Stumpwork Medieval Flora

Description

Examples of medieval stumpwork - the art of embroidering using raised, 3D embellishments - can be found in museums and galleries throughout Europe. Considered among the most intricate and lovely of embroidery styles, it requires a delicate touch. Now, the secrets of stumpwork are revealed through eight beautiful floral projects, all inspired by the 16th-century illuminated 'Book of Hours' created by Jean Bourdichon for Anne of Brittany. The embroideries include 'Corncockle and Dragonfly', 'Snowdrop and Cranefly', and the lovely 'Venus' Looking Glass and Bumble-bee'. In addition to instructions for every technique, this fully illustrated book also provides tracing patterns and a comprehensive stitch glossary.

Jane Nicholas has worked in the field of embroidery for over twenty years, specialising in stumpwork and goldwork embroidery. She has written five books and has contributed widely to journals and magazines. She teaches widely for Embroiderers' Guilds and businesses in Australia, New Zealand and the United States, and continues to research and develop new techniques, particularly in stumpwork.

Illuminated manuscripts of the medieval era provide the inspiration for Jane Nicholas's glorious stumpwork. There are eight botanical specimens, which display the buds, blossoms and seed cases of the flower; the embroideries, like the illustrations that inspired them, offer wonderful surprises, and close inspection reveals an assortment of beetles and creepy-crawlies nestling in the foliage. Another three embroideries, exquisitely stitched panels, are accompanied by beautiful illustrations showing the illuminated pages that inspired them. The techniques used to create the embroideries are clearly explained and, with the necessary skills at your fingertips, the elements in the book could be combined in numerous ways to create your own designs.-Stitch