In the article Handwoven linen (F I) in the Test I embroidered a small Schwalm motif.
The heart was filled with pattern No. 554.
The tulip has been decorated with Honeycomb Darning stitches.
The bird’s wing was embroidered with wrapped Chain stitches and Straight stitches, and the bird’s belly was embroidered with interlaced Herringbone stitches.
I am providing you with the outline design as a hand drawing for download.
I’m currently testing old, handwoven linen for its suitability for Schwalm whitework.
Handwoven linen is the ideal base fabric for Schwalm whitework. On these traditional fabrics, the embroidery develops a more three-dimensional effect than on industrially woven linen, as demonstrated by comparing the same pattern on the two substrates.
Even if the photos are not very good and clear, you can still see the difference in the unfolding of the embroidery between the industrial
and the handcrafted fabric
However, there are huge differences in the quality of handwoven linen. Many of the fabrics still found today are completely unsuitable.
Therefore, it’s advisable to test the linen before starting a larger project. If the initial tests are positive, you should examine its further properties with a small sample embroidery.
For example, you can pay attention to the following points:
1. General appearance – width; original condition or already washed?; frequency of thickening and fabric defects
2. Appearance of the fabric threads
3. Stains
4. Feel test
5. Evenness of the fabric
4. Thread withdrawing
6. Needle glide
The linen is in the original condition of the bale it was sewn into after production. It has smooth selvedges and shows the stitches used to sew the bale together in two places. After unpicking the stitches, larger holes remain visible approximately 2.5 cm deep toward the center of the fabric – but these are only small spots on the overall large piece of fabric.
Approximately 100 cm had to be trimmed off at the beginning and end of the bale because the linen was too distorted there.
The linen is 70 cm wide – a typical width for handwoven linen.
It feels firm, but not too stiff. I would describe the handle as medium-firm.
The linen shows heavy dirt on the fold and (mostly lighter) stains over the entire surface. This is also common for linen that has been stored for many decades.
After a quick wash, all of these stains disappeared.
The following photos are highly magnified, making the aforementioned stains appear worse than they actually are.
The weave is very dense, and the threads used vary in thickness. I count 15 to 18 warp threads and 17 to 20 weft threads per centimeter.
The threads are usually clearly separated from each other – a sign that they can be withdrawn easily.
But there are also areas with matting.
Every now and then (perhaps once per meter) you will find thread thickenings
and also weaving errors.
The warp thread was relatively easy to pull out without breaking. When pulling out the weft threads, they usually broke after about 3 to 5 centimeters.
To test the linen during embroidery, a small motif (18 cm x 11.5 cm) is ironed on and embroidered.
Because the linen is so tightly woven, the needle can’t glide through the fabric effortlessly. But after a few stitches, you’ll get used to it. Embroidery on handwoven linen is usually a bit more strenuous than on industrially produced linen.
Thread withdrawing in the motif areas worked well. However, I had to use a magnifying glass.
The Limet thread grid appears relatively uniform despite the different fabric thread thicknesses.
One can embroider many beautiful filling patterns into the comparatively small heart area of 4 cm width.
The density of the linen allows for precise surface embroidery.
The small embroidery looks great on the linen.
All stains have completely disappeared. The weaving flaw is unnoticeable, and the thickened threads don’t detract from the overall appearance. A somewhat irregular texture is typical of handwoven linen and contributes to the fabric’s appeal.
See also:
Selling Handwoven Linen (1)
Testing Fabric Suitability for Schwalm Whitework
Linen: Embroidery Fabric from Flax Fibers
Fault in the Linen – what to do? (1)
I recently held a special piece in my hands. Dated 1843, it appears to be a wedding bedsheet, as indicated by the letter combinations on the left side of the crown—C C H L—and on the right side—A C H L. C and A are the initials of the first names, and C H L is an abbreviation of the surname.
Although I have the cloth from Schwalm, the font and crown are not typical of Schwalm. A few special embroideries prompt me to present the details here.
The visible part of the sheet, which hung over the front edge of the bed and was decorated with a crown, initials, and the year, was made from the finest 21-cm-thread-count linen.
The lower edge is decorated with a two-centimeter-wide needle-weaving hem with a block pattern.
On the side panels you will find a one and a half centimeter wide cube needle-weaving hem.
Since the panels of handwoven linen were usually less than a meter wide, several panels had to be placed side by side.
For the part not visible to the viewer, a much coarser, 15/16-cm-thread-count linen was chosen.
A special feature that I hadn’t seen before were the connecting stitches in the style of a needle-weaving hem.
The distance between the two fabric panels is approximately 8 mm. Three threads were laid close together from one fabric panel to the opposite one, then weaved halfway. Then—and this is the special feature—the thread was moved to the nearest completed needle-weaving bridge and there wrapped around the center of the first laid thread. On the way back to the started needle-weaving bridge, the working thread was wrapped. Then the needle-weaving bridge was finished. It has a width of approximately 3 mm. The next bridge was started at a distance of approximately 4 mm.
Also unusual are the horizontal connections between the multi-unit needle-weaving bridges of the hem with block pattern on the lower edge.
See also:
Combining Lengths of Linen to Make Larger Pieces (1)
Combining Lengths of Linen to Make Larger Pieces (2)
Plaited Insertion stitch (Interlaced Insertion stitch) – how to work
Filling Pattern – No. 582
category: openwork filling pattern with Cable stitch grid
linen used: 13.5/cm thread count
threads used: coton à broder No. 30 for the Cable stitches and No. 20 for the Rose stitches
stitches used: Cable and Rose stitches
center: intersection of withdrawn thread lines (square)
one pattern segment: 48 threads
The filling pattern shown here is a practice exercise only. You can see it used in a shape at the end of this article.
First, establish an openwork grid with a square (an intersection of withdrawn thread lines) in the center by cutting 2, leaving 2 both vertically and horizontally.
Stabilize the established grid with Single Faggot stitches worked from the back side of the fabric. Please remember that Single Faggot stitch worked on the back side will look like Cable stitch viewed from the front.
Start in the fourth square below the center. The end of the working thread remains on the front side for now.
Work a rose stitch into this square. It’s a good idea to place the first part of the rose stitch in the direction you want to continue stitching later—i.e., the first partial stitch upwards if you want to work additional rose stitches above; the first partial stitch to the left if you want to work additional rose stitches to the left, and so on. This ensures that the square’s area is well covered.
After completing the first rose stitch, move the needle diagonally one square to the top right and from there work three rose stitches to the left.
In the square above the middle rose stitch, embroider another rose stitch, then emerge a square diagonally to the top right
and from there work three rose stitches to the left. After completing the third rose stitch, emerge a square above,
from there, embroider four rose stitches to the left.
Then move the needle diagonally one square to the right and one square down.
There, work a rose stitch, and then move the needle two squares up. There, work another rose stitch.
Leave 1 square remaining free to the right (to ensure that the square in between remains well defined and open, slide the working thread through a cable stitch on the back).
From there, work three rose stitches to the right. Over the middle of the three stitches, work a cross of one, three, and one rose stitches. The working thread is brought back to the square to the right of the center on the back.
From there, four rose stitches are worked to the right and then the needle is moved diagonally one square to the left and one square down.
There work a rose stitch and then move the needle up two squares. There work another rose stitch.
The first element of the pattern is finished.
An identical element is embroidered at intervals of three empty squares.
From the middle of the three remaining squares, leave one more square free and then embroider further elements to the left and right.
In this way fill the entire area.
An extraordinary pattern emerges,
which appears particularly effective in large areas, as here on a tablecloth from 1927.
In previous posts, I’ve chronicled the evolution of tulip motifs over the centuries.
Now, as luck would have it, hundreds of different tulips have bloomed in my garden.
Pointed in the bud,
star-shaped,
large and small,
filled
more rounded, or
with pointed petals.
The splendor gave me the idea to create a tulip sampler. Unfortunately, I have no talent for designing. But perhaps you’d enjoy such a task. To make it easier, I’ve compiled various tulip outlines. You can pick the ones you like best from the selection and create a pattern with some accessories like small leaves, spirals, etc.
I look forward to seeing such designs someday.
Luzine Happel
Am Schindeleich 43
37269 Eschwege
Deutschland
Telefon: 05651-32233
Website: www.luzine-happel.de
E-Mail: leuchtbergverlag@aol.com
