Saturday, May 10, 2008

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress

Here are some up-close photos of my niece's hand-embroidered First Communion dress. Embroidery on children's clothing, especially for special occasions, is no new thing, really, so although you will see a beautiful dress here, it isn't a "novel" idea! There are still plenty of people out there who make their own children's clothes and embellish them, too... but I have to wonder if it's kind of a dying art?

The Victorians were avid embellishers of children's clothing - fine embroidered baby items were worked with loving hands (or by hired hands) to dress up the baby for grand occasions, and even for every day. With the advent of cotton mills and of mercerized cotton, fine items could be made for a lot less money, making fancy work more accessible to those other than the very rich.

Momentous occasions were celebrated with fine clothing - whether christening gowns, First Communion dresses, graduations, or marriages. Dresses and gowns were passed down from child to child, carefully packed away after the event, to resurface again for cleaning and pressing when the time came for the next in line to wear the piece.

Have we lost these traditions a bit, with the "ready-made" Instant Society we live in? Overall, I think we have. But not everywhere, with everyone. Certainly, companies like Wendy Schoen, Martha Pullen, and Country Bumpkin (with their smocking and christening gown angle) attest to a remaining thread of interest in hand-made, special occasion clothing.

If you'll allow me to brag a bit about my sister, I'll say I'm glad to see that these traditions continue in her family, just as they did in our family. We all (seven of us!) wore the same christening gown and the same First Communion dress, and my older sister has managed the same with her own girls.

She made this at the beginnings of her ventures into heirloom sewing, and it has withstood the test of time - worn this year for the sixth time, over 16 years of use, and looking just as perfect as when it was new!

So that's the history, and here are the photos:

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


The dress is made of Swiss batiste, with inset lace on the bodice, the skirt, and the sleeves.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


The embroidery design is made up of white roses in bullion stitch and a pale green vine and leaves, highlighted with tiny pearls.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


The embroidery motif can be found on the back of the shoulders, too...

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


...and is even repeated on the covered buttons down the back of the dress.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


This is the lower part of the front of the skirt, situated between scallops formed by inlaid lace.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


Somehow, it loses a bit, looking at it like this on a hanger! The sash is not original - this is a substituted organdy and satin ribbon. Originally, it was a plain white satin ribbon, I think.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


This is the front of the bodice. The batiste, you can see, is pretty sheer.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


A close-up on the above - the vines are worked in stem stitch and the leaves in satin stitch. All the stitching is done with floche.

Hand Embroidered First Communion Dress


And that's the center of the front of the bodice.

Ain't it perty?

My sister's my hero! Golly.

Do you have any clothing traditions in your family? Do you think hand-making special occasion clothing is a dying tradition? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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Sunday, April 20, 2008

A Different Kind of Needle 'n Thread

I mentioned a while back that my Aunt was celebrating her 90th birthday, and I shared a photo of the embroidered paper card I made for her. Well, when my parents returned from Alabama, they brought with them something for me from my Auntie, so... I thought I'd show it to you!

Granted, this isn't embroidery. It's a different use of needle 'n thread (or hook, anyway). It's crochet! My Aunt Margaret (affectionately called "Auntie" by everyone), though 90 (and now pushing 91!) is a master with a crochet hook. She's made all her nieces and grandchildren and children and probably all her friends and their children (and on and on) crocheted afghans, sometimes full-sized and sometimes throws.

Auntie's crocheting is always perfect. You can't find a flaw in it if you wanted to! Here's the red-and-white throw she sent home to me:

Crocheted Throw Afghan


I love it! It's the perfect size for everything - reading on the couch, even embroidering in the winter - and it doesn't have the extra bulk and length of a regular full-sized afghan.

I like the pattern on it as well - kind of checkered, but not really:

Crocheted Throw Afghan


When I graduated from high school, Auntie made me a dark pink and cream full sized afghan. I took it with me to college, which was a good thing! I had a drafty dorm room, and that afghan, I'm sure, saved my life. I slept under it many a winter! I still have it and use it, too, thought it's now stored away for next winter.

My mom tells me funny stories about growing up "in the old days." My mother crochets as well, but she only learned because my Aunt forced her to. The story goes like this:

Margaret's a good 16 years older than my mom. At some point or another, Auntie got married and moved from Florida to Quonset Point, Rhode Island, where Uncle George was stationed in the Navy. Her little sister Laura Ann (my mom) eventually got married to my dad, a Navy pilot, and they were stationed at Quonset Point, as well.

Laura Ann could manage simple crochet, but not like Auntie, who made beautiful doilies. She visited Margaret's house one day and decided she wanted doilies for her house, too! And Laura Ann, the new bride, asked her sister to make her one. Mom was a bit "spoiled" (and perhaps a little demanding), so she probably didn't expect the answer she got! Well... being the Wise Older Sister (or just being ornery, I'm not sure which!), Margaret told her no, to make her own. But Laura Ann said she couldn't read the pattern. Margaret told her to figure it out!

One of my Mom's Crocheted Doilies


My mother's reaction: "I'll show her. I'll make BETTER doilies." She charged out and bought a book and figured it out herself. Whether or not my mom makes Better Doilies is not the issue! Thanks to Auntie's refusal to oblige the new bride, my mom can make beautiful doilies, among other things. Her obsession now is crocheted filet lace for church use.

Another one of Mom's Crocheted Doilies


But isn't that the way it should be? Teach others - or at least encourage them to learn - how to do some handwork, and they'll have something that will give them pleasure for the rest of their lives!

Thanks for the throw, Auntie!! I love it!

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Friday, April 18, 2008

Embroidering with Purpose and More Gilt Sylke Twist

Tonight, I'm going to embroider. I know that sounds strange, because I embroider often. But tonight, I'm embroidering with a purpose!

I'm making a gift for my sister, and I've been so slow about it. I can't seem to concentrate on the piece, because I'm in the middle of doing heaps of bullion knots. I know when I get the bullions done, I'll be more enthused about it!

The current project I'm working on is called "Breath of Spring" - it's a large striped linen bag with an outside pocket that's embroidered, and it was featured in Inspirations Magazine #56. If you follow the link there, you can "flip" through the magazine and find the striped linen bag. Strangely enough, in the photo, it looks like there are blue flowers on the piece, but there aren't!

This is the first Inspirations project I've ever done as a whole. I like to take ideas or patterns from Inspirations and use them on little things, but I've never actually worked a whole project. So this is a first, and I have a month to finish it.

That's what I'm up to, project-wise. Here are some photos of the parts I've finished, which, as you can see, isn't a whole lot. I've taken liberties on some parts...

Breath of Spring Embroidered Bag


Some embroidered butterflies...

Breath of Spring Embroidered Bag


Some embroidered bugs...

Breath of Spring Embroidered Bag


And some shamefully MESSY bullion knots...

Aside from "embroidering with purpose" tonight, I'm also reveling in the fact that I got the rest of the Gilt Sylke Twist colors: dark blue, purple, and yellow.

Hedgehog Handworks carries all colors (but they don't have the green in stock right now), and they're charging $19.80 / spool, which is the least-expensive price I've seen so far. Admittedly, they get you a bit on shipping (almost $15 for 6 spools of thread?), so it all evens out.

The yellow is actually a VERY nice, mellow gold, and with the gold wrapped around it, it really gleams. It will be perfect for ecclesiastical embroidery. I'm generating ideas and will probably be turning them over in my head the whole time I'm stitching. I'm thinking wheat. And that brings to mind the bullion knots I must finish tonight. Aaack.

I wonder how GST will do, stitching bullions?

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Saturday, April 12, 2008

Inspriational Birthday Present for the Embroiderer!

 
For all those who sent me e-mail and so forth expressing kind wishes for my birthday, thank you! I'm not zealous about celebrating my birthday, but who doesn't like receiving good wishes? And... who doesn't like receiving the "perfect" birthday gift? Well, if you embroider and if your tastes are similar to mine, you'll understand how thrilled I was to receive a hefty little package from my sister...

I have an older sister who likes to embroider as well, and in the earlier years of Inspirations Magazine, she was a subscriber. She kept the issues, of course... and now....

THEY'RE MINE!!

Back Issues of Inspirations Embroidery Magazine


I haven't had a chance to pour over them slowly, but it's a nice supply for lunch-break magazine perusals.

Isn't she nice?!

There's one project that did catch my eye right off the bat. One of the magazines has an Or Nué (goldwork and silk) strawberry design in it. I feel another strawberry brewing...! Oh no!

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Friday, December 14, 2007

Nature's Lace Found in an Ice Storm

 
The other day, I mentioned needle lace, cutwork, and embroidery. A day later, we ended up with an embellished landscape! Nature provides great inspiration for embroiderers, but I'm not sure how this week's landscaps could be interpreted in thread and even come close to the original source of inspiration!

Regardless, I thought I'd share some quick photos of the ice storm that hit the Plains this past week. I received several e-mails from readers, hoping that all was well with me and my family. Thank you! Indeed, we were relatively lucky! Although I live in a rural town, it is still a town, and our loss of power only lasted about 12 hours. Neighbors out in the country are still living without power, with an estimated two-week wait! On top of it, the forecast says there will be more snow tonight.

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


Back yard photo - the woods are congested with trees - from red buds to elm and oak. In the winter, it looks bare and cold and stark. In the spring, a green and purple haze begins to form, the harbinger of new life. In summer, it's thick and relatively lush, and in autumn, it's actually just a dullish yellow. There are few things prettier in nature than ice coating trees. I love the lacy look.

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


From the front porch, looking up the hill. The trees are bowing quite a bit under the ice.

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


Bush in front of the porch. I love the red through the ice!

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


A little bit of a problem with a downed power line right in front of the house...

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


...and no wonder. This side-yard tree surprisingly didn't cause any damage, though it looks as if it's hanging for support on every power line available!

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


A little bit of a lacy fringe on a power line...

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


When the sun came out, things really began to look up! The finest silks, embellished with lace and diamonds, would look dull in comparison to this!

Central Plains Ice Storm, December, 2007


Thanks for your inquiries and good wishes. As you see, all is well on my end!

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