DIAPER DESIGNS FOR EMBROIDERY.
A.—Sixteenth century sprig.
A.—Sixteenth century sprig.
A.—Sixteenth century sprig.
Mostof the patterns here given were suggested by sketches from the celebrated 15th century painted screen in Ranworth Church, Norfolk, which I made on the occasion of a visit there some time ago, and are excellent specimens of diapers suitable for embroidery. It is a class of design almost peculiar to the period and may be termed “conceits,” for although nature is suggested in these diapers, the arrangement is purely arbitrary, and the ornament is not necessarily developed out of a particular plant, but is imported into it, wilfully. Thus you get inAa sort of conventionalised leafage with flowers and berries, and inBan ornamentalised fruit with flowers. This latter pattern I have developed inC, the growth of the pine-apple having suggested the design. The thistle, globe artichoke and many other plants could be treated in this way. Always go to nature for yourmotifs, but remember that you only take suggestions from nature, as design is not transcribing nature, but the result of imagination, stimulated by reference to nature, playing around the subject. Ingenuity is called into play, and a good design may be likened to an interweaving of pleasantly contrasted lines nicely balanced.
B.—Sixteenth century sprig, suggestive of a fruit.
B.—Sixteenth century sprig, suggestive of a fruit.
B.—Sixteenth century sprig, suggestive of a fruit.
So many amateurs think that a representation of a particular plant or animal arranged symmetrically is designing, whereas designing is as much an effort of the imagination as poetry or music. It is a good exercise to start with some design as I did inBand do something original on the same lines. Even if you are not very original in your efforts, it is a good exercise of your skill. If you are content to merely reproduce what others have originated, your mental faculties are not brought into play at all, and you can never hope to make any advance in original work. The growth of stem inC, going as it does over and under the main stem, was suggested by the growth of the sprig inD, which is a characteristic example of a “conceit.”
C.—Sprig founded upon the pine-apple, in the style of sixteenth century German work shown inB.
C.—Sprig founded upon the pine-apple, in the style of sixteenth century German work shown inB.
C.—Sprig founded upon the pine-apple, in the style of sixteenth century German work shown inB.
Such diapers asA,BandCcan be used to “powder” over a curtain. Portions of them might beappliquéd, the “fruit” inCfor instance, while the leaves could be in outline. The diapers can be disposed over the curtain in some sort of order, and you might work diagonal lines, and put a sprig in each lozenge formed by the diagonal lines crossing each other at right angles, as in Fig. 1 in a former article on “Curtain Embroidery,” to which I must refer the reader. The running borderEwould be effective worked in two colours, a light and a dark, and could be used to border a curtain in which the other diapers are used.
D.—Sprig suggested by sixteenth century German work.
D.—Sprig suggested by sixteenth century German work.
D.—Sprig suggested by sixteenth century German work.
The patterns on the screen in Ranworth Church were stencilled, and these given in this article could be cut as stencils. It would be a good way of transferring the designs to the material to lightly stencil them on and then work over the impressions.
Fred Miller.
E.—Continuous border design for two colours.
E.—Continuous border design for two colours.
E.—Continuous border design for two colours.
[Transcriber’s Note—the following changes have been made to this text.
Page 803: comtemplate to contemplate—“contemplate the surrender”.
Page 812: Repeated word “the” removed—“The Shadow of the Sword”.]