Encyclopedia of Needlework, and The Complete Encyclopedia of Needlework by Therese de Dillmont. There I found instructions for making filet lace, which is also known as netting.

I asked if the girl was a fairly handy sort of girl, and whether she’d be the type to be able to handle this sort of thing. Given that she’s the top student in her year, he figured she’d be fine with it.

The next afternoon, after school, my books were returned to me by my husband with many thanks from a very happy student. I hope her fishing net works out well!

parma embroidery

yvette — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 19:21:06 +0000

Parma stitch

A week or two ago I was chatting with a customer on the phone and she asked about Parma embroidery, having seen that Parma stitch was included in my stitch dictionary. Not having actually seen the dictionary yet – she was calling to order one – she wanted to know if it had any information about the style of embroidery. Unfortunately it doesn’t as the book is about stitches not embroidery styles. I can’t imagine how huge the book would have had to be if I had included all that sort of information…!

Instead I suggested that she look up Italian needlework, the blog of my friend Jeanine in Canada, who is a bit of an authority on all things to do with Italian embroidery. Jeanine and I looked into Parma embroidery a little a few years back, but unfortunately never really got very far with it at the time. But when I came to do the stitch dictionaries, it was such an interesting stitch that I knew it had to go in.

After getting off the phone to the customer, I went over to Jeanine’s blog to see if she had anything on Parma embroidery. No, unfortunately she didn’t. But my customer had said that she was really interested in Italian embroidery in general, so despite not being able to find anything on Parma embroidery itself, I felt sure she would really enjoy visiting Jeanine’s blog anyway.

I made a periodic visit to Jeanine’s blog today and lo and behold, what should I find but a recent posting on Parma embroidery! I immediately wondered whether my customer had asked for information and Jeanine had graciously provided it (Jeanine’s like that, you see), but it turns out that it was completely coincidental. It had just been on her list of topics to cover.

Parma stitch is a wonderfully textural stitch made up from a base of three rows of chain stitch with two rows of buttonhole stitch worked into parts of the chain stitch base.

So head on over to Jeanine’s always fascinating blog if you’d like to learn more about Parma embroidery, because the information is now there! Its one of the fascinating stitches that is explained, step by step in both The Left-Handed Embroiderer’s Companion, and The Right-Handed Embroiderer’s Companion. The instructions even cover how to handle curves, which can be a little tricky in this stitch.