Fig. 42.Fig. 42.
Stem stitch, well known and frequently in use for various purposes, such as for lines, outlines, gradated and flat fillings, and so on, is usually done in the hand, and is quite simple;fig. 43explains the working. If a broad line is required the needle is put in more obliquely, and a raised effect can be obtained by working over a laid thread. The thread must be kept to the same side of the needle, either to the left or to the right as better suits the purpose in hand; the effect is more line-like when it is kept to the right. Occasionally, when just a double line is to be worked, it is deliberately done in the two ways, andthen the line resembles a narrow plait. A solid filling in stem stitch should be worked in lines as illustrated in the squirrel infig. 44. This little beast is taken from the curtain shown inPlate VII., and is a good example of the life and interest that the introduction of such things adds to embroideries.
Fig. 43.Fig. 43.
Fig. 44.Fig. 44.
The stitches just described were largelyused in crewel work. This is a rather vague name that denotes a decorative kindof needlework carried out with coloured wools upon a plain white linen ground. The design is usually composed of conventionally treated leaves and flowers, often growing from boldly curved stems. These were partly shaded in solid stitches, partly worked with geometrical open fillings; ornamental birds and beasts of all kinds were introduced, and the effect of the whole was very beautiful. The work ischaracteristically English, and a great deal of it was executed in the XVIIth century. PlatesVII.andVIII.are illustrative of the type of work, andfig. 45represents a detail. The various stitches which occur in this drawing are stem, herring-bone, long and short, knot, basket, buttonhole, single chain and satin stitches.
Fig. 45.Fig. 45.
Overcast stitch in embroidery is practically a very short raised satin stitch. It requires neat workmanship, and then makes a bold clear line or outline. To work it (fig. 46)—Run or couch down a thread on the traced line, then with fine thread cover this over with close upright stitches, picking up as little material as possible each time in order to make the line clear and round. The stitch is worked most perfectly in a frame.
Fig. 46.Fig. 46.
Back stitch sometimes makes a good line or outline. To work it (fig. 47)—Bring the needle through one-sixteenth of an inch from the end of the traced line, insert it at the commencement and bring it through again one-sixteenth of an inch beyond where it first came out. Each stitch, it will be seen, commences at the point where the last one finished.
Fig. 47.Fig. 47.
Buttonhole stitch, which is well known in plain needlework, is very useful also in embroidery, besides being an important stitch in needlepoint lace. Owing to its construction it is well suited for the covering of raw edges, but it is also adaptable to avariety of other purposes, such as are open or close fillings of leaves and flowers, cut work, and the outlining of applied work.
Fig. 48.Fig. 48.
There are two ways of forming the stitch, the common buttonhole and what is called tailor's buttonhole.
To work the ordinary buttonhole stitch (fig. 48)—Bring the needle through at the left-hand end of the traced line, holdthe thread down to the left with the thumb and insert the needle as shown in the diagram, draw it through over the held thread to complete the stitch. It is worked openly in the diagram, but it may, as required, be either more or less open or quite closed.
Fig. 49.Fig. 49.
The tailor's buttonhole is for some purposes more satisfactory; the stitch isfirmer than the other kind owing to the heading having an extra knot in it; this makes it also more ornamental. To work it (fig. 49)—Commence in the same way as the last stitch until the needle and thread are in the position shown infig. 48then, with the right hand take hold of the thread near the eye of the needle, bring it down and loop it under the point from right to left, draw the needle and thread through over these two loops, and the first stitch is made.
Fig. 50.Fig. 50.
Buttonhole stitch can be varied in many ways, dependent mainly upon the spacingof the stitch and the direction that the needle takes when picking up the material.Fig. 50shows four simple varieties; the first is the open buttonhole spaced slightly irregularly and with a thread slipped underneath it; any variety of spacing can be arranged, and the thread shown running underneath, which sometimes forms a pretty addition, is usually of a contrasting colour or material. The secondshows the stitches taken slanting-wise, so that they cross each other. In the third the stitches are at different angles and of unequal length. The fourth example shows two lines of spaced buttonhole stitch fitting neatly the one into the other and forming a solid line. One row is worked first, leaving just sufficient space between each stitch for the second row to fill up, which can be carried out by reversing the position of the material and exactly repeating the first line in the same or in a different colour.
Fig. 51.Fig. 51.
A flower filled in with open buttonhole stitch is shown atfig. 51. The centre consists of a mass of French knots, and the outside line is in satin stitch. The innermost circle of buttonholing is worked first, the next row is worked over the heading of the first row as well as into the material; the succeeding rows are worked in the same way until the outside limit is reached, and there the satin stitch just covers the heading of the last row of buttonhole stitching. Gradation of colour can easily be introduced by using a different shade for each circle of stitches, and this produces a very pretty effect. An open method of filling aspace, whether flower, leaf, drapery, or background, is sometimes preferable to a solid filling, and the two methods can very well be used together as each shows off the other. These light fillings give opportunity for further variety and ingenuity in the stitching, and prevent the work from looking heavy. A butterfly,carried out partly in open stitches, is illustrated infig. 52.
Fig. 52.Fig. 52.
Fig. 53is, in the original, a gay little flower carried out in orange and yellow. The stitch employed here is a close buttonhole.
Fig. 53.Fig. 53.
Another example of the use of close buttonhole is shown in the ivy leaf infig. 54. The stitch is worked in two rows, back to back, in each lobe of the leaf, and the resulting ridge down the centre rather happily suggests the veining. This method of filling in might be just reversed for a rose leaf; the heading ofthe stitch would then suggest the serrated edge, and the meeting of the two rows down the centre the line of the vein.
Fig. 54.Fig. 54.
A cluster of berries can be very prettily worked in buttonhole stitch in the way shown infig. 55. The stitches are so arranged that the heading outlines each berry, and the needle enters the material at the same point, always in the centre. A bullion stitch in a darker colour marks the eye of the berry.
Fig. 55.Fig. 55.
A good method of filling a space with solid buttonhole stitching is shown infig. 56. Each row is worked into the heading of the preceding row, and the stitches do not pierce the material except in the first row and at the extremities of succeeding rows. They are placed rather close together in order to completely cover the ground. The stitchis worked, first, from left to right, then for the next row from right to left; this is quite easy and enables the work to be continuously carried out. Sometimes, when the first row is done, the thread is thrown across to the side where the row began, and there made fast; then the second row is worked with stitches which take up the thrown thread as well as the heading of the first row. By using a more open buttonhole and thus partly exposing the laid thread, a filling, both quick and effective, is obtained. This is a useful method to employ when the work is done over a padding of threads, for there is no necessity to pierce the material except at the edges.
Fig. 56.Fig. 56.
Knots and Knot Stitches—Herring-bone Stitch—Feather Stitch—Basket Stitch—Fishbone Stitch—Cretan Stitch—Roumanian Stitch—Various Insertion Stitches—Picots.
Knots and Knot Stitches—Herring-bone Stitch—Feather Stitch—Basket Stitch—Fishbone Stitch—Cretan Stitch—Roumanian Stitch—Various Insertion Stitches—Picots.
It would be difficult to go far in embroidery without requiring knots for one purpose or another. They are useful inall sorts of ways, and make a pleasant contrast to the other stitches. For the enrichment of border lines and various parts of the work, both pattern and background, they are most serviceable, and also for solid fillings; for such places as centres of flowers or parts of leaves, they are again valuable. They have been used to form a continuous outline, but owing to their tendency to make a weak line, not frequently; indeed they usually show to better advantage when slightly separated.
Examples are to be seen of English knotted line work in which the knotting was executed in the thread previously to embroidering with it. The knotting of thread was a pastime with ladies in the XVIIth century. The thread, usually a linen one and as a rule home spun, was wound upon a netting-needle, and by the aid of this a close series of knots was made upon it; when finished it somewhat resembled a string of beads. Balls of this prepared knotted thread may still be found, treasured up in old work receptacles. When prepared it was couched on to the material with fine thread, like a cord or braid, and made to follow out some prearranged pattern.In white linen work it was used for carrying out ornamental borderings on infants' robes and other dainty articles.
Fig. 57.Fig. 57.
French knots can be worked in the hand or in a frame. They are easier to manage in the latter, and to look well they must be neatly and firmly made. Completed they should resemble beads lying end upwards on the material. Towork the French knot (fig. 57)—Bring the thread through the material at the required point, take hold of it with the left finger and thumb near the starting-point (A on plan), then let the point of the needle encircle the held thread twice, twist the needle round and insert it at point B on plan, draw the thread through to the back, not letting go the held thread until necessary.Fig. 58shows some French knots decorating a leaf spray, and various other examples of their use can be found in the book.
Fig. 58.Fig. 58.
Bullion knots resemble tight curls of thread laid on the material. They can be used as a variation from French knots, and even for the representation of petals and small leaves. To be satisfactory they must be firm, stout, and tightly coiled; some knack is required to make them properly.To work the bullion knot (fig. 59)—Bring the thread through at the required place, insert the needle one-eighth of an inch from this point and bring it through again exactly at it. Take hold of the thread about two inches from where it came through and twist it several times round the point of the needle, the number of times being dependent on the requiredlength of the knot. Place the left thumb upon the tight coil on the needle, in order to keep it in place, and draw the needle and thread through it, then pass the thread through to the back at the point where the needle was last inserted (point A on plan). The thumb must not be removed until it is in the way.Fig. 60represents a flower, of which the centre is formed of bullion together with French knots.
Fig. 59.Fig. 59.
Fig. 60.Fig. 60.
Fig. 61.Fig. 61.
Fig. 61shows a knotted stitch that is similar in result to the knotted threads discussed earlier in the chapter. In this case the knotting of the thread and the fixing to the material is done at the same time. It is a useful stitch when a jagged line is wanted, and can be seen used, for instance, for the branching veins in openwork leaves, as infig. 62. The diagram explains the working of the stitch; at point A on the plan the left thumb holds the thread down whilst the stitch is in progress.
Fig. 62.Fig. 62.
Fig. 63.Fig. 63.
The stitch illustrated atfig. 63is very similar to the common herring-bone. The only practical difference is that in the plain needlework stitch there is usually a smaller piece of material picked up by the needle each time. To work it as in the diagram—Trace two parallel lines onthe material and bring the thread through at the commencement of the lower line, insert it on the opposite line rather farther along and there pick up a stitch, as the needle is doing in the figure. Then on the opposite line pick up a similar stitch a little in advance of the one just finished. After this work the stitches on either line alternately, commencing each one at the point where the last one ended; this forms on the underside a double row of back stitches. It is quite easy to work this stitch with the back stitches on the working side, and when they are required to be on the surface it is advisable to do it in that way. When embroidering upon a semi-transparent material this stitch is a satisfactory one to use, the back stitching follows out the outline on either side of the form, and the crossing of the threads on the under side shows through prettily. This stitch sometimes goes by the name of double back stitch. It is useful in many ways, making a light stitch for stems, leaves, or flowers; it can be sometimes found in Eastern work used for an entire embroidery. When used for flowers or leaves the width and the closeness of the stitchare varied to suit the shape to be filled. An example of its use as a flower filling is shown in the carnation atfig. 64, which is carried out in four shades of colour. Considerable use is made of this stitch inembroidered curtain shown inPlate VII.; it is there employed for all the stems and various flowers upon the hanging.
Fig. 64.Fig. 64.
Fig. 65.Fig. 65.
The feather stitch, often used to decorate plain needlework, is now to be discussed; although similar in name it must not be confused with the feather or plumage stitch that has already been mentioned. The stitch is so simple and so much inuse as hardly to need description;fig. 65explains the working. There can be many slight variations of the stitch, the worker perhaps devising them needle in hand. Two are shown infig. 66. The one to the left is worked very like the ordinary stitch; the needle picks up the material in a straight line instead of slightly obliquely, and each stitch touches the one immediately above; it is here made use of as a couching stitch, a bunch of threads of a contrasting colour is laid on the material, and the stitch worked over it from side to side. The right-hand example shows the ordinary feather stitch worked more closely and in a broader line; carried out in this way, it can be used for a leaf filling.
Fig. 66.Fig. 66.
Basket stitch, useful for a solid line, shows up very clearly when worked with a stout twisted thread. This stitch would be appropriately used when applied to some representation of basket work. To carry out the diagram (fig. 67)—Trace two parallel lines on the material, and to commence, bring the thread through on the left-hand line, then insert the needle on the right-hand line about one-eighth of an inch lower down and bring it through on the left-hand line exactly opposite (see needle infig.); the next stitch is worked by inserting the needle on the right-hand line but above the last stitch, that is at point A on diagram, and bringing it through at B. To continue, repeat from the beginning.
Fig. 67.Fig. 67.
A particularly good line for a border is made by fishbone stitch. It can be worked in one colour, or as easily in achequering of two or three, as shown in the diagram (fig. 68); to carry it out in this way the worker must have two threads in use, bringing through each as required. For such purposes as the fillings of small leaves, this stitch is very useful (seefig. 58). The meeting of the stitches in the centre suggest the veining line, also the change in direction of the thread gives, to thetwo sides of the leaf, pleasant variation in tone. To work it—Trace three parallel lines upon the material and bring the thread through on the upper line at the left-hand end. Insert the needle and bring it through as in process in the diagram, then repeat the same stitch on the other side the reverse way, that is, insert the needle just over the central lineand bring it through on the upper one close to the last stitch. Care must be taken that the stitches cross well over each other at the centre, or the material will show through.
Fig. 68.Fig. 68.
Fig. 69.Fig. 69.
The stitch shown infig. 69, known as plait or Cretan, is commonly seen on Cretan and other Eastern embroideries. It can be used as a solid border stitch oras a filling, varying in width as required. To work it—Bring the thread through on the lower central line, then insert the needle on the uppermost line and bring it through on the next below as in process in the diagram; then, still keeping the thread to the right, insert the needle immediately underneath on the lowest line and bring it through on the line next above, in fashion similar to the last stitch, but in reverse direction. To continue, work the stitch alternately on one side and the other, always keeping the thread to the right of the needle. In order to make the central plait broader take up rather less material with the needle; this will decrease the outer and increase the inner lines.Fig. 70is taken from a Cretan embroidery, in which this stitch is mainly used.
Fig. 70.Fig. 70.
Another similar but more simple stitch, often seen in Eastern work, is shown infig. 71. It can also frequently be found employed on XVIIth century English wool work hangings. It is sometimes called Roumanian stitch, and is composed of one long stitch crossed by a short one in the centre. To work it—Trace two parallel lines on the materialand bring the thread through on the left-hand line at the top. Insert the needle on the opposite line and bring it through near the centre, as shown in process in the diagram. For the next half of the stitch the needle enters the material at point A on plan, and is brought through again on the left-hand line close to the last stitch, and so in position to commenceagain. An illustration of this stitch in use as a filling can be seen atfig. 72. It is worked in four shades of green wool, and each line of stitches is so arranged as to encroach slightly on the line before by means of setting each stitch just between two of the last row. This method of working has two advantages; the shadingis thus made more gradual, and a pleasant undulating effect is given to the surface of the leaf. This can be most easily understood by a practical trial of the stitch and method.
Fig. 71.Fig. 71.
Fig. 72.Fig. 72.
There is occasion sometimes in embroidery to join edges together visibly. This gives an opportunity for some additional pretty stitching—the addition of something like this, that is perhaps not absolutely necessary, has extra value from the evidence it gives of the worker's interest and delight in her work, a quality always appreciated; on the other hand, work done from the motive of getting a result with as little labour as possible is valued at just its worth.
These insertion stitches are useful for joining together edges of cushion covers, bags, detached bands, also for the ornamentation of dress, and for embroideries upon which drawn thread work is not possible. A stout thread is usually suitable for the purpose. The raw edges must first be turned in and flattened, and the parts to be joined can if necessary betacked in place on a temporary ground such astoile cirée.
Fig. 73illustrates a twisted insertion stitch that is quickly executed and very frequently used. The diagram sufficiently explains the working without further description.
Fig. 73.Fig. 73.
Buttonhole stitch can be turned to account for this purpose.Fig. 74shows the tailor's buttonhole used as an insertion stitch; for this purpose it is the better of the two kinds of buttonhole. The stitches could be arranged in various ways; in the present example three are worked closely together on either side in turn. The only difficulty with this buttonhole insertion is that on one side the stitch has to be worked in direction contrary to that usual, that is from right to left instead of from left to right. In the diagram the needle is shown working in this reverse way.
Fig. 74.Fig. 74.
Fig. 75is a knotted insertion stitch; the knot at each side makes the stitcha very rigid one. To work it—Bring the thread through at the lower left-hand side, insert the needle on the upper side a little towards the right, draw the thread through, and then tie the knot on it as in process in the diagram.
Fig. 75.Fig. 75.
A rather more complicated joining stitch is shown infig. 76. It could be carried out with different coloured threads. The two sides must be first worked with the edging, which is practically the braid stitch described onpage 88. Commence the stitch in exactly the same way as when carrying out braid stitch, but work on the edge of the material asin buttonholing, the working edge in this case being away from the worker. Let the worker, having reached the point of pulling the thread through to complete the stitch, draw it out in the direction away from her. This will draw the stitch towards the edge, where it will form a knot. In the diagram one of the stitches has been partly undone in order to show the working more clearly. When the two sides are bound with the stitch, they can be laced together with another thread as in the illustration.
Fig. 76.Fig. 76.
Picots are commonly in use in lace work and they are sometimes required for embroidery purposes, especially in the kinds of work nearly allied to lace, such as cut work, or for an added ornament to an edging stitch.
Fig. 77.Fig. 77.
Fig. 77shows too small picots added to a buttonhole bar, and on the lower bar is shown the method of working the left-hand picot. The pin that passes into the material behind the bar can be fixed in the bar itself if there happens tobe no material underneath. After reaching the point illustrated in the diagram, the needle draws the thread through, thus making a firm knot round the loop. This completes the picot, the bar is then buttonholed to the end. The second picot is made in much the same way; instead, however, of putting the needle as the diagram shows, bring thethread up through the centre of the loop, then round under the pin from left to right, and it will be in position to make three buttonhole stitches along the loop, which completes the second example.
Fig. 78.Fig. 78.
The upper bar onfig. 78shows a buttonholed picot. The bar must be worked to the left-hand end of therequired picot; the thread is then from there taken back about one-eighth of an inch and threaded through the edge of the buttonhole. This is repeated to and fro until there is a loop composed of three threads ready to be buttonholed over. Upon this being done, the thread will have arrived at the right point to continue the bar.
Bullion stitch makes another simple picot—Work the bar to the point where the picot is required, then, instead of taking the next stitch, insert the point of the needle in the heading of the last stitch. Leave the needle in this position, and twist the thread six or eight times round the point of it, just as for the bullion knot (fig. 59). Place the left thumb over the tight coil thus formed, and pull the needle and thread through tightly in order to make the stitch double up into a tight semi-circle, then continue the buttonholing to the end of the bar.
Introduction—Samplers—Petit Point Pictures—Cross Stitch—Tent Stitch—Gobelin Stitch—Irish Stitch—Plait Stitch—Two-sided Italian Stitch—Holbein Stitch—Rococo Stitch.
Introduction—Samplers—Petit Point Pictures—Cross Stitch—Tent Stitch—Gobelin Stitch—Irish Stitch—Plait Stitch—Two-sided Italian Stitch—Holbein Stitch—Rococo Stitch.
Canvas work, known in the XIIIth century asopus pulvinariumor cushion work, is of great antiquity, and seems to have had an independent origin in several countries. It is sometimes given the misleading name of tapestry, perhaps owing to hangings of all kinds being called tapestries, whether loom-woven, worked with the needle, or painted. Large wall hangings with designs similar to those of woven tapestries have been most successfully carried out on canvas in cross or tent stitch; as a rule, however, smaller objects are worked, such as furniture coverings, screens or cushions, whence it is obvious canvas work received its ancient and descriptive Latin name. Many Eastern carpets are worked upon astrong canvas in a kind of tent stitch, and so come under the heading of canvas work. It is a particularly durable method of embroidering, and this makes it suitable for use upon anything subjected to hard wear.
The work has usually a very decided and attractive character of its own. A familiar example of this can be seen in the XVIIIth century samplers. Its peculiar character is perhaps due to the fact that it cannot break away from a certain conventionality due to constant use of the same stitch, and its dependence upon the web of the fabric. This regularity prevents the work from showing certain faults of design that other methods may exaggerate. It is hardly possible to copy a natural spray of flowers in cross stitch and keep it very naturalistic. The stitch being square and alike all over gives a formality of treatment to every part of the design, also, some detail is perforce omitted owing to the impossibility of putting it in; all of this tends to a right method of treatment, which renders the sampler an admirable lesson not only in workmanship but also in design.
The XVIth and XVIIth century pictorial subjects worked upon fine canvas in cross or tent stitch afford instances of most interesting work in canvas stitches. Some of these, though, as a rule, very much smaller in size, equal, in their way, the finest tapestries. Most of them, if judged from a painter's standpoint, would be pronounced failures, but this effect is not what is sought after; the method of treatment belongs rather to the great traditions of the tapestry weaver, and is not governed by the canons of the painter.Plate VI.shows a detail of foliage from a particularly fine example of this work lately added to the Victoria and Albert Museum collection.[2]
In what went by the name of Berlin wool work, popular in the early XIXth century, we have before us a degenerate offshoot of this fine and poetic kind of work in which all its possibilities are missed, with a result that is prosaic in the extreme. Some of the canvas-work seat covers decorated with geometrical designs, seen on Chippendale chairs, were a pleasant and satisfactory variation intheir way, but in most of the work after that period, the attempt at impossible naturalistic effect gave such unsatisfactory results as to almost deal a death blow to all canvas embroidery. It is, however, a method too good and useful to die out; it must always be more or less in vogue.
Patterns carried out in canvas stitches are sometimes to be seen worked apparently upon velvet or similar ground materials. This is done by first laying the canvas upon the velvet and stitching through both materials; this would have to be carried out in a frame. The threads of the canvas are afterwards either withdrawn or closely cut off. In the former case, the stitches must be drawn tight, or the finished work will not look well. This method has the advantage of saving the labour of working the background, and sometimes it suits the pattern to have a contrast in the ground material. In old embroideries, heraldic devices may be seen successfully treated in this way.
The usual canvas stitches can be worked upon other fabrics that have an even and square mesh, such as various kinds oflinen; also other embroidery stitches, such as stem, satin, or chain, can be used upon canvas; they are then always worked with a certain regularity, following the web of the material.
Canvas work can be done in the hand or in a frame, but the technique is often better in work done in a frame. In all-over work it is important that not even a suggestion of the ground fabric should be allowed to show through; for this reason work in light colours should be done on white canvas, andvice versâ, as far as possible, also the thread used must suit in thickness the mesh of the canvas. To work a plain ground well is less easy than to work the pattern, though it may sound more simple. The back of the work, though not necessarily similar to the front, must be alike in stitch all over, for the direction the stitch takes at the back affects the regularity of appearance of the front. The stitch must not be commenced in exactly the same place in each row, lest a ridge should appear upon the surface; this can be avoided by using threads of different lengths. A ground is usually commenced at the lower left-hand corner, and a pattern, if a complicatedone, from the centre outwards. These technical points are of importance, but they are of little value unless the stitches are at the same time expressing an interesting and suitable design.
The stitches used are exceedingly numerous; those described in the following pages are the varieties most commonly seen.
Cross stitch, the best known in this group, can be worked in slightly different ways, according to the purpose for which it is required. On the surface it is always the same, but it can vary at the back. For instance, when used for marking purposes it should form on the reverse side either a cross or a square, to do either of which demands some ingenuity on the part of the worker. For ordinary work the really correct method is to complete each stitch before going on to the next, though grounding is frequently done by working the first half of the stitch along an entire line, and completing the cross upon a return journey. In any case, the crossing must always be worked in the same direction.
Cross stitch is a double stitch worked diagonally over two threads of the canvaseach way. It can, however, be taken over more or fewer threads if required larger or smaller. To work it (fig. 79)—Bring the needle through on the upper left side of the threads to be covered, and take it back again on the lower right, then bring it through on the upper right side and return it to the back on the lower left, which completes the first stitch.