Personal Embroidery Challenge

Something that surprised me recently was that I am as excited now about embroidery and women's fashion accessories as I was all those years ago when I first joined the SCA and picked my garb based on embroidery styles and fashion accessories! Such a wealth of information to explore, and it is only getting easier as more pieces are released into public displays or digitised for viewing online. The to- do list will never end!

Another interesting consideration when looking back over my work in the last fifteen years or so is just how 'stuck' I have been on monochrome non-counted embroidery - particularly the Elizabethan style. I love it so much, but I do think I need to work a bit more on exploring other techniques. I'm going to challenge myself to try it. New skills will enhance existing ones, and it can only enrich my experience. Obviously (as embroidery takes so long,) this will be a long term project, but it is one which I am looking forward to. It might give me confidence to try some of the bigger 'dream' projects I have been thinking about for years.

This thought-thread made me think that I should go back and review some of my very early work so that down the track I can compare it to where I am now.  A lot of the pieces were done pre-digital camera, so there are no photos (or at least no good photos) but it will be nice to do a review in a year or two and see how far I have got with the challenge. I've also noted that I haven't taken pictures of things that are not finished, and there are a lot of those.
(These headings are the categories that the Worshipful of Company of Broiderers of Lochac cover.)

Couching, Laid work

 

Beading, Pearling

Metal thread work, Purl work

Canvas work, including Slips

Applique

Cross stitch, including Voided work (Assisi)

Counted Thread work

Raised work, Padded work

Quilting

Whitework (not Hardanger)

Blackwork/Monochrome

 

 

Other










Construction sewing

Needlemade lace

Filet lace





Non-counted thread embroidery

 

Applique

 


Coptic embroidery and pre 1000 AD work.

Woolwork e.g. Bayeux Tapestry

Opus Anglicanum

Or Nue, Lazurtechnik

German counted work

Heraldic Embroidery

 

   

Elizabethan Embroidery

 















Canvas work, Table carpets, Slips

Polychrome Elizabethan Embroidery

Costume Embroidery

Embroidery for Household Linens

 
 
  
  
 Sooo very many napkins! I won't show them all


Embroidery for Regalia

 

These are only a fraction of previous projects- ones where I had photos easily to hand. You can see the obvious gaps and areas of embroidery that I enjoy.