Transcriber's Note:

The printed Errata have been corrected in the text. A few additionalprinter's errors have been corrected, details of the corrections can befound at the end of this e-text. 

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ART IN NEEDLEWORK

TEXT-BOOKS OF ORNAMENTAL DESIGN

ART IN NEEDLEWORK

A BOOK ABOUT EMBROIDERY

BY

LEWIS F. DAY

AUTHOR OF 'WINDOWS, ' 'ALPHABETS, ''NATURE IN ORNAMENT' AND OTHERTEXT-BOOKS OF ORNAMENTAL DESIGN

& MARY BUCKLE

LONDON:B. T. BATSFORD 94 HIGH HOLBORN1900

BRADBURY, AGNEW, & CO. LD. , PRINTERS, LONDON AND TONBRIDGE. 

PREFACE. 

Embroidery may be looked at from more points of view than it would bepossible in a book like this to take up seriously. Merely to hover roundthe subject and glance casually at it would serve no useful purpose. Itmay be as well, therefore, to define our standpoint: we look at the artfrom its practical side, not, of course, neglecting the artistic, forthe practical use of embroidery is to be beautiful. 

The custom has been, since woman learnt to kill time with the needle, tothink of embroidery too much as an idle accomplishment. It is more thanthat. At the very least it is a handicraft: at the best it is an art. This contention may be to take it rather seriously; but if one esteemedit less it would hardly be worth writing about, and the book, whenwritten, would not be worth the attention of students of embroidery, needleworkers, and designers of needlework to whom it is addressed. Itsets forth to show what decorative stitching is, how it is done, andwhat it can do. It is illustrated by samplers of stitches; by diagrams, to explain the way stitches are done; and by examples of old and modernwork, to show the artistic application of the stitches. 

A feature in the book is the series of samplers designed to show notonly what are the available stitches, but the groups into which theynaturally gather themselves, as well as the use to which they may beput: and the back of the sampler is given too: the reader has only toturn the page to see the other side of the stitching--which to aneedlewoman is often the more helpful. Lest that should not be enough, the stitches are described in the text, and a marginal note shows at aglance where the description is given. This should be read needle andthread in hand--or skipped. Samplers and other examples of needleworkare uniformly on a scale large enough to show the stitch quite plainly. The examples of old work illustrate always, in the first place, somepoint of workmanship; still they are chosen with some view to theirartistic interest. 

In other respects Art is not overlooked; but it is Art in harness. Design is discussed with reference to stitch and stuff, and stitch andstuff with reference to their use in ornament. It has been endeavouredalso to show the effect needlework has had upon pattern, and the ways inwhich design is affected by the circumstance that it is to beembroidered. 

The joint authorship of the work needs, perhaps, a word of explanation. This is not just a man's book on a woman's subject. The scheme of it ismine, and I have written it, but with the co-operation throughout ofMiss Mary Buckle. Our classification of the stitches is the result ofmany a conference between us. The description of the way the stitchesare worked, and so forth, is my rendering of her description, supplemented by practical demonstration with the needle. She has primedme with technical information, and been always at hand to keep me fromtechnical error. With reference to design and art I speak for myself. 

My thanks are due to the authorities at South Kensington for allowing usto handle the treasures of the national collection, and to photographthem for illustration; to Mrs. Walter Crane, Miss Mabel Keighley, andMiss C. P. Shrewsbury, for permission to reproduce their handiwork; toMiss Argles, Mrs. Buxton Morrish, Colonel Green, R. E. , and Messrs. Morris and Co. , for the loan of work belonging to them; and to MissChart for working the cross-stitch sampler. 

I must also acknowledge the part my daughter has had in the productionof this book: without her constant help it could never have beenwritten. 

 LEWIS F. DAY. 

 _January 1st, 1900. _

CONTENTS. 

 CHAP. PAGE

 1. EMBROIDERY AND EMBROIDERY STITCHES 1

 2. CANVAS STITCHES 12

 3. CREWEL-STITCH 26

 4. CHAIN-STITCH 38

 5. HERRING-BONE-STITCH 47

 6. BUTTONHOLE-STITCH 55

 7. FEATHER AND ORIENTAL STITCHES 62

 8. ROPE AND KNOT STITCHES 71

 9. INTERLACINGS, SURFACE STITCHES, AND DIAPERS 83

 10. SATIN-STITCH AND ITS OFFSHOOTS 91

 11. DARNING 106

 12. LAID-WORK 112

 13. COUCHING 122

 14. COUCHED GOLD 131

 15. APPLIQUÉ 144

 16. INLAY, MOSAIC, AND CUT-WORK 153

 17. EMBROIDERY IN RELIEF 159

 18. RAISED GOLD 165

 19. QUILTING 172

 20. STITCH GROUPS 175

 21. ONE STITCH OR MANY? 180

 22. OUTLINE 185

 23. SHADING 188

 24. FIGURE EMBROIDERY 198

 25. THE DIRECTION OF THE STITCH 208

 26. CHURCH WORK 216

 27. A PLEA FOR SIMPLICITY 225

 28. EMBROIDERY DESIGN 232

 29. EMBROIDERY MATERIALS 242

 30. A WORD TO THE WORKER 250

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

1. TAPESTRY--to illustrate work on a warp not on a web. From Akhmin inUpper Egypt. Ancient Coptic. (In the Victoria and Albert Museum. )

2. DRAWN-WORK ON FINE LINEN, embroidered with gold and colour. Oriental. (From the collection of Mrs. Lewis F. Day. )

3. DARNING AND SATIN-STITCH on square mesh--The darning leaf, green, follows the lines of the stuff; outlined with yellow, veined with pinkand white; stem, yellow, its foliation pink, outlined with white, andribbed with blue and white. Italian. 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

4. CROSS-STITCH UPON LINEN. Hungarian. Compare Illustration 45. 

5. CROSS-STITCH SAMPLER--A and B, solid; C, line work; D, stroke-stitch--called also Holbein-stitch; E, stroke and cross stitchescombined. 

6. CANVAS-STITCH in coloured silk upon linen. The band Italian, thefoliated diaper Oriental. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

7. CANVAS-STITCH--Design comparatively free, but showing in its outlinethe influence of the rectangular lines of the weaving. Cretan. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

8. CANVAS-STITCH SAMPLER--A, tent-stitch; B, half-cross-stitch; C, cushion-stitch; D, Moorish-stitch, so called; E, plait-stitch; F, couching on canvas. 

9. CUSHION AND SATIN-STITCHES UPON CANVAS--The Satin-stitches follow thelines of the stuff, and form a diaper built upon them. CompareIllustration 71. 

10. TWO VARIETIES OF CANVAS-STITCH, the pattern in the bare linen, thebackground worked--A, plait-stitch, the ornament outlined; B, stitchesdrawn tightly together so as to pull the threads of the linen apart, giving very much the effect of drawn-work. Compare Illustration 2. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

11. CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER--A and C, crewel-stitch; B and D, outline-stitch; E, back-stitch; F, spots; G and H, stem-stitch; J, crewel and outline-stitches in combination. 

12. BACK OF CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER. 

13. CREWEL-WORK--the stem only worked in crewel-stitch. Embroidered ingreen, blue, and brown wools upon white cotton. Old English. (Coll. OfMiss Argles. )

14. CREWEL-WORK, in which crewel-stitch hardly occurs. Embroidered incoloured wools upon white cotton. Old English. (Coll. Of J. M. Knapp, Esq. )

15. CREWEL-STITCH IN TWISTED SILK. The scroll in green upon abrownish-purple ground; the smaller leafage upon the scroll in brightergreen; the flowers and butterflies in blue and pink. Modern. (Mrs. L. F. Day. )

16. CHAIN-STITCH AND KNOTS--Part of the same piece of work asIllustration 24. Indian. (V. & A. M. )

17. CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER--A, chain-stitch solid and in line; B, magicstitch; C, church chain; D, cable chain; E, Vandyke chain; F, Mountmellic chain; G, Mountmellic cable--all so called. 

18. BACK OF CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER. 

19. CHAIN AND SURFACE STITCHES--the latter a kind of buttonholing, onlyoccasionally worked _in_to the stuff. Part of a lectern cover in whitethread upon a thin, greyish white linen stuff. German, 14th century. (V. & A. M. )

20. HERRINGBONE SAMPLER--A, B, C, varieties of herring-bone; D, acombination of A and C; E, fishbone; F, a close variety of A; G, tapestry stitch, so called. 

21. BACK OF HERRINGBONE SAMPLER. 

22. BUTTONHOLE SAMPLER--A, B, C, ordinary buttonhole and variations uponit; D, two rows of buttonhole worked slanting one into the other; E, crossed buttonhole; F, tailor's buttonhole; G, ladder (called alsoCretan) stitch; H, herringbone buttonhole; J, buttonhole diaper. 

23. BACK OF BUTTONHOLE SAMPLER. 

24. BUTTONHOLE, CHAIN, AND KNOT STITCHES--chiefly in white floss silk ondark purple satin, with touches of crimson at the points from which thestitches radiate. The rings on the outer ground are not worked, but donein the dyeing of the satin. Part of the same piece of work as 16. ModernIndian from Surat. (V. & A. M. )

25. FEATHER-STITCH SAMPLER--A to G, ordinary feather-stitch and itsvariations; G G, feather chain. 

26. BACK OF FEATHER-STITCH SAMPLER. 

27. ORIENTAL-STITCH SAMPLER--A to E, Oriental-stitch and its varieties;F, Oriental-stitch worked into buttonhole; G, not properly a form ofOriental-stitch, though bearing some resemblance to it. 

28. BACK OF ORIENTAL-STITCH SAMPLER. 

29. ROPE AND KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER--A, rope-stitch; B, open rope-stitch;C, what is called German knot-stitch; D, open German knot-stitch; E, OldEnglish knot-stitch, so called; F, bullion-stitch; G, French knots. 

30. BACK OF ROPE AND KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER. 

31. A TOUR-DE-FORCE IN KNOTS--Worked entirely in the one stitch; thedrawing lines expressed by voiding. In white and coloured silks upon avery dark blue ground. Chinese. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

32. INTERLACING-STITCH SAMPLER--A, Interlaced crewel-stitch; B, interlaced back-stitch; C, back-stitch twice interlaced; D, interlacedchain-stitch; E, interlaced darning; F, interlaced herringbone; G, herringbone twice interlaced; H, an interlaced version of C inIllustration 20; J, interlaced Oriental-stitch; K, interlacedfeather-stitch. 

33. BACK OF INTERLACING SAMPLER. 

34. SURFACE-STITCH SAMPLER--A, D, G, various surface stitches; B, surface buttonhole; H and C, surface darning; E, Japanese darning, as itis called; F, net passing; J, surface buttonhole over bars; K, surfacebuttonhole over slanting stitches. 

35. LACE OR SURFACE-STITCH AND SATIN-STITCH, much of it worn away. Instraw-coloured floss upon pale blue silk. Part of a dress. French. Late18th century. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

36. SATIN-STITCH SAMPLER--Worked in floss, the stitch in variousdirections, to give different effects. Incidentally it shows variousways of breaking up a surface in satin-stitch. Compare with Illustration38, which shows the effect of the stitch in twisted silk. 

37. BACK OF SATIN-STITCH SAMPLER. 

38. SATIN-STITCH IN COARSE TWISTED SILK. 

39. SATIN-STITCH IN TWISTED SILK--Outlines voided. Worked in white andoccasional red and yellow upon black satin. Indian. Modern. (V. & A. M. )

40. SATIN-STITCH AND, on the birds' bodies, PLUMAGE-STITCH--The ends ofthe stalks worked in French knots; the veins of the leaves in fine whitecords laid on to the satin stitch. The outlines voided, and the voidingoccasionally worked across with stitches wide enough apart to show theground between. In white and bright-coloured silk floss upon a blacksatin ground. Chinese. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

41. SAMPLER--Showing offshoots from satin and crewel stitches, andincidentally illustrating various ways of shading. A, crewel-stitch; B, plumage-stitch, worked in the hand; C, split-stitch; D, plumage-stitch, worked in the frame. 

42. BACK OF SAMPLER 41. 

43. DARNING SAMPLER--Except in the background the stitches follow thelines of the drawing, regardless of the weaving of the stuff. Thecustomary outlining of the pattern is here omitted, to show how far itmay, or may not, be needful. 

44. DARNING--DESIGNED BY WILLIAM MORRIS. In delicate colours upon asea-green ground, outlined with black and white. Part of the border of atable-cloth, the property of Messrs. Morris & Co. 

45. FLAT DARNING--Solid and open, following the lines of a square mesh, and stepping in tune with it; the outline voided; all in white thread. Old German. (Gewerbs Museum, Munich. )

46. LAID-WORK SAMPLER, showing various ways (split-stitch and couching)in which the sewing down may be done, and the various directions it maytake--vertical, horizontal, following the ornamental forms, or crossingthem. 

47. LAID-WORK--The couching crosses the flower forms in straight lines;and in the eye of the flower where the threads cross, the two are sewndown at a single stitch. The spiral stems a sort of laid cord. Flower inblue, sewn with blue and outlined with gold; leaves, a bright freshgreen stitched with olive. Japanese. (V. & A. M. )

48. LAID-WORK. The sewing down of the leaves crosses them in curvedlines which suggest roundness. The stem in gold basket pattern. Part ofa coverlet. Worked upon a cedar-coloured ground chiefly in dark blue andwhite, the blue couched with white, the white and other colours couchedwith red. Indo-Portuguese. 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

49. LAID-WORK AND SOME SURFACE-STITCH. The stitching which sews down thefloss takes the direction of the scroll, &c. , and gives drawing. Thesurface work in the stems is done upon a ladder of stitches across. Partof a chalice veil. Italian. Early 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

50. LAID-WORK SAMPLER--The straight lines of laid floss varied in colourto suggest shading. The stalk padded, and the pattern made by thestitching upon it thereby emphasised. 

51. BULLION AND COUCHED CORD--A, The somewhat loose design of the borderin bullion shows rather plainly the way it is done. B, The solid discsof spiral cord are unusual, but most characteristic of the method ofcouching. The stitches sewing down the cord are not apparent. Oriental. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

52. SAMPLER OF COUCHED SILK--The broad central band and the narrowbeaded lines are in floss, and show the effect of sewing it more or lesstightly down. The two intermediate bands are in cord couched withthreads in the direction of its twist, not very easily distinguishableunless by contrast of colour. 

53. COUCHING IN LOOPED THREADS--The effect is not unlike that ofchain-stitch or fine knotting. Rather over actual size. Worked in brightcolours upon a pale green crêpe ground. Chinese. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

54. REVERSE COUCHING--Showing on the face of it no sign of couching. (After the manner of the Syon Cope. )

55. BACK OF REVERSE COUCHING--Showing the parallel lines of couchedlinen thread which sew down the silk upon the surface (Illustration 54). The zigzag pattern of the stitching might equally well have taken otherlines. 

56. COUCHED GOLD SAMPLER--A, B, C, D, flat work; E, part flat, partraised; F, G, H, J, basket and other patterns raised over cords. 

57. COUCHING IN VARIOUS DIAPER PATTERNS, OUTLINED IN PART WITH "PLATE. "Silver on pale pink silk. (Coll. Of Mrs. T. Buxton Morrish. )

58. GOLD COUCHING IN OPEN THREADS--A, The lines of gold which form ascale pattern on the dragon's body, are wide enough apart to let the redground grin through. Elsewhere the couching, contrary to mediævalpractice, follows the shapes, line within line until they are occupied. The floss embroidery, in white and colours, is in surface-satin-stitch. Chinese. B, The open lines of gold look somehow richer than if the metalhad been worked solid upon the crimson ground. Old Venetian. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

59. COUCHED OUTLINE WORK; only an occasional detail worked solid;suggests damascening. The border is in gold, the filling in silver, thread on a greyish-green velvet. Part of an Italian housing orsaddlecloth. 16th century. (V. & A. M. )

60. APPLIQUÉ--Satin upon velvet, outlined with two threads of goldcouching. 

61. APPLIQUÉ PANEL--Designed and executed by Miss Mabel Keighley, illustrating a poem by William Morris. (The property of the artist. )

62. A. COUNTER-CHANGE PATTERN, INLAY OR APPLIQUÉ. --Yellow satin andcrimson velvet. The outline, which is in gold, falls chiefly upon theyellow, so as not to disturb the exact balance of light and dark, whichit is essential to preserve in counter-change. Part of a stole. Spanish. 16th century (V. & A. M. )

 B. APPLIQUÉ, of deep crimson velvet upon whitesatin, outlined with paler red cord. The outlines, meeting together, form a stem of double cord. Italian. 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

63. APPLIQUÉ, with couched outline, and stitching upon the appliqué bandor ribbon. The dots in the centre of the grapes are French knots. Thepattern is in satin of various colours, upon a figured green silkdamask, outlined with yellow silk sewn down with yellow. Italian. (V. &A. M. )

64. INLAY IN COLOURED CLOTHS, outlined with chain stitch. Magic stitchalso occurs. A characteristic example of the kind of work done atRetsht, in Persia. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

65. CUT-WORK IN LINEN--A fret of this kind was often outlined withcoloured silk, and the detail within the fretted outline furtherembroidered in coloured silk. (Coll. Of Mrs. Drake. )

66. SAMPLER OF RAISED WORK, showing underlays: A, of cloth; B, oftwisted cords; C, of parchment; D, of cotton wool; E, first of cottoncord and then of cotton thread; F, of cord; G, of string; H, of sewing. 

67. RAISED WORK, showing underlay of linen, and the way it is sewndown--The work is in flax thread, red, yellow, and white, upon a bluelinen ground. The stem is dotted with white beads, the ground with goldspangles. Part of an altar frontal. German. 15th century. (V. & A. M. )

68. RAISED GOLD BASKET PATTERNS, &c. , upon white satin. The stalk inflat wire. Spanish. 17th century. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

69. QUILT, WORKED IN CHAIN-STITCH from the back--which has precisely theeffect of back-stitch. Yellow silk upon white linen. Old English. (V. &A. M. )

70. RAISED QUILTING, in black silk upon pale sea-green satin. Part ofthe border of a prayer cushion. Old Persian. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

71. DIAPER OF SATIN-STITCH IN THE MAKING--Something betweencanvas-stitch and satin-stitch. The leafage is in tent-stitch. Comparewith Illustration 9. (V. & A. M. )

72. STITCHES IN COMBINATION--Among them Oriental, ladder, buttonhole, chain, crewel, satin, and herringbone stitches, worked in dark blue silkupon unbleached linen. Old Cretan, so called. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

73. FINE NEEDLEWORK UPON CAMBRIC--the substance of which is apparentupon the upper edge of the work. In the ground-work of the patterngenerally the threads are drawn together to form an open net. Thestitches occurring in the collar of which this is part are, buttonhole, satin, chain, herringbone, cross, and back stitches. The outline ismostly in fine cross-stitch. Nothing could exceed the delicacy of theworkmanship, which is in its kind perfect. Old English. (Coll. Of Col. Green, R. E. )

74. PART OF A DESIGN BY WALTER CRANE, cunningly adapted to execution inneedlework. Shows the direction of the stitch, and the part it can bemade to play in expressing form. Worked in coloured silks upon linen byMrs. Walter Crane, whose property the work is. 

75. SHADING IN CHAIN-STITCH in silk and chenille upon a satin ground. The shading very deliberately schemed by the designer. In naturalcolours upon white. French. Louis Seize. (V. & A. M. )

76. SHADING IN SHORT STITCHES; picturesque to the point of a touch ofwhite in the glistening yellow of the dove's eye. Chenille, inchain-stitch, is used for the wreath and in the leaves of the flowersprigs. These are in colours, the birds are in silvery greys, all on awhite satin ground. French. Louis Seize. (V. & A. M. )

77. SHADING IN LONG-AND-SHORT AND SPLIT STITCHES, with more regard toexpression of form than to neatness of execution. German. 16th century. (V. & A. M. )

78. CHAIN-STITCH, showing in the figures of the little men what adraughtsman can express in a few stitches. Full size. Chinese. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

79. FIGURE WORK--The flesh in straight upright stitches, the draperylaid and couched. English. 15th century. (V. & A. M. )

80. CONSUMMATE FIGURE EMBROIDERY--Canvas ground entirely covered. Fleshin coloured silks, short-stitch; drapery coloured silks over gold, whichonly gleams through in the lighter parts. Architecture closely couchedgold. Part of an orphrey. Florentine. 16th century. (V. & A. M. )

81. CHINESE FIGURES--The flesh in short satin-stitches, the rest inchain-stitch; chiefly in blue and white upon a figured white silkground. About actual size. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

82. SATIN-STITCH, showing the influence of its direction upon the toneof colour. The pattern is all in one shade of yellow-brown floss uponwhite linen. The outline steps with the weaving, and so shows connectionbetween satin and canvas stitches. Italian, 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

83. MEANINGLESS DIRECTION OF STITCH--Satin and herring-bone stitches. From an altar-cloth. German. 17th century. (V. & A. M. )

84. MORE EXPRESSIVE LINES OF STITCHING--To compare with Illustration 83. 

85. SATIN AND PLUMAGE STITCHES chiefly, the bird's crest in Frenchknots, the clouds about him in knotted braid. The direction of thestitch is most artfully chosen, and the precision of the work isfaultless. The satin ground is of brilliant orange-red; the crane, white, with black tail feathers, scarlet crest, and yellow beak andlegs; the clouds, black and white and blue. Japanese. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

86. RENAISSANCE CHURCH WORK IN GOLD AND SILVER, partly flat, partly inrelief, upon pale blue satin, with touches of pink and crimson silk togive emphasis. Spanish. 18th century. Compare the stem with Illustration66, B. (V. & A. M. )

87. GOTHIC CHURCH WORK--The flesh, &c. , in split-stitch; the vine-leavesgreen, getting yellower as it nears the crimson silk ground. Part of acope embroidered with a representation of the Tree of Jesse. English. Ca. 1340. (V. & A. M. )

88. MODERN CHURCH WORK ON LINEN, in long-and-short stitch. Veins paddedwith embroidery cotton and worked over with two threads of filo-floss, agreen and a blue; the rest of the leaves worked in one shade of stoutfloss. All this applied to velvet with a couching of brown filoselle, and the tendrils added. Designed and executed by Miss C. P. Shrewsbury. (The property of the artist. )

89. SIMPLE STITCHING ON LINEN, the broader bands in a canvas stitch inyellow, the finer lines in back-stitch in pale grey silk. Italian. (Mrs. L. F. D. )

90. SIMPLE COUCHED OUTLINE WORK, in purplish silk cord upon linen. Partof an altar-cloth. Italian. 16th century. (V. & A. M. )

91. RENAISSANCE ORNAMENT--Most gracefully designed arabesque. The raisedoutline (couched) has somewhat the effect of cloisons, the satin-stitch(in colours) of brilliant enamel. It is upon a white satin ground. Theforeshortened face in the picture is _painted_ upon satin. Italian. Ca. 1700. (V. & A. M. )

92. APPLIQUÉ DESIGN, in yellow satin upon crimson velvet--Doubleoutline; next the red, white, sewn with pale blue; next the yellow, gold. Midrib of the leaf couched silver. Spanish, 16th century. (V. & A. M. )

93. SATIN-STITCH--except that the heart-shaped features at the base andthe lily-shaped flowers, of which only the tips are shown, are outlinedwith fine white cord. Part of a fan, worked by Miss Buckle, from adesign by L. F. D. (The property of the worker. )

94. LEATHER APPLIQUÉ UPON VELVET--The stitching well within the edge ofthe leather. 

ERRATA. 

Page 30. Diagram belongs to G (Stem-Stitch) described on page 32, not C(Thick Crewel-Stitch). 

Page 125, 2nd line. For "lower" read "upper. "

ART IN NEEDLEWORK. 

EMBROIDERY AND STITCHING. 

Embroidery begins with the needle, and the needle (thorn, fish-bone, orwhatever it may have been) came into use so soon as ever savages had thewit to sew skins and things together to keep themselves warm--modesty, we may take it, was an afterthought--and if the stitches made any sortof pattern, as coarse stitching naturally would, that was _embroidery_. 

The term is often vaguely used to denote all kinds of ornamentalneedlework, and some with which the needle has nothing to do. That ismisleading; though it is true that embroidery does touch, on the oneside, _tapestry_, which may be described as a kind of embroidery withthe shuttle, and, on the other, _lace_, which is needlework pure andsimple, construction "in the air" as the Italian name has it. 

The term is used in common parlance to express any kind of superficialor superfluous ornamentation. A poet is said to embroider the truth. But such metaphorical use of the word hints at the real nature of thework--embellishment, enrichment, _added_. If added, there must first ofall be something it is added _to_--the material, that is to say, onwhich the needlework is done. In weaving (even tapestry weaving) thepattern is got by the inter-threading of warp and weft. In lace, too, itis got out of the threads which make the stuff. In embroidery it is gotby threads worked _on_ a fabric first of all woven on the loom, or, itmight be, netted. 

There is inevitably a certain amount of overlapping of the crafts. Forinstance, take a form of embroidery common in all countries, Eastern, Hungarian, or nearer home, in which certain of the weft threads of thelinen are _drawn out_, and the needlework is executed upon the warpthreads thus revealed. This is, strictly speaking, a sort of tapestrywith the needle, just as, it was explained, tapestry itself may bedescribed as a sort of embroidery with the shuttle. That will be clearlyseen by reference to Illustration 1, which shows a fragment of ancienttapestry found in a Coptic tomb in Upper Egypt. In the lower portion ofit the pattern appears light on dark. As a matter of fact, it waswrought in white and red upon a linen warp; but, as it happened, onlythe white threads were of linen, like the warp, the red were woollen, and in the course of fifteen hundred years or so much of this red woolhas perished, leaving the white pattern intact on the warp, thethreads of which are laid bare in the upper part of the illustration. 

[Illustration: 1. TAPESTRY, SHOWING WARP. ]

It is on just such upright lines of warp that all tapestry, properly socalled, is worked--whether with the shuttle or with the needle makes nomatter--and there is good reason, therefore, for the name of "tapestrystitch" to describe needlework upon the warp threads only of a material(usually linen) from which some of the weft threads have been_withdrawn_. 

The only difference between true tapestry and drawn work, an example ofwhich is here given, is, that the one is done on a warp that has notbefore been woven upon, and the other on a warp from which the weftthreads have been _drawn_. The distinction, therefore, between tapestryand embroidery is, that, worked on a warp, as in Illustration 1, it istapestry; worked on a mesh, as in Illustration 3, it is embroidery. 

[Illustration: 2. DRAWN WORK. ]

With regard, again, to lace. That is itself a web, independent of anygroundwork or foundation to support it. But it is possible to work it_over_ a silken or other surface; and there is a kind of embroiderywhich only floats on the surface of the material without penetrating it. A fragment of last century silk given in Illustration 35 shows plainlywhat is meant. 

[Illustration: 3. STITCHING ON A SQUARE MESH. ]

Embroidery is enrichment by means of the needle. To embroider is to work_on_ something: a groundwork is presupposed. And we usually understandby embroidery, needlework in thread (it may be wool, cotton, linen, silk, gold, no matter what) upon a textile material, no matter what. Inshort, it is the decoration of a material woven in thread by means stillof thread. It is thus _the_ consistent way of ornamenting stuff--mostconsistent of all when one kind of thread is employed throughout, as inthe case of linen upon linen, silk upon silk. The enrichment may, however, rightly be, and oftenest is, perhaps, in a material nobler thanthe stuff enriched, in silk upon linen, in wool upon cotton, in goldupon velvet. The advisability of working upon a precious stuff in thread_less_ precious is open to question. It does not seem to have beensatisfactorily done; but if it were only the background that was worked, and the pattern were so schemed as almost to cover it, so that, in fact, very little of the more beautiful texture was sacrificed, and you hadstill a sumptuous pattern on a less attractive background--why not? Butthen it would be because you wanted that less precious texture there. The excuse of economy would scarcely hold good. 

In the case of a material in itself unsightly, the one course is tocover it entirely with stitching, as did the Persian and otheruntireable people of the East. But not they only. The famous Syon copeis so covered. Much of the work so done, all-over work that is to say, competes in effect with tapestry or other weaving; and its purpose wassimilar: it is a sort of amateur way of working your own stuff. But incharacter it is no more nearly related to the work of the loom thanother needlework--it is still work _on_ stuff. For all-over embroideryone chooses, naturally, a coarse canvas ground to work on; but it moreoften happens that one chooses canvas because one means to cover it, than that one works all over a ground because it is unpresentable. 

Embroidery is merely an affair of stitching; and the first thing needfulalike to the worker in it and the designer for it is, a thoroughacquaintance with the stitches; not, of course, with every modificationof a modification of a stitch which individual ingenuity may havedevised--it would need the space of an encyclopædia to chronicle themall--but with the broadly marked varieties of stitch which have beenemployed to best purpose in ornament. 

They are derived, naturally, from the stitches first used for quitepractical and prosaic purposes--buttonhole stitch, for example, to keepthe edges of the stuff from fraying; herring-bone, to strengthen anddisguise a seam; darning, to make good a worn surface; and so on. 

The difficulty of discussing them is greatly increased by the haphazardway in which they are commonly named. A stitch is called Greek, Spanish, Mexican, or what not, according to the country whence came the work inwhich some one first found it. Each names it after his or her individualdiscovery, or calls it, perhaps, vaguely Oriental; and so we have anynumber of names for the same stitch, names which to different peoplestand often for quite different stitches. 

When this confusion is complicated by the invention of a new name forevery conceivable combination of thread-strokes, or for each slightestvariation upon an old stitch, and even for a stitch worked from left toright instead of from right to left, or for a stitch worked ratherlonger than usual, the task of reducing them to order seems almosthopeless. 

Nor do the quasi-learned descriptions of old stitches help us much. Onereads about _opus_ this and _opus_ that, until one begins to wonderwhere, amidst all this parade of science, art comes in. But you have notfar to go in the study of the authorities to discover that, though theymay concur in using certain high-sounding Latin terms, they are not ofthe same mind as to their meaning. In one thing they all agree, foreignwriters as well as English, and that is, as to the difficulty ofidentifying the stitch referred to by ancient writers, themselvesprobably not acquainted with the _technique_ of stitching, and as likelyas not to call it by a wrong name. It is easier, for example, to talk of_Opus Anglicanum_ than to say precisely what it was, further than thatit described work done in England; and for that we have the simpleword--English. There is nothing to show that mediæval English workcontained stitches not used elsewhere. The stitches probably all comefrom the East. 

Nomenclature, then, is a snare. Why not drop titles, and call stitchesby the plainest and least mistakable names? It will be seen, if wereduce them to their native simplicity, that they fall intofairly-marked groups, or families, which can be discussed each under itsown head. 

Stitches may be grouped in all manner of arbitrary ways--according totheir provenance, according to their effect, according to their use, andso on. The most natural way of grouping them is according to theirstructure; not with regard to whence they came, or what they do, butaccording to what they are, the way they are worked. This, at allevents, is no arbitrary classification, and this is the plan it isproposed here to adopt. 

The use of such classification hardly needs pointing out. 

A survey of the stitches is the necessary preliminary, either to thedesign or to the execution of needlework. How else suit the design tothe stitch, the stitch to the design? In order to do the one the artistmust be quite at home among the stitches; in order to do the other theembroidress must have sympathy enough with a design to choose the stitchor stitches which will best render it. An artist who thinks the workingout of his sketch none of his business is no practical designer; theworker who thinks design a thing apart from her is only a worker. 

This is not the moment to urge upon the needlewoman the study of design, but to urge upon the designer the study of stitches. Nothing is moreimpractical than to make a design without realising the labour involvedin its execution. Any one not in sympathy with stitching may possiblydesign a beautiful piece of needlework, but no one will get all that isto be got out of the needle without knowing all about it. One mustunderstand the ways in which work can be done in order to determine theway it shall in any particular case be done. 

Certain stitches answer certain purposes, and strictly only those. Thedesigner must know which stitch answers which purpose, or he will in thefirst place waste the labour of the embroidress, and in the second misshis effect, which is to waste his own pains too. The effective worker(designer or embroiderer) is the one who works with judgment--and youcannot judge unless you know. When it is remembered that the characterof needlework, and by rights also the character of its design, dependsupon the stitch, there will be no occasion to insist further upon thenecessity of a comprehensive survey of the stitches. 

A stitch may be defined as the thread left on the surface of the clothor what not, after each ply of the needle. 

And the simple straightforward stitches of this kind are not so many asone might suppose. They may be reduced indeed to a comparatively fewtypes, as will be seen in the following chapters. 

CANVAS STITCHES. 

The simplest, as it is most likely the earliest used, stitch-group iswhat might best be called CANVAS stitch--of which cross-stitch isperhaps the most familiar type, the class of stitches which come offollowing, as it is only natural to do, the mesh of a coarse canvas, net, or open web upon which the work is done. 

A stitch bears always, or should bear, some relation to the material onwhich it is worked; but canvas or very coarse linen almost compels astitch based upon the cross lines of its woof, and indeed suggestsdesigns of equally rigid construction. That is so in embroidery nomatter where. In ancient Byzantine or Coptic work, in modern Cretanwork, and in peasant embroidery all the world over, pattern work oncoarse linen has run persistently into angular lines--in which, becauseof that very angularity, the plain outcome of a way of working, we findartistic character. Artistic design is always expressive of its mode ofworkmanship. 

Work of this kind is not too lightly to be dismissed. There is art inthe rendering of form by means of angular outlines, art in the choiceof forms which can be expressed by such lines. It is not uncharitableto surmise that one reason why such work (once so universal and nowquite out of fashion) is not popular with needlewomen may be, the demandit makes upon the designer's draughtmanship: it is much easier, forexample, to draw a stag than to render the creature satisfactorilywithin jagged lines determined by a linen mesh. 

[Illustration: 4. CROSS-STITCH. ]

The piquancy about natural or other forms thus reduced to angularityargues, of course, no affectation of quaintness on the part of theworker, but was the unavoidable outcome of her way of work. There is apronounced and early limit to art of this rather naïve kind, but thatthere is art in some of the very simplest and most modest peasant workbuilt up on those lines no artist will deny. The art in it is usually inproportion to its modesty. Nothing is more futile than to put it toanything like pictorial purpose. The wonderfully wrought pictures intent-stitch, for example, bequeathed to us by the 17th century, arepainful object lessons in what not to do. 

The origin of the term cross-stitch is not far to seek: the stitchesworked upon the square mesh do cross. But, falling naturally into thelines of the mesh which governs them, they present not so much theappearance of crosses as of squares, reminding one of the tesseræemployed in mosaic. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK CROSS STITCH. ]

To explain the process of working cross-stitch would be teaching one'sgrandmother indeed. It is simply, as its name implies, crossing onestitch by another, following always the lines of the canvas. But theimportant thing about it is that the stitches must cross always in thesame way; and, more than that, they must be worked in the samedirection, or the mere fact that the stitches at the _back_ of the workdo not run in the same way will disturb the evenness of the surface. What looks like a seam on the sampler opposite is the result of fillingup a gap in the ground with stitches necessarily worked in vertical, whereas the ground generally is in horizontal, lines. On the face of thework the stitches cross all in the same way. 

The common use of cross-stitch and the somewhat geometric kind ofpattern to which it lends itself are shown in the sampler, Illustration5. 

The broad and simple leafage, worked solid (A) or left in the plaincanvas upon a groundwork of solid stitching (B), and the fretteddiaper on vertical and horizontal lines (C), show the moststraightforward ways of using it. 

[Illustration: 5. CROSS-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

The criss-cross of alternating cross-stitches and open canvas framed bythe key pattern (C) shows a means of getting something like a tinthalfway between solid work and plain ground. The mere work line--or"stroke-stitch, " not crossed (D), is a perfectly fair way of getting adelicate effect; but the design has a way of working out rather lesshappily than it promised. 

The addition of such stroke-stitches to solid cross-stitch (E) is not atbest a very happy device. It strikes one always as a confession ofdissatisfaction on the part of the worker with the simple means of herchoice. As a device for, as it were, correcting the stepped outline itis at its worst. Timid workers are always afraid of the stepped outlinewhich a coarse mesh gives. In that they are wrong. One should employcanvas stitch only where there is no objection to a line which keepsstep with the canvas; then there is a positive charm (for frank peopleat least) in the frank confession of the way the work is done. 

There are many degrees in the frankness with which this convention hasbeen accepted, according perhaps to the coarseness of the canvas ground, perhaps to the personality of the worker. The animal forms at the top ofIllustration 6 are uncompromisingly square; the floral devices on thesame page, though they fall, as it were inevitably, into square lines, are less rigidly formal. The inevitableness of the square line isapparent in the sprig below (7). It was evidently meant to be freelydrawn, but the influence of the mesh betrays itself; and the design, ifit loses something in grace, gains also thereby in character. 

[Illustration: 6. CANVAS-STITCH. ]

[Illustration: 7. CANVAS-STITCH. ]

There is literally no end to the variety of stitches, as they arecalled, belonging to this group, and their names are a babel ofconfusion. Florentine, Parisian, Hungarian, Spanish, Moorish, Cashmere, Milanese, Gobelin, are only a few of them; but they stand, as a rule, rather for stitch arrangements than for stitches. A small selection ofthem is given in Illustration 8. 

[Sidenote: TENT-STITCH A. ]

What is known as tent-stitch (A in the sampler opposite) is a sort ofhalf cross-stitch; its peculiarity is that it covers only one thread ofthe canvas at a stroke, and is therefore on a more minute scale thanstitches which are two or three threads wide, as cross-stitch may, andcushion-stitch must, be. It derives its name from the old word tenture, or tenter (_tendere_, to stretch), the frame on which the embroidressdistended her canvas. The word has gone out of use, but we still speakof tenter-hooks. The stitch is serviceable enough in its way, but isdiscredited by the monstrous abuse of it referred to already. A picturein tent-stitch is even more foolish than a picture in mosaic. It cannotcome anywhere near to pictorial effect; the tesseræ will pronouncethemselves, and spoil it. 

[Illustration: 8. CANVAS-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 9. CUSHION AND SATIN STITCHES. ]

[Sidenote: CROSS-STITCH B. ]

This kind of half cross-stitch worked on the larger scale of ordinarycross-stitch would look meagre. It is filled out, therefore (B), byhorizontal lines of the thread laid across the canvas, and over thesethe stitch is worked. 

[Sidenote: CUSHION-STITCH C. ]

Cushion-stitch consists of diagonal lines of upright stitches, measuringin the sampler (C) six threads of the canvas, so that after each stitchthe needle may be brought out just three threads lower than where it wasput in. By working in zigzag instead of diagonal lines, a familiarpattern is produced, more often described as "Florentine;" but thestitch is in any case the same. 

[Sidenote: CANVAS-STITCH D. ]

The stitch at D (sometimes called Moorish stitch) is begun by working arow of short vertical stitches, slightly apart, and completed bydiagonal stitches joining them. 

Unless the silk employed is full and soft, this may not completely coverthe canvas, in which case the diagonal stitches must further be crossedas shown on Illustration 89. 

If the linen is loosely woven and the thread is tightly drawn in theworking, the mesh is pulled apart, giving the effect of an open latticeof the kind shown at B, on Illustration 10, in which the threads of thelinen are not drawn out but drawn together. 

[Sidenote: CANVAS-STITCH E. ]

The way of working the stitch at E is described on page 51, under thename of "fish-bone. " Worked on canvas it has somewhat the effect ofplaiting, and goes by the name of "plait-stitch. " It is worked inhorizontal rows alternately from left to right and from right to left. 

[Sidenote: CANVAS-STITCH F. ]

The stitch at F is a sort of couching (see page 124). Diagonal lines ofthread are first laid from edge to edge of the ground space, and theseare sewn down by short overcasting stitches in the cross direction. 

Admirable canvas stitch work has been done upon linen in silk of onecolour--red, green, or blue--and it was a common practice towork the background leaving the pattern in the bare stuff. Itprevailed in countries lying far apart, though probably not withoutinter-communication. In fact, the influence of Oriental work uponEuropean has been so great that even experts hesitate sometimes to saywhether a particular piece of work is Turkish or Italian. In Italianwork, at least, it was usual to get over the angularity of silhouetteinherent in canvas stitches by working an outline separately. When thatis thin, the effect is proportionately feeble. The broader outline(shown at A, Illustration 10) justifies itself, and in the case of astitch which falls into horizontal lines, it appears to be necessary. This is plait stitch, known also by the name of Spanish stitch--not thatit is in any way peculiar to Spain. It is allied to herring-bone-stitch, to which a special chapter is devoted. 

[Illustration: 10. PLAIT AND OPEN CANVAS STITCHES. ]

Darning is also employed as a canvas stitch. There is beautiful 16thcentury Italian work (in coloured silks on dark net of the very opensquare mesh of the period), which is most effective, and in which thereis no pretence of disguising the stepped outline; and in the very earlydays of Christian art in Egypt and Byzantium, linen was darned in littlesquare tufts of wool upstanding on its surface, which look so much likethe tesseræ of mosaic that it seems as if they must have been worked indeliberate imitation of it. 

Again, in the 15th century satin-stitch was worked on fine linen withstrict regard to the lines of its web; and the Persians, ancient andmodern, embroider white silk upon linen, also in satin-stitch, preserving piously the rectangular and diagonal lines given by thematerial. They have their reward in producing most characteristicneedlework. The diapered ground in Illustration 9 (page 20) issatin-stitch upon coarse linen. 

The filling-in patterns used to such delicate and dainty purpose in themarvellous work on fine cambric (Illustration 73) which competes ineffect with lace, though it is strictly embroidery, all follow in theirdesign the lines of the fabric, and are worked thread by threadaccording to its woof: they afford again instances of perfect adaptationof stitch to material and of design to stitch. 

Satin and other stitches were worked by the old Italians (Illustration3) on square-meshed canvas, frankly on the square lines given by it, forthe filling in of ornamental details, though the outline might be muchless formal. That is to say, the surface of freely-drawn leaves, &c. , instead of being worked solid, was diapered over with more or less openpattern work constructed on the lines of the weaving. 

A cunning use of the square mesh of canvas has sometimes been made toguide the worker upon other fabrics, such as velvet. This was firstfaced with net: the design was then worked, over that, on to and intothe velvet, and the threads of the canvas were then drawn out. That is adevice which may serve on occasion. The design may even be traced uponthe net. 

CREWEL-STITCH. 

For work in the hand, CREWEL-STITCH is perhaps, on the whole, theeasiest and most useful of stitches; whence it comes that peoplesometimes vaguely call all embroidery crewel work; though, as a matterof fact, the stitch properly so called was never very commonly employed, even when the work was done in "crewel, " the double thread of twistedwool from which it takes its name. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF A ON CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 11. CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 12. CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK A. ]

CREWEL-STITCH proper is shown at A on the sampler opposite, where it isused for line work. It is worked as follows:--Having made a start in theusual way, keep your thread downwards under your left thumb and belowyour needle--that is, to the right; then take up with the needle, say1/8th of an inch of the stuff, and bring it out through the hole made instarting the stitch, taking care not to pierce the thread. This givesthe first half stitch. If you proceed in the same way your next stitchwill be full length. The test of good workmanship is that at the back itshould look like back-stitch (Illustration 12), described on page 30. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF B ON CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK B. ]

OUTLINE-STITCH (B on sampler) differs from crewel-stitch only in thatthe thread is always kept upwards above the needle, that is to the left. In so doing the thread is apt to untwist itself, and wants constantlyre-twisting. The stitch is useful for single lines and for outliningsolid work. The muddled effect of much crewel work is due to theconfusion of this stitch with crewel-stitch proper. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK C. ]

THICK CREWEL-STITCH (C on sampler) is only a little wider than ordinarycrewel-stitch, but gives a heavier line, in higher relief. In effect itresembles rope-stitch, but it is more simply worked. You begin as inordinary crewel-stitch, but after the first half-stitch you take up1/8th of an inch of the material in advance of the last stitch, andbring out your needle at the point where the first half-stitch began. You proceed, always putting your needle in 1/8th of an inch in front of, and bringing it out 1/8th of an inch behind, the last stitch, so as tohave always 1/4th of an inch of the stuff on your needle. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF G ON CREWEL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

THICK OUTLINE-STITCH (D on sampler) is like thick crewel-stitch with theexception that, as in ordinary outline-stitch (B), you keep your threadalways above the needle to the left. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

In BACK-STITCH (E), instead of first bringing the needle out at thepoint where the embroidery is to begin, you bring it out 1/8th of aninch in advance of it. Then, putting your needle back, you take up this1/8th together with another 1/8th in advance. For the next stitch youput your needle into the hole made by the last stitch, and so on, takingcare not to split the last thread in so doing. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

To work the SPOTS (F) on sampler--having made a back-stitch, bring yourneedle out through the same hole as before, and make another back-stitchabove it, so that you have, in what appears to be one stitch, twothicknesses of thread; then bring your needle out some distance inadvance of the last stitch, and proceed as before. The distance betweenthe stitches is determined by the effect you desire to produce. Thethread should not be drawn too tight. 

[Illustration: 13. CREWEL WORK AND CREWEL-STITCH. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

You begin STEM-STITCH (G) with the usual half-stitch. Then, holding thethread downwards, instead of proceeding as in crewel-stitch (A) youslant your needle so as to bring it out a thread or two higher up thanthe half-stitch, but precisely above it. You next put the needle in1/8th of an inch in advance of the last stitch, and, as before, bring itout again in a slanting direction a thread or two higher. At the back ofthe work (Illustration 12) the stitches lie in a slanting direction. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK H. ]

To work wider STEM-STITCH (H). After the first two stitches, bring yourneedle out precisely above and in a line with them, and put it in again1/8th of an inch in advance of the last stitch, producing a longerstroke, which gives the measure of those following. The slantingstitches at the back (Illustration 12) are only two-thirds of the lengthof those on the face. 

CREWEL AND OUTLINE STITCHES worked (J) side by side give somewhat theeffect of a braid. The importance of not confusing them, alreadyreferred to, is here apparent. 

CREWEL-STITCH is worked SOLID in the heart-shape in the centre of thesampler. On the left side the rows of stitching follow the outline ofthe heart; on the right they are more upright, merely conforming alittle to the shape to be filled. This is the better method. 

[Illustration: 14. CREWEL WORK IN VARIOUS STITCHES. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK SOLID CREWEL-STITCH. ]

The way to work solid crewel-stitch will be best explained by aninstance. Suppose a leaf to be worked. You begin by outlining it; if itis a wide leaf, you further work a centre line where the main rib wouldbe, and then work row within row of stitches until the space is filled. If on arriving at the point of your leaf, instead of going round theedge, you work back by the side of the first row of stitching, thereresults a streakiness of texture, apparent in the stem on Illustration13. What you get is, in effect, a combination of crewel and outlinestitches, as at J, which in the other case only occurs in the centre ofthe shape where the files of stitches meet. 

To represent shading in crewel-stitch, to which it is admirably suited(A, Illustration 41), it is well to work from the darkest shadows to thehighest lights. And it is expedient to map out on the stuff the outlineof the space to be covered by each shade of thread. There is nodifficulty then in working round that shape, as above explained. 

In solid crewel the stitches should quite cover the ground withoutpressing too closely one against the other. 

[Illustration: 15. CREWEL-STITCH IN TWISTED SILK. ]

It does not seem that Englishwomen of the 17th century were ever veryfaithful to the stitch we know by the name of crewel. Old examples ofwork done entirely in crewel-stitch, as distinguished from what iscalled crewel work, are seldom if ever to be met with. The stitch occursin most of the old English embroidery in wool; but it is astonishing, when one comes to examine the quilts and curtains of a couple of hundredyears or so ago, how very little of the woolwork on them is increwel-stitch. The detail on Illustration 13 was chosen because itcontained more of it than any other equal portion of a handsome andtypical English hanging; but it is only in the main stem, and in some ofthe outlines, that the stitch is used. And that appears to have been theprevailing practice--to use crewel-stitch for stems and outlines, andfor little else but the very simplest forms. The filling in of theleafage, the diapering within the leaf shapes, and the smaller and moreelaborate details generally were done in long-and-short-stitch, orwhatever came handiest. In fact, the thing to be represented, fruit, berry, flower, or what not, seems to have suggested the stitch, which itmust be confessed was sometimes only a sort of scramble to get aneffect. 

Of course the artist always chooses her stitch, and she is free to alterit as occasion may demand; but a good workwoman (and the embroidress isa needlewoman first and an artist afterwards, perhaps) adopts in everycase a method, and departs from it only for very good reason. It looksas if our ancestors had set to work without system or guiding principleat all. No doubt they got a bold and striking effect in theirbed-hangings and the like; but there is in their work a lack of thatconscious aim which goes to make art. Theirs is art of the ratherartless sort which is just now so popular. Happily it was kept in theway it should go by a strict adherence to traditional pattern, which forthe time being seems to have gone completely out of fashion. 

Quite in the traditional manner is Illustration 14. One would fancy atfirst sight that the work was almost entirely in crewel-stitch. As amatter of fact, there is little which answers to the name, as anexamination of the back of the work shows plainly enough. What thestitches are it is not easy to say. The mystery of many a stitch is tobe unravelled only by literally picking out the threads, which one isnot always at liberty to do, although, in the ardour of research, a keenembroidress will do it--not without remorse in the case of beautifulwork, but relentlessly all the same. 

The only piece of embroidery entirely in crewel-stitch which I couldfind for illustration (15) is worked, as it happens, in silk; nor wasthe worker aware that in so working she was doing anything out of thecommon. Another instance of crewel-stitch is given in the divided skirt, let us call it, of the personage in Illustration 72. 

Beautiful back-stitching occurs in the Italian work on Illustration 89, and the stitch is used for sewing down the _appliqué_ in Illustration94. 

CHAIN-STITCH. 

[Illustration: 16. CHAIN-STITCH AND KNOTS. ]

CHAIN and TAMBOUR STITCH are in effect practically the same, and presentthe same rather granular surface. The difference between them is thatchain-stitch is done in the hand with an ordinary needle, andtambour-stitch in a frame with a hook sharper at the turning point thanan ordinary crochet hook. One takes it rather for granted that workwhich was presumably done in the hand (a large quilt, for example) ischain-stitch, and that what seems to have been done in a frame istambour work, though it is possible, but not advisable of course, towork chain-stitch in a frame. 

Chain-stitch is not to be confounded with split-stitch (see page 105), which somewhat resembles it. 

[Illustration: 17. CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 18. CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK A. ]

To work chain-stitch (A on the sampler, Illustration 17) bring theneedle out, hold the thread down with the left thumb, put the needlein again at the hole through which you brought it out, take up 1/4 of aninch of stuff, and draw the thread through: that gives you the firstlink of the chain. The back of the work (18) looks like back-stitch. Infact, in the quilted coverlet, Illustration 69 (as in much similar workof the period), the outline pattern, which you might take forback-stitching, proves to have been worked from the back inchain-stitch. The same thing occurs in the case of the Persian quilt inIllustration 70. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B. ]

A playful variation upon chain-stitch (B on the sampler, Illustration17) is effected by the use of two threads of different colour. Take inyour needle a dark and a light thread, say the dark one to the left, andbring them out at the point at which your work begins. Hold the darkthread under your thumb, and, keeping the light one to the right, wellout of the way, draw both threads through; this makes a dark link; thelight thread disappears, and comes out again to the left of the darkone, ready to be held under the thumb while you make a light link. This"magic stitch, " as it has been called, is no new invention. It is to befound in Persian, Indian, and Italian Renaissance work. An instance ofit occurs in Illustration 64. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK C. ]

A variety of chain-stitch (C on the sampler, Illustration 17) used oftenin church work, more solid in appearance, the links not being so open, is rather differently done. Begin a little in advance of the startingpoint of your work, hold the thread under your thumb, put the needle inagain at the starting point slightly to the left, bring your needle outabout 1/8th of an inch below where it first went in but precisely on thesame line, and you have the first link of your chain. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

To work what is known as cable-chain (D on the sampler, Illustration 17)keep your thread to the right, put in your needle, pointing downwards, alittle below the starting point, and bring it out about 1/4th of an inchbelow where you put it in; then put it through the little stitch justformed, from right to left, hold your thread towards the left under yourthumb, put your needle through the stitch now in process of making fromright to left, draw up the thread, and the first two links of your chainare made. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

A zigzag chain, of a rather fancy description, goes by the name ofVandyke chain (E on the sampler, Illustration 17). To make it, bringyour needle out at a point which is to be the left edge of your work, and make a slanting chain-stitch from left to right; then, putting yourneedle into that, make another slanting stitch, this time from right toleft--and so to and fro to the end. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

The braid-stitch shown at F on the sampler (Illustration 17) is workedas follows, horizontally from right to left. Bring your needle out at apoint which is to be the lower edge of your work, throw your threadround to the left, and, keeping it all the time loosely under yourthumb, put your needle under the thread and twist it once round to theright. Then, at the upper edge of your work, put in the needle and slidethe thread towards the right, bring the needle out exactly below whereyou put it in, carry your thread under the needle towards the left, drawthe thread tight, and your first stitch is done. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF F ON CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

A yet more fanciful variety of braid-stitch (G on the sampler, Illustration 17) is worked vertically, downwards. Having, as before, putyour needle under the thread and twisted it once round, put it in at apoint which is to be the left edge of your work, and, instead ofbringing it out immediately below that point, slant it to the right, bringing it out on that edge of the work, and finish your stitch as inthe case of F. 

These braid-stitches look best worked in stout thread of close texture. 

In covering a surface with chain-stitch (needlework or tambour) theusual plan is to follow the contour of the design, working chain withinchain until the leaf or whatever it may be is filled in. This stitch israrely worked in lines across the forms, but it has been effectivelyused in that way, following always the lines of the warp and weft of thestuff. Even in that case the successive lines of stitching should be allin one direction--not running backwards and forwards--or it will resultin a sort of pattern of braided lines. The reason for the more usualpractice of following the outline of the design is obvious. The stitchlends itself to sweeping, even to perfectly spiral, lines--such as occurin Greek wave patterns: it was, in fact, made use of in that way by theGreeks some four or five centuries B. C. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF G ON CHAIN-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 19. CHAIN AND SURFACE STITCHES. ]

We owe the tambour frame, they say, to China; but it has been largelyused, and abused indeed, in England. Tambour work, when once you havethe trick of it, is very quickly done--in about one-sixth of the time itwould take to do it with the needle. It has the further advantage thatit serves equally well for embroidery on a light or on a heavy stuff, and that it is most lasting. The misfortune is that the sewing machinehas learnt to do something at once so like it and so mechanically even, as to discredit genuine hand-work, whether tambour work or chain-stitch. For all that, neither is to be despised. If they have often a mechanicalappearance that is not all the fault of the stitch: the worker is toblame. Indian embroiderers depart sometimes so far from mechanicalprecision as to shock the admirers of monotonously even work. Artisticuse of chain stitch is made in many of our illustrations: for outlinesin Illustrations 24 and 72; for surface covering in Mr. Crane's lion, Illustration 74; to represent landscape in Illustration 78, whereeverything except the faces of the little men is in chain-stitch; andagain for figure work in Illustration 81. In Illustration 19 it occursin association with a curious surface stitch; in Illustration 64 it isused to outline and otherwise supplement inlay. The old Italians did notdisdain to use it. In fact, wherever artists have employed it, they showthat there is nothing inherently inartistic about the stitch. 

HERRING-BONE STITCH. 

HERRING-BONE is the name by which it is customary to distinguish avariety of stitches somewhat resembling the spine of a fish such as theherring. It would be simpler to describe them as "fish-bone;" but thatterm has been appropriated to describe a particular variety of it. Onewould have thought it more convenient to use fish for the generic term, and a particular fish for the specific. However, it saves confusion touse names as far as possible in their accepted sense. 

It will be seen from the sampler, Illustration 20, that this stitch maybe worked open or tolerably close; but in the latter case it losessomething of its distinctive character. Fine lines may be worked in it, but it appears most suited to the working of broadish bands and othermore or less even-sided or, it may be, tapering forms, more feathery ineffect than fish-bone-like, such as are shown at E on sampler. 

Ordinary herring-bone is such a familiar stitch that the necessity ofdescribing it is rather a matter of literary consistency than ofpractical importance. 

The two simpler forms of herring-bone (it is always worked from left toright, and begun with a half-stitch) marked A and C on the sampler arestrikingly different in appearance, and are worked in different ways--aswill be seen at once by reference to the back of the sampler(Illustration 21), where the stitches take in the one case a horizontaland in the other a vertical direction. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A. ]

To work A, bring your needle out about the centre of the line to beworked; put it into the lower edge of the line about 1/8th of an inchfurther on; take up this much of the stuff, and, keeping the thread tothe right, above the needle, draw it through. Then, with the threadbelow it, to the right, put your needle into the upper edge of the line1/4th of an inch further on, and, turning it backwards, take up again1/8th of an inch of stuff, bringing it out immediately above where itwent in on the lower edge. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B. ]

What is called "Indian Herring-bone" (B) is merely stitch A worked inlonger and more slanting stitches, so that there is room between themfor a second row in another colour, the two colours being, of course, properly interlaced. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK C. ]

To work C, bring your needle out as for A, and, putting it in at theupper edge of the line to be worked and pointing it downwards, whilstyour thread lies to the right, take up ever so small a piece of thestuff. Then, slightly in advance of the last stitch, the thread still tothe right, your needle now pointing upwards, take another similarstitch from the lower edge. 

[Illustration: 20. HERRING-BONE SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 21. HERRING-BONE SAMPLER (BACK). ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

The variety at D is merely a combination of A and C, as may be seen byreference to the back of the sampler (opposite); though the shorthorizontal stitches there seen meet, instead of being wide apart as inthe case of A. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF E ON HERRING-BONE SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

What is known as "fish-bone" is illustrated in the three feathery shapeson the sampler (E), two of which are worked rather open. It ischaracteristic of this stitch that it has a sort of spine up the centrewhere the threads cross. Suppose the stitch to be worked horizontally. Bring your needle out on the under edge of the spine about 1/4th of aninch from the starting point of the work, and put it in on the upperedge of the work at the starting point, bringing it out immediatelybelow that on the lower edge of the work. Put it in again on the upperedge of the spine, rather in advance of where it came out on the loweredge of it before, and bring it out on the lower edge of this spineimmediately below where it entered. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF F ON HERRING-BONE SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

In close herring-bone (F on the sampler, Illustration 20) you havealways a long stitch from left to right, crossed by a shorter stitchwhich goes from right to left. Having made a half stitch, bring theneedle out at the beginning of the line to be worked, at the lower edge, and put it in 1/8th of an inch from the beginning of the upper edge. Bring it out again at the beginning of this edge and put it in at thelower edge 1/4th of an inch from the beginning, bringing it out on thesame edge 1/8th of an inch from the beginning. Put the needle in againon the upper edge 1/8th of an inch in front of the last stitch on thatedge, and bring it out again, without splitting the thread, on the sameedge as the hole where the last stitch went in. 

If you wish to cover a surface with herring-bone-stitch, you work it, ofcourse, close, so that each successive stitch touches its foregoer atthe point where the needle enters the stuff (F on the sampler, Illustration 20). It will be seen that at the back (21) this looks likea double row of back-stitching. Worked straight across a wide leaf, asin the lower half of sampler, it is naturally very loose. A bettermethod of working is shown in the side leaves, which are worked in twohalves, beginning at the base of a leaf on one side and working down toit on the other. There is here just the suggestion of a mid-rib betweenthe two rows. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF G ON HERRING-BONE SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

The stitch at G on sampler, having the effect of higher relief thanordinary close herring-bone (F), is sometimes misleadingly described astapestry stitch. It is worked, as the back of the sampler (21) clearlyshows, in quite a different way. You get there parallel rows of doublestitches. Having made a half-stitch entering the material at the upperedge of the work, bring the needle out on the lower edge of itimmediately opposite. Then, going back, put it in at the beginning ofthe upper edge, and bring it out at the beginning of the lower one. Thence take a long slanting stitch upwards from left to right, bring theneedle out on the lower edge immediately opposite, cross it by a rathershorter stitch from right to left, entering the stuff at the point wherethe first half-stitch ended, bring this out on the lower edge, opposite, and the stitch is done. 

The artistic use of herring-bone-stitch is shown in the leaves of thetulip (84), and a closer variety of it in the pink, or whatever theflower may be, in the hand of the little figure on Illustration 72. 

BUTTONHOLE-STITCH. 

BUTTONHOLE is more useful in ornament than one might expect a stitchwith such a very utilitarian name to be. It is, as its common use wouldlead one to suppose, pre-eminently a one-edged stitch, a stitch withwhich to mark emphatically the outside edge of a form. There is, however, a two-edged variety known as ladder-stitch, shown in the twohorn shapes on the sampler, Illustration 22. 

By the use of two rows back to back, leaf forms may be fairly expressed. In the leaves on the sampler, the edge of the stitch is used toemphasise the mid rib, leaving a serrated edge to the leaves. Thecharacter of the stitch would have been better preserved by working theother way about, and marking the edge of the leaves by a clear-cut line, as in the case of the solid leaves in Illustration 73. 

The stitch may be used for covering a ground or other broad surface, asin the pot shape (J) on the sampler, where the diaper pattern producedby its means explains itself the better for being worked in two shadesof colour. 

The simpler forms of the stitch are the more useful. Worked in the formof a wheel, as in the rosettes at the side of the vase shape (A), theornamental use of the stitch is obvious. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A. ]

One need hardly describe BUTTONHOLE STITCH. The simple form of it (A) isworked by (when you have brought your needle out) keeping the threadunder your thumb to the right, whilst you put the needle in again at ahigher point slightly to the right, and bring it out immediately below, close to where it came out before. This and other one-edged stitches ofthe kind are sometimes called "blanket-stitch. "

The only difference between versions such as B and C on the sampler, andsimple buttonhole, is that the stitches vary in length according to theworker's fancy. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

The CROSSED BUTTONHOLE STITCH at E is worked by first making a stitchsloping to the right, and then a smaller buttonhole-stitch across thisfrom the left. 

The border marked D in sampler consists merely of two rows of slantingbuttonhole-stitch worked one into the other. Needlewomen have wilfulways of making what should be upright stitches slant awkwardly in allmanner of ways, with the result that they look as if they had beenpulled out of the straight. 

[Illustration: 22. BUTTONHOLE SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 23. BUTTONHOLE SAMPLER (BACK). ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

The border at F, known as "TAILOR'S BUTTONHOLE, " is worked with the firmedge from you, instead of towards you, as you work ordinarybuttonhole. Bringing the thread out at the upper edge of the work to theleft, and letting it lie on that side, you put your needle in againstill on the same edge, and bring it out, immediately below, on thelower one. You then, before drawing the thread quite through, put yourneedle into the loop from behind, and tighten it upwards. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF H ON BUTTONHOLE SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

In order to make your ladder-stitch (G) square at the end, you begin bymaking a bar of the width the stitch is to be. Then, holding the threadunder your thumb to the right, you put the needle in at the top of thebar and, slanting it towards the right, bring it out on a level with theother end of the bar somewhat to the right. This makes a triangle. Withthe point of your needle, pull the slanting thread out at the top, toform a square; insert the needle; slant it again to the right; draw itout as before, and you have your second triangle. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK H. ]

The difference between the working of the lattice-like band at H, andladder-stitch G, is that, having completed your first triangle, youmake, by buttonholing a stitch, a second triangle pointing the otherway, which completes a rectangular shape. 

[Illustration: 24. BUTTONHOLE, CHAIN, AND KNOT STITCHES. ]

In the solid work shown at J, you make five buttonhole-stitches, gathering them to a point at the base, then another five, and so on. Repeat the process, this time point upwards, and you have the first bandof the pot shape. 

Characteristic and most beautiful use is made of buttonhole stitch inthe piece of Indian work in Illustration 24, where it is outlined withchain stitch, which goes most perfectly with it. 

Cut work, such as that on Illustration 65, is strengthened by outliningit in buttonhole-stitch. 

Ladder-stitch occurs in the cusped shapes framing certain flowers inIllustration 72, embroidered all in blue silk on linen. It is notinfrequent in Oriental work, and, in fact, goes sometimes by the name ofCretan-stitch on that account. 

FEATHER AND ORIENTAL STITCHES. 

FEATHER-STITCH is simply buttonholing in a slanting direction, first tothe right side and then to the left, keeping the needle strokes in thecentre closer together or farther apart according to the effect to beproduced. 

It owes its name, of course, to the more or less feathery effectresulting from its rather open character. Like buttonhole, it may beworked solid, as in the leaf and petal forms on the sampler, Illustration 25, but it is better suited to cover narrow than broadsurfaces. The jagged outline which it gives makes it useful inembroidering plumage, but it is not to be confounded with what is called"plumage-stitch, " which is not feather-stitch at all, but a version ofsatin-stitch. 

The feathery stem (A) on the sampler is simply a buttonholing workedalternately from right to left and left to right. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B. ]

The border line at B requires rather more explanation. Presume it to beworked vertically. Bring your needle out at the left edge of the band;put it in at the right edge immediately opposite, keeping your threadunder the needle to the right; bring it out again still on the rightedge a little lower down, and then, keeping your thread to the left, putthe needle in on the left edge, opposite to where you last brought itout, and bring it out again on the same edge a little lower down. 

[Illustration: 25. FEATHER-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 26. FEATHER-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

The border at C is merely an elaboration of the above, with threeslanting stitches on each edge instead of a single one in the directionof the band. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF G G ON FEATHER-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

Bands D, E, F, G, are variations of ordinary feather-stitch, requiringno further explanation than the back view of the work (26) affords. Onthe face of the sampler it will be noticed that lines have been drawnfor the guidance of the worker. These are always four in number, indicating at once, that the stitch is made with four strokes of theneedle, and the points at which it is put in and out of the stuff. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK G G. ]

In working G G, suppose four guiding lines to have been drawn asabove--numbered, 1, 2, 3, 4, from left to right. Bring your needle outat the top of line 1. Make a chain-stitch slanting downwards from line 1to line 2. Put your needle into line 3 about 1/8th of an inch lowerdown, and, slanting it upwards, bring it out on line 4 level with thepoint where you last brought it out. Make a chain-stitch slantingdownwards this time from right to left, and bring your needle out online 3. Lastly, put your needle into line 2, 1/8th of an inch below thelast stitch, and, slanting it upwards, bring it out on line 1. 

Feather-stitch is not adapted to covering broad surfaces solidly, butmay be used for narrow ones. 

ORIENTAL-STITCH is the name given to a close kind of feather-stitch muchused in Eastern work. The difference at once apparent to the eye betweenthe two is that, whereas for the mid-rib of a band or leaf offeather-stitching (25) you have cross lines, in Oriental-stitch (27) youhave a straight line--longer or shorter as the case may be. 

Oriental-stitch, sometimes called "Antique-stitch, " is a stitch in threestrokes, just as feather-stitch is a stitch in four. It is usuallyworked horizontally, though shown upright on the sampler, Illustration27. Like feather-stitch (see diagram), it is worked on four guidinglines, faintly visible on the sampler. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A, B, C. ]

Stitches A, B, and C are worked in precisely the same way. Bring yourneedle out at the top of line 1. Keep the thread under your thumb to theright and put your needle in at the top of line 4, bringing it out intoline 3 on the same level. Then put it in again at line 2, just on theother side of the thread, and bring it out on line 1 ready to begin thenext stitch. 

[Illustration: 27. ORIENTAL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 28. ORIENTAL-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

It will be seen that the length of the central part (or mid-rib, as itwas called above) makes the whole difference between the three varietiesof stitch. In A the three parts are equal: in B the mid-rib is narrow:in C it is broad, as is most plainly seen on the back of the sampler(28). The difference is only a difference of proportion. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF A, B, C ON ORIENTAL-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

The sloping stitch at D is worked in the same way as A, B, C, exceptthat instead of straight strokes with the needle you make slanting ones. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

Stitch E differs from D in that the side strokes slant both in the samedirection. It is worked from right to left instead of from left toright. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

Stitch F is a combination of buttonhole and Oriental stitches. Betweentwo rows of buttonholing (dark on sampler) a single row ofOriental-stitch is worked. 

The stitch employed for the central stalk, G, has really no business onthis sampler, except that it has something of the appearance of acontinuous Oriental-stitch. 

Oriental-stitch is one of the stitches used in Illustration 72. 

ROPE AND KNOT STITCHES. 

A single sampler is devoted to ROPE and KNOTTED STITCHES, more nearlyakin than they look, for rope-stitch is all but knotted as it is worked. 

ROPE-STITCH is so called because of its appearance. It takes a largeamount of silk or wool to work it, but the effect is correspondinglyrich. It is worked from right to left, and is easier to work in curvedlines than in straight. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A, B. ]

Lines A on the sampler, Illustration 29, represent the ordinaryappearance of the stitch; its construction is more apparent in thecentral stalk B, which is a less usual form of the same stitch, workedwider apart. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF A, B, ON ROPE-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

Having brought out your needle at the right end of the work, hold partof the thread towards the left, under the thumb, the rest of it fallingto the right; put your needle in above where it came out, slant ittowards you, and bring it out again a little in advance of where it cameout before, and just below the thread held under your thumb. Draw thethread through, and there results a stitch which looks rather like adistorted chain stitch (B). The next step is to make another similarstitch so close to the foregoing one that it overlaps it partly. It isthis overlapping which gives the stitch the raised and rope-likeappearance seen at A. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF C ON ROPE-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK C. ]

A knotted line (C in the sampler, Illustration 29) is produced by whatis known as "GERMAN KNOT-STITCH, " effective only in thick soft silk orwool. Begin as in rope stitch, keeping your thread in the same position. Then put your needle into the stuff just above the thread stretchedunder your thumb, and bring it out just below and in a line with whereit went in; lastly, keep the needle above the loose end of the thread, draw it through, tightening the thread upwards, and you have the firstof your knots: the rest follow at intervals determined by your wants. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

The more open stitch at D is practically the same thing, except thatin crossing the running thread you take up more of the stuff on eachside of it. 

[Illustration: 29. ROPE-STITCH AND KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 30. ROPE-STITCH AND KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

What is known by the name of "OLD ENGLISH KNOT-STITCH" (E) is a muchmore complicated stitch. Keeping your thread well out of the way to theright, put your needle in to the left, and take up vertically a piece ofthe stuff the width of the line to be worked at its widest, and draw thethread through. Then, keeping it under the thumb to the left, put yourneedle, eye first, downwards, through the slanting stitch just made;draw the thread not too tight, and, keeping it as before under thethumb, put your needle, eye first, this time through the upper half onlyof the slanting stitch, making a kind of buttonhole-stitch round thelast, and draw out your thread. 

These knotted rope stitches, call them what you will, are rather raggedand fussy--not much more than fancy stitches--of no great importance. KNOTS used separately are of much more artistic account. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

BULLION or ROLL-STITCH is shown in its simplest form in the petals ofthe flowers F on the sampler, Illustration 29. To work one such petal, begin by attaching the thread very firmly; bring your needle out at thebase of the petal, put it in at the tip, and bring it out once more atthe base, only drawing it partly through. With your right hand wind thethread, say seven times, round the projecting point of the needle fromleft to right. Then, holding the coils under your left thumb, yourthread to the right, draw your needle and thread through; and, droppingthe needle, and catching the thread round your little finger, take holdof the thread with your thumb and first finger and draw the coiledstitch to the right, tightening it gently until quite firm. Lastly, putthe needle through at the tip of the petal, and the stitch is completeand ready to be fastened off. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF F ON KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

The leaves of these flowers consist simply of two bullion stitches. Thebullion knots at the side of the central stalk are curled by taking upin the first instance only the smallest piece of the stuff. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

To work FRENCH KNOTS (G), having brought out your needle at the pointwhere the knot is to be, hold the thread under your thumb, and, lettingit lie to the right, put your needle under the stretched part of it. Turn the needle so as to twist the thread once round it. That done, putthe needle in again about where it came out, draw it through from theback, and bring it out where the next knot is to be. 

For large knots use two or more threads of silk, and do not twist themmore than once. With a single thread you may twist twice, but the resultof twisting three or four times is never happy. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF G ON KNOT-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

The use of knots is shown to perfection in Illustration 24. Worked therein white silk floss upon a dark purple ground, they are quite pearly inappearance, whether in rows between the border lines, or scattered overthe ground. They are most useful in holding the design together, givingit mass, and go admirably with chain-stitching, to which, when closetogether, they have at first sight some likeness. A single line of knotsmay almost be mistaken for chain-stitch; but of themselves they do notmake a good outline, lacking firmness. A happier use of them is tofringe an outline, as for example in the peacock's tail on page 38; butthis kind of thing must be used with reticence, or it results in arather rococo effect. Good use is sometimes made of knots to pearl theinner edge of a pattern worked in outline, or to pattern the ornament(instead of the ground) all over. Differencing of this kind may be anafterthought--and a happy one--affording as it does a ready means ofqualifying the colour or texture of ground, or pattern, or part ofeither, which may not have worked out quite to the embroiderer's liking. 

The obvious fitness of knots to represent the stamens of flowers isexemplified in Illustration 93. Worked close together, they representadmirably the eyes of composite flowers, as on the sampler; they give, again, valuable variety of texture to the crest of the stork inIllustration 85. 

The effect of knotting in the mass is shown in Illustration 31, embroidered entirely in knots, contradicting, it might seem, what wassaid above about its unfitness for outline work. The lines, even thevoided ones, are here as sharp as could be; but then, it is not many ofus who work, knot by knot, with the marvellous precision of a Chinaman. His knotted texture is not, however, always what it seems. He has a wayof producing a knotted line by first knotting his thread (it may be donewith a netting needle), and then stitching it down on to the surface ofthe material, which gives a pearled or beaded line not readilydistinguishable from knot stitch. 

[Illustration: 31. A TOUR DE FORCE IN KNOTS. ]

The Japanese embroiderer, instead of knotting his own thread, employedvery often a crinkled braid. This is shown in the cloud work inIllustration 85. The only true knotting there is in the top-knot of thebird. 

[Illustration: 32. INTERLACING-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 33. INTERLACING-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

INTERLACINGS, SURFACE STITCHES, AND DIAPERS. 

The samplers so far discussed bring us, with the exception of Darning, Satin-stitch, and some stitches presently to be mentioned, practicallyto the end of the stitches, deserving to be so called, generally in use. 

By combining two or more stitches endless complications may be made; andthere may be occasions when, for one purpose or another, it may benecessary, as well as amusing, to invent them. In this way stitches arealso sometimes worked upon stitches, as shown on the sampler, Illustration 32. You will see, on referring to the back of it (33), thatonly the white silk is worked into the stuff: the dark is surface workonly. There is no end to such possible INTERLACINGS. Those on thesampler do not need much explanation; but it may be as well to say thatA starts with crewel-stitching; B and C with back-stitching; D withchain-stitching; E with darning or running; F, G, and H with varietiesof herring-bone-stitch; J with Oriental-stitch; and K withfeather-stitch. The interlacing on the surface of these is shown indarker silk. C and G undergo a second course of interlacing. 

The danger of splitting the first stitches in working the interlacingones, is avoided by passing the needle eye-first through them. 

Other surface work, sometimes called LACE-STITCH, is illustrated in thesampler, Illustration 34. There is really no limit to patterns of thiskind. Some are better worked in a frame, but that is very much a matterof personal practice. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF F ON INTERLACING-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK H, 34. ]

In the Surface Darning at H (34) long threads are first carried fromedge to edge of the square, there only piercing the stuff, and thendarned across by other stitches, again only piercing it at the edges. 

An oblique version of this is given at C (34). 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B, 34. ]

The Lace Buttonholing at B (34) is worked as follows:--Buttonhole threestitches into the stuff from left to right, not quite close together, and further on three more; then, working from right to left, make threebuttonhole stitches into the thread connecting the stitch groups; but donot stitch into the stuff except at the ends of the rows. The last rowmust, of course, be worked into the stuff again. 

[Illustration: 34. SURFACE-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK F, 34. ]

Net Passing, as at F (34), is not very differently worked from A or B. It is much more open, and the first row of horizontal stitches iscrossed by two opposite rows of oblique stitches, which are made tointerlace. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK G, 34. ]

The square at G is worked by first making rows of short upright stitchesworked into the stuff, and then threading loose stitches through them. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK D, 34. ]

The square at D is worked on the open lattice shown; the solid parts areproduced by interlacing stitches from side to side, starting at theangle. 

In the square at E (Japanese Darning) horizontal lines are first darned, and then zigzag lines are worked between them, much as in G; but, asthey penetrate the material, this is scarcely a surface stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A, 34. ]

The horizontal lines at top and bottom of the square at A areback-stitching, the intermediate ones simply long threads carried fromone side to the other; they are laced together by lines looped roundthem. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK L, 34. ]

The band at L is begun by making horizontal bar stitches. A row ofcrewel-stitch and one of outline-stitch, worked on to the bars, and notinto the stuff, makes the central chain. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK K, 34. ]

The band at K is merely surface buttonholing over a series of slantingstitches. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK J, 34. ]

The band at J is buttonhole stitching wide apart, the bars filled inwith surface crewel-stitch. 

[Illustration: 35. LACE OR SURFACE STITCH. ]

Most delicate surface stitching occurs in Illustration 35, the finenet being worked only from edge to edge of the spaces it fills, and notelsewhere entering the stuff; which accounts for most of it being wornaway. The flower or scroll-work is _bonâ fide_ embroidery, workedthrough the stuff. The delicate network of fine stitching, which oncecovered the whole of the background, is for the most part neither morenor less than a floating gossamer of lacework. One cannot deny that thatis embroidery, though it has to be said that _lace-stitches_ areemployed in it. 

Stern embroiderers would like to deny it. Of course it is frivolous, andin a sense flimsy, but it is also delicate and dainty to a degree. It issuited only to dress, and that of the most exquisite kind. A Frenchmarquise of the Regency might have worn it, and possibly did wear it, with entire propriety--if the word is not out of keeping with theperiod. 

The frailty of this kind of thing is too obvious to need mention, andthat, of course, is a strong argument against it. 

All attempt to give separate names to diapers of this kind, whetherworked upon the surface or into the stuff, is futile. They ought noteven to be called stitches, being, in fact, neither more nor less thanstitch patterns, to which there is no possible limit, unless it be thelimit of human invention. Every ingenious workwoman will find outpatterns of her own more or less. They are very useful for filling insurfaces (pattern or background) which it may be inexpedient to workmore solidly. 

The greater part of such patterns are geometric (Illustrations 35 and73), following, that is to say, the mesh of the material, and making nosecret of it. On Illustration 3 you see very plainly how the rectangulardiaperings are built up geometrically on the square lines of the mesh, as was practically inevitable working on such a ground. The relation ofstitch to stuff is here obvious. 

The choice of stitch patterns of this kind is invariably left to theneedlewoman. The utmost a designer need do is to indicate on his drawingthat a "full, " "open, " or "intermediate" diaper is to be used. And thealternation of lighter and heavier diapers should be planned, and notleft altogether to impulse, though the pattern may be. Moreover, thereis room for the exercise of considerable taste in the choice of simpleror more elaborate patterns, freer or more geometric. Many a time theshape of the space to be filled, as well as its extent, will suggest theappropriate ornament. The diaper design is not, of course, drawn on thestuff, but points of guidance may be indicated through a kind of finestencil plate. 

The patterns used for background diapering need not, as a rule, beintrinsically so interesting as those which diaper the design itself, nor are they usually so full. They take more often the form of spot orsprig patterns, not continuous, in which the geometric construction isnot so obvious, nor even necessary. In either case the prime object ofthe stitching is not so much to make ornamental patterns as to give atint to the stuff without entirely hiding it with work; and the workerchooses a lighter or heavier diaper according to the tint required. Ifthe work is all in white it is texture, instead of tint, that is aimedat. 

For a background, simple darning more or less open, in stitches not tooregular, is often the best solution of the difficulty. The effect of theground grinning through is delightful. 

SATIN-STITCH AND ITS OFFSHOOTS. 

SATIN-STITCH is _par excellence_ the stitch for fine silkwork. I do notknow if the name of "satin-stitch" comes from its being so largelyemployed upon satin, or from the effect of the work itself, which wouldcertainly justify the title, so smooth and satin-like is its surface. Given a material of which the texture is quite smooth and even, showingno mesh, satin-stitch seems the most natural and obvious way of workingupon it. In it the embroidress works with short, straight strokes of theneedle, just as a pen draughtsman lays side by side the strokes of hispen; but, as she cannot, of course, leave off her stroke as the penmandoes, she has perforce to bring back the thread on the under side of thestuff, so that, if very carefully done, the work is the same on bothsides. 

Satin-stitch, however, need not be, and never was, confined to work uponsilk or satin. In fact, it was not only worked upon fine linen, butoften followed the lines of its mesh, stepping, as in Illustration 9, tothe tune of the stuff. This may be described as satin-stitch in themaking--at any rate, it is the elementary form of it, its relation tocanvas-stitch being apparent on the face of it. Still, beautiful andmost accomplished work has been done in it alike by Mediæval, Renaissance, and Oriental needleworkers. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A, 36. ]

To cover a space with regular vertical satin stitches (A on the sampler, Illustration 36), the best way of proceeding is to begin in the centreof the space and work from left to right. That half done, begin again inthe centre and work from right to left. 

In order to make sure of a crisp and even edge to your forms, always letthe needle enter the stuff there, as it is not easy to find the pointyou want from the back. 

In working a second row of stitches, proceed as before, only plantingyour needle between the stitches already done. Fasten off with a fewtiny surface stitches and cut off the silk on the right side of thestuff: it will be worked over. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B, 36. ]

To cover a space with horizontal satin stitches (B on sampler), begin atthe top, and work from left to right. The longer stretches there arenot, of course, crossed at one stitch; they take several stitches, dovetailed, as it were, so as not to give lines. 

The easiest, most satisfactory, and generally most effective way ofworking flat satin stitch is in oblique or radiating lines (C, D, E), working in those instances, as in the case of A, from the centre, first from left to right and then from right to left. 

[Illustration: 36. SATIN-STITCH SAMPLER. ]

[Illustration: 37. SATIN-STITCH SAMPLER (BACK). ]

Stems, narrow leaflets, and the like, are best worked always in stitcheswhich run diagonally and not straight across the form. 

In the case of stems or other lines curved and worked obliquely, thestitches must be very much closer on the inner side of the curve than onthe outside: occasionally a half-stitch may be necessary to keep thedirection of the lines right, in which case the inside end of thehalf-stitch must be quite covered by the stitch next following. 

[Illustration: 38. SATIN-STITCH IN COARSE TWISTED SILK. ]

Satin-stitch is seen at its best when worked in floss. Coarse or twistedsilk looks coarse in this stitch, as may be seen by comparing the petalD in the sampler, Illustration 36, with the petal in twisted silk heregiven (38). Marvellously skilful as are the needle-workers of India(Illustration 39), they get rather broken lines when they work in thicktwisted silk. The precision of line a skilled worker can get in floss iswonderful. An Oriental will get sweeping lines as clean and firm as ifthey had been drawn with a pen, and this not merely in the case of anoutline, but in voided lines of which each side has to be drawn with theneedle. The voided outline, by the way, as on Illustrations 39, 40, isnot only the frankest way of defining form, but seems peculiarly properto satin-stitch; and it is a test of skill in workmanship: it is so easyto disguise uneven stitching by an outline in some other stitch. Thevoiding in the wings of the birds in Illustration 40 is perfect; and thesoftening of the voided line, at the start of the wing in one case andthe tail in the other, by cross stitching in threads comparatively wideapart, is quite the right thing to do. It would have been more inkeeping to void the veins of the lotus leaves than to plant them on incord. 

Satin-stitch must not be too long, and it is often a seriousconsideration with the designer how to break up the surfaces to becovered so that only shortish stitches need be used. You might followthe veining of a leaf, for example, and work from vein to vein. But allleaves are not naturally veined in the most accommodating manner. Treatment is accordingly necessary, and so we arrive at a conventionappropriate to embroidery of this kind. It takes a draughtsman properlyto express form by stitch distribution. The Chinese convention in thelotus flowers (Illustration 40) is admirable. 

[Illustration: 39. SATIN-STITCH IN FINE TWISTED SILK. ]

It is the rule of the game to lay satin-stitch very evenly. Worked infloss, the mere surface of satin-stitch is beautiful. A further charmlies in the way it lends itself to gradation of colour. Beautifulresults may be obtained by the use of perfectly flat tints of colour, asin Illustration 40; but the subtlest as well as the most deliberategradation of tint may be most perfectly rendered in satin-stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK SURFACE SATIN-STITCH. ]

SURFACE SATIN-STITCH (not the same on both sides), though it looks verymuch like ordinary satin-stitch, is worked in another way. The needle, that is to say, after each stitch is brought _immediately_ up again, andthe silk is carried back on the upper instead of the under side of thestuff. Considerable economy of silk is effected by thus keeping thethread as much as possible on the surface, but the effect is apt to beproportionately poorer. Moreover, the work is not so lasting as when itis solid. The satin-stitch on Illustration 58 is all surface work. Itlooks loose, which it is always apt to do, unless it is kept stretchedon the frame, on which, of course, satin-stitch is for the most partworked. Very effective Indian work is done of this kind--loose andflimsy, but serving a distinct artistic purpose. It is to embroidery ofmore serious kind what scene painting is to mural decoration. 

[Illustration: 40. CHINESE SATIN-STITCH. ]

Embroidery is often described as being in "long-and-short-stitch, " aterm properly descriptive not of a stitch, but of its dimensions. Whether you use stitches of equal or of unequal length is a questionmerely of the adaptation of the stitch to its use in any given instance;there is nothing gained by calling an arrangement of alternatingstitches, "long and short, " or by calling them "plumage-stitch, " or, which is more misleading, "feather-stitch, " when they radiate so as tofollow the form, say, of a bird's breast. The bodies of the birds inIllustrations 40 and 85 are in plumage-stitch so called. This adaptationof stitch to bird or other forms gives the effect of fine featheringperfectly. But why apply the term "satin-stitch" exclusively to parallellines of stitches all of a length?

"Long-and-short-stitch, " then, is a sort of satin-stitch; only, insteadof the stitches being all of equal length, they are worked one _into_the others or _between_ them, as in the faces in Illustrations 79 and80. 

A little further removed from satin-stitch is what is known as"split-stitch, " in which the needle is brought up _through_ theforegoing stitch, and splits it. The way of working this stitch is morefully given on page 105. 

The worker adapts, as a matter of course, the length of the stitch tothe work to be done, directing it also according to the form to beexpressed, and so arrives, almost before he is aware of it, by way ofsatin-stitch, at what is called plumage-stitch. 

[Illustration: 41. OFFSHOOTS FROM SATIN AND CREWEL STITCHES. ]

[Illustration: 42. OFFSHOOTS FROM SATIN AND CREWEL STITCHES (BACK). ]

The distinction between the stitches so far described is plainenough, and an all-round embroidress learns to work them; but workersend in working their own way, modifying the stitch according to the workit is put to do, and produce results which it would be difficult todescribe and pedantic to find fault with. Even short, however, of suchindividual treatment, the mere adaptation of the stitch to the lines ofthe design removes it from the normal. It makes a difference, too, whether it is worked in a frame or in the hand: in the one case you seemore likeness to one stitch, in the other to another. The flower at B, for example, and the leaf at D, on the sampler, Illustration 41, areboth worked in what is commonly called "plumage, " or "embroidery"stitch, though the term "dovetail, " sometimes used, seems to describe itbetter. Instance B, however, is worked in the hand, and D in aframe--from which very fact it follows that the worker is naturallydisposed to regard B as akin to crewel-stitch and D to satin-stitch, between which two stitches "dovetail" may be regarded as the connectinglink. 

[Illustration: THE WORKING OF B ON SAMPLER 41. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK B, 41. ]

The petals at B are worked in the method illustrated in the diagramoverleaf. The first step is to edge the shape with satin-stitches inthrees, successively long, shorter, and quite short. This done, startingat the base again, you put your needle in on the upper or right side ofthe first short stitch, and bring it out through the long stitch (asshown in the diagram). You then make a short stitch by putting yourneedle downwards through the material, and taking up a small piece ofit. You have finally only to draw the needle through, and it is inposition to make another long stitch. As the concentric rings ofstitching become smaller, you make, of course, shorter stitches, and youneed no longer pierce the thread of the long stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK D, 41. ]

The working of the scroll at D on the sampler, Illustration 41, needs nodetailed explanation. Anyone who is acquainted with the way satin-stitchis worked (it has already been sufficiently explained), and has read theabove account of the working of B, will understand at once how that isworked in the frame. 

It will be seen that there is a slight difference in effect between thetwo, arising from the fact that work done in the hand is necessarilymore loosely and not quite so evenly done as that on a frame. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK SPLIT-STITCH C, 41. ]

Split-stitch (C on the sampler), again, resembles either crewel-stitchor satin-stitch, according as it is worked in the hand or on a frame. Inworking in the hand, you take a rather shorter stitch back than increwel-stitch, piercing with the needle the thread which is to form thenext stitch. In working on a frame, you bring your needle always upthrough the last-made satin-stitch in order to start the next. Whicheverway it is done, split-stitch is often difficult to distinguish withoutminute examination from chain-stitch. Further reference to its use ismade in the chapter on shading. It may be interesting to compare it withcrewel-stitch (A on the sampler), which is also a favourite stitch forshading. 

DARNING. 

It is the peculiarity of DARNING and RUNNING that you make severalstitches at one passing of the needle. 

Darning and running amount practically to the same thing. Darning mightbe described as consecutive lines of running. The difference is, in themain, a matter of multiplication; but the distinction is sometimes madethat in running the stitches may be the same length on the face as onthe reverse of the stuff, whereas in darning the thread is mainly on thesurface, only dipping for the space of a single thread or so below it. 

It results from the way of working that you get in darning aninterrupted line characteristic of the stitch. What is called "doubledarning, " by which the breaks in the single darning are made good, hasin effect no character of darning whatever. 

Darning has a homely sound, but it is useful for more than mending. Inembroidery you no longer use it to replace threads worn away, but buildup upon the scaffolding of a merely serviceable material what may be agorgeous design in silk. 

[Illustration: 43. DARNING SAMPLER. ]

Darning is worked, of course, in rows backwards and forwards; but if thestitches are long and in the direction of the weft, it is as well not torun the returning row next to the one just done, but to leave space fora second course of darning afterwards between the open rows. 

The darning of the sampler, Illustration 43, is very simple. The floweris darned in stitches of fairly equal length, taking up one thread ofthe material, and covering a space of almost a quarter of an inch beforetaking up the next thread. The outline of a petal is first worked, andsuccessive rows of darning follow the lines of the flower, expressing tosome extent its form. Much depends upon the direction of the stitch. 

The texture of the work depends upon the length of the stitches, and onthe amount of the stuff showing through. 

Darning is usually supplemented by outlining. The sampler is designed toshow how far one can dispense with it. The flower stalk is defined bydarning the first row in a darker colour; for the rest, voiding isemployed, but it is not easy to void in darning. 

The background is darned diaper fashion. It gives, that is to say, deliberately diagonal lines. A background irregularly darned should beirregular enough never to run into lines not contemplated by the worker. 

[Illustration: 44. DARNING DESIGNED BY WILLIAM MORRIS. ]

In the case of large leaves, veined, the veining should be workedfirst, the stitches between them radiating outwards to the edge of theleaf. 

More accomplished work in darning is shown in the border by WilliamMorris in Illustration 44, where it appears, however, much flatter thanin the coloured silk. It is worked solid, the radiating stitchesaccommodating themselves to the forms of the leaves and petals, which, in fact, are designed with a view to their execution in this way. Theyare defined by outline-stitching--light or dark as occasion seemed torequire. 

Mention has already been made of darning _à propos_ of canvas-stitch;and there is a sort of natural correspondence between the _mécanique_ ofdarning in its simplest form and the network of open threads which givesto rectangular darning, like the German work in Illustration 45, character which more than compensates for its angularity in outline. Thedarning is there quite even in workmanship, but it is, as will be seen, of different degrees of strength--lighter for the surface of thepattern, heavier for the outline. 

You may qualify the colour of a stuff by lightly darning it with silk ofanother shade, and very subtle tints may be got by thus, as it were, veiling a coloured ground with silks of various hues. 

[Illustration: 45. FLAT DARNING UPON A SQUARE MESH. ]

LAID-WORK. 

The necessity for something like what is called "LAID-WORK" is bestshown by reference to satin-stitch. It was said in reference to it thatsatin-stitches should not be too long. There is a great deal of Easternwork in which surface satin-stitch, or its equivalent, floats so looselyupon the face of the stuff that it can only be described as flimsy. Nothing could be more beautiful in its way than certain Soudaneseembroidery, in which coloured floss in stitches an inch or more longlies glistening on the stuff without any interruption of threads tofasten it down. 

Embroidery of this kind, however, hardly comes within the scope ofpractical work. Long, loose stitches want sewing down. Some compromisehas to be made between art and beauty. The problem is to make the workstrong enough without seriously disturbing its lustrous surface, and thesolution of it is "laid-work, " at which we arrive thus almost bynecessity. 

[Illustration: 46. LAID-WORK SAMPLER. ]

It involves no new stitch, but is only another way of using stitchesalready described. In laid-work, long tresses of silk, as William Morriscalled them, floss by preference, are thrown backwards and forwardsacross the face of the stuff, only just piercing it at the edges of theforms, and back again. These silken tresses are then caught down andkept, I will not say close to the ground, but in their place upon it, bylines of stitching in the cross direction. 

Laid-work is not, at the best, a very strong or lasting kind ofembroidery (it needs to be carefully covered up even as it is worked), but by no other means is the silky beauty of coloured floss so perfectlyset forth. It is hardly worth doing in anything but floss. 

Laid-work lends itself also to gradation of colour within certainlimits--the limits, that is to say, of the straight parallel lines inwhich the silk is laid: the direction of these is determined often bythe lines of sewing which are to cross them. In any case the directionof the threads is here more than ever important. The sewing down musttake lines and may form patterns. 

The sampler, Illustration 46, wants little or no explanation. Itillustrates the various ways of laying. In the leaf the floss is sewndown with split-stitch, which forms the veining. Elsewhere it is kept inplace by "couching, " a process presently to be described. For theoutlines, split-stitch and couching are employed. The last row of laidwork in the grounding is purposely pulled out of the straight by thecouching in order to give a waved edge. The diaper which represents theseeding of the flower is not, properly speaking, laid-work: singlethreads of white purse silk are there couched down with dark. 

[Illustration: 47. JAPANESE LAID-WORK. ]

For the transverse stitching, for which also it is best to use floss, either split-stitch may be used, as in the leaf in the sampler, Illustration 46, or a thread may be laid across and sewn down--couched, as it is called--as in the flower. The closer the cross lines thestronger the work, but the less lustrous the effect. 

Laid floss may be employed to glorify the entire surface of a linenmaterial, as in the sampler or for the pattern only upon a ground worthshowing, as in Illustrations 47, 48, 49. 

Laid-work will not give anything like modelling, and it is not bestsuited to figure design except where it is quite flatly treated. Aninstance of its use in figure work occurs on Illustration 79. It iseffective when quite naively and simply used in cross lines which do notappear to take any account of the forms crossed--as, for example, inIllustration 47, where the stitching does not pretend to express morethan a flat surface. The floss, however, is there carefully laid at adifferent angle of inclination in each petal, so as to give variety ofcolour. The lines of sewing vary according to the lines of the laidfloss, but do not cross them at right angles. The important thing is, ofcourse, that they should catch the laid "tresses" at intervals not toofar apart. If the lines which sew down the floss have also to expressdrawing, as in the case of the bird's wings in Illustration 48, theunderlying floss must be laid in lines which they will cross. In thecase of the leaves in the same piece of work, the floss is laid in thedirection in which the leaf grows, and the stitching across, which sewsit down, is slightly curved so as to suggest roundness in them. 

[Illustration: 48. INDO-PORTUGUESE LAID-WORK. ]

A more finished piece of work is shown in Illustration 49, where thelaid floss crosses the forms, and the sewing down takes very much theplace of veining in the flower, and of ribs in the scroll, expressingabout as much modelling as can be expressed this way, and more, perhaps, than it is advisable often to attempt. 

The sewing down asserts itself most, of course, when it is in a colourcontrasting with the laid floss, as it does in the leaves in the smallersampler overleaf. 

The stitching down makes usually a pattern more or less conspicuous. Onthis same sampler it does so very deliberately in the case of the broadstalk. The rather sudden variation of the colour shown there in theleaves is harmless enough in bold work, to which the process is bestsuited. One may be too careful in gradating the tints: timidity in thisrespect prevails too much among modern needlewomen: an artist in flossshould not want her work to look like a gradated wash of colour. TheItalians of the 16th and 17th centuries (see Illustration 49) were notafraid of rather abrupt transition in the shades of colour they used forlaid-work. 

[Illustration: 49. ITALIAN LAID-WORK. ]

[Illustration: 50. LAID SAMPLER. ]

When laid floss is kept in place by threads themselves sewn down acrossit, such threads are called "couched, " and the work itself may bedescribed as laid and couched. Hence arises some confusion between thetwo methods of work--laying and couching. It saves confusion to make asharp distinction between the two--using the term "laid" only forstitches (floss) first loosely laid upon the surface of the stuff andthen sewn down by cross lines of stitching of whatever kind, and"couched" for the sewing down of cords, &c. (silk or gold), thread bythread or in pairs. Laid floss is sewn down _en masse_, couched silk insingle or double threads; and accordingly laid answers best for surfacecovering, couched for outlining, except in the case of gold, which evenfor surface covering is always couched. 

COUCHING

COUCHING is the sewing down of one thread by another--as in the outlineof the flower on the laid sampler, Illustration 46. The stitches withwhich it is sewn down, thread by thread, or, in the case of gold, twothreads at a time, are best worked from right to left; or, in outlining, from outside the forms inwards, and a waxed thread is often used for thepurpose. Naturally the cord to be sewn down should be held fairlytightly in place to keep the line even. 

It is usual in couching to sew down the silk or cord with stitchescrossing it at right angles, except in the case of a twisted cord, whichshould be sewn down with stitches in the direction of the twist. 

Couching is best done in a frame; but it may be done in the hand bymeans of buttonhole-stitch. 

[Illustration: 51. A. BULLION. B. COUCHED CORD. ]

When a surface is covered with couching, as in the seeding of the flowerin the sampler, Illustration 46, the sewing down stitches make apattern--all the plainer there, because the stitching is in acontrasting shade of colour. It is quite permissible to call attentionto the stitching if it suits your artistic purpose. To disguise it bysewing _through_ the cord is not a workmanlike practice. A worker shouldfrankly accept a method of work and get character out of it. 

Embroidresses have a clever way of untwisting a cord before each stitchand twisting it again after stitching through it--between the strands, that is to say, in which the stitching is lost. The device is rather tooclever. It shows a cord with no visible means of attachment to theground, which is not desirable, however much desired. There is noadvantage in attaching cords to the surface of silk so that they look asif they had been glued on to it. Conjuring tricks are highly amusing, but one does not think very highly of conjurers. Personally, I wouldmuch rather have seen more plainly the way the cord is sewn down in thegraceful cross in Illustration 51, a design perfectly adapted tocouching, and yet unlike the usual thing. 

Where it is softish silk which is stitched down, it makes a greatdifference whether it is loosely held and tightly sewn, or the contrary. Contrast the short puffy lines nearest the corners in the sampler, Illustration 52, with the longer ones between the broad and narrowbands. The broad band is worked in rows of double filoselle, of variousshades, sewn down with single filoselle. In the narrower bands twistedsilk is sewn down with stitches in the direction of its twist. This ismore plainly seen in the upper of the two bands, where thesloping stitches are lighter in colour than the cord sewn down. 

[Illustration: 52. COUCHING SAMPLER. ]

Characteristic use is made of rather puffy couching in the ornament ofthe lady's dress in Miss Keighley's panel, Illustration 61, where it hasvery much the richness of embroidery in seed pearls. 

It was a common practice in Germany in the 16th century to work in solidcouching upon cloth, employing a twisted thread and sewing it withstitches in the direction of the twist, so that at first sight one doesnot recognise it as couching. It looks like rather coarse stitching inthe direction of the forms, and expresses shading very well. The clothground accounts, perhaps, for the choice of method: the material is nototherwise a pleasant one to embroider upon. 

A rather earlier German method was to couch in parallel lines of whiteupon white linen, and so get relief and texture but no modelling, thoughthe drawing was helped by varying the direction of the parallel lines. 

The entire surface of a linen ground was sometimes covered with couchedthreads of silk or fine wool--some of it in vertical and horizontallines, some of it in the direction of the pattern. This, again, was aGerman practice, as may be seen in the Hildesheim Cope at SouthKensington. 

All-over couching may be used with advantage to renew the ground ofembroidery so worn as to be unsightly; and is more lasting thanlaid-work for the purpose. It is laborious to do, but more satisfactorywhen done than remounting; and one or the other is a necessitysometimes. The effect of age is, up to a certain point, pleasing: ragsare not. 

[Illustration: 53. COUCHING IN LOOPED THREADS. ]

Couching, however (except with gold), was more commonly used foroutlining, and is quite peculiarly suited to give a firm line. Abeautiful example of outline work in coloured silk upon white linen ispictured in Illustration 90, in which the lines of delicate Renaissancearabesque are perfectly preserved. The rare practice of such work asthis, notwithstanding its distinction, is perhaps sufficiently accountedfor by its modesty. It is true, it wants well-considered and definitelydrawn design, and there is no possible fudging with it. 

[Illustration: 54. REVERSE COUCHING. ]

The value of a couched cord as an outline to stitching (satin-stitch inthis instance) is shown in Illustration 91, in which the singularlywell-schemed and well-drawn lines of the ornament are given withfaultless precision. This is a portion of an altogether admirable frameto an altogether foolish picture in needlework, of which a fragment onlyis shown. 

The appropriateness of couched cord to the outlining of inlay or ofappliqué is seen in the two examples which form Illustration 62. In theone (A) it defines the clear-cut counterchange pattern; in the other(B), being of a tint intermediate between the ground and the ornament, it softens the contrast between them. An interesting technical point inthe design of this last is the way the cord outlining the leaves makes asufficiently thick stalk, coming together, as it naturally does, doubleat the ends of the leaves. 

[Illustration: 55. REVERSE COUCHING (BACK). ]

This occurs again in Illustration 63, where the double threads whichform the stalks, though separately stitched down, are couched again atintervals by bands crossing the two--at the springing of the stalks andtendrils, for example, where joins inevitably occur. The cords formingthe central stalk are in one case looped. 

Fantastic use has often been made of the looping of couched cord. TheSpanish embroiderers made most ornamental use of a wee loop at thepoints of the leaves where the cord must turn; but the device of loopingmay easily be used to frivolous purpose. A regularly looped line at oncesuggests lace. A perplexing Chinese practice is to couch fine cord inlittle loops so close together that they touch. A surface filled inafter this manner, as in the butterflies on Illustration 53, might passat first sight for French knots or chain-stitch: it is really anothermethod of all-over couching. 

A double course of couching forms the outline in Illustration 92, oneof filoselle and one of cord, separately sewn; but the tendrils, whichare of silver thread, are sewn down both threads at a time with doublestitches, very obvious in the illustration. Over the couched silverthreads which form the main rib of the leaf a pattern is stitched insilk. 

_A propos_ of couching, mention must be made of a way of working used inthe famous Syon Cope by way of background, and figured overleaf(Illustration 54). The ground stuff is linen, twofold, and it is workedin silk, which lies nearly all upon the surface. The stitch runs frompoint to point of the zigzag pattern; there it penetrates the stuff, iscarried round a thread of flax laid at the back of the material, and isbrought to the surface again through the hole made by the needle inpassing down. That is to say, the silken thread only _dips_ through thelinen at the points in the pattern, and is there caught down by a threadof flax on the under-surface of the linen. The reverse of the work(Illustration 55) shows a surface of flax threads couched with silk, forwhich reason the method may be described as reverse couching. On theface it gives an admirable surface diaper, flat without beingmechanical. It is easily worked with a blunt needle; with a sharp onethere would be a danger of splitting the stitch. It is a kind of work onwhich two persons might be employed, one on either side of the stuff. 

COUCHED GOLD. 

In olden days silk does not appear to have been couched in the East. Onthe other hand, it was the custom to couch gold thread in Europe atleast as early as the twelfth century; so that the method was probablyfirst used for gold, which, except in the form of thin wire orextraordinarily fine thread, is not quite the thing to stitch with. Besides, it was natural to wish to keep the precious metal on thesurface, and not waste it at the back of the stuff. 

A distinguishing feature about gold is that by common consent it is useddouble and sewn down two threads at a time. This is not merely aneconomy of work; but, except in the case of thick cords or strips ofgold, it has a more satisfactory effect--why it is not easy to say. Panels A, B, C, in the sampler, Illustration 56, are couched in doublethreads, D in single cords. 

Gold couching is there used, as it mostly is, to cover a surface. Indoing that, it is usual to sew the threads firmly down at the edges ofthe forms and cut them very sharply off; but they may equally well becarried backwards and forwards across the face of the stuff. The slightswelling of the gold thread where it turns gives emphasis to theoutline; but the turning wants carefully doing, and the gold thread mustnot be too thick. If you use a large needle (to clear the way for thethread), the turning of the gold may take place on the back instead ofon the face of the material, but only in the case of very fine thread. 

Gold threads often want stroking into position. This may be done withwhat is called a "pierce"; but a good stiletto, or even a very largeneedle, will answer the purpose. Sharply pointed scissors areindispensable. 

In solid couching the stitches run almost inevitably into pattern; andit is customary, therefore, to start with the assumption that they will, and deliberately to make them into pattern--to work them, that is tosay, in vertical, diagonal, or cross lines as at A, in zigzags as at B, or in some more complicated diaper pattern as at C, where the stitchingis purposely in pronounced colour, that the pattern may be quite clearlyseen; at D it has more its proper value, that the effect of it may bebetter appreciated. The pattern may, of course, be helped by the colourof the stitching, and there is some art in making the necessary stitchesinto appropriate pattern. 

[Illustration: 56. COUCHED GOLD SAMPLER. ]

In fact the ornamentist, being an ornamentist, naturally takes advantageof the necessity of stitching, to pattern his metallic surfaces withdiaper, using often, as in the scroll in Illustration 57, a diversityof patterns, which gives at once varied texture and fanciful interest tothe surface. There is quite an epitome of little diapers in thatfragment of needlework; and one can hardly doubt that the embroidererfound it great fun to contrive them. The flat strips of metalemphasising the backs of the curves are sometimes twisted as they aresewn. 

The other diapers on the sampler, F, G, H, J, 56, are emphasised by therelief given to them by underlying cords, purposely left bare in partsto show the structure. These underlying cords must be firmly sewn on tothe linen ground, and if the stitching follows the direction of thetwist in them, the round surface is not so likely to be roughened by it. By rights, the cords should be laid farther apart than in the sampler, where the attempt to force the effect (for purposes of explanation) hasnot proved very successful. An infinity of basket patterns, as these maybe called (basket _stitches_ they are not), may be devised by varyingthe intervals at which the gold threads are sewn down, and the number ofcords they cross at a time. 

[Illustration: 57. COUCHED SILVER. ]

The central panel of the sampler (E) shows a combination of flat andraised gold. The outline of the heart is corded; the centre of it israised by stitching, first with crewel wool and then with gold-colouredfloss across that (it is difficult to prevent _white_ stuffing fromshowing through gold). This gives only a hint of what may be done inthe way of raised ornament upon a flat gold ground, and was done inmediæval work. A single cord may be sewn down to make a pattern inrelief, leafage, scrollwork, or what not, which, when the surface is allworked over with gold, has very much the effect of gilt gesso. If, forany reason, heavy work of this kind is to be done on silk or satin, thatmust first be backed with strong linen. 

In mediæval and church work generally the double threads are usuallylaid close together, forming, as in the diapers on sampler, a solidsurface of gold; and that was largely done in Oriental embroiderytoo--in Chinese, for example, where, however, the threads, instead ofbeing couched in straight lines, follow the outlines of the design, andare worked ring within ring until the space is filled, as in thedragon's face, A, Illustration 58. There is here, as in the working ofhis body, a certain economy of gold; a small amount of the ground isallowed to show between the lines of double gold thread--not enough totell as ground, but enough to give a tint of the ground colour to themetal. Further, in this more open couching the direction of the lines ofcouching goes for more than in solid work. The pattern made by the goldthread is here not only ornamental but suggestive of the scaly body ofthe creature. It will be seen, too, how, in the working of the legs, the relatively compact gold threads are kept well within the outline, bywhich means anything like harshness of silhouette is avoided. 

[Illustration: 58. COUCHED GOLD NOT QUITE SOLID. ]

That this less solid manner was not confined to the far East is shown bythe Venetian valance, B, on the lower part of the page, which has verymuch the appearance of gold lace. 

A good example of outline (single thread) in gold is given inIllustration 59, part of an Italian housing, which reminds one both ineffect and in design of damascening, to which it is in some respectsequivalent; only, instead of gold and silver wire beaten into black ironor steel, we have gold and silver thread sewn on to dark velvet. Thedesign recalls also the French bookbindings of the period of Henri II. , in which the tooled ornament was precisely of this character. Theresemblance is none the less that an occasional detail is worked moresolidly; but, in the main, this is outline work, and a beautiful exampleof it. The art in work of that kind is, of course, largely in thedesign. Gold thread work in spiral forms has very much the effect offilagree in gold wire. 

The next step is where the cords of gold enclose little touches ofembroidery in coloured floss, as in Illustration 91. These have thevalue of so many jewels or bits of bright enamel. In fact, just asoutline work in simple gold thread resembles damascening or filagree, sothis outlining of little spaces of coloured silk suggests enamel. Thecord of the embroiderer answers to the cloisons of the enameller, thesurfaces of shining floss to the films of vitreous enamel. 

[Illustration: 59. COUCHED OUTLINE WORK. ]

Appliqué embroidery is constantly edged with gold or silver thread. Aneffective, if rather rude, example of this, the thread here againdouble, is given in Illustration 60. 

In couching more than one thread at a time there is a difficulty inturning the angles. The threads give, of necessity, only gently roundedforms. To get anything like a sharp point, you must stop short with theinner thread before reaching the extreme turning point, and take it upagain on your way back. What applies to two threads, applies of coursestill more forcibly to three. 

The colour with which gold thread is sewn is a question of considerableimportance. If the stitches are close enough together to make solidwork, they give a flush of colour to the gold. Advantage is commonlytaken of this both in mediæval and Oriental work to warm the tint bysewing it down with red. The Chinese will even work with a deeper and apaler red to get two coppery shades. White stitching pales the gold, yellow modifies it least, green cools it, and blue makes it greener. Thecloser the stitches, the deeper the tint, of course. 

[Illustration: 60. APPLIQUÉ--SATIN ON VELVET. ]

You can get thus various shades of gold out of the same thread, and evengradation from one to another, as may be seen in a great deal ofSpanish work of the 16th century, in which the gold ornament is oftenquite delicately shaded from yellowish gold to ruddy copper on the onehand, and to bronzy green on the other. Similar use may be made ofvari-coloured silks in couching white or other cord; but gold reflectsthe colour much better than silk, and gives much more subtle effects. 

The Flemings and Italians of the early Renaissance went further. Theyhad a way of laying threads of gold and sewing them so closely over withcoloured silk that in many parts it quite hid the gold. Only inproportion as they wanted to lighten the colour of the draperies intheir pictorial embroideries did they space the stitches farther andfarther apart, and let the gold gleam through. Except in the high lightsit did not pronounce itself positively. The effect is not unlike what isseen in paintings of the primitive school, where the high lights of thered and blue draperies are hatched with gold. The practice of theembroiderer may be reminiscent of that, or that may be the origin of theprimitive painters' convention. It is more as if the embroiderer wantedto represent a precious tissue, a stuff shot with gold. 

Illustration 80 gives part of a figure worked in this way, relievedagainst a more golden architectural background rendered by the very samedouble threads of gold which run through the figures. In thearchitecture, however, they are couched in stitches which are never sonear as to take away from the effect of the gold. The two degrees ofobscuring or clouding gold by oversewing are here shown in mostinstructive contrast. The cords, as usual, are laid in horizontalcourses. That was the convenient way of working; but it resulted in acorded look, which has very much the appearance of tapestry; and thereis no doubt that resemblance to tapestry was in the end consciouslysought. That the method here employed was laborious needs no saying; butit gave most beautiful, if pictorial, results. 

APPLIQUÉ. 

Embroidery, it has been shown, is much of it on the surface of thestuff, not just needle stitches, but the stitching-on ofsomething--cord, gold thread, or whatever it may be. And instances havebeen given where the design of such work was not merely in outline, butwhere certain details were filled in with stitching. Yet anotherpractice, and one more strictly in keeping with the onlaying of cord, was to onlay the solid also, applying, that is to say, the surfacecolour also in the form of pieces of silk cut to shape. 

Patterns of this kind may be conceived as line work developing intoleafy terminations, the APPLIQUÉ only an adjunct to couching(Illustration 63); or they may be thought of as massive work eked outwith line: the appliqué, that is to say, the main thing, the couchingonly supplementary (Illustration 92). An intermediate kind is whereoutline and mass--couching and appliqué--play parts of equal importancein the scheme of design (Illustration 60). 

Couched cord or filoselle is useful in covering the raw edge of theonlay, not so much masking the joints as making them sightly. 

Appliqué must be carefully and exactly done, and is best worked in aframe. It is almost as much a man's work as a woman's. Embroidery properis properly woman's work; but here, as in the case of tailoring, the mancomes in. The getting ready for appliqué is not the kind of thing awoman can do best. 

The finishing may sometimes be done in the hand, and very bold, coarsework may possibly be worked throughout in the hand, and outlined withbuttonhole-stitch (chain-stitch is not so appropriate); but when acouched outline is employed it must be done in a frame, and, indeed, work with any pretensions to finish is invariably begun and finished inthe frame. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK APPLIQUÉ]

To work appliqué you want, in fact, two frames--one on which to mountthe material to be embroidered, and another on which to mount thematerial to be applied. The backing in each case should be of smoothholland. This is stretched on to the frame, and then pasted with stiffstarch or what not; the silk or velvet is laid on to it and stroked witha soft rag until it adheres, and is left to dry gently. When dry, theoutlines of the complete design are traced upon the one, and those ofthe details to be applied upon the other. (You may paste, of course, silks of two or three colours upon one backing for this. ) The stuff tobe applied is then loosened from its frame, the details are cleanly cutout with scissors, or, better still, a knife (in either case sharp), andtransferred to their place in the design on the other frame. There theyare kept in position by short steel pins planted upright into the stuffuntil you are sure they fit, and then tacked firmly down, with care thatthe stitches are such as will be quite covered by the final couching, chain stitch, or whatever is to be your outline. 

In the case of silk or other delicate material, peculiar care must betaken that the paste is not moist enough to penetrate the stuff; but anexperienced worker has no fear of that. 

A firm outline is a condition of appliqué, and couched cord fulfils itmost perfectly. Much depends upon a tasteful and tactful choice ofcolour for it. You fatten your pattern by outlining it with a colourwhich goes with it (Illustration 62, B). You thin it by one which goesinto the ground. Very subtle use may be made of a double outline or of acorded line upon couched floss. There is a double outline to theornament in Illustration 92: the inner one next to the yellow satinappliqué is of gold, the outer one next the crimson velvet ground is ofwhite sewn with pale blue. This gives emphasis to the bold forms of theleafage. The mid-rib there is of silver couching; the minor veinings arestitched in silk, and are rather insignificant. 

[Illustration: 61. APPLIQUÉ PANEL BY MISS KEIGHLEY. ]

The less there is of extra stitching on appliqué the better as a rule. It disturbs the breadth, which is so valuable a characteristic of onlay. In no case is much mixing of methods to be desired; but if appliqué isto be supplemented, it had best be with couching, which is not so muchstitching as stitched down, itself another form of applied work. 

Appliqué of itself is not, of course, adapted to pictorial work, butthat in association with judicious stitching and couching it may be usedto admirable decorative purpose in figure design is shown by Miss MabelKeighley's panel, Illustration 61. What an artist may do depends uponthe artist. Miss Keighley's panel indicates the use that may be made oftexture in the stuff onlaid. 

Appliqué is especially appropriate to bold church work, fulfillingperfectly that condition of legibility so desirable in work necessarilyseen oftenest from afar. Broadly designed, it may be as fine in its wayas a piece of mediæval stained glass, and it gives to silk and velvettheir true worth. The pattern may be readable as far off as you candistinguish colour. 

[Illustration: 62. A. COUNTERCHANGE. B. APPLIQUÉ. ]

Appliqué work is thought by some to be an inferior kind of embroidery, which it is not. It is not a lower but another kind of needlework, inwhich more is made of the stuff than of the stitching. In it the craftof the needleworker is not carried to its limit; but, on the otherhand, it makes great demands upon design. You cannot begin by justthrowing about sprays of natural flowers. It calls peremptorily fortreatment--by which test the decorative artist stands or falls. Effective it must be; coarse it may be; vulgar it should not be; trivialit can hardly be; mere prettiness is beyond its scope; but it lendsitself to dignity of design and nobility of treatment. Of course, it isnot popular. 

A usual form of appliqué is in satin upon velvet. Velvet on satin (B, Illustration 62) is comparatively rare; but it may be very beautiful, though there is a danger that it may look like weaving. 

Silk upon silk (figured damask) is shown in Illustration 63, designed tobe seen from a nearer point of view, and less pronounced in patternaccordingly. The strap work, applied in ribbon, is broken by crossstitches in couples, which take away from the severity of the lines. Thegrape bunches are onlaid, each in one piece of silk, the forms of theseparate grapes expressed by couching. The French knots in the centre ofthe grapes add greatly to the richness of the surface. The leaves are inone piece. It would have been possible to use two or three, joining themat the veins. 

[Illustration: 63. APPLIQUÉ--SILK ON SILK DAMASK. ]

The application of leather to velvet, as in Illustration 94, allowsmodification in the way of execution, and of design adapted to it. Leather does not fray, and needs, therefore, no sewing over at the edge, but only sewing down, which may be done, as in this case, well withinthe edge of the material, giving the effect of a double outline. TheChinese do small work in linen, making similar use of the stitchingwithin the outline, but turning the cut edge of the stuff under; itwould not do to leave it raw. On a bolder scale, but in precisely thesame manner, is embroidered the wonderful tent of François Ier. , takenat the battle of Pavia, and now in the Armoury at Madrid--obviously Arabwork. Something of the kind was done also in Morocco, which points toleather work as the possible origin of this method. 

Another ingenious Chinese notion is to sew down little five-petalledflowers (turned under at the edges) with long stamen stitches radiatingfrom a central eye of knots. 

INLAY, MOSAIC, CUT-WORK. 

A step beyond the process of onlaying is INLAY, where one material isnot laid on to the other, but into it, both being perhaps backed by acommon material. The process is, in fact, precisely analogous to thatinlay of brass and tortoiseshell which goes by the name of its inventor, Boule. The work is difficult, but thorough. It does not recommend itselfto those who want to get effect cheaply. The process is suited only toclose-textured stuffs, such as cloth, which do not fray. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK INLAY. ]

The materials are not pasted on to linen, as in the case of appliqué. The cloth to be inlaid is placed upon the other, and both are cutthrough with one action of the knife, so that the parts cannot but fit. The coherent piece of material (the ground, say, of the pattern) is thenlaid upon a piece of strong linen already in a frame; the vacant spacesin it are filled up by pieces of the other stuff, and all is tacked downin place. That done, the work is taken out of the frame, and the edgessewn together. The backing can then, if necessary, be removed; and inOriental work it generally was. 

Inlay lends itself most invitingly to COUNTERCHANGE in design, as seenin the stole at A, Illustration 62. Light and dark, ground and pattern, are there identical. You cannot say either is ground; each forms theground to the other. And from the mere fact of the counterchanging yougather that it is inlaid, and not onlaid. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK COUNTERCHANGE. ]

Prior to inlaying in materials which are at all likely to fray, youfirst back them with paper, thin but tough, firmly pasted; then, havingtacked the two together, and pinned them with drawing-pins on to aboard, you slip between it and the stuff a sheet of glass, and with avery sharp knife (kept sharp by an oilstone at hand) cut out thepattern. What was cut out of one material has only to be fitted into theother, and sewn together as before, and you have two pieces of inlaidwork--what is the ground in one forming the pattern in the other, and_vice versâ_. By this ingenious means there is absolutely no waste ofstuff. You get, moreover, almost invariably a broad and dignifiedeffect: the process does not lend itself to triviality. It was used bythe Italians, and more especially by the Spaniards of the Renaissance, who borrowed the idea, of course, from the Arabs. 

[Illustration: 64. INLAY IN COLOURED CLOTHS. ]

In India they still inlay in cloth most marvellously, not onlycounterchanging the pattern, but inlaying the inlays with smallerpatternwork, thus combining great simplicity of effect with wonderfulminuteness of detail. They mask the joins with chain-stitch, thecolour of it artfully chosen with regard to the two colours of the clothit divides or joins. Further, they often patch together pieces of thiskind of inlay. 

Inlay itself is a sort of PATCHWORK. You cut pieces out of your cloth, and patch it with pieces of another colour, covering the joins perhaps, as on Illustration 64, with chain stitch, which gives it someresemblance to cloisonné enamel, the cloisons being of chain-stitch. 

Where there is no one ground stuff to be patched, but a number ofvari-coloured pieces of stuff are sewn together, they form a veritableMosaic, reminding one, in coloured stuffs, of what the mediæval glaziersdid in coloured glass. Admirable heraldic work was done in Germany bythis method; and it is still employed for flag making. The stuffs usedshould be as nearly as possible of one substance. In patchwork ofloosely-textured material each separate piece of stuff may be cut large, turned in at the edge, and oversewn on the wrong side. 

[Illustration: 65. CUT-WORK IN LINEN. ]

The relation of CUT-WORK to inlay is clear--in fact, the one is thefirst step towards the other. You have only to stop short of the actualinlaying, and you have cut-work. Fill up the parts cut out inIllustration 65 with coloured stuff, and it would be inlay. Theneedlewoman has preferred to sew over the raw edges of the stuff, andgive us a perfect piece of FRETWORK in linen. It is part of the gamein cut-work to make the fret coherent, whole in itself. The designshould tell its own tale. "Ties" of buttonhole-stitch, or what not, arenot necessary, provided the designer knows how to plan a fret pattern. Their introduction brings the work nearer to lace than embroidery. Thesewing-over may be in chain-stitch, satin-stitch (as in Illustration65), or in buttonhole-stitch--which last is strongest. 

As, in the case of appliqué, inlay, and mosaic, an embroidered outlineis usually necessary to cover the join, so in the case of cut-worksewing-over is necessary to keep the edges from fraying. It maysometimes be advisable to supplement this outlining by further stitchingto express veining, or give other minute details--just as theglassworker, when he could not get detail small enough by means ofglazing, had recourse to painting to help him out. But there is dangerin calling in auxiliaries. It is best to design with a view to themethod of work to be employed, and to keep within its limits. To worrythe surface of applied, inlaid, or cut stuff with finnikin stitchery, ispractically to confess either the inadequacy of the design or thefidgetiness of the worker. It should need, as a rule, no suchenrichment. 

EMBROIDERY IN RELIEF. 

Embroidery being work _upon_ a stuff, it is inevitably raised, howeverimperceptibly, above the surface of it. But there is a charm in theunevenness of surface and texture thus produced; and the aim hasconsequently often been to make the difference of level betweenground-stuff and embroidery more appreciable by UNDERLAY or padding ofsome kind. The abuse of this kind of thing need not blind us to theadvantages it offers. 

There are various ways of raising embroidery, the principal of which areillustrated on the sampler overleaf. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK A (66). ]

In sprig A the underlay is of closely-woven cloth, darker in colour thanwould be advisable except for the purpose of showing what it is: it isas well in the ordinary way to choose a cloth more or less of the colourthe embroidery is to be. The cloth is cut with sharp scissors carefullyto shape, but a little within the outline, and pasted on to the linen. When perfectly dry, it is worked over with thick corded silk couched inthe ordinary way. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK B. ]

The raised line at B reveals the way the stem in Illustration 86 wasworked. Two cords of smooth string (macramé, for example) are twistedand tacked in place. Over this floss is worked in close satin-stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK C. ]

In sprig C the underlay is of parchment, lightly stitched in place. Theuse of a double underlay in parts gives additional relief. Theembroidery upon this (in slightly twisted silk) is in satin-stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK D. ]

The leaf shapes at D are padded with cotton wool, cut out as nearly aspossible to the shape required, and tacked down with fine cotton. Theyare then worked over with floss in satin-stitch. The stalks are notpadded with cotton wool, but first worked with crewel wool, which, beingsoft and elastic, forms an excellent ground for working over in flosssilk. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK E. ]

In working a stalk like that at E, you first lay down a double layer ofsoft, thick cotton, and then work over it with flatter cotton (madeexpressly for padding) in slanting satin-stitch. Three threads of smoothround silk are then attached to one side of the padding and carrieddiagonally across to the other side, where they are sewn down withstrong thread of the same colour close to the underlay, so that thestitches may not show. They are then brought back to the side from whichthey started, sewn down, and returned again, and so backwards andforwards to the end. The crossing threads make a sort of pattern, and itis a point of good workmanship that they should cross regularly. Suchpattern is more obvious when threads of three different shades of colourare employed. Threads of twisted silk may, of course, be equally wellused this way without padding underneath. 

[Illustration: 66. RAISED WORK SAMPLER. ]

[Sidenote: TO WORK F. ]

In sprig F the underlay is of cardboard, pasted on to the linen. It isworked over with purse silk, to and fro across the forms, and sewn downat the margin with finer silk. This is a method of work often employedwhen gold thread is used. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK G. ]

In sprig G the underlay or stuffing is of string, sewn down withstitches always in the direction of the twist. It is worked over withfloss in satin-stitch. 

[Sidenote: TO WORK H. ]

In sprig H the underwork consists of stitching in soft cotton, overwhich thick silk is embroidered in bullion-stitch. The rule is to workthe first stitching in such a direction that the surface work crosses itat right angles. The small leaf is worked over with fine purse silk insatin-stitch, which is used also for the stalk. 

In the smaller sampler of laid-work, Illustration 50, the broad stem istwice underlaid with crewel, excellent for this soft sort of padding, onaccount of its elasticity. The leaves have there only one layer ofunderstitching. 

Raised work in white upon white is often used for purposes which make itinevitable that sooner or later the work will be washed. That is aconsideration which the embroidress must not leave out of account. Inany case, work over stitchery is more durable than over loose paddingsuch as cotton wool. 

[Illustration: 67. RAISED WORK SHOWING UNDERLAY. ]

The 15th century work reproduced in Illustration 67 is in flax thread onlinen, and the underlay (laid bare in the topmost flower) is of stifflinen, sewn down, not at the margins as in the case of the parchment onthe sampler (Illustration 66), but by a row of stitching up the centreof each petal. The veins of the leaves in Illustration 88 are paddedwith embroidery cotton and worked over with filo-floss. The leavesthemselves are not padded, though the sewing down of the veins uponthem, as well as the fact that they are applied on to the velvet ground, gives some appearance of relief. 

RAISED GOLD. 

Our sampler of raised work is done in silk. Underlaying is more oftenused to raise work in gold, to which in most respects it is best suited. The methods shown in the sampler would answer almost equally well forgold, except that working in gold one would not at H (66) usebullion-stitch, but bullion, first covering the underlay of stitchingwith smoothly-laid yellow floss. 

BULLION consists of closely coiled wire. It is made by winding fine wiretightly and closely round a core of stouter wire. When this central coreof wire is withdrawn, you have a long hollow tube of spirally twistedwire. This the embroidress cuts into short lengths as required, and sewson to the silk--as she would a long bead or bugle. Its use isillustrated at A in Illustration 51, where the stems of triple gold cordare tied down at intervals by clasps of bullion, and the leaves, again, are filled in with the same. 

It was the mediæval fashion to encrust the robes of kings and pontiffswith pearls and precious stones mounted in gold: the early Byzantineform of crown was practically a velvet cap, on to which were sewnplaques of gorgeous enamel and mounted stones. When to such workembroidery was added, it was not unnatural that it should vie with thegold setting. As a matter of fact, its design was often only atranslation into needlework of the forms proper to the goldsmith. 

Yet more openly in rivalry with goldsmiths' work was some of theembroidery of the Renaissance, in which the idea--a most mistaken one, of course--seems to have been to imitate beaten metal. This ledinevitably to excessively high relief in gold embroidery. You may see in17th century church work the height to which relief can be carried, andthe depth to which ecclesiastical taste can sink. 

The Spaniards were, perhaps, the greatest sinners in this respect, seeking, as they did, richness at all cost; but it must be confessedthat, in the 16th century at least, they produced most gorgeous results:there is in the treasury of the cathedral at Toledo an altar frontal ingold, silver, and coral, and a yet more beautiful mantle of the Virginin silver and pearls upon a gold ground, which make one loth todogmatise. 

[Illustration: 68. RAISED GOLD. ]

The preciousness of gold and silver, points, in the nature of things, totheir use for church vestments and the like; and high relief gives, nodoubt, value to the metal; but the consideration of its intrinsicvalue leads quickly to display. The artistic value of gold is not somuch that it looks gorgeous as that it glorifies the colour caught, soto speak, in its meshes. 

Admitting that there is reason for relief in gold embroidery--it catchesthe light as flat gold does not--one feels that the very slightestmodelling is usually enough. Reference was made (page 136) to the effectof gilt gesso obtained in raised gold thread: that really is about thedegree of relief it is safe to adopt in gold embroidery, the relief thatis readily got by laying on gesso with a brush, not carving or modellingit; and the characteristically blunt forms got by that means repeatthemselves when you work with the needle. 

There is ample relief in the gold embroidery on Illustrations 68 and 86. The first of these shows both flat and raised work: the latterillustrates not only various degrees of relief, but several ways ofunderlaying. It scarcely needs pointing out that the flatter serratedleaves are worked over parchment or paper, and the puffy parts of theflowers over softer padding. Allusion has already been made (page 159)to the way the stalk is worked over twisted cords, as on the sampler, Illustration 66. The patterns in which the gold is worked do not tellquite so plainly here as on Illustration 68, where the basket pattern ismore pronounced. In the stalk there flat gold wire is used, and again inthe broken surface towards the top of the plate. 

SPANGLES of gold may be used with admirable effect, at the risk, perhaps, of a rather tinselly look; but that has been often mostskilfully avoided both in mediæval work and in Oriental. In India greatand very cunning use is made of spangles, by the Parsees in particular, who, by the way, embroider with gold wire. 

Gold foil may be cut to any shape and sewn on to embroidery, butspangles take mainly one of two shapes, best distinguished as disc-likeand ring-like. The discs are flat, pierced in the centre, and sewn downusually with two or three radiating stitches (A, Illustration 51, andIllustration 67). The rings may be attached by a single thread. They caneasily be made to overlap like fish scales, and most elaboratelyembossed pictures have been worked in this way. There is a vestment inthe cathedral at Granada which is a marvel to see; but not the thing todo, surely. 

Relief is easily overdone, in figure work so easily that one may saysafety is to be found only in the most delicate relief. To make figureslook round is to make them look stuffed. That stuffy images are to befound in mediæval church work is only too true. In Gothic art one findsthis quaint, perhaps, but it is perilously near the laughable. The pointof the ridiculous is plainly overpassed in English work of the 17thcentury, which degenerates at last into mere doll work--the dolls dulystuffed and dressed in most childish fashion, their drapery, in actualfolds, projecting. Some really admirable needlework was wasted upon thiskind of thing, which has absolutely no value, except as an object-lessonin the frivolity of the Stuarts and their on-hangers. 

QUILTING. 

A most legitimate use of padding is in the form of QUILTING, where itserves a useful as well as an ornamental purpose. To quilt is to stitchone cloth upon another with something soft between (or without anythingbetween). Our word "counterpane" is derived from "contre-poinct, " acorruption of the French word for back-stitch, or "quilting" stitch, asit was called. 

If you merely stitch two thicknesses of stuff together in a pattern, such as that on Illustration 69, the stuff between the stitches has atendency to rise: the two layers of stuff do not lie close except wherethey are held together by the stitching, and a very pleasantly unevensurface results. This effect is enhanced if between the two stuffs thereis a layer of something soft. If, now, you keep down the groundwork ofyour design by comparatively frequent stitches diapering it, you get apattern in relief, more or less, according to the substance of yourpadding. 

Another way is to pad the pattern only, as in Illustration 70, where thepadding is of soft cord. 

[Illustration: 69. QUILTING, DONE IN CHAIN-STITCH FROM THE BACK. ]

A cunning way of padding is first to stitch the outline of the design, and then from the back to insert the stuffing. You first pierce thestuff with a stiletto, and, having pushed in the cord, cotton, or whatnot, efface as far as possible the piercing: the stuffing has then notmuch temptation to escape from its confinement. 

The Persians do most elaborate quilting on fine white linen, which theysew with yellow silk; but the pattern is stuffed with cords of bluecotton, the colour of which just grins through the white sufficiently tocool it, and to distinguish it from the creamy white ground made warmerby the yellow stitching. 

Quilting is most often done in white upon colour, or in one colour uponwhite. Yellow silk on white linen (as in the case of Illustration 69)was a favourite combination, and is always a delicate one. But there isno reason why a variety of colours should not be used in a counterpane. When you stitch down the ground with coloured silk you give it, ofcourse, colour as well as flatness. 

[Illustration: 70. RAISED QUILTING. ]

STITCH GROUPS. 

There are all sorts of ways in which stitches might begrouped:--according to the order of time in which historically they cameinto use; according as they are worked through and through the stuff orlie mostly on its surface; according as they are conveniently worked inthe hand or necessitate the use of a frame; and in other ways too manyto mention. It is not difficult, for example, to imagine aclassification according to which the satin-stitch in Illustration 71would figure as a canvas stitch. 

In the Samplers they are grouped according to their construction, thatseeming to us the most practical for purposes of description. They mightfor other purposes more conveniently be classed some other way. At allevents, it is helpful to group them. Designer and worker alike will gostraighter to the point if once they get clearly into their minds thestitches and their use, and the range of each--what it can do, what itcan best do, what it can ill do, what it cannot do at all. 

Anyone, having mastered the stitches and grasped their scope, can groupthem for herself, say, into stitches suited (1) to line work, (2) toall-over work, (3) to shading, and so on. 

These she might again subdivide. Of line stitches, for example, some arebest suited for straight lines, others for curved; some for broad lines, others for narrow; some for even lines, others for unequal; some foroutlining, others for veining. 

And, further, of all-over stitches some give a plain surface, others apatterned one; some do best for flat surfaces, others for modelled; somelook best in big patches, some answer only for small spaces. 

With regard to shading stitches, there are various ways (see the chapteron shading) of giving gradation of colour and of indicating relief ormodelling. 

Some stitches, of course, are adapted to various uses, as crewel, chain, and satin stitches--naturally the most in use. Workers generally end inadopting certain stitches as their own. That is all right, so long asthey do not forget that there are other stitches which might on occasionserve their purpose. Anyway, they should begin by knowing what stitchesthere are. Until they know, and know too what each can do, they arehardly in a position to determine which of them will best do what theywant. 

Our Samplers show the use to which the stitches on them may be put. 

[Illustration: 71. SATIN-STITCH IN THE MAKING. ]

By way of _résumé_, it may be added that for line work, more or lessfine, crewel, chain, back and rope stitches, and couched cord are mostsuitable; crewel for long lines especially, and rope stitch for bothcurved and straight lines; for a boundary line, buttonhole is mostemphatic; for broader lines, herring-bone, feather, and Orientalstitches answer better; ladder-stitch has the advantage of a firm edgeon both sides of it. Satin and chain stitches, couching and laying, andbasket work make good bands, but are not peculiarly adapted to thatpurpose. 

For covering broad surfaces, crewel, chain, and satin stitches(including, of course, what are called long-and-short and plumagestitches) serve admirably, as does also darning and laid-work; and forgold thread, couching. French knots do best for small surfaces only. Thestitches most useful for purposes of shading are mentioned later on. 

No sort of classification is possible until the number of stitches hasbeen reduced to the necessary few, and all fancy stitches struck out ofthe list. Enquiry should also be made into the title of each stitch tothe name by which it is known; and the names themselves should bebrought down to a minimum. 

Reduce them to the fewest any needlewoman will allow, and they arestill, if not too many, more than are logically required. Some of them, too, describe not stitches, but ways of using a stitch. The termlong-and-short, it has already been explained (page 100), has less todo with a particular stitch than its proportion, and the termplumage-stitch refers more to the direction of the stitch than to thestitch itself. And so with other stitches. It is its oblique directiononly which distinguishes stem-stitch from other short stitches of thekind. Running, again, amounts to no more than proportioning stitches tothe mesh of the stuff, and taking several of them at one passing of theneedle; and darning is but rows of running side by side. The termsplit-stitch describes no new stitch, but a particular treatment towhich a crewel or a satin stitch is submitted. 

The foregoing summaries of stitches are only by way of suggestion, something to set the embroidress thinking for herself. She must chooseher own method; but it would help her, I think, to schedule the stitchesfor herself according to her own ways and wants. The most suitablestitch may not suit every one. Individual preference and individualaptitude count for something. It is not a question of what isdemonstrably best, but of what best suits you. 

ONE STITCH, OR MANY?

The first thing to be settled with regard to the choice of stitch iswhether to employ one stitch throughout, or a variety of stitches. Muchwill depend upon the effect desired. Good work has been done in eitherway; but one may safely say, in the first place, that it is as well notto introduce variety of stitch without good cause--there is safety insimplicity--and in the second, that stitches should be chosen to gotogether, in order that the work may look all of a piece. When thevarious stitches are well chosen, it is difficult at a glance todistinguish one from another. 

A great variety of stitches in one piece of work is worrying, if notbewildering. It is as well not to use too many, to keep in the main toone or two, but not to be afraid of using a third, or a fourth, to dowhat the stitch or stitches mainly relied upon cannot do. 

[Illustration: 72. STITCHES IN COMBINATION. ]

It tends also towards simplicity of effect if you use your stitches withsome system, not haphazard, and in subordination one to the other; theremust be no quarrelling among them for superiority. You should determine, that is to say, at the outset, which stitch shall be employed forfilling, which for outline; or which for stalks, which for leaves, andwhich for flowers. Or, supposing you adopt one general stitchthroughout, and introduce others, you should know why, and make up yourmind to employ your second for emphasis of form, your third for contrastof texture, or for some other quite definite purpose. 

It is not possible here to point out in detail the system on which thevarious examples illustrated have been worked; the reader must worrythat out for herself. But one may just point out in passing how well thevarious stitches go together in some few instances. 

Nothing could be more harmonious, for example, than the combination ofknot, chain, and buttonhole stitches in Illustration 24; or of ladder, Oriental, herring-bone, and other stitches in Illustration 72. Again, inIllustration 85 the contrast between satin-stitch in the bird andcouched cord for the clouding is most judicious, as is the knotting ofthe bird's crest. Laid floss contrasts, again, admirably with couchedgold in Illustrations 47, 48, 49, and satin-stitch with couching inIllustration 91, where the gold is reserved mainly for outline, but onoccasion serves to emphasise a detail. 

[Illustration: 73. FINE NEEDLEWORK UPON LINEN. ]

Couched gold and surface satin-stitch are used together again inIllustration 58, each for its specific purpose. The harmony betweenappliqué work and couching or chain-stitch outline has been alluded toalready. 

A danger to be kept in view when working in one stitch only is, lest itshould look like a woven textile, as it might if very evenly worked. Some kinds of embroidery seem hardly worth doing nowadays, because theysuggest the loom. That may be a reason for some complexity of stitch, inwhich lurks that other danger of losing simplicity and breadth. Thelace-like appearance of the needlework upon fine linen in Illustration73, results chiefly from the extraordinary delicacy with which it isdone, but it owes something also to the variety of stitch and ofstitch-pattern employed in it. 

OUTLINE. 

The use of outline in embroidery hardly needs pointing out. It is oftenthe obvious way of defining a pattern, as, for example, where there isonly a faint difference in depth of tint between the pattern and itsbackground; in appliqué work it is necessary to mask the joins; and itis by itself a delightful means of diapering a surface with not tooobtrusive pattern. 

Allusion to the stitches suitable to outline has been made already (seestitch-groups), as well as to the colour of outlining, _à propos_ ofappliqué. It is difficult to overrate the importance of this question ofcolour in the case of outline; but there are no rules to be laid down, except that a coloured outline is nearly always preferable to a blackone. The Germans of the 16th century were given to indulging in blackoutlines, and you may see in their work how it hardened the effect, whereas a coloured outline may define without harshness. The Spaniards, on the other hand, realised the value of colour, and would, for example, outline gold and silver upon a dark green ground in red, with admirableeffect. A double outline, for which there is often opportunity in boldwork, may be turned to good account. Among the successful combinationswhich come to mind is an appliqué pattern in yellow and white upon darkgreen, outlined first with gold cord, and then, next the green, with apaler and brighter green. Another is a pattern chiefly in yellow uponpurple, outlined first with yellow couched with gold, and next theground with silver. In the case of couched cord or gold, the colour ofthe stitching counts also. 

Stitches from the edge of a leaf or what not, inwards, alternately longand short, though they form an edge to the leaf, are not properlyoutlining. This is rather a stopping short of solid work than outlining, though it often goes by that name. 

The first condition of a good outline stitch is that it should be, as itwere, supple, so as to follow the flow of the form. At the same time itshould be firm. Fancy stitches look fussy; and a spikey outline is worsethan none at all. 

There is absolutely no substantial ground for the theory that outlinesshould be worked in a stitch not used elsewhere in the work. On thecontrary, it is a good rule not to introduce extra stitches into thework unless they give something which the stitches already employed willnot give. The simplest way is always safest. 

An outline affords a ready means of clearing up edges; but it should notbe looked upon merely as a device for the disguise of slovenliness. Unless the colour scheme should necessitate an outline, an embroidress, sure of her skill, will often prefer not to outline her work, and to geteven the drawing lines within the pattern, by VOIDING. She will leave, that is to say, a line of ground-stuff clear between the petals of herflowers, or what not; which line, by the way, should be narrower than itis meant to appear, as it looks always broader than it is. It is moredifficult, it must be owned, thus to work along two sides of a line ofground-stuff than to work a single line of stitching, but it is withinthe compass of any skilled worker; and skilled workers have delighted invoiding even when their work was on a small scale necessitating finelines of voiding (Illustrations 39 and 40). 

In work on a bold scale there is no difficulty about it; and it would beremarkable that it is so seldom used, were it not that the uncertainworker likes to have a chance of clearing up ragged edges, and thatvoiding implies a broader and more dignified treatment of design than itis the fashion to affect. 

SHADING. 

One arrives inevitably at gradation of colour in embroidery; thequestion is how best to get it. But, before mentioning the ways in whichit may be got, it seems necessary to protest that shading is not amatter of course. Perfectly beautiful work may be done, and ought moreoften to be done, in merely flat needlework; the gloss of the silk andits varying colour as it catches the light according to the direction ofthe stitching, are quite enough to prevent a monotonously flat effect. 

Still, embroidery affords such scope for gradation of colour, not, practically, to be got by any process of weaving, that a colourist maywell revel in the delights of colour which silks of various dyes allow. And so long as colour is the end in view there is not much danger that acolourist will go wrong. 

[Illustration: 74. PART OF A DESIGN BY WALTER CRANE. ]

The use of shading in embroidery is rather to get gradation of colourthan relief of form. As to the stitch to be employed, that is partly apersonal matter, partly a question of what is to be done. The stitchmust be adapted to the kind of shading, or the shading must bedesigned to suit the stitch. It makes all the difference in the world, whether your shading is deliberately done, or whether one shade is meantto merge into another. In the best work it is always done with decision. There is nothing vague or casual, for example, about the shading of Mr. Crane's animals on Illustration 74. Everywhere the shading is _drawn_, either in lines or as a sharply defined mass. Given a drawing in whichthe shadows are properly planned and crisply drawn like that, and youmay use what stitch you please. 

[Illustration: 75. SHADING IN CHAIN-STITCH. ]

The more natural way of shading is to let the stitches follow the linesof the drawing, and so make use of them to express form, as with thestrokes of the pen or pencil upon paper. Thus, in mediæval figureworkprior to the 15th century, the faces were usually done in split stitch, worked concentrically from the middle of the cheek outward, and sosuggesting the roundness of the face (Illustration 87). But just asthere is a system of shading according to which the draughtsman makesall his strokes in one direction (slanting usually), so the embroidressmay, if she prefer, take her stitches all one way; and in the 15th and16th centuries the fashion was to work flesh in short-satin stitchesalways in the vertical direction (Illustration 79). The term"long-and-short-stitch" is frequently used by way of describing thestitch. It does not, as I have said, help us much. The stitches are inthe first place only satin-stitches worked not in even rows, as inIllustration 40, but so that there is no line of demarcation between onerow and another. And this, in the case of gradated colour, makes theshading softer. The words long-and-short apply strictly only to theouter row of stitches. You begin, that is to say, with alternately longand short stitches. If you work after that with stitches of equallength, they necessarily alternate or dovetail. If the form to be workednecessitates radiation in the stitching, there results a texturesomething like the feathering of a bird's breast (Illustration 85), whence the name plumage-stitch, another term describing not so much astitch as the use of a stitch. 

No matter what the stitch, one must be able to draw in order to expressform: it is rather more difficult to draw with a needle than with a pen, that is all. True, the designer may do that for you, and make such aworkmanlike drawing that there is no mistaking it; but it takes askilled draughtsman to do it. 

[Illustration: 76. SHADING IN SHORT STITCHES. ]

In flattish decorative work, where the drawing is in firm lines, as inIllustration 87, the task of the embroidress is relatively easy--thereis not much shading, for example, in the drapery of King Abias, and thevine leaves are merely worked with yellower green towards the edges. Even where there is strong shading, a draughtsman who knows hisbusiness may make shading easy by drawing his shadows with firmoutlines. The taste of the artist who designed the roses in Illustration75 is too pictorial to win the heart of any one with a leaning towardsseverity of design; too much relief is sought; but the way he has got itshows the master workman; he has deliberately laid in _flat_ washes ofcolour, each with its precise outline, which the worker had only tofollow faithfully with flat tambour work. A design like that, given theworking drawing, asks little of the worker beyond patient care: of thedesigner it asks considerable knowledge. 

A yet more pictorial effect is produced in much the same way, this timein satin stitch, in Illustration 76. The artist has for the most partdrawn his shadows with crisp brush strokes, which the worker had nodifficulty in following; but there is some rounding of the birds' bodieswhich a merely mechanical worker could not have got. In fact, there areindications that this is the work more of a painter than of anembroidress, who would have acknowledged by her stitches the featheringof the birds' necks as well as their roundness. 

[Illustration: 77. SHADING IN LONG-AND-SHORT AND SPLIT STITCHES. ]

You can embroider, of course, without knowing much about drawing; butyou cannot go far in the direction of shading (not drawn for you, oronly vaguely drawn) without the appreciation of form which comes only ofknowing and understanding. There is evidence of such knowledge andunderstanding in the working of the lion in Illustration 77. That isnot a triumph of even stitching; but it is a triumph of drawing with theneedle. The short satin and split stitches are not placed with theregularity so dear to the human machine, but they express the designperfectly. The embroiderer of that lion was an artist, perhaps theartist who designed it. "It might be a _man's_ work, " was the verdict ofan embroidress. At all events it is the work of some one who could draw, and only a draughtsman or draughtswoman could have worked it. 

This is not said wholly in praise of shading. Embroidery ought, for themost part, to do very well without it. The point to insist upon is that, if shading is employed at all, it should mean something, and not be merefumbling after form. 

The charm of shading in embroidery is not the roundness of form whichyou get, but the gradation of colour which it gives. This may be verydelicately and subtly got by split-stitch, which renders that stitch sovaluable in the rendering of flesh tints. But the blending of colourinto colour which is universally admired is not quite so admirable aspeople think. One may easily employ too many shades of colour, easilymerge them too imperceptibly one into the other, getting only unmeaningsoftness. An artist prefers to see few shades employed, and those chosenwith judgment and placed with deliberate intention. If they meansomething, there is no harm in letting it be seen where they meet: broadmasses give breadth: vagueness generally means ignorance. That is, perhaps, why one dislikes it, and why it is so common. 

FIGURE EMBROIDERY. 

To an accomplished needlewoman embroidery offers every scope for art, short of the pictorial; and the artist is not only justified inlavishing work upon it, but often bound to do so, more especially whenit comes to working with materials in themselves rich and costly. Abeautiful material, if you are to better it (and if not why work upon itat all?), must be beautifully worked. Costly material is worth preciouswork; and there should be by rights a preciousness about the needleworkemployed upon it, preciousness of design and of execution. To put thevalue into the material is mere vulgarity. 

It seems to an artist almost to go without saying, that the labour onwork claiming to be art should be in excess of the value of the stuffwhich goes to make it. What we really prize is the hand work and thebrain work of the artist; and the more precious the stuff he employs, the more strictly he is bound to make artistic use of it. I do not meanby that _pictorial_ use. You can get, no doubt, with the needle effectsmore or less pictorial--most often less; but, when got, they are usuallyat the best rather inferior to the picture of which they are a copy. 

Work done should be better always than the design for it, which was aproject only, a promise. The fulfilment should be something more. Adesign of which the promise is not likely to be fulfilled in theworking-out is, for its purpose, ill-designed. To say that you wouldrather have the drawing from which it was done (and that is what youfeel about "needle pictures") is most severely to condemn either thedesigner or the worker, or perhaps both. Only a competent figurepainter, for example, can be trusted to render flesh with the needle;her success is in proportion to her skill with the implement, but in anycase less than what might be achieved in painting: then why choose theneedle?

Admitting that a painter who by choice or chance takes to the needle maypaint with it satisfactorily enough, that does not go to prove theneedle a likely tool to paint with. It is anything but that. There wasnever a greater mistake than to suppose, as some do who should knowbetter, that, to raise embroidery to the rank of art, figure work isnecessary. The truth is that only by rare exception does embroideredfigure work rise to the rank of art: the rule is that it is degraded, the more surely as it aims at picture. And that is why, for all that hasbeen done in the way of wonderful picture work, say by the Italians andthe Flemings of the Early Renaissance, the pictorial is not the form ofdesign best suited to embroidery. 

Needlework, like any other decorative craft, demands treatment in thedesign, and the human figure submits less humbly to the necessarymodification than other forms of life. Animals, for instance, lendthemselves more readily to it, and so do birds; fur and feathers areobviously translatable into stitches. Leaves and flowers accommodatethemselves perhaps better still; but each is best when it is only themotive, not the model, of design. If only, then, on account of thegreater difficulty in treating it, the figure is not the form of designmost likely to do credit to the needle, and it is absurd to argue that, figure work being the noblest form of design, therefore the noblest formof embroidery must include it. 

The embroidress entirely in sympathy with her materials will not wanttelling that the needle lends itself better to forms less fixed in theirproportions than the human figure; the decorator will feel that there isabout fine ornament a nobility of its own which stands in need of nopictorial support; the unbiassed critic will admit that figure design ofany but the most severely decorative kind is really outside the scope ofneedle and thread; and that the desire to introduce it arises, not outof craftsmanlikeness, but out of an ambition which does not pay muchregard to the conditions proper to needlework. Those conditions shouldbe a law to the needlewoman. What though she be a painter too? She ispainting now with a needle. It is futile to attempt what could be betterdone with a brush. She should be content to work the way of the needle. Common sense asks that much at least of loyalty to the art she haschosen to adopt. 

Wonderful and almost incredibly pictorial effects have been obtainedwith the needle; but that does not mean to say it was a wise thing toattempt them. The result may be astonishing and yet not worth the pains. The pains of flesh-painting with the needle (if not the impossibility ofit for all practical purposes) is confessed by the habit which arose ofactually painting the flesh in water colour upon satin. Paint on satin, if you like. There may be occasions when there is no time to stitch, andit is necessary for some ceremonial and more or less theatric purpose topaint what had better have been worked. The more frankly such workacknowledges its temporary and makeshift character the better. Scenepainting is art, until you are asked to take it for landscape painting. Anyway, the mixture of painting and embroidery is not to be endured; andit is a poor-spirited embroidress who will thus confess her weakness andcall on painting to help her out. It does not even do that, it failsabsolutely to produce the desired effect. The painting quarrels withthe stitching, and there is after all no semblance of that unity whichis the very essence of picture. 

[Illustration: 78. CHINESE CHAIN-STITCHING. ]

An instance of painted flesh occurs upon Illustration 91. Can any one, in view of the bordering to the picture, doubt that the worker had muchbetter have kept to what she could do, and do perfectly, ornament? Anexample, on the other hand, of what may be done in the way of expressingaction in the fewest and simplest chain stitches (if only you know theform you want to represent and can manage your needle) is given in thewee figures in the landscape above (78). 

[Illustration: 79. FIFTEENTH CENTURY FIGURE WORK. ]

In speaking of the necessary treatment of the human figure (as of othernatural form) in needlework, it is not meant to contend that there isone only way of treating it consistently, or that there are no morethan two or three ways. There are various ways, some no doubt yet to bedevised, but they must be the ways of the needle. The flesh, of course, is the main difficulty. A Gothic practice, and not the least happy one, was to show the flesh in the naked linen of the ground, only justworking the outlines of the features in black or brown. Another way wasto work the face in split stitch, as already explained, and over thatthe markings of the features, the fine lines in short satin-stitches, the broader in split-stitch, as shown in the figure of King Abias inIllustration 87. 

The general treatment of the figure there is of course in the manner ofthe 14th century, better suited, from its severe simplicity, forrendering in needlework than later and more pictorial forms ofcomposition. That needlework can, however, in capable hands, go fartherthan that is shown in Illustration 79, a rather threadbare specimen of15th century work, in which the character of the man's face is admirablyexpressed. It is first worked in short, straight stitches, all of white, and over that the drawing lines are worked in brown. The artist gets hereffect in the simplest possible way, and apparently with the greatestease. 

[Illustration: 80. SIXTEENTH CENTURY ITALIAN FIGURE WORK. ]

More like painting is the head in Illustration 80, worked in shortstitches of various shades, which give something of the colour as wellas the modelling of flesh. This is a triumph in its way. It goes aboutas far as the needle can go, and further than, except under rareconditions, it ought to go. But it may do that and yet be needlework. 

Equally wonderful in their miniature way are the faces of the littlepeople on Illustration 81, about the size of your finger nail. They areworked in solid satin-stitch, and the two layers of silk (back andfront) give a substance fairly thick but at the same time yielding, sothat when the stitches for the mouth and eyes are sewn tightly over itthey sink in, and, as it were, push up the floss between and giverelief. The nose is worked in extra satin-stitch over the other, and theslight depression at the end of the stitch gives lines of drawing. Thistrenches upon modelling, but, on such a minute scale, does not amount tovery pronounced departure from the flat. The method employed does notlend itself to larger work. 

The last word on the question as to what one may do with the needle is, that you may do what you _can_; but it is best to seek by means of itwhat it can best do, and always to make much of the texture of silk, andof the quality of pure and lustrous colour which it gives--in short, towork _with_ your materials. 

[Illustration: 81. CHINESE FIGURES. ]

THE DIRECTION OF THE STITCH. 

The effect of any stitch is vastly varied, according to the use made ofit. Satin-stitch, it was shown (38), worked in twisted silk, ceases tohave any appearance of satin; and it makes all the difference whetherthe stitches are long or short, close together or wide apart. Moreimportant than all is the direction of the stitch. By that alone you canrecognise the artist in needlework. 

The DIRECTION of the stitch deserves consideration from two points ofview--that of colour and that of form. First as to colour. It is notsufficiently realised that every alteration in the direction of thestitch means variety of tone, if not of tint. Take a feather in yourhand, and turn it about, so that now one side of the quill now the othercatches the light; or notice the alternate stripes of brighter andgreyer green on a fresh-trimmed lawn, where the roller has bent theblades of grass first this way and then that. So it is with the colourof silken stitches. The pattern opposite (82) looks as if it had beenembroidered in two shades of silk; in the work itself it has still morethat appearance; but it is all in one shade of brownish gold: thedifference which you see is merely the effect of light upon it. Thehorizontal stitches, as it happens, catch the light; the vertical onesdo not. Had the light come from a different point, the effect might havebeen reversed. If there had been diagonal stitches from right to left, they would have given a third tint; and, if there had been others fromleft to right, they would have given a fourth. 

[Illustration: 82. INFLUENCE OF STITCH-DIRECTION UPON COLOUR. ]

Suppose a pattern in which the leaves were worked horizontally, theflowers vertically, and the stalks in the direction of their growth, allin one stitch and in one colour, there would be a very appreciabledifference in tone between leaves, flowers, and stalks. In gold, thedifference would be yet more striking. And that is one reason why goldbackgrounds are worked in diapers; not so much for the sake of patternas to get variety of broken tint. 

In the famous Syon Cope the direction of the stitching is franklyindependent of the design. That is to say, that, while the patternradiates naturally from the neck, the stitches do not follow suit, butgo all one way--the way of the stuff. This, though rather a brutalsolution of the difficulty, saves all afterthought as to what directionthe stitches shall take; but it has very much the effect of weaving. Theembroiderer of the 13th century was not afraid of that (aimed at it, perhaps?), and was, apparently, afraid of letting go the leading stringsof warp and weft. 

When stitches follow the direction of the form embroidered, accommodating themselves to it, all manner of subtle change of toneresults. You get, not only variety of colour, but more than a suggestionof form. 

That is the second point to be considered. 

[Illustration: 83. MEANINGLESS DIRECTION OF STITCH. ]

The direction taken by the stitch always helps to explain the drawing;or, if the needlewoman cannot draw, to show that she cannot--as, forexample, in the tulip herewith (83). A less intelligent management ofthe stitch it would be hard to find. The needlestrokes, far from helpingin the very slightest degree to explain the folding over of the petals, directly contradict the drawing. The flower might almost have beendesigned to show how not to do it; but it is a piece of old work, quiteseriously done, only without knowing. The embroidress is free, ofcourse, to work her stitches in a direction which does not express format all, so as to give a flat tint, in which is no hint of modelling; butthe intention is here quite obviously naturalistic. The rendering below(84) shows the direction the stitches should have taken. The turn-overof the petals is even there not very clearly expressed, but that is thefault of the drawing (very much on a par with the workmanship), fromwhich it would not have been fair to depart. 

[Illustration: 84. MORE EXPRESSIVE LINES OF STITCHING. ]

A more clever fulfilment of the naturalistic intention is to be seen inIllustration 76. The drawing of the doves is in the rather loose mannerof the period of Marie Antoinette; but the treatment of the stitch isclever in its way--the way, as I have said, rather of painting than ofembroidery, giving as it does the roundness of the birds' bodies but nohint of actual feathering, such as you find in the bird in Illustration85. There, every stitch helps to explain the feathering. By a discreetuse of what I must persist in calling the same stitch (that is, satin-stitch and the variety of it called plumage-stitch) theembroiderer has rendered with equal perfection the sweep of the broadwing feathers and the fluffy feathering of the breast. It is by means ofthe direction of the stitch, too, that the drawing of the neck is soperfectly rendered. 

[Illustration: 85. SATIN AND PLUMAGE STITCHES. ]

The direction of the stitch is varied to some purpose in the head inIllustration 80, where the flesh is all in straight upright stitches, whilst the hair is stitched in the direction of its growth. 

The five petals on the satin-stitch sampler (Illustration 36)--todescend from the masterly to the elementary--show something of thedifference it makes in what direction the stitch is worked. It mattersmore, of course, in some stitches than in others; but in most cases thedirection of the stitch suggests form, and needs accordingly to beconsidered. 

It scarcely needs further pointing out how the direction of the stitchmay help to explain the construction of the form, as in the case ofleaves, for example, where the veining may be suggested; or of stalks, where the fibre may be indicated. There is no law as to the direction ofstitch, except that it should be considered. You may follow thedirection of the forms, you may cross them, you may deliberately layyour stitches in the most arbitrary manner; but, whatever you do, youmust do it with intelligent purpose. An artist or a workwoman can tellat once whether your stitch was laid just so because you meant it orbecause you knew no better. 

Having laid your stitches deliberately, it is best to leave them, andnot to work over them with other stitching. Stitching over stitching wasresorted to whenever elaboration was the fashion; but the simpler andmore direct method is the best. The way the veins are laid in cord overthe satin-stitch in the lotus leaves in Illustration 40 is the one faultto be found with an all but perfect piece of work. 

The stitching over the laid silver mid-rib in Illustration 92 is betterjudged. It may be said, generally speaking, that except where, as in thecase of laid-work, the first stitching was done in anticipation of asecond, and the work would be incomplete without it, stitching overstitches should be indulged in only with moderation. 

Stitching is sometimes done not merely over stitches, but upon thesurface of them, not penetrating the ground-stuff. Unless, in such acase, the first stitching is of such compact character as to want nostrengthening, it amounts almost to a sin against practicality not totake advantage of the second stitching to make it firmer. 

CHURCH WORK. 

It is customary to draw a distinction between church, or ecclesiasticalas it is called, and other embroidery; but it is a distinction withoutmuch difference. Certain kinds of work are doubtless best suited to thedignity of church ceremonial, and to the breadth of architecturaldecoration; accordingly, certain processes of work have been adopted forchurch purposes, and are taken as a matter of course--too much as amatter of course. The fact is, work precisely like that employed onvestments and the like (Illustration 86) was used also for the caparisonof horses and other equally profane purposes. 

[Illustration: 86. RENAISSANCE CHURCH WORK. ]

Practical considerations, alike of ceremonial and decoration, make itimperative that church work should be effective: religious sentimentinsists that it should be of the best and richest, unsparingly, and evenlavishly given; common sense dictates that the loving labour spent uponit should not be lost. And these and other such considerations involvemethods of work which, by constant use for church purposes, have come tobe classed as ecclesiastical embroidery. But there is no consecratedstitch, no stitch exclusively belonging to the church, none probablyinvented by it. For embroidery is a primitive art--clothes were stitchedbefore ever churches were furnished; and European methods of embroideryare all derived from Oriental work, which found its way westwards at avery early date. Phrygia (sometimes credited with the invention ofembroidery) passed it on to Greece, and Greece to Italy, the gate ofEuropean art. 

Christianity produced new forms of design, but not new ways of work. Themethods adopted in the nunneries of the West were those which hadalready been perfected in the harems of the East. 

Embroidery for the church must naturally take count of the church, bothas a building and as a place of worship; but, as apart from all otherneedlework, there is no such thing as church embroidery; and thebranding of one very dull kind of thing with that name is in theinterest neither of art nor of the church, but only of business. "Ecclesiastical art" is just a trade-term, covering a vast amount ofsoulless work. There is in the nature of things no reason why art shouldbe reserved for secular purposes, and only manufacture be encouraged bythe clergy. The test of fitness for religious service is religiousfeeling; but that is hardly more likely to be found in the output of thechurch furnisher (trade patterns overladen with stock symbols), than inthe stitching of the devout needlewoman, working for the glory of God, in whose service of old the best work was done. 

Many of the examples of old work given on these pages are from churchvestments, altar furniture, and the like; information on that point willbe found in the descriptive index of illustrations at the beginning ofthe book; but they are here discussed from the point of view ofworkmanship, with as little reference as possible to religious or otheruse: that is a question apart from art. 

The distinguishing features of church work should be, in the firstplace, its devotional spirit, and, in the second, its consummateworkmanship. In it, indeed, we might expect to find work beyond therivalry of trade controlled by conditions of time and money. Even thenit would be but the more perfect expression of the same art which in itsdegree ennobled things of civic and domestic use. 

Church embroidery, as usually practised in these days, is not only themost frigid and rigid in design, but the hardest and most mechanical inexecution--which last arises in great part from the way it is done. Itis not embroidered straight upon the silk or velvet which forms thegroundwork of the design, but separately on linen. The pattern thusworked is cut out, and either pasted straight on to the ground-stuff, or, if the linen is at all loose, first mounted on thin paper and thencut out and pasted on to the velvet, where it is kept under pressureuntil it is dry. In either case the edges have eventually to be workedover. 

This habit of working on linen or canvas and applying the embroideryready worked on to the richer stuff, though early used on occasion, doesnot seem to have been common until a period when manufacture generallyusurped the place of art. The work in Illustration 87 was done directlyon to the silk. In the latter half of the 18th century there was aregular trade in embroidery ready to sew on, by which means purveyorscould turn out in a day or two what would have taken months toembroider. 

Even if it had been the invariable mediæval practice to work sprays orwhat not upon canvas and apply them bodily to the velvet, that would notmake it the more workmanlike or straightforward way of working. Ifneedle stitches are the ostensible means of getting an effect upon astuff, it seems only right they should be stitched upon that stuff. Towork the details apart and then clap them on to it, stands to embroideryvery much in the relation of hedge-carpentering to joinery. Nor is itusually happy in result. Occasionally, as in the case of Miss C. P. Shrewsbury's vine-leaf pattern (Illustration 88), it disarms criticism. More often it looks stuck-on. A way of avoiding that look is to addjudicious after-stitching on the stuff itself; and this must not beconfined to the sewing on or outlining merely, but allowed to wanderplayfully over the field, so as to draw your eye away from the margin ofthe applied patch, and lead you to infer that, some of the needleworkbeing obviously done on the velvet, all of it is. But to disguise inthis way the line of demarcation, even if you succeed in doing it, is atbest the art of prevarication. 

[Illustration: 87. GOTHIC CHURCH WORK. ]

No doubt it is difficult to work upon velvet. The stuff is not verysympathetic, and the stitching has a way of sinking into the pile, andbeing, as it were, drowned in it. But the trailing spirals ofsplit-stitch which play about the applied spots in many a mediæval altarcloth hold their own quite well enough to show that silk can be workedstraight on to the velvet. 

That gold may be equally well worked straight on to velvet may be seenin any Indian saddle cloth. Heavy work of this kind may be rather man'swork than woman's; but that is not the point. The question is, how toget the best results; and the answer is, by working on the stuff. 

It may be argued that in this way you cannot get very high relief; butthe occasions for high relief are, at the best, rare. If you want actualmodelling, as in the Spanish work referred to in a previous chapter, that must, of course, be worked separately, built up, as it were, uponthe canvas and worked over. And there is no reason why it should not, for in no case does it appear to be stitching. In fact, it aimsdeliberately at the effect of chased and beaten metal. 

[Illustration: 88. MODERN CHURCH WORK BY MISS SHREWSBURY. ]

Heavy appliqué of any kind affects, of course, not only the thicknessbut the flexibility of the material thus enriched--an importantconsideration if it is meant to hang in folds. 

A PLEA FOR SIMPLICITY. 

The simplest patterns are by no means the least beautiful. It is toomuch the fashion to underrate the artistic value of the less pretentiousforms of needlework, and especially of flat ornament, whichhas, nevertheless, its own very important place in decoration. As forgeometric pattern, that is quite beneath consideration--it is somechanical! Mechanical is a word as easily spoken as another; but ifneedlework is mechanical, that is more often the fault of theneedlewoman than of the mechanism she employs. The Orientals, whoindulged so freely in geometric device, were the least mechanical ofworkers. It is our rigid way of working it which robs geometric ornamentof its charm. The needleworker has less than ever occasion to be afraidof geometric pattern; for it is peculiarly difficult to get in it thatappearance of rule-and-compass-work which makes ornament so dull. 

The one real objection to geometric pattern is that it is nowadays socheaply and so mechanically got by _weaving_ that, however freely it maybe rendered, there is a danger of its suggesting mechanical production, which embroidery emphatically ought not to do. There is a similarobjection nowadays to some stitches, such, for example, as chain-stitchand back-stitch, which suggest the sewing-machine. 

Embroidery does not to-day take quite the place it once did. It wasused, for example, by the early Coptic Christians to supplementtapestry. That is to say, what they could not weave they stitched; itwas only to get more delicate detail than their tapestry loom wouldallow, that they had recourse to the needle. Needlework was, in fact, anadjunct to weaving. Later, in mediæval times, the Germans of Cologne, for their church vestments and the like, wove what they could, andenriched their woven figures with embroidery. 

Again, a great deal of Oriental embroidery, and of peasant workeverywhere, is merely the result of circumstances. Where money is scarceand time is of no account, it answers a woman's purpose to do forherself with her needle what might in some respects be even better doneon the loom. Her preference for handwork is not that it has artisticpossibilities, but that it costs her less. She would in many casesprefer the more mechanically produced fabric, if she could get it at thesame price. We do not find that Orientals reject the productions of thepower-loom--which they would do if they had the artistic instincts withwhich we credit them. 

[Illustration: 89. SIMPLE STITCHING ON LINEN. ]

It results from our conditions of to-day that there are some kinds ofneedlework we admire, which yet are not worth our doing, such, forexample, as the all-over work, which does not amount to more than simplediaper, and which really is not so much embroidering on a textile asconverting it into one of another kind. Glorified instances of this kindof work occur in the shawl work of Cashmere, and in those beautiful bitsof Persian stitching which remind one of carpet-work in miniature, ifthey are not in fact related to carpet-weaving. 

Embroidery was at one time the readiest, and practically the only, meansof getting enrichment of certain kinds. To-day we get machineembroidery. As machinery is perfected, and learns to do what formerlycould be done only by the needle, hand-workers get pushed aside and fallout of work. Their chance is, in keeping always in advance of themachine. There is this hope for them, that the monotony of machine-madethings produces in the end a reaction in favour of handwork--providedalways it gives us something which manufacture cannot. Possibly alsothere is scope for amateurs and home-artists in that combination ofembroidery and hand-weaving with which the power-loom, though it hassuperseded it, does not enter into competition. 

[Illustration: 90. SIMPLE COUCHING ON LINEN. ]

It is not so much for geometric ornament as for simple pattern that Ihere make my plea, for that reticent work of which so much was at onetime done in this country--mere back-stitching, for example, or whatlooks like it, in yellow silk upon white linen; or the modest diaper, archaic, if you like, but inevitably characteristic, in which thenaïveté of the sampler seems always to linger; or again, the admirablysimple work in Illustration 89. This last does not show so delicately inthe photographic reproduction as it should, because, being in grey andyellow on white linen, the relative value of the two shades of colour islost in the process. In the original the broader yellow bands are muchmore in tone with the ground, and do not assert themselves so much. Suchas it is, only an artist could have designed that border-work, and anyneat-handed woman could have embroidered it. 

Think again of the delicate work in white on white, too familiar to needillustration, which makes no loud claim to be art, but is content to bebeautiful! Is that to be a thing altogether of the past now that we haveArt Needlework? Art needlework! It has helped put an end to the patienceof the modern worker, and to inspire her too often with ambitions quitebeyond her powers of fulfilment. 

What one misses in the work of the present day is that reticent andunpretending stitchery, which, thinking to be no more than a labour ofloving patience, is really a work of art, better deserving the titlethan a flaunting floral quilt which goes by the name of "artneedlework"--designed apparently to worry the eye by day and to give baddreams by night to whoever may have the misfortune to sleep under it. Isanyone nowadays modest enough to do work such as the couching in outlinein Illustration 90? Yet what distinction there is about it!

EMBROIDERY DESIGN. 

Perfect art results only when designer and worker are entirely insympathy, when the designer knows quite what the worker can do with hermaterials, and when the worker not only understands what the designermeant, but feels with him. And it is the test of a practical designerthat he not only knows the conditions under which his design is to becarried out, but is ready to submit to them. 

The distinction here made between designer and embroiderer is notcasual, but afore-thought, notwithstanding the division of labour itimplies. Enthusiasm has a habit of outrunning reason. Because in somebranches of industry subdivision of labour has been carried to absurdexcess, it is the fashion to demand in all branches of it the autographwork of one person, which is no less absurd. To try and link togetherfaculties which Nature has for the most part put asunder, is futile. 

That designer and worker should be one and the same person is an ideal, but one only very occasionally fulfilled. When that happens(Illustrations 61 and 88) it is well. But the attempt to realise itcommonly works out in one of two ways: either a good design is spoilt inthe working for want of executive skill on the part of the designer, orgood workmanship is spent on poor design, as good, perhaps, as one hasany right to expect of a skilled needleworker. 

The fact is, you can only make out all the world to be designers byreducing design to what all the world can do. And that is not much. There is a point of view from which it does not amount to design at all. 

The study of design forms part of the education of an embroidress, notso much that she may design what she works, but that she may know in thefirst place what good design is, and, in the second, be equal to theever-recurring occasion when a design has to be modified or adapted. If, in thus manipulating design not hers, she should discover a faculty ofinvention, she will want no telling to exercise it. A designer wants noencouragement to design--she designs. 

There would be no occasion to insist upon this, were it not for theprevalence at the present moment of the idea that a worker, in whateverart or handicraft, is in artistic duty bound to design whatever she putshand to do. That is a theory as false as it is unkind; let noembroidress be discouraged by it. Let her, unless she is inwardlyimpelled to invent, remain content to do good needlework. That is herart. Her business as an artist is to make beautiful things. Co-operationin the making of them is no crime. 

And what, then, about originality? Originality is a gift beyond price. But it is not a thing which even the designer should struggle after. Itcomes, if it is there. There is a revengeful consolation for the pain wesuffer from design about us writhing to be up-to-date, in the thoughtthat its contortions tell what pain it cost to do. The birth of beautyis a less agonising travail; and the thing to seek is beauty, notnovelty. Whoever planned the lines of the border in Illustration 91, ortreated the leafage in Illustration 92, was not trying to be original, but determined to do his best. Artists and workers of individuality andcharacter are themselves, without being so much as aware thatoriginality has gone out of them. 

[Illustration: 91. RENAISSANCE ORNAMENT. ]

To assume, then, that every needlewoman is, or can ever be, competent todesign what she embroiders, is to make very small account of design. Howis it possible to take design seriously and yet think it is to bemastered without years of patient study, which few workwomen can or willdevote to it? Any cultivated woman may for herself invent (if it is tobe called invention) something better worth working than is to be boughtready to work. And that may do for many purposes, so long as it does notclaim to be more than it is; but in the case of really important work, to be executed at considerable cost not only of material, but of patientlabour, surely it is worth giving serious thought to its design. Thescant consideration commonly given to it shows how little the worker isin earnest. Or has she thought? And is she persuaded that her artlessspray of flowers, or the ironed-off pattern she has bought, is all thatart could be? It would be rude to tell her she was wasting silk! Howshould she know?

The only way of knowing is to study, to look at good work, old work bypreference; it is worth no one's while to praise that unduly. And if inall that is now so readily accessible she finds nothing to admire, nothing which appeals to her, nothing which inspires her, then her caseis hopeless. If, on the other hand, she finds only so much as one styleof work sympathetic to her, studies that, lets its spirit sink into her, tries to do something worthy of it, then she is on the right road. Measure yourself with the best, not with the common run of work; and ifthat should put you out of conceit with your own work, no great harm isdone; sooner or later you have got to come to a modest opinion ofyourself, if ever you are to do even moderate things. 

[Illustration: 92. LEAF TREATMENT IN APPLIQUÉ. ]

But the "best" above referred to does not necessarily mean the mostmasterly. The best of a simple kind is not calculated to discourageanyone--rather, it looks as if it must be easy to do that; and in tryingto do it you learn how much goes to the doing it. Good design need notbe of any great importance or pretensions. It may be quite simple, ifonly it is right; if the lines are true, the colour harmonious; if it isadapted to its place, to its use and purpose, to execution not only withthe needle but in the particular kind of needlework to be employed. 

There has of late years been something of a revival of needlework designin schools of art, and some very promising and even most accomplishedwork has been done; but in many instances, as it seems to me, it israther design which has been translated into needlework, than designclearly made for execution with the needle. A really appropriate andpractical design for embroidery should be schemed not merely with a viewto its execution with the needle, but with a view to its execution in aparticular stitch or stitches--and possibly by a particular embroidress. To be safe in designing work so minute as that on Illustration 93, onemust be sure of the needlewoman who is to execute it. 

[Illustration: 93. DELICATE SATIN-STITCH--WORKED BY MISS BUCKLE. ]

My reference to old work must not be taken to imply that design shouldbe in imitation of what has been done, or that it should follow on thoselines. Design was once upon a time traditional; but the chain oftradition has snapped, and now conscious design must be eclectic--thatis to say, one must study old work to see what has been done, and howit has been done, and then do one's own in one's own way. It is at leastas foolish to break quite away from what has been done as to tetheryourself to it. And in what has been done you will see, not only what isworth doing, but what is not. That, each must judge for herself. For mypart, it seems to me the thing best worth doing is ornament. Any way, this much is certain (and you have only to go to a museum to prove it), that there is no need for needleworkers, unless their instinct drawsthem that way, to take to needle painting, to pictures in silk, or evento flower stitching. 

The limitations of embroidery are not so rigidly marked as theboundaries of many another craft. There is little technical difficultyin representing flowers, for example, very naturally--too naturally forany dignified decorative purpose. Embroiderer or embroidery designerwill, as a matter of fact, be constantly inspired by flower forms, andsilk gives the pure colour of their petals as nearly as may be. But, though the pattern be a veritable flower garden, the embroidress willnot forget, to use the happy phrase of William Morris, that she isgardening with silks and gold threads. 

Let the needleworker study the work of the needle in preference to thatof the brush; let her aim at what stuff and threads will give her, andgive more readily than would something else. Let her work according tothe needle: take that for her guide, not be misled by what some othertool can do better; do what the needle can do best, and be content withthat. That is the way to Art in Needlework, and the surest way. 

EMBROIDERY MATERIALS. 

Embroidery is not among the things which have to be done, and must bedone, therefore, as best one can do them. It is in the nature of asuperfluity: the excuse for it is that it is beautiful. It is not worthdoing unless it is done well, and in material worth the work done on it. If you are going to spend the time you must spend to do good work, it isworth while using good stuff, foolish to use anything else. The stuffneed not be costly, but it should be the best of its kind; and it shouldbe chosen with reference to the work to be done on it, and _vice versâ_. A mean ground-stuff suggests, if it does not necessitate, its beingembroidered all over, ground-work as well as pattern; a worthier one, that it should not be hidden altogether from view; a really beautifulone, that enough of it should be left bare of ornament that its qualitymay be appreciated. 

[Sidenote: STUFFS. ]

It goes without saying, that for big, bold stitching a proportionatelycoarse ground-stuff should be used, and for delicate work, one of finertexture; whether it be linen, woollen cloth, or silk, your purpose willdetermine. 

Linen is a worthy ground-stuff, which may be worked on with flax thread, crewel, or silk, but they should not be mixed. Cotton is hardly worthembroidering. Of woollen stuffs, good plain cloth is an excellent groundfor work in wool or silk, but it is not pleasant to the touch inworking. Serge, if not too loose, may serve for curtains and the like, but it is not so well worth working upon. Felt is beneath contempt. 

The nobler the material, the more essential it is that it should be ofthe best. Poor satin is not "good enough to work on;" it looks poorerthan ever when it is embroidered. 

Satin should be stretched upon the frame the way of the stuff, and itshould not be forgotten that it has a right and a wrong way up. If it isbacked, the linen should be fine and smooth: on a coarse backing, thesatin gets quickly worn away, as you may see in many a piece of old workthat has gone ragged. 

"Roman satin" and what is called "_satin de luxe_" (perhaps because itis not so luxurious as it pretends to be) are effective ground-stuffseasy to work upon; but there is an odour of pretence about satin-facedcotton. 

A corded silk is not good to embroider; the work on it looks hard; but aclose twill answers very well. Silk damask makes an admirable groundbeautifully broken in colour, if only it is simple and broad enough inpattern. Generally speaking, you can hardly choose a design too big andflat; but something depends upon the work to be done on it. In any case, the pattern of the damask ought not to assert itself, and if you can'tmake out its details, so much the better. 

Brocade asserts itself too much to form a good background. There is apractice of embroidering the outlines, or certain details only, ofdamask and brocade patterns. That is a fair way of further enriching arich stuff; but it is embroidery merely in the sense that it isliterally embroidered: the needlework is only supplementary to weaving. 

Tussah silk of the finer sort is easy to work in the hand. The thinnerand looser quality needs to be worked in a frame, and with smooth silknot tightly twisted. 

[Sidenote: THREAD. ]

With regard to the thread to work with: The coarser kinds of flax arebest waxed before using. The crewel to be preferred is that not tootightly twisted. Filoselle is well adapted to couching, and may be laiddouble (24 threads). French floss is smooth, and does well for laidwork; for fine work bobbin floss, or what is called "church floss, " isbetter; the slight twist in filo-floss is against it; very thick flossmay be used for French knots. 

For couching gold, a very fine twisted silk does well. Purse silk, thickand twisted, lends itself perfectly to basket work. Working in colouredsilks, one should take advantage of the quality of pure transparentcolour which silk takes in the dyeing. The palette of the embroiderer insilk is superlatively rich. 

[Sidenote: GOLD. ]

The purest gold is generally made on a foundation of _red_ silk. Japanese gold does not tarnish so readily as "passing, " which is in somerespects superior to it. For stitching through, there is a finer thread, called "tambour. " Flat gold wire is known by the name of "plate, " andvarious twisted threads by the name of "purl. "

[Sidenote: CHENILLE. ]

A not very promising substance to embroider with is chenille. It cameinto use in the latter half of the 17th century, and was still infashion in the time of Marie Antoinette. The use of it is shown inIllustration 75, where the darker touches of the roses are worked in it. Chenille seems to have been used instead of smooth silk, much as incertain old-fashioned water-colour paintings gum was used with thepaint, or over it, to deepen the shadows. The material is used again inthe wreath on Illustration 76. It is worked there in chain-stitch withthe tambour needle: it may also be worked in satin-stitch; but the moreobvious way of using it is to couch it, cord by cord, with fine silkthread. There is this against chenille, that its texture is notsympathetic to the touch, and that there is a stuffy look about italways. Nor does it seem ever quite to belong to the smooth satin groundon which it is worked. 

[Sidenote: RIBBON. ]

[Sidenote: SHADED SILK. ]

There is less objection to embroidery in ribbon, which also had its dayin the 18th century. It was very much the fashion for court dressesunder Louis Seize--"_Broderie de faveur_, " as it was called, whence our"lady's favour"--_faveur_ being a narrow ribbon. Some beautiful work ofits kind was done in ribbon, sometimes _shaded_. Shaded silk, by theway, may be used to artistic purpose. There is, for example, in thetreasury of Seville Cathedral a piece of work on velvet, 13th century, it is said, rather Persian in character, in which the forms of certainnondescript animals are at first sight puzzlingly prismatic in colour. They turn out to be roughly worked in short stitches of parti-colouredsilk thread. The result is not altogether beautiful, but it is extremelysuggestive. 

[Sidenote: RIBBON. ]

The effect of ribbon work is happiest when it is not sewn through thestuff after the manner of satin stitch, but lies on the surface of thesatin ground, and is only just caught down at the ends of the loopswhich go to make leaves and petals. The twist of the ribbon where itturns gives interest to the surface of the embroidery, which is alwaysmore or less in relief upon the stuff, easy to crush, and of limited usetherefore. 

[Illustration: 94. LEATHER APPLIQUÉ UPON VELVET. ]

An effect of ribbon work, but of a harder kind, was produced by onlayingnarrow strips of card or parchment upon a silken ground, twisted aboutafter the fashion of ribbon. These, having been stitched in place, were worked over in satin-stitch. The work has the merit of looking justlike what it is. But neither it nor ribbon embroidery is of any veryserious account. 

Passing reference has been made to other materials to embroider withthan thread. Gold wire, for example, and spangles, coral and pearls, which have been used with admirable discretion, as well as to vulgarpurpose. Jewels also were lavished upon the embroidery of bishops'mitres, gloves and other significant apparel, and in default of realstones, imitations in glass, and eventually beads (or pearls) of glass, in which we have possibly the origin of knots. Bead embroidery is atleast as old as ancient Egypt. Even atoms of looking-glass, sewn roundwith silk, have been used to really beautiful effect (barbaric though itmay be) in Indian work. The question almost occurs: with what can onenot embroider? In Madras they produce most brilliant embroidery uponmuslin with the cases of beetles' wings. In the Mauritius they usefish-scales; in North America, porcupine quills; and everywhere savagetribes use seeds, shells, feathers, and the teeth and claws of animals. 

To return to more civilised work, there is embroidery in gold and silverwire, allied to the art of the goldsmith, and on leather (Illustration94), allied to the art of the saddler. It would be difficult to set anylimit to the directions in which embroidery may branch out, impossibleto describe them all. Happily, it is not necessary. A skilled workeradapts herself to new conditions, and the conditions themselves dictatethe necessary modification of the familiar way. 

A WORD TO THE WORKER. 

A good workwoman will not encumber herself with too many tools; but shewill not shirk the expense of necessary implements, the simplest bypreference, and the best that are made. 

[Sidenote: NEEDLES. ]

Embroidery needles should have large eyes; the silk is not rubbed inthreading them, and they make way for the thread to pass smoothlythrough the stuff. For working in twisted silk, the eye should beroundish; for flat silk, long; for surface stitching or interlacing, ablunt "tapestry needle" is best; for carrying cord or gold threadthrough the stuff, a "rug needle. "

[Sidenote: THIMBLE. ]

For a thimble, choose an old one that has been worn quite smooth. 

[Sidenote: SCISSORS. ]

For scissors, be sure and have a strong, short, sharp and pointedpair--the surgical instrument, not the fancy article. Nail scissorswould not be amiss but for the roughness of the file on the blades. 

[Sidenote: PINS. ]

For pins, use always steel ones; and for tacks, those which have beentinned; or they will leave their mark behind them. 

[Sidenote: FRAMES. ]

For a frame, get the best you can afford; a cheap one is no economy;but a stand for it is not always necessary. It should be rather widerthan might seem necessary, as the work should never extend to the fullwidth of the webbing. A tambour frame is also useful, though you have nointention of doing tambour work. 

[Sidenote: TO STRETCH SILK. ]

In stretching silk (not backed with linen) upon a frame, somepreliminary care is necessary. The stuff should first be bordered withstrips of linen or strong tape, and into the two sides of this borderwhich are to be laced up a stout string should be tacked, to prevent itfrom giving when the work is drawn tight. 

[Sidenote: FRAMING. ]

The way to put embroidery material (thus bordered or not) into a frameis: first to sew it to the webbing (top and bottom), then to put thelaths or screws into the bars, tightening them evenly, and lastly tolace it to the sides with fine string and a packing needle. 

[Sidenote: TRANSFERRING. ]

The ordinary ways of transferring a design to embroidery material arewell known: the outline may be traced down with a point over transferpaper; it may be pricked upon paper and pounced upon the stuff in chalkor charcoal, and then traced in with a brush or pen; or it (still theoutline only) may be stencilled. In any case, the outline marked uponthe stuff should be well within what is to be the actual outline of theembroidery when worked. Another way, more peculiarly adapted toneedlework, is to trace the outline in ink upon fine tarlatan (lenomuslin will do for very coarse work), and, having laid this down uponthe stuff, to go over the lines again with a ruling pen and Indian inkor colour. On a light stuff it is possible to use, instead of a pen, ahard pencil. On a dark material one must use Chinese white, to which itis well to add, not only a little gum (arabic), but a trace of ox-gall, to make it work easily. One gets by this method naturally rather arotten line upon the ground-stuff, but it is enough for all practicalpurposes. 

[Sidenote: KEEPING CLEAN. ]

Delicate work is easily rubbed and soiled in the working. It is onlyreasonable precaution to protect it by a veil or covering of thin, soft, white glazed lining, tacked round the edges on to the stuff. On this youmark the four lines inclosing the actual embroidery, and, cuttingthrough three of them, you have a flap of lining, which you raise andturn back when you are at work. If the work is very delicate, you maymake instead of one flap a succession of little ones; but you see thenonly a portion of your work at a time, and cannot so well judge itseffect. 

[Sidenote: STARTING AND FINISHING. ]

In starting work, do not begin by making a knot in your thread; run afew stitches (presently to be worked over) on the right side of thestuff. In finishing, you run them at the back of the stuff; for greatersecurity still, one may end with a buttonhole-stitch. 

[Sidenote: PUCKERING. ]

There is less danger of puckering the stuff if you hold it over twofingers (at least), keeping it taut and the thread loose. 

Working without a frame, it often comes handiest to hold the stuffaskew, and there is a natural inclination to pull it in that direction. This temptation must be resisted, or puckering is sure to result. 

[Sidenote: DOUBLE THREAD. ]

In working with double silk or wool, it is better not to double back asingle thread, but to pass two separate threads through the eye of theneedle. The four threads (where these are turned back near the eye) makeway through the stuff for the double thread, which passes easily;moreover, the thread by this means is not pulled too tight, and theeffect is richer. 

The stitch wants always adaptation to the work it has to do. In workinga curved line, for example, say in herring-bone-stitch, one is boundalways to take up a larger piece of stuff on its outside than on itsinner edge. 

When a thread runs short, it is better not to go on working with it, butto take another; and in finishing off, remember to run the thread in thedirection opposite to that from which you are going to run the new one. In starting the new stitch, you naturally bring your needle out as if itwere a continuation of that last made. 

[Sidenote: UNDOING. ]

If your work is faulty, cut it out and do it again. Unpicking is not sosatisfactory: it loosens the stuff to drag the thread back through it, and the thread saved is of no further use. Beginners find it hard toundo work once done; but a really good needlewoman never hesitates aboutit--her one thought is to get the thing right. Don't break your threadever: that pulls it out of condition: cut it always. 

In working, it is well to keep strictly to the stitch you have chosen, but not to the point of bigotry. One may finish off darning, forexample, at the edges with a satin stitch. The thing to avoid isfudging. Moreover, stitches should be laid right at once; there shouldbe no boggling and botching, no working-over with stitches to makegood--that is not playing fair. 

[Sidenote: SMOOTHING. ]

When the needlework is done, do not finish it with a flat iron. Thatfinishes it in more senses than one. But suppose it is puckered? In thatcase, stretch it and damp it. To do this, first tack on to it (asexplained on page 251) a frame of strong tape. Then, on a drawing-boardor other even wooden surface, lay a piece of clean calico, and on that, face downwards, the embroidery, and, slightly stretching it, nail itdown by the tape with tin-tacks rather close together. If now you layupon it a damp cloth, the embroidery will absorb the moisture from it, and when that is removed, should dry as flat as it is possible to getit. 

A rather more daring plan is to damp the back of the stuff with a wetsponge. The work, instead of being nailed on to a board, may just aswell be laced to a frame by the tape. In the case of raised embroiderythere must be between it and the wood, not a cloth merely, but a layerof wadding. 

The damping above described may take the form of a thin paste orstiffening, but upon silk or other such material this wants tenderlydoing. 

One last word as to thoroughness in needlework. Those who have reallynot time to do much, should be satisfied with simple work. The desire tomake a great show with little work is a snare. Ladies make protestalways, "There is too much work in that. " Well, if they are not preparedto work, they may as well give themselves up to their play. There was nolabour shirked in the old work illustrated in these pages; and nothingmuch worth doing was ever done without work, hard work, and plenty ofit. Should that thought frighten folk away, they may as well be scaredoff at once. Art can do very well without them. 

 INDEX. 

 ADAPTATION of stitch, 103, 188, 253

 ANTIQUE stitch, 66 (_See also Oriental-stitch_)

 APPLIQUÉ, 140, 144 _et seq. _, 220, 222, 224

 ARAB work, 152

 ARTLESS art, 37, 236

 ATTACHMENT of cord, 124

 BACKSTITCH, 30, 37, 41, 53, 83, 86, 172, 226, 230

 BASKET patterns, 134

 BEADS, 248

 BEGINNING & FINISHING, 252

 BLANKET-STITCH, 56

 BRAID-STITCH, 42, 43

 BROAD surfaces (covering), 178

 BROCADE, 244

 BULLION, 165

 BULLION-STITCH, 75, 76, 162, 165

 BUTTONHOLE-STITCH, 8, 55 _et seq. _, 69, 122, 145, 158, 178, 182

 BUTTONHOLING (lace), 84, 86

 BYZANTINE embroidery, 12, 24

 CABLE-CHAIN, 42

 CANVAS, 7, 25

 CANVAS stitches, 12 _et seq. _

 CANVAS-STITCH embroidery, 22

 CARD underlay, 162, 246

 CASHMERE embroidery, 228

 CASHMERE-STITCH, 18

 CHAIN-STITCH, 38 _et seq. _, 61, 83, 129, 145, 156, 158, 178, 182, 202, 226, 245

 CHENILLE, 245

 CHINESE embroidery, 78, 96, 129, 136, 140, 152

 CHURCH work, 41, 136, 148, 166, 216 _et seq. _

 CLASSIFICATION of stitches, 9, 175 _et seq. _

 CLOTH, 125, 126, 159, 243

 COLOUR, 110, 208

 COLOUR gradation, 98, 114, 118

 COLOUR and outline, 146, 185

 COMBINATION of stitches, 182

 COPTIC embroidery, 12, 226

 " tapestry, 2

 CORAL, 166, 248

 CORD, 122

 " (couched), 128, 144, 178, 182

 " (attachment of), 124

 COTTON, 243

 COUCHED cord, 128, 144, 178, 182

 " gold, 131 _et seq. _, 182

 " outline, 146

 COUCHING, 22, 114, 120, 121, 122 _et seq. _, 244

 " (reverse), 130

 COUNTERCHANGE, 154

 CRETAN embroidery, 12

 CRETAN-STITCH, 61 (_See also Ladder-stitch_)

 CREWEL, 244

 CREWEL-STITCH, 26 _et seq. _, 83, 86, 103, 105, 178

 " (surface), 86

 CREWEL work, 26, 36, 37

 CROSS-STITCH, 12, 14, 16

 CROSSED buttonhole-stitch, 56

 CUSHION-STITCH, 20, 21

 CUT-WORK, 156

 DAMASK, 243, 244

 DAMPING, 254, 255

 DARNING, 8, 22, 83, 90, 106 _et seq. _, 178, 179

 " (Japanese), 86

 " (surface), 84

 DESIGN, 150, 219, 233 _et seq. _

 " traditional, 238, 240

 DESIGN and stitch, 10, 238

 DESIGNER and embroiderer, 232, 233

 DIAPERS, 87, 88, 108, 132, 134, 210

 DIRECTION of stitch, 92, 95, 108, 114, 136, 190, 208 _et seq. _

 DOUBLE darning, 106

 " thread, 253

 DOVETAIL-STITCH, 103, 104 (_See also Embroidery and Plumage Stitches_)

 DRAWING with the needle, 192, 194, 196, 199, 211

 DRAWN work, 2, 4

 EASTERN embroidery. (_See Oriental_)

 EFFECT and stitch, 36, 78

 EIGHTEENTH century embroidery, 220, 246

 EMBROIDERY and painting, 201, 202

 EMBROIDERY-STITCH, 103 (_See also Plumage-stitch_)

 ENGLISH embroidery, 34, 36, 169

 FEATHER-STITCH, 62 _et seq. _, 83, 100, 178

 FELT, 243

 FIFTEENTH century embroidery, 24, 164

 FIGURE work, 116, 169, 190, 198 _et seq. _

 FILLING-IN patterns, 24

 FILO-FLOSS, 164, 244

 FILOSELLE, 124, 144, 244

 FISHBONE, 21, 47, 51

 FLAX thread, 164, 244

 FLEMISH embroidery, 142, 200

 FLESH, 204, 206

 FLORENTINE-STITCH, 18, 21 (_See also Cushion stitch_)

 FLOSS, 95, 114, 116, 118, 120, 244

 FORM and stitch, 44, 47, 100, 118, 176, 211, 253

 FRAMING work, 251

 FRENCH embroidery, 88, 245

 " floss, 244

 " knots, 77, 129, 150, 178, 244

 GEOMETRIC pattern, 225

 GERMAN embroidery, 110, 125, 126, 156, 185, 226

 GERMAN knot-stitch, 72

 GOBELIN-STITCH, 18

 GOLD, 210, 222, 245

 " (couched), 131 _et seq. _, 182

 " (raised), 134, 136, 165

 GOLD thread, 131, 245

 " tinted by couching stitches, 142

 " wire, 169, 248

 HALF-CROSS-STITCH, 20

 HERALDIC embroidery, 156

 HERRINGBONE-STITCH, 8, 22, 47 _et seq. _, 83, 178, 182

 HILDESHEIM cope (the), 126

 HUNGARIAN embroidery, 2

 " stitch, 18

 INDIAN embroidery, 41, 46, 61, 95, 98, 154, 169, 222, 248

 INDIAN herring-bone, 48

 INLAY, 153

 INTERLACING stitches, 83

 ITALIAN embroidery, 22, 24, 37, 46, 138

 ITALIAN embroidery (Renaissance), 22, 41, 120, 142, 154, 199

 JAPANESE darning, 86, 87

 " embroidery, 80

 " gold, 245

 JEWELS, 165, 248

 KNOT stitches, 72 _et seq. _, 182

 LACE, 1, 2

 LACE stitches, 84 _et seq. _

 LADDER-STITCH, 59, 61, 182

 LAID-WORK, 112 _et seq. _, 162, 178

 LEATHER, 248

 LEATHER on velvet, 150

 LENGTH of stitch, 96, 100

 LIMITATIONS of embroidery, 240

 LINE work, 176, 178

 LINEN, 164, 243

 " (embroidery on), 24

 LONG-AND-SHORT-STITCH, 36, 98, 100, 178, 190, 192

 MAGIC-STITCH, 41

 MATERIAL (influence of on stitch), 12, 13, 16, 18, 24, 88, 91

 MATERIALS, 242 _et seq. _

 MECHANICAL embroidery, 225

 MEDIÆVAL work, 92, 136, 140, 190

 MILANESE-STITCH, 18

 MODELLING, 222

 MODEST work, 230, 231

 MOORISH-STITCH, 18, 21

 MOROCCO embroidery, 152

 NEEDLE (tambour), 38, 245

 NEEDLE pictures, 201

 NEEDLES, 250

 NET passing, 86

 OLD ENGLISH KNOT-STITCH, 75

 OPUS Anglicanum, 9

 ORIENTAL embroidery, 2, 22, 61, 92, 112, 136, 140, 153, 226

 " stitch, 66 _et seq. _, 83, 178, 182

 ORIGINALITY, 234

 OUTLINE, 22, 77, 108, 146, 158, 178, 184, 185 _et seq. _

 " (couched), 126, 128, 146

 " (double), 146, 185, 186

 " (stepped), 16, 24

 " (voided), 96, 187

 OUTLINE embroidery, 138

 " stitch, 29, 30, 32, 86

 PADDING, 159, 172

 PAINTING, 201, 202

 PARCHMENT, 160, 168, 246

 PARISIAN-STITCH, 18

 PATCHWORK, 156

 PEARLS, 165, 166, 248

 PEASANT work, 12, 13, 226

 PERSIAN embroidery, 7, 24, 41, 174, 228

 PICTORIAL effect, 198, 199, 201

 PICTURES (tent-stitch), 14, 20

 PIERCE, 132

 PINS, 146, 250

 PLAIT-STITCH, 21

 PLATE, 245

 PLUMAGE-STITCH, 62, 100, 103, 178, 179, 192, 212

 PRECIOUSNESS, 198

 PURL, 245

 PURSE silk, 116, 162

 QUILTING, 172 _et seq. _

 RAISED gold, 134, 136, 165 _et seq. _

 " work, 134, 136, 159 _et seq. _

 RELIEF, 159 _et seq. _, 166, 168, 169, 172, 222

 RENAISSANCE embroidery, 41, 92, 142, 154, 166

 RENEWING ground, 126

 REVERSE-couching, 130

 RIBBON, 150, 246

 RIBBON work, 246

 ROLL-STITCH, 75 (_See also Bullion-stitch_)

 ROMAN satin, 243

 ROPE-STITCH, 71 _et seq. _, 178

 RUNNING, 83, 106, 179

 SATIN, 243

 " "de luxe", 243

 " on velvet, 150

 SATIN-STITCH, 24, 91 _et seq. _, 103, 112, 128, 158, 160, 162, 175, 178, 182, 192, 206, 212, 245

 SATIN-STITCH (surface), 98, 282

 SATIN-STITCH in the making, 91

 SCISSORS, 250

 SERGE, 243

 SEVENTEENTH century embroidery, 14, 166

 SHADED silk, 246

 SHADING, 34, 176, 188 _et seq. _

 SILK, 146, 243

 " (tussah), 244

 " (twisted), 95, 124, 125

 " on silk, 150

 SILKS, 244

 SILVER, 135, 138, 166

 SIMPLICITY, 180, 236, 238

 " (a plea for), 225 _et seq. _

 SIXTEENTH century embroidery, 22, 120, 125, 142, 185, 199

 SOLID chain-stitch, 43, 44

 " crewel-stitch, 32, 34

 SOUDANESE embroidery, 112

 SPANGLES, 169, 248

 SPANISH embroidery, 129, 142, 154, 166, 185

 SPANISH-STITCH, 18, 22 (_See also Plait-stitch_)

 SPLIT-STITCH, 38, 100, 105, 114, 179, 190, 196, 222

 SPOT-STITCH, 30

 STEM-STITCH, 32

 STEMS, 95

 STEPPED outline, 16, 24

 STILETTO, 174

 STITCH (definition of), 11

 " adaptation, 103, 188, 253

 " and effect, 36, 78

 " and form, 44, 47, 100, 118, 176, 211, 253

 " and stuff, 12, 13, 16, 18, 24, 88, 91

 " groups, 9, 175 _et seq. _

 " names, 8, 9

 " patterns, 87, 88

 " and design, 10, 238

 STITCHES, 7

 STITCHING over stitching, 215

 STRETCHING work, 251, 254

 STRING, 159, 160, 162

 STROKE-STITCH, 16

 STUFFS, 242

 SURFACE crewel-stitch, 86

 " darning, 84

 " satin-stitch, 98, 182

 " stitches, 84

 SYON COPE (the), 7, 130, 210

 TAILORS' buttonhole, 56

 TAMBOUR, 245

 " frame, 44

 " needle, 38, 245

 " stitch, 38

 " work, 44, 194

 TAPESTRY, 1, 2, 4, 143, 220

 TAPESTRY-STITCH, 53

 TENDRILS, 130

 TENT-STITCH, 14, 18

 THIMBLE, 250

 THREAD, 244

 TRADITIONAL design, 238, 240

 TRANSFERRING design, 251

 TURKISH embroidery, 22

 TUSSAH silk, 244

 TWISTED silk, 95, 124, 125

 UNDERLAY, 159, 160, 165

 UNPICKING, 253

 VANDYKE chain, 42

 VARIETY of method, 148, 158

 " of stitch, 180 _et seq. _

 VELVET, 150, 222

 VENETIAN embroidery, 138

 VOIDING, 96, 187

 WEAVING, 2

 WHITE on white, 162, 230

 WOOL. (_See Crewel_)

 WOOLLEN stuffs, 243

 THE END. 

 BRADBURY, AGNEW, & CO. LD. , PRINTERS, LONDON AND TONBRIDGE. 

 _A LIST OF STANDARD BOOKS_ ON ORNAMENT & DECORATION, INCLUDING FURNITURE, WOOD-CARVING, METAL WORK, &c. , PUBLISHED BY _B. T. BATSFORD, 94, HIGH HOLBORN, LONDON, W. C. _

WINDOWS. --A BOOK ABOUT STAINED AND PAINTED GLASS. By LEWIS F. DAY. Containing 410 pages, including 50 full-page Plates, and upwards of 200Illustrations in the text, all of Old Examples. Large 8vo, cloth gilt. Price 21_s. _ net. 

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ALPHABETS, OLD AND NEW. Containing 150 complete Alphabets, 30 Series ofNumerals, Numerous Facsimiles of Ancient Dates. Selected and arranged byLEWIS F. DAY. Preceded by a short account of the Development of theAlphabet. With Modern Examples specially Designed by _Walter Crane_, _Patten Wilson_, _A. Beresford Pite_, the Author, and others. Crown 8vo, art linen. Price 3_s. _ 6_d. _ net. 

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THE DECORATION OF HOUSES. By EDITH WHARTON and OGDEN CODMAN, Architect. 204 pages of text, with 56 full-page Photographic Plates of Views ofRooms, Doors, Ceilings, Fireplaces, various pieces of Furniture, &c. , from the Renaissance period. Large square 8vo, cloth gilt, price 12_s. _6_d. _ net. 

This volume, written by an American Lady Artist, and an Architect, describes and illustrates in a very interesting way the Decorativetreatment of Rooms during the Renaissance period, and deduces principlesfor the decoration, furnishing, and arrangements of Modern Houses. 

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THE HISTORIC STYLES OF ORNAMENT. Containing 1, 500 examples from allcountries and all periods, exhibited on 100 Plates, mostly printed ingold and colours. With historical and descriptive text translated fromthe German of H. DOLMETSCH. Folio, handsomely bound in cloth, gilt, price £1 5_s. _ net. 

This work has been designed to serve as a practical guide for thepurpose of showing the development of Ornament, and the application ofcolour to it in various countries through the epochs of history. Thework illustrates not only Flat Ornament, but also many DecorativeObjects, such as METAL-WORK, POTTERY AND PORCELAIN, LACE, ENAMEL, MOSAIC, ILLUMINATION, STAINED GLASS, JEWELLERY, BOOKBINDING, &c. , showing the application of Ornament to Industrial Art. 

_Just Published. _

A MANUAL OF HISTORIC ORNAMENT, being an Account of the Development ofArchitecture and the Historic Arts, for the use of Students andCraftsmen. By RICHARD GLAZIER, A. R. I. B. A. , Headmaster of the ManchesterSchool of Art. Containing 42 Plates and 100 Illustrations in the text. Demy 8vo, cloth. Price 5_s. _

The object of this book is to furnish students with a concise account ofHistoric Ornament, in which the rise of each style is noted, and itscharacteristic features illustrated. It contains upwards of 400 subjectsdrawn by the author, and includes examples of Architectural Detail andPlastic Ornament, Pottery, Textile Fabrics, Glass, Metal-work, Mosaic, Painted Faïence, &c. , &c. Of various countries. 

A MANUAL OF PRACTICAL INSTRUCTION IN THE ART OF BRASS REPOUSSÉ FORAMATEURS. By GAWTHORP (Art Metal Worker to H. R. H. The Prince of Wales). Second and enlarged Edition. With 32 Illustrations, many fromphotographs of executed designs. Crown 8vo, in wrapper. Price 1_s. _ net. 

OLD CLOCKS AND WATCHES AND THEIR MAKERS. By F. J. BRITTEN, Secretary ofthe Horological Institute. Being an Account of the History of Clocks andWatches, their Mechanism and Ornamentation, to which is appended a Listof 8, 000 Old Makers, with descriptive Notes. Containing over 400Illustrations, many reproduced from photographs, of choice and curiousexamples, of Clocks and Watches of the past in England and abroad, including the finely-ornamented Bracket Clocks of the XVIIth Century, with their ingenious mechanism, and the tall and elegant cases of theXVIIIth Century, also a selection of Portraits of the most renownedMasters of the Clockmaker's Art. 512 pages. Demy 8vo, cloth, gilt. Price10_s. _ net. 

KING RENÉ'S HONEYMOON CABINET. A Monograph. By _John P. Seddon_, Architect. Illustrated by 10 photographic reproductions of the Cabinet, and the Panels, painted by the late SIR E. BURNE JONES, _Dante GabrielRossetti_, and _Ford Madox Brown_. With a chapter on the HereditaryEarls of Anjou, by G. H. BIRCH, F. S. A. Large 8vo, cloth, price 5_s. _net. 

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_A small remainder, just reduced in price. _

ANIMALS IN ORNAMENT. By Professor G. STURM. Containing 30 largecollotype plates, printed in tint, of designs suitable for Friezes, Panels, Borders, Wall-papers, Carving, and all kinds of SurfaceDecoration, &c. Large folio in portfolio, price 18_s. _ net (published £110_s. _). 

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A HISTORY OF DESIGN IN PAINTED GLASS. --From the Earliest Times to theend of the Seventeenth Century. By N. H. J. WESTLAKE, F. S. A. Containing467 illustrations with historical text. Four volumes, small folio, cloth, price £5 10_s. _, net £4 8_s. _

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MR. LEWIS F. DAY'S TEXT BOOKS OF ORNAMENTAL DESIGN. 

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THE APPLICATION OF ORNAMENT. --Containing: I. The Rationale of theConventional. II. What is Implied by Repetition. III. Where to Stop inOrnament. IV. Style and Handicraft. V. The Teaching of the Tool. VI. Some Superstitions. Third Edition (Sixth Thousand), further revised, with 48 full-page Illustrations and 7 Woodcuts in the text. Crown 8vo, art linen, price 3_s. _ 6_d. _, net 3_s. _

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CONTENTS: I. Introductory. II. Ornament in Nature. III. Nature inOrnament. IV. The Simplification of Natural Forms. V. The Elaboration ofNatural Forms. VI. Consistency in the Modification of Nature. VII. Parallel Renderings. VIII. More Parallels. IX. Tradition in Design. X. Treatment. XI. Animals in Ornament. XII. The Element of the Grotesque. XIII. Still Life in Ornament. XIV. Symbolic Ornament. 

 "Amongst the best of our few good ornamental designers is Mr. Lewis F. Day, who is the author of several books on ornamental art. 'Nature in Ornament' is the latest of these, and is probably the best. The treatise should be in the hands of every student of ornamental design. It is profusely and admirably illustrated, and well printed. "--_Magazine of Art. _

 "A book more beautiful for its illustrations, or one more helpful to Students of Art, can hardly be imagined. "--_Queen. _

A HANDBOOK OF ORNAMENT. --With 300 Plates, containing about 3, 000Illustrations of the Elements and Application of Decoration to Objects. By F. S. MEYER, Professor at the School of Applied Art, Karlsruhe. ThirdEnglish Edition, revised by HUGH STANNUS, Lecturer on Applied Art at theRoyal College of Art, South Kensington. Thick 8vo, cloth gilt, gilt top, price 12_s. _ 6_d. _, net 10_s. _

 "A Library, a Museum, an Encyclopædia and an Art School in one. To rival it as a book of reference, one must fill a bookcase. The quality of the drawings is unusually high, the choice of examples is singularly good.... The work is practically an epitome of a hundred Works on Design. "--_Studio. _

 "The author's acquaintance with ornament amazes, and his three thousand subjects are gleaned from the finest which the world affords. As a treasury of ornament drawn to scale in all styles, and derived from genuine concrete objects, we have nothing in England which will not appear as poverty-stricken as compared with Professor Meyer's book. "--_Architect. _

 "The book is a mine of wealth even to an ordinary reader, while to the Student of Art and Archæology it is simply indispensable as a reference book. We know of no one work of its kind that approaches it for comprehensiveness and historical accuracy. "--_Science and Art. _

A HANDBOOK OF ART SMITHING. --For the use of Practical Smiths, Designersand others, and in Art and Technical Schools. By F. S. MEYER, Author of"A Handbook of Ornament. " Translated from the Second German Edition. With an Introduction by J. STARKIE GARDNER. Containing 214Illustrations. Demy 8vo, cloth, price 6_s. _, net 5_s. _

Both the Artistic and Practical Branches of the subject are dealt with, and the Illustrations give selected Examples of Ancient and ModernIronwork. The Volume thus fills the long-existing want of a Manual onOrnamental Ironwork, and it is hoped will prove of value to allinterested in the subject. 

 "Charmingly produced.... It is really a most excellent manual, crowded with examples of ancient work, for the most part extremely well selected. "--_The Studio. _

 "Professor Meyer's work is a useful historical manual on art smithing, based on a scientific classification of the subject, that will be of service to all smiths, designers, and students of technical and art schools. The illustrations are well drawn and numerous. "--_Building News. _

_Published with the Sanction of the Science and Art Department. _

FRENCH WOOD CARVINGS FROM THE NATIONAL MUSEUMS. --A Series of Examplesprinted in Collotype from Photographs specially taken from the Carvingsdirect. Edited by ELEANOR ROWE. Part I. : Late 15th and Early 16thCentury Examples; Part II. : 16th Century Work; Part III. : 17th and 18thCenturies. The Three Series Complete, each containing 18 large folioPlates, with descriptive letterpress. Folio, in portfolios, price 12_s. _each net; or handsomely bound in one volume, £2 5_s. _ net. 

 "Students of the Art of Wood Carving will find a mine of inexhaustible treasures in this series of illustrations of French Wood Carvings.... Each plate is a work of art in itself; the distribution of light and shade is admirably managed, and the differences in relief are faithfully indicated, while every detail is reproduced with a clearness that will prove invaluable to the student. Sections are given with several of the plates. "--_The Queen. _

 "Needs only to be seen to be purchased by all interested in the craft, whether archæologically or practically. "--_The Studio. _

HINTS ON WOOD CARVING FOR BEGINNERS. --By ELEANOR ROWE. Fourth Edition, revised and enlarged, Illustrated. 8vo, sewed, price 1_s. _ in papercovers, or bound in cloth, price 1_s. _ 6_d. _

 "The most useful and practical small book on wood-carving we know of. "--_Builder. _

 "... Is a useful little book, full of sound directions and good suggestions. "--_Magazine of Art. _

HINTS ON CHIP CARVING. --(Class Teaching and other Northern Styles. ) ByELEANOR ROWE. 40 Illustrations. 8vo, sewed, price 1_s. _ in paper covers, or in cloth, price 1_s. _ 6_d. _

 "A capital manual of instruction in a craft that ought to be most popular. "--_Saturday Review. _

DETAILS OF GOTHIC WOOD CARVING. --Being a Series of Drawings fromoriginal work of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries. By FRANKLYN A. CRALLAN. Containing 34 large Photo-lithographic Plates, withintroductory and descriptive text. Large 4to, in handsome clothportfolio, or bound in cloth gilt, price 28_s. _, net 22_s. _

 "The examples are carefully drawn to a large size ... Well selected and very well executed. "--_The Builder. _

PROGRESSIVE STUDIES AND DESIGNS FOR WOOD-CARVERS. By Miss E. R. PLOWDEN. With a Preface by Miss ROWE. Consisting of five large folding sheets ofIllustrations (drawn full size), of a variety of objects suitable forWood Carving. With descriptive text. Second Edition, enlarged. 4to, inportfolio. Price 5_s. _ net. 

ANCIENT WOOD AND IRONWORK IN CAMBRIDGE. --By W. B. REDFARN, theLetterpress by JOHN WILLIS CLARK. 29 folio Lithographed Plates drawn toa good scale. Cloth gilt, a handsome volume, price 10_s. _ 6_d. _, net8_s. _ 6_d. _

This Work, giving an interesting and useful series of Examples, is butlittle known. Very few copies remain. 

HEPPLEWHITE'S CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOLSTERER'S GUIDE; or Repository ofDesigns for every article of Household Furniture in the newest and mostapproved taste. A complete facsimile reproduction of this rare work, containing nearly 300 charming Designs on 128 Plates. Small folio, boundin speckled cloth, gilt, old style, price £2 10_s. _ net. (1794. )_Original copies when met with fetch from £17 to £18. _

 "A beautiful replica, which every admirer of the author and period should possess. "--_Building News. _

CHIPPENDALE'S THE GENTLEMAN AND CABINET-MAKER'S DIRECTOR. --A completefacsimile of the 3rd and rarest Edition, containing 200 Plates ofDesigns of Chairs, Sofas, Beds and Couches, Tables, Library Book Cases, Clock Cases, Stove Grates, &c. , &c. Folio, strongly bound in half-cloth, price £3 15_s. _ net. (1762. )

SHERATON'S CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOLSTERER'S DRAWING-BOOK. --A completeFacsimile Reproduction of the scarce Third Edition. With the rareAppendix and Accompaniment complete. Containing in all 434 pages and 122Plates. 4to, cloth, price £2 10_s. _ net. 

EXAMPLES OF OLD FURNITURE, ENGLISH AND FOREIGN. Drawn and described byALFRED ERNEST CHANCELLOR. Containing 40 Photo-lithographic Platesexhibiting some 100 examples of Elizabethan, Stuart, Queen Anne, Georgian and Chippendale furniture; and an interesting variety ofContinental work. With historical and descriptive notes. Large 4to, gilt, price £1 5_s. _, net £1 1_s. _

 "In publishing his admirable collection of drawings of old furniture, Mr. Chancellor secures the gratitude of all admirers of the consummate craftsmanship of the past. His examples are selected from a variety of sources with fine discrimination, all having an expression and individuality of their own--qualities that are so conspicuously lacking in the furniture of our own day. It forms a very acceptable work. "--_The Morning Post. _

FURNITURE AND DECORATION IN ENGLAND DURING THE XVIIITH CENTURY. --By J. ALDAM HEATON. Two volumes, each of two parts, bound in four, largefolio, cloth, price £7 net. Containing upwards of 150 plates ofphotographic reproductions from the published designs of R. & J. Adam, Chippendale, Hepplewhite, Sheraton, Shearer, Pergolesi, Cipriani, Darly, Johnson, Richardson, and all great English designers and cabinet-makersof the period. 

This work forms an encyclopædic and almost inexhaustible treasury ofreference for all Furniture Designers, Painters, Interior Decorators, Cabinet-makers, &c. , since no artist of importance is unrepresented, anda fair selection is in every case given of his work. 

REMAINS OF ECCLESIASTICAL WOOD-WORK. --A Series of Examples of Stalls, Screens, Book-Boards, Roofs, Pulpits, &c. , containing 21 Platesbeautifully engraved on Copper, from drawings by T. TALBOT BURY, Archt. 4to, half-bound, price 10_s. _ 6_d. _, net 8_s. _ 6_d. _

FLAT ORNAMENT: A PATTERN BOOK FOR DESIGNERS OF TEXTILES, EMBROIDERIES, WALL PAPERS, INLAYS, &C. , &C. --150 Plates, some printed in Colours, exhibiting upwards of 500 Historical Examples of Textiles, Embroideries, Paper Hangings, Tile Pavements, Intarsia Work, &c. With some Designs byDr. FISCHBACH. Imperial 4to boards, cloth back, price £1 5_s. _, net20_s. _

EXAMPLES OF ENGLISH MEDIÆVAL FOLIAGE AND COLOURED DECORATION. --By JAS. K. COLLING, Architect, F. R. I. B. A. Taken from Buildings of the XIIth tothe XVth Century. Containing 76 Lithographic Plates, and 79 WoodcutIllustrations, with Text. Royal 4to, cloth, gilt top, price 18_s. _, net15_s. _ (published at £2 2_s. _)

PLASTERING--PLAIN AND DECORATIVE. A Practical Treatise on the Art andCraft of Plastering and Modelling. Including full descriptions of thevarious Tools, Materials, Processes and Appliances employed. With over50 full-page Plates, and about 500 smaller Illustrations in the Text. ByWILLIAM MILLAR. With an Introduction, treating of the History of theArt, by G. T. ROBINSON, F. S. A. Thick 4to, cloth, containing 600 pages oftext, price 18_s. _ net. 

 "This new and in many senses remarkable treatise ... Unquestionably contains an immense amount of valuable first-hand information.... 'Millar on Plastering' may be expected to be the standard authority on the subject for many years to come.... A truly monumental work. "--_The Builder. _

A GRAMMAR OF JAPANESE ORNAMENT AND DESIGN. --Illustrated by 65 Plates, many in Gold and Colours, representing all Classes of Natural andConventional Forms, drawn from the Originals, with introductory, descriptive, and analytical text. By T. W. CUTLER, F. R. I. B. A. Imperial4to, in elegant cloth binding, price £2 6_s. _, £1 18_s. _ net. 

DECORATIVE WROUGHT IRONWORK OF THE 17TH AND 18TH CENTURIES. --By D. J. EBBETTS. Containing 16 large Lithographic Plates, illustrating 70English examples of Screens, Grilles, Panels, Balustrades, &c. Folio, boards, cloth back, price 12_s. _ 6_d. _, net 10_s. _

_A Facsimile reproduction of one of the rarest and most remarkable Booksof Designs ever published in England. _

A NEW BOOKE OF DRAWINGS OF IRONWORKE. --Invented and Desined by JOHNTIJOU. Containing severall sortes of Iron Worke, as Gates, Frontispieces, Balconies, Staircases, Pannells, &c. , of which the mostpart hath been wrought at the Royall Building of Hampton Court, &c. ALLFOR THE USE OF THEM THAT WORKE IRON IN PERFECTION AND WITH ART. (Sold bythe author in London, 1693. ) Containing 20 folio Plates. WithIntroductory Note and Descriptions of the Plates by J. STARKIE GARDNER. Folio, bound in boards, old style, price 25_s. _ net. 

Only 150 copies were printed for England, and very few now remain. Anoriginal copy is priced at £48 by Mr. Quaritch, the renowned bookseller. 

JAPANESE ENCYCLOPÆDIA OF DESIGN. 

BOOK I. --Containing over 1, 500 engraved curios, and most ingeniousGeometric Patterns of Circles, Medallions, &c. , comprising ConventionalDetails of Plants, Flowers, Leaves, Petals, also Birds, Fans, Animals, Key Patterns, &c. , &c. Oblong 12mo, fancy covers, price 2_s. _ net. 

BOOK II. --Containing over 600 most original and effective Designs forDiaper Ornament, giving the base lines to the design, also artisticMiniature Picturesque Sketches. Oblong 12mo, price 2_s. _ net. 

These books exhibit the varied charm and originality of conception ofJapanese Ornament, and form an inexhaustible field of design. 

A DELIGHTFUL SERIES OF STUDIES OF BIRDS, IN MOST CHARACTERISTIC ANDLIFE-LIKE ATTITUDES, SURROUNDED WITH APPROPRIATE FOLIAGE ANDFLOWERS. --By the celebrated Japanese Artist, BAIREI KONO. In threeBooks, 8vo, each containing 36 pages of highly artistic and decorativeIllustrations, printed in tints. Bound in fancy paper covers, price10_s. _ net. 

 "In attitude and gesture and expression, these Birds, whether perching or soaring, swooping or brooding, are admirable. "--_Magazine of Art. _

A NEW SERIES OF BIRD AND FLOWER STUDIES. BY WATANABE SIETEI, theacknowledged leading living Artist in Japan. In 3 Books, containingnumerous exceedingly Artistic Sketches in various tints, 8vo, fancycovers. Price 10_s. _ net. 

ARTISTS' SKETCH BOOKS. --A SERIES OF FIVE VOLUMES. --Vol. I. : Birds, Flowers, and Plants, drawn in a Decorative Spirit. Vol. II. : Sketches ofInsects, Plants, &c. , drawn for Designers. Vol. III. : Drawings of Fishesand Marine Animals. Vol. IV. : Natural Scenery, Landscapes, &c. Vol. V. :Scenes from Japanese Life, &c. 8vo, fancy covers. 7_s. _ 6_d. _ net. 

THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE RENAISSANCE IN ITALY. --A General View for theUse of Students and Others. By W. J. ANDERSON, A. R. I. B. A. , Director ofArchitecture, Glasgow School of Art. Second Edition, revised andenlarged. Containing 64 full-page Plates, mostly reproduced fromPhotographs, and 100 Illustrations in text. Large 8vo, cloth gilt, price12_s. _ 6_d. _ net. 

 "A delightful and scholarly work ... Very fully illustrated. "--_Journal R. I. B. A. _

 "It is the work of a scholar taking a large view of his subject.... The book affords easy and intelligible reading, and the arrangement of the subject is excellent, though this was a matter of no small difficulty. "--_The Times. _

 "Should rank amongst the best architectural writings of the day. "--_The Edinburgh Review. _

 "We know of no book which furnishes such information and such illustrations in so compact and attractive a form. For greater excellence with the object in hand there is not one more perspicuous. "--_The Building News. _

A HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE FOR THE STUDENT, CRAFTSMAN AND AMATEUR. --Beinga Comparative View of the Historical Styles from the Earliest Period. ByBANISTER FLETCHER, F. R. I. B. A. , Professor of Architecture in King'sCollege, London, and B. F. FLETCHER, A. R. I. B. A. Containing 300 pages, with 115 Collotype Plates, mostly from large Photographs, and otherIllustrations in the text. Third Edition, revised. Cr. 8vo, cloth gilt, price 12_s. _ 6_d. _, net 10_s. _

 "We shall be amazed if it is not immediately recognised and adopted as _par excellence_ the student's manual of the history of architecture. "--_The Architect. _

 "The general reader will read the book with not less profit than the student, and will find in it quite as much as he is likely to retain in his memory, and the architectural student in search of any particular fact will readily find it in this most methodical work.... As complete as it well can be. "--_The Times. _

 "As a synopsis of architectural dates and styles, Professor Banister Fletcher's work will fill a void in our literature, and become a most useful manual. "--_The Building News. _

THE ORDERS OF ARCHITECTURE: GREEK, ROMAN AND ITALIAN. --Edited with Notesby R. PHENÉ SPIERS, F. S. A. , F. R. I. B. A. Third Edition, revised andenlarged, containing 26 Plates. 4to, cloth, price 10_s. _ 6_d. _, net8_s. _ 6_d. _

 "A most useful work for architectural students.... Mr. Spiers has done excellent service in editing this work, and his notes on the plates are very appropriate and useful. "--_British Architect. _

RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE AND ORNAMENT IN SPAIN. --A Series of Examplesselected from the purest executed between the years 1500-1560. By ANDREWN. PRENTICE, A. R. I. B. A. Containing 60 beautiful Plates, reproduced byPhoto-lithography and Photo Process from the author's drawings, ofPerspective Views and Geometrical Drawings, and details, in Stone, Wood, and Metal. With short descriptive text. Folio, handsomely bound in clothgilt, price £2 10_s. _, net £2 2_s. _

 "For the drawing and production of this book one can have no words but praise.... It is a pleasure to have so good a record of such admirable Architectural Drawing, free, firm and delicate. "--_British Architect. _

B. T. BATSFORD, 94, HIGH HOLBORN, LONDON. 

 * * * * *

Transcriber's Note:

The following printer's errors have been corrected in the text:

 page xxi: Part of a fan "f" of "fan" not printed in original

 page 62: The feathery stem (A) on the sampler "the" missing in original

 page 70: except that it has something of the appearance "of" missing in original

 page 223: in no case does it appear to be stitching "t" of "it" not printed in original

 page 225: forms of needlework "froms" printed for "forms" in original