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Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more

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Deconstructing Goldwork – Project Index

 

Amazon Books

Here on Needle ‘n Thread, I like to organize indexes for the various projects that I blog about in a series. You can find all these project indexes listed under “Tips & Techniques” in the main menu here on Needle ‘n Thread.

I’ve found that project indexes are a good way to keep a project organized, so that you can easily find it again and go through it to find tips and techniques that we cover in the process of completing the project.

So this is officially the project index for this series on Deconstructing Goldwork.

Deconstructing Goldwork
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Deconstructing Goldwork, Part III – Goldwork Foundation

 

Last week, we took a look at this remnant of an old vestment adorned with goldwork embroidery, and then we began taking apart a bunch of grapes on the piece to see how it was constructed and to get a better look at the materials used.

Today, we’re going to finish taking this goldwork element apart and look closely at the foundation on which it was worked.

Goldwork Embroidery - the Foundation
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Deconstructing Goldwork, Part II – Disassembling the Grapes

 

Yesterday, we looked at a piece of ecclesiastical goldwork embroidery that I’m deconstructing and photographing along the way.

Today, I’ll tell you my reasoning behind why I’m taking this piece of embroidery apart, and we’ll start the deconstruction process together. Follow along with me here to see what these grapes are made of and how they’re made, and what it’s like to take a piece of goldwork like this apart!

Taking Apart Goldwork Embroidery
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Deconstructing Goldwork Embroidery – Part I

 

Several years ago, the following piece of old ecclesiastical goldwork embroidery was handed over to me. It is beyond use as far as an ecclesiastical piece is concerned, and rather than leaving it in some storage cupboard somewhere, the general consensus was that I could take it apart, save some hard-to-find materials on it, and learn something in the process.

Overall, though the piece is attractive in parts and might look ok from afar, it is not really a well-designed ecclesiastical piece. Still, I like certain individual elements of the design.

This is an excellent piece for learning. Although I would never consider taking certain embroideries apart, this one is perfect for “deconstructing” in order to learn from it. Since I’m photographing the process and discoveries, I thought I would share them with you.

Goldwork Embroidery Examination
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Russian Elegance: Book Review

 

Textiles, embroidery, fabric, clothing – a study of all of these in any given country’s history provides insight into the values and traditions of that have permeated a nation over the centuries.

Hand embroidery has played a significant role in the fashions, the arts, and the religious and cultural interests of most countries, in one way or another. And so, although I generally don’t get into “costuming” and the making of historical or re-creation clothing, I do love to study the records of historical fashion from different countries.

Russian Elegance Book Review
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Raised Goldwork – Inspiration

 

This is a technique that’s been on my mind for a while – a Long While! I rarely see it on goldwork pieces being designed and embroidered today, but it shows up often on ecclesiastical embroidery pieces from the past.

It’s a type of raised goldwork. It looks like satin stitch (it’s actually surface satin stitch, or laid work, couched at the sides) worked over card or board or other foundations. We talked about this technique a little bit last year, when exploring this piece of old goldwork.

Raised Goldwork over Card Foundation
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