Whitework embroidery explained

Whitework embroidery is any embroidery technique in which the stitch and the foundation fabric (traditionally white linen) are of same color. Styles of whitework embroidery include most drawn thread work, broderie anglaise, Hardanger embroidery, Hedebo embroidery, Mountmellick embroidery, reticella and Schwalm. Whitework embroidery is one of the techniques employed in heirloom sewing for blouses, christening gowns, baby bonnets, and other small articles. It has been used extensively on household and ecclesiastical linen, as decoration. It is often found on traditional regional and national costume, particularly on shirts, aprons and head coverings.

Description of the technique

The term whitework encompasses a wide variety of specific forms of embroidery and can refer to freestyle, counted thread, and canvas-work techniques.^[1] Some whitework is known as openwork. Openwork includes drawn thread work and the related cutwork, in which threads are removed (drawn) from the background fabric, which produces an open, lacy effect.^[2] Examples of drawn thread work are broderie anglaise, Madeira, and Hardanger.

A range of different cloths have historically been used for whitework, generally lightweight cottons, but also linen or silk.^[3] Very small pin-tuck pleats, cutwork, satin stitch, and floral forms are typical features of whitework embroidery, which, de la Haye describes as “simultaneously decorative and plain”, particularly as the threads used in this technique match the colour of the cloth used.

History

Different styles of whitework emanated from different areas and at a variety of times in history. There are examples of pulled thread work from the 1200s. Prior to the 1500s, embroidered clothing and other textiles were limited to the church and to royalty.^[4] Dresden work, a pulled thread style, developed in Germany. In the early 1700s, it was popular as a substitute for lace.^[5] The term "Dresden lace" was used by Terèse de Dillmont,^[6] other terms for it include "Point de Saxe", or "Point de Dresde" to refer to Dresden white embroidery. Broderie anglaise, which features eyelets, was particularly popular in the late 1800s. When the 9th-century tomb of St. Cuthbert was opened in the 12th century, an example of drawn thread work was found in it. Another form of whitework, cutwork, was found throughout Europe, but highly skilled cutwork originated in Italy. In the 1500s, Cardinal Richelieu introduced it to France. It was so popular in the 1500s and 1600s in England that, by law, only the noble classes could wear it.

Whitework continued to be used as a technique, and became more widely accessible and adopted across the socioeconomic spectrum, particularly during the 19^th century.

In the late 18^th century, whitework embroidery featured on garments of the fashionable elite and middle classes. Gowns made of lightweight muslins, as well as petticoats and aprons  were adorned with the decorative embroidery technique, which was described in Saint-Aubin’s 1770 work 'L'Art du Brodeur', as ‘small stitches one bastes the muslin over the design which has been drawn on paper or parchment.'. ^[7] When produced during the 18^th century, the design was therefore not applied directly to the fabric, instead being visible to the embroiderer through the sheer fabric which was being used. Sheer fabric examples can be found in museums, such as this brusttuch or a shawl.During the 19^th century, the rise in whitework embroidery as a fashion item coincided with the popularity of lace. As whitework was produced at a lower cost to lace at this time, it was more accessible to a wider proportion of the population.^[8] Though employing entirely hand-made techniques, the manufacture of pieces decorated with whitework embroidery took on an industrial scale, due to consumer^[9] demand.

Through its time in fashion in the 19^th century whitework embroidery could be found on garments, accessories, and home textiles, including decorative collars, cuffs, chemises, and pelerines for womenswear, as well as bonnets and dresses for infants.

After the eventual demise from a huge mass-producing industry at the end of the 19^th century, whitework embroidery made several re-appearances in fashion. Light fabrics and colours popularised in fashions of the 1910s saw the re-emergence of whitework embroidery on outerwear such as ‘lingerie dresses’ (so called due to the fabrics used in their construction), and Edwardian garments were referenced in Mary Quant’s 1960s Victorian-inspired collections.

The traditional skills and new design works are practiced by contemporary masters.^[10] Contemporary designers working with whitework include Jenny Adin-Christie,^[11] Yvette Stanton,^[12] Tracy A Franklin^[13] Ayako Otsuka^[14] and Trish Burr.^[15]

Regional embroidery

Many traditional forms of whitework are found in towns and regions, having developed as specific styles over a period of time. They are often found on the traditional costume of the region, on shirts, aprons or head coverings. They can also be found on household linens and ecclesiastical or ritual cloths. Examples of such embroideries are:

• Hardanger embroidery (Hardangersøm) - from the Hardanger region of Norway.^[16]
• Schwalm embroidery (Schwälmer Weißstickerei or Hessenstickerei) - from the Schwalm region of Hesse province, Germany.^{[17] [18]}
• Ayrshire work - from Ayrshire, Scotland.^{[19] [20]}
• Dresden work (Point de Saxe) - from Dresden, Germany.^[21]
• Hedebo - from the Hedebo region of Zealand, Denmark.^[22]
• Lefkara lace (Lefkaritiko) - from Lefkara, Cyprus.^[23]
• Mountmellick embroidery - from Mountmellick, Ireland.^{[24] [25]}
• Guimarães embroidery (Bordado de Guimarães) - Guimarães, Portugual.^{[26] [27]}
• Frisian whitework (Fries witwerk) - from Friesland, the Netherlands.^[28]
• Marken embroidery - from Marken, the Netherlands.^[29]
• Näversöm - from the Halsingland region of Sweden.^[30]
• Silesian embroidery - Silesia (Śląsk) in the south of Poland, bordering Czechia.^[31]
• Sardinian knotted embroidery (punt 'e nù) - from Teulada, Sardinia.^{[32] [33]}
• Appenzell embroidery (Appenzeller Handstickerei) - from Appenzell, Switzerland.^[34]

The whitework industry in Scotland

The technique became associated with Ayrshire, Scotland, during the 19^th century. As a centre of production, this form of embroidery is therefore often referred to as Ayrshire Whitework. Whitework textiles were however produced for the garment trade throughout the west of Scotland at this time, including in Paisley and the wider county of Renfrewshire.The processing and manufacture of cotton thread and woven cloth in the west of Scotland, amongst several other different fibres and fabrics, can be traced to the late 18^th century, with numerous subsidiary trades including bleaching, dying, and printing also being established in this area.^[35] An interconnected system of industry and trade soon developed, and the rise in popularity for such embroidery as whitework was well situated to this geographic area, which had previously also been connected with the production of tambour embroidery, had good transport links, and established industry and trade networks.

Thousands of women were employed as outworkers in the industry in the west of Scotland, producing items deemed “small luxuries” which were traded through the Glasgow embroidered muslin markets.

Indian chikan embroidery holds similarities with the Ayrshire style of embroidery, particularly in that the two region’s embroidery often featured on very lightweight muslin cloths.^[36]

Bibliography

• S.F.A. Caulfield and B.C. Saward, The Dictionary of Needlework, 1885.
• Virginia Churchill Bath, Needlework in America, Viking Press, 1979
• McNeill, Moyra, Pulled Thread Embroidery, 2009. Dover Publications.
• Bleckwenn, Ruth; Jenzen, Igor A.; Kunstgewerbemuseum Dresden, eds. (2000). Dresdner Spitzen - Point de Saxe: virtuose Weißstickereien des 18. Jahrhunderts ; [Bestandskatalog und Begleitbuch zur Ausstellung im Kunstgewerbemuseum Dresden vom 15. Juli bis 31. Oktober 2000]. Dresden: Kunstgewerbemuseum.
• Toomer, Heather; Reed, Elspeth (2008). Embroidered with white: the 18th century fashion for Dresden lace and other whiteworked accessories. England: Heather Toomer Antique Lace.
• Fangel, Esther; Winckler, Ida; Wuldem Madsen, Agnete, eds. (1977). Danish Pulled Thread Embroidery: Sammentrækssyning. New York: Dover Publ.
• Ambuter, Carolyn (1982). The Open Canvas. Workman Pub Co.

Notes and References

1. Book: Embroidery : a maker's guide. Thames & Hudson. Crow, Eleanor, Robson, Faye, Victoria and Albert Museum. 2017. 978-0-500-29327-0. [New York, NY]. 990114748.
2. Book: Brown, Pauline.. The encyclopedia of embroidery techniques. 1994. Viking Studio Books. 0-670-85568-5. New York. 30858977.
3. Web site: de la Haye . Amy . Selvedge . 2023-07-29 . search.ebscohost.com.
4. Book: Otsuka, Ayako. Whitework embroidery : learn the stitches plus 30 step-by-step projects. 2017. Stackpole Books. Matthews, Kyoko. 978-0-8117-3822-4. Lanham, MD. 1114737787.
5. Book: The Royal School of Needlework book of embroidery : a guide to essential stitches, techniques and projects.. Royal School of Needlework (London, England). 26 June 2018 . 978-1-78221-606-3. Tunbridge Wells, Kent. 1044858813.
6. Book: de Dillmont, Thérèse . Encyklopaedie der weiblichen handarbeiten . Mülhausen (Elsass) T. de Dillmont . 1901 . 573 . German.
7. Web site: Victoria and Albert Museum . Online Museum . 2011-03-08 . Designs for Embroidered Fashion: Lady Middleton's Pattern . 2023-07-29 . www.vam.ac.uk.
8. Tuckett . Sally . 2016 . 'Needle Crusaders': The Nineteenth-Century Ayrshire Whitework Industry . Journal of Scottish Historical Studies . 36 . 1 . 60–62. 10.3366/jshs.2016.0168 .
9. de la Haye . Amy . 2017 . As Fresh As A Daisy . Selvedge Magazine . 26–31.
10. Web site: Brauer . Eva . Eva Brauer Stickmeisterin . 2023-08-17 . Eva Brauer, Embroidery Master.
11. Book: Adin-Christie . Jenny . Fine whitework: techniques, projects & pure Inspiration . 2023 . Search Press . Tunbridge Wells [England] . 978-1782217022.
12. Book: Stanton . Yvette . Hardanger Filling Stitches . December 2023 . Vetty Creations . Sydney . 978-0-6457610-0-9 . 280 .
13. Book: Franklin . Tracy A . Contemporary Whitework . 28 March 2006 . Batsford Ltd . 978-0713489644.
14. Book: Otsuka, Ayako . Whitework Embroidery . Stackpole Books . 2019 . 978-0811738224.
15. Book: Burr . Trish . Whitework With Colour . 1 December 2016 . Sally Milner Publishing . 978-1863514965.
16. Book: Stanton, Yvette . Early-Style Hardanger . Vetty Creations . 2016 . 978-0-9757677-7-1 . Sydney.
17. Book: Fernau, Renate . Schwalm Whitework . July 2000 . Lacis Publications . 978-1891656217.
18. Book: Happel, Luzine . Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework.
19. Book: Bryson, Agnes F . Ayrshire Needlework . 1989 . B.T. Batsford . 978-0713459289.
20. Book: Swain, Margaret . Ayrshire and Other Whitework . 4 March 2008 . Bloomsbury USA . 978-0852635896.
21. Book: Bleckwenn, Ruth . Dresdner Spitzen, Point de Saxe: virtuose Weissstickereien des 18. Jahrhunderts . 2000 . Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Kunstgewerbemuseum . Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Kunstgewerbemuseum (Dresden, Germany) . 978-3-932264-20-7 . Dresden . ocm47701099.
22. Book: Buus, Henriette . Hedebo Embroidery – a World of Variations . 978-87-89367-28-6.
23. Book: Chatzigiasemi, Androula . Lefkara lace embroidery: historical development, designs, techniques . 1987 . Ch. I. Philipides and son . 978-9963-7643-1-0 . Nicosia.
24. Book: Stanton . Yvette . Mountmellick Embroidery: Inspired by Nature . Scott . Prue . April 2008. Vetty Creations . 978-09757677-2-6 .
25. Book: Houston Almqvist, Jane . Mountmellick Work: Irish White Embroidery . 1996 . Colin Smythe . 978-0851055121.
26. Book: Bordado de Guimarães: renovar a tradição = Guimarães embroidery: a tradition renewed . 2006 . Campo das Letras . 978-989-625-057-7 . Fernandes . Isabel Maria . Porto.
27. Book: Stanton, Yvette . Portuguese Whitework: Bullion Embroidery from Guimarães . 2012 . Vetty Creations . 978-0-9757677-5-7.
28. Book: Stanton, Yvette . Frisian Whitework: Dutch Embroidery from Friesland . Vetty Creations . 2021 . 978-0-9757677-9-5.
29. Book: van Hemert, Maria . The Needlework of the Island of Marken . 1978.
30. Web site: Swantko . Kathlyn . Näversöm: Swedish Shepherdess Needle Art of Birch Bark Embroidery . 11 July 2024.
31. Book: Graff-Höfgen, Gisela . Schlesische Spitzen: eine Dokumentation über d. schles. Klöppel- u. Nadelspitzenherstellung . 1974 . Delp . 978-3-7689-0125-3 . Silesia . München.
32. Book: Stanton, Yvette . Sardinian Knotted Embroidery . Vetty Creations . 2014 . 978-0-9757677-6-4.
33. Book: Ralui, Gioja . Sardinian Knot Stitch . August 2014 . CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform . 978-1500158057.
34. Web site: Grimm . Jessica . Appenzell Embroidery . 11 July 2024.
35. Nisbet . Stuart M. . 2008 . The Making of Scotland's First Industrial Region: The Early Cotton Industry in Renfrewshire . Journal of Scottish Historical Studies . 29 . 1 . 1–28. 10.3366/E1748538X09000314 .
36. Web site: Embroidery styles: an illustrated guide · V&A . 2023-07-29 . Victoria and Albert Museum . en.