Editing Crewel embroidery

{{short description|Type of embroidery using wool}}
{{redirect|Crewel|the novel by Gennifer Albin|Crewel (novel)}}

'''Crewel embroidery''', or '''crewelwork''', is a type of surface [[embroidery]] using [[wool]]. A wide variety of different [[embroidery stitch]]es are used to follow a design outline applied to the fabric. The technique is at least a thousand years old.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}}

Crewel embroidery is not identified with particular styles of designs, but rather is embroidery with the use of this wool thread.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|102}} Modern crewel wool is a fine, two-ply or one-ply yarn available in many different colours. Crewel embroidery is often associated with England in the 17th and 18th centuries, and from England was carried to the American colonies. It was particularly popular in New England. The stitches and designs used in America were simpler and more economical with the scarce crewel wool. The [[Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework]] (1896–1926) revived interest in crewel embroidery in the United States.

[[File:Crewel curtain c 1696 England leaf detail.jpg|right|thumb|250px|Fanciful leaf in crewelwork, detail of a [[curtain]], English, c. 1696. [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] T.166-1961.]]

== Description of the technique ==
The crewel technique is not a [[counted-thread embroidery]] (like [[canvas work]]), but a style of [[free embroidery]]. Crewelwork had its heyday in Britain in the 17th century, but has come in and out of fashion several times since then.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://trc-leiden.nl/trc-needles/regional-traditions/europe-and-north-america/embroideries/crewel-embroidery |website=Textile Research Centre |publisher=TRC Leiden |access-date=3 May 2019 |title=Crewel Embroidery}}</ref> Traditionally, crewel embroidery is done on tightly woven linen twill, though more recently, other fabrics like [[Matka (silk)|Matka]] [[silk]], cotton [[velvet]], [[rayon]] velvet, silk organza, net fabric and also [[jute]] have been used. A firm fabric is required to support the weight of the stitching, which is done with [[Embroidery thread|crewel wool]].  This type of wool has a long staple; it is fine and can be strongly twisted.  It is best to use a [[sewing needle|crewel needle]] to execute the stitches as a needle with a wide body, large eye and a sharp point is required.

The outlines of the design to be worked are often screen printed onto the fabric or can be transferred to plain fabric using modern transfer pens containing water-soluble ink or air-soluble ink, using a lightbox and a permanent pen, or iron-on designs applied using transfer sheets. The old-fashioned "pinprick and chalk" or "prick and pounce" methods also work well. The prick and pounce method involves transferring the design outlines&nbsp;– printed on paper&nbsp;– by pricking the outline with a needle to produce perforations along the lines. Powdered [[chalk]] or [[Pounce (calligraphy)|pounce]] material is then forced through the holes onto the fabric using a felt pad or stipple brush in order to replicate the design on the material.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|title=The encyclopedia of embroidery techniques|author=Brown, Pauline|date=1994|publisher=Viking Studio Books|isbn=0-670-85568-5|location=New York|oclc=30858977}}</ref>{{Rp|9–10}}

Designs range from the traditional to more contemporary patterns. Traditional design styles are often referred to as [[Jacobean embroidery]] featuring highly stylized floral and animal designs with flowing vines and leaves.

Many different embroidery stitches are used in crewelwork to create a textured and colourful effect. Unlike silk or cotton embroidery threads, crewel wool is thicker and creates a raised, dimensional feel to the work. Some of the techniques and stitches include:
*Outlining stitches such as [[stem stitch]], [[chain stitch]] and [[split stitch]]
*[[Satin stitch]]es to create flat, filled areas within a design<ref>{{cite web |last1=Goiser |first1=Anna |title=Basic Crewel Stitch Vocabulary |url=http://www.talliaferro.com/Process2.html |website=Talliaferro |access-date=3 May 2019}}</ref>
*[[Couching (embroidery)|Couched stitch]]es, where one thread is laid on the surface of the fabric and another thread is used to tie it down. Couching is often used to create a trellis effect within an area of the design.
*[[Seed stitch]]es, applied randomly in an area to give a lightly shaded effect
*[[French knot]]s are commonly used in floral and fruit motifs for additional texture
*Laid and couched work
* Long and short "soft shading"<ref name=":2" />

In the past, crewel embroidery was used on elaborate and expensive [[bed hangings]] and curtains. Now it is most often used to decorate cushions, curtains, clothing and wall hangings. Recently several other items, such as lamp shades and handbags have been added.

Unlike canvas work, crewel embroidery requires the use of an [[embroidery hoop]] or frame on which the material is stretched taut and secured prior to stitching. This ensures an even amount of tension in the stitches, so that designs do not become distorted. Depending on the size of the finished piece, crewelwork is generally executed with a small portable hoop up to large free standing frames (also known as slates).

== Etymology ==
The origin of the word '''crewel''' is unknown but is thought to come from an ancient word describing the curl in the staple, the single hair of the wool.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The History of Crewel Embroidery|url=http://www.suembroidery.com/articles/Crewel_Embroidery_History.htm|access-date=2019-04-23|website=www.suembroidery.com}}</ref> The word '''crewel''' in the 1700s meant [[worsted]], a wool yarn with twist, and thus crewel embroidery was not identified with particular styles of designs, but rather was embroidery with the use of this wool thread.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|102}}

== History of crewelwork ==
The earliest surviving example of crewelwork is [[Bayeux Tapestry|The Bayeux Tapestry]], which is not actually a tapestry at all. This story of the [[Norman conquest of England|Norman Conquest]] was embroidered on linen fabric with worsted wool.<ref name="Royal School of Needlework 2018">{{Cite book|title=The Royal School of Needlework book of embroidery: a guide to essential stitches, techniques and projects|publisher=Search Press|author=Royal School of Needlework (London)|date=2018|isbn=9781782216063|location=Tunbridge Wells, Kent|pages=32|oclc=1044858813}}</ref> The creators of the Bayeux Tapestry used laid stitches for the people and the scenery, [[Couching (embroidery)|couched stitches]] to provide outlines, and [[Backstitch|stem stitch]] for detail and lettering. The worsted wool used for the embroidery may have come from the [[Norfolk]] village of [[Worstead]].<ref name="Royal School of Needlework 2018" /> There are few other early crewel embroideries known. The Jamtlands Lans Museum in Sweden has three related items, the [[Överhogdal tapestries|Overhogdals tapestries]], from the 11th–12th centuries that show people, animals, and other natural and human-built items. As of 2019, the primary theory is that these works depict the downfall of the world, the [[Ragnarök|Ragnarok]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ancientpages.com/2019/04/26/overhogdal-tapestry-amazingly-well-preserved-ancient-textiles-with-norse-and-christian-motifs/|title=Överhogdal Tapestry: Amazingly Well-Preserved Ancient Textiles With Norse And Christian Motifs|date=2019-04-26|website=Ancient Pages|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-27}}</ref>

=== England ===
Wool from Worstead in Norfolk was manufactured for weaving purposes, but also started to be used for embroidering small designs using a limited number of stitches, such as stem and seeding. These were initially often executed in a single color. However, the color and design range expanded, and embroidery using this crewel wool began to be used in larger projects and designs, such as bed hangings.<ref name="Royal School of Needlework 2018" />{{Rp|32}}

Rich embroidery had been used extensively in ecclesiastical vestments and altar drapings, but after the Protestant Reformation, the emphasis moved to embroidery, including crewel work, for use in homes and other secular settings.<ref name="Royal School of Needlework 2018" />{{Rp|32}}

==== Elizabethan Period ====
[[File:Stool_MET_DP159798.jpg|thumb|Embroidered cushion cover, 1601, British (Metropolitan Museum of Art)]]
Embroidery for household furnishings during the Elizabethan era was often worked using silk and wool on canvas or linen canvas. Garment embroidery more often used silk or silk and silver threads. Many different stitches were used for the embroidery, including "back, basket, braid, pleated braid, brick, buttonhole, chain, coral, cross, long-armed cross, French knot, herringbone, link, long and short, running, double running, satin, seed, split, stem, tent as well as laid work and couching."<ref name=":22">{{Cite book|title=The art of crewel embroidery|last=Davis|first=Mildred J.|date=1962|publisher=[publisher not identified]|oclc=5805445}}</ref>{{Rp|16}}

Motifs frequently used in crewel embroidery of the period included coiling stems, branches, and detached flower designs.<ref name=":22" />{{Rp|16}} Some embroideries from the Elizabethan period used garden motifs for their design, as gardens themselves were enjoying a heyday. These embroideries were worked in silk or wool (crewel), and were used in the home to brighten the surroundings. Embroidered wall hangings, table carpets, and various forms of bed-hangings might all sport embroidered images. The length of valences made them ideal for embroidery that told a story of a number of episodes.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/embroideredgarde00beck|title=Embroidered gardens|author=Beck, Thomasina|date=1979|pages=6–7|publisher=Viking Press|isbn=0-670-29260-5|location=New York|oclc=4947170|url-access=registration}}</ref>

==== Stuart Period ====
[[Mary II of England|Queen Mary II]] (co-reigned 1689–1694 with her husband [[William III of England|William II]]) and the women of her court were known for the very fine needlework they produced. Using satin stitch with worsted wool, they created hangings and other objects showing images of fruits, birds, and beasts.<ref name=":12">{{Cite journal|last=Jourdain|first=M.|date=1909|title=Crewel-Work Hangings and Bed Furniture|journal=The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs|volume=15|issue=78|pages=366–368}}</ref>{{Rp|367}} Their example spurred interest in crewel embroidery. Bed hangings and other furnishings were created, often using bluish greens supplemented by brighter greens and browns. Occasionally, "a dull pinkish red" would be the main color.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|367}}

[[File:Bed curtain panel, British, early 18th c.jpg|thumb|Crewel embroidery on bed curtain panel, British, early 18th century (Metropolitan Museum of Art)]]

Designs in the latter part of the 1600s fell primarily into three categories. One was individual sprays of flowers scattered over the fabric; the second, to be found on narrow panels, involved flowering stems running the length of the panel with a floral motif between them; and the third was a branching tree with stylized leaves, the [[Tree of life|Tree of Life]]. The tree sits on a mound, and there might be other small motifs of individuals or flora and fauna near the mound. [[Jacobean embroidery]] from the first quarter of the 17th century is known for this third category. Some experts believe that these patterns were derived from cotton [[palampore]] from [[Machilipatnam|Masulipatam]].<ref name=":12" /> However, other experts stress the importance of multiple influences from different parts of the world brought back by English travelers, and evolving designs from earlier forms of embroidery.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=Jacobean embroidery : its forms and fillings including late Tudor|last=Fitzwilliam, Ada Wentworth.|date=1990|publisher=B.T. Batsford|others=Hands, A. F. Morris.|isbn=0-7134-6376-7|edition=1st pbk.|location=London|oclc=27188169}}</ref>

Flora and fauna found in the tree of life designs include the [[rose]], noted for national and religious reasons, and two emblems of the Stuarts: the [[Dianthus caryophyllus|carnation]] and the [[caterpillar]]. Influence of exploration and trade are seen in plants in Jacobean that have recently become known to the English: the potato flower and the strawberry.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|xvi}}

During the time of [[William III of England|William]] and [[Mary II of England|Mary]], Chinese motifs began to appear in crewel embroideries, such as pagodas, long-tailed birds, and Chinese people. Just as Indian cottons may have influenced designs with trees and exaggerated leaves, these Chinese elements may have been inspired by Persian silks and [[calico]] fabric.<ref name=":12" />{{Rp|368}}
[[File:Georgian embroidered panel detail.jpg|thumb|Hanoverian period (c. 1740) crewelwork detail highlighting carnation]]
Jacobean embroidery designs enjoyed a resurgence in interest during the reign of [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]] (reigned 1702–1707). Patterns from the mid-1600s were copied, either exactly or with some alterations. While the tree motif is common to all, there is evidence of gradual change in the designs that link them together.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|xii–xiii}}

=== United States ===
==== Colonial America ====
Early fabrics made in the Colonies tended to be plain in both weave and in color. Fabric was made from white and black wool, and indigo dye was used. With the use of these materials, the fabric was gray, brown, or blue. Needlework was a way to enliven this fabric. and the earliest forms of needlework used were [[turkeywork]] and crewel embroidery.<ref name=":1" />{{Rp|9}}[[File:America, Massachusetts, Boston, 18th century, 1st half - "Fishing Lady" - 1996.1003 - Cleveland Museum of Art.tif|thumb|Fishing Lady crewelwork, 18th century, Boston (Cleveland Art Museum)]]

While early American crewelwork, and embroidery more generally, followed in the tradition of their English counterparts regarding fabric, designs, and yarn, there were some differences. Early American works tend to display a smaller range of individual stitches, smaller and less complicated designs, and the designs cover less of the background fabric.<ref name="Swan1976" />{{rp|82–83}} A study of New England crewel embroidery found that the primary colors, blue, red, and yellow, were the most used. The stitches used most often were outline, seed, and economy, and the designs most frequently used showed plants.<ref name=":1" />{{Rp|Abstract}}

Crewel embroidery was a pastime primarily in New England. There are some surviving examples from the mid Atlantic region, primarily New York and Pennsylvania, but these designs differed. Indeed, there were also stylistic differences within New England, with one region being the Massachusetts coast area centered on Boston, and another Connecticut.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Rowe|first=Ann Pollard|date=1973|title=Crewel Embroidered Bed Hangings in Old and New England|journal=Boston Museum Bulletin|volume=71|issue=365–366|pages=101–163}}</ref>{{rp|104–105}}

Young women in New England in the 1700s were expected to become adept at needlework. Day and boarding schools that taught different types of needlework existed, as evidenced by advertisements in colonial Boston newspapers.<ref name="Terrace1964" />{{rp|77}} They would embroider items both utilitarian, such as bed-hangings, curtains, clothes, and bed linens, and ornamental, such as wall hangings.<ref name="Townsend1941" />{{rp|26}} In the early colonial period, the master bed was often located in the parlor, and thus on public display. Crewel bed-hangings provided both decoration and comfort, while serving as a status symbol.<ref name="Swan1976">{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/winterthurguidet00swan|url-access=registration|title=A Winterthur guide to American needlework|last=Swan|first=Susan Burrows|publisher=Crown|others=Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum|year=1976|isbn=0517521776|location=New York|oclc=2151073}}</ref>{{rp|68}} Women would also create smaller items decorated with crewel work, such as the detached [[pocket]]s that were worn tied around one's waist and envelope bags carried by men and women that were popular in the second half of the 1700s.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Weissman, Judith Reiter.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/29315818|title=Labors of love : America's textiles and needlework, 1650–1930|date=1994|publisher=Wings Books|others=Lavitt, Wendy.|isbn=0-517-10136-X|location=New York|oclc=29315818}}</ref>{{Rp|113–115}} 
[[File:American_crewel_valance.jpg|thumb|Detail of linen valence ca. 1760–1770 embroidered with crewel wool, American]]
Many of the embroidery patterns they worked from included common motifs: trees, birds, flowers, groups of figures or animals. This indicates that these patterns may have been variations of a small number of originals.<ref name="Terrace1964">{{Cite journal|last=Terrace|first=Lisa Cook|date=1964|title=English and New England Embroidery|journal=Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts|volume=62|issue=328|pages=65–80|jstor=4171406}}</ref>{{rp|77}} Landscape patterns with figures were more realistic in the 18th century than they were in the 17th century, and seldom involved scenes from the Bible, as had earlier patterns.<ref name="Townsend1941">{{Cite journal|last=Townsend|first=Gertrude|date=1941|title=An Introduction to the Study of Eighteenth Century New England Embroidery|journal=Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts|volume=39|issue=232|pages=19–26|jstor=4170793}}</ref>{{rp|26}} Many of the New England embroidery designs in the 1700s included rounded and curving elements.<ref name="Terrace1964" />{{rp|78}}

Patterns for crewel designs were obtained in a number of ways. Patterns in both England and New England were often derived from elements taken from engravings of English and French artists. These elements, often figures or groups of figures, would be taken from various works and combined in different ways.<ref name="Townsend1941" />{{rp|26}} In colonial New England, women used pattern books or sketches in magazines (such as ''The [[Ladies' Magazine]]'') that were obtained from England. Design books of other types, such as gardens and furniture, were also used. Custom stamped fabric could be found in larger cities at times, as could custom-drawn sketches. Women may also have used designs from printed fabric for their crewel work.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|url=https://d.lib.msu.edu/etd/7977/datastream/OBJ/View/|title=Crewel Design of Colonial New England and the Environmental Influences|last=Richards|first=Mary Lynne|publisher=Michigan State University|year=1975|type=M.A. Thesis}}</ref>{{Rp|10–11}}

From surviving Colonial crewelwork and written references such as letters, it is known that most projects were embroidered on linen. However, the preferred background fabrics were [[fustian]] (a twill fabric that generally had a linen warp with a cotton weft, though may have been all cotton) or [[dimity]] (which has fine vertical ribs and resembles fine corduroy).<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/plainfancyameric0000swan/page/105|url-access=registration|title=Plain & fancy: American women and their needlework, 1700–1850|last=Swan|first=Susan Burrows|publisher=Holt, Rinehart, and Winston|year=1977|isbn=9780030151217|location=New York|page=[https://archive.org/details/plainfancyameric0000swan/page/105 105]|oclc=2818511}}</ref>

The range of wool colors that needleworkers in colonial New England could call upon were rather limited. Many New England households grew [[indigo]], which allowed wool to be dyed in various shades of blue. Other natural materials, used with or without [[mordant]]s, used to dye wool included: [[Juglans cinerea|butternut]] shells (spring green); hemlock bark (reddish tan); [[Haematoxylum campechianum|logwood]] (purple brown, blue black, deep black purple); [[Carex scoparia|broom sedge]], wild cherry, [[sumac]], and [[Solidago|golden rod]] (yellow); onion skins (lemon and gold yellow); and [[cochineal]] (purple, deep wine red).<ref>{{Cite book|title=American needlework: The history of decorative stitchery and embroidery from the late 16th to the 20th century|last=Harbeson|first=Georgiana Brown|publisher=Bonanza Books|location=New York}}</ref>{{Rp|30–31}}

==== Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework ====
{{Further|Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework}}
There was a resurgence of interest in crewel embroidery in [[Deerfield, Massachusetts|Deerfield]], Massachusetts, when two women, [[Margaret C. Whiting]] and [[Ellen Miller (artist)|Ellen Miller]], founded the Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework. This society was inspired by the crewel work of 18th-century women who had lived in and near Deerfield. Members of the Blue and White Society initially used the patterns and stitches from these earlier works that they had found in the town museum.<ref name=":4" /> Because these new embroideries were not meant to replicate the earlier works, society artisans soon deviated from the earlier versions with new patterns and stitches, and even the use of linen, rather than wool, thread.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=The Needle arts : a social history of American needlework.|publisher=Time-Life Books|others=Time-Life Books|year=1990|isbn=0-8094-6841-7|location=Alexandria, Va.|pages=104|oclc=21482166}}</ref> Miller and Whiting used vegetable dyes in order to create the colors of the wool threads, and handwoven linen fabric was bought for use as the background.<ref name=":5" /> Members of this society continued their stitching until 1926.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=Deerfield embroidery|last=Howe, Margery Burnham.|date=1976|publisher=Scribner|isbn=0-684-14377-1|location=New York|oclc=1341513}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Jacobean embroidery]]
*[[Stumpwork]]
*[[Mary Linwood]]
*[[Crewel (novel)]]

== References ==
<references />

== External links ==
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*[http://trc-leiden.nl/trc-needles/clothing-undergarment/regional-traditions/europe-and-north-america/embroideries/crewel-embroidery Crewel work in TRC Needles]
*[http://www.caron-net.com/feb00files/feb00fea.html How Crewel] – Feature about the history and development of crewel work, with photographs

{{embroidery}}

[[Category:Embroidery]]