Hello, Crewel World!
By Twistie
Even though my hands are not good at it, I admire a good piece of embroidery more than I can say. One style that has always particularly appealed to me is crewelwork. I love the flowing lines typically seen, the texture with the slightly raised bits, the long history of the technique. If I were any good at embroidery, this would be the one I think I would do most.
If you love crewel, or if you’re thinking of giving it a try, consider heading over to The Crewel Work Company & Historic British Needlepoint and looking into one of their historically accurate kits.
The crewel kits start with historically accurate Jacobean ‘Z’ twist linen to work on. They go on to provide quality thread, one gold-plated needle for single-thread stitching and a nickel-plated one for double threads (so easy to tell apart at a glance!), a booklet of basic instructions in crewel, and a full-sized chart of the work showing the exact stitches and colors used.
I’m in love with the Jacobean period Rabbit pattern shown above. It runs 39 pounds sterling. Other kits are priced individually, and there’s a handy currency converter right underneath each price so you can know what you would pay in US dollars, Canadian dollars, or whatever currency you’re using.
Also, be sure to check out their gorgeous needlepoint canvases. They have me seriously considering taking needlepoint up again.
November 10th, 2010 at 1:50 pm
Huh, I always wondered what that style of embroidery was called. I adore it – the texture is just so amazing. I also have no desire to try making it myself – I’m already overloaded with crafty projects that are just sitting around (luckily out of sight).
November 10th, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Yeah, I’m not taking it up in a hurry, either, but it sure is pretty to admire. I love this stuff.
November 11th, 2010 at 11:56 am
So timely! I’ve been wanting to do some crewel work for about six months. I have a design I’m working on but wanted to look at some Jacobean work for style hints. I want to do a curtain topper with a Jacobean-influenced design of rocket ships, robots, and ray guns. Thanks for the links!
November 13th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
I love crewel work! Frugal hint: I go to thrift stores and garage sales and buy hideous unfinished or never started needlepoint kits. I throw away the canvases and keep the yarn for crewelwork. I have a huge basket of the stuff that probably cost me less than $10, all told.
November 15th, 2010 at 12:14 am
I’ve always been fascinated by crewelwork, but I’m afraid that, though my fingers handle simpler embroidery very well, they have not mastered crewelwork. I’d love to try it it, though; it is such fun to connect with history through crafts! I cannot look at crewelled pieces without thinking about the Bayeaux Tapestry.