200 essential stitches, curated by the most prestigious embroidery institution in the world: the Royal School of Needlework (RSN).
200 essential stitches, curated by the most prestigious embroidery institution in the world: the Royal School of Needlework (RSN).
Embroidery is a living art. The aim of the RSN Stitch Bank is to ensure that hand embroidery is not just kept alive, but flourishes into the future. The 200 stitches in this book are a mix of practical and purely decorative, carefully selected to provide a broad and varied basis for any embroiderer. This book aims to empower every embroiderer to create contemporary works informed and supported by centuries of experience.
- All 200 stitches are fully explained with written instructions, illustrations and photographs.
- To make the book as easy-to-use as possible, each stitch details the embroidery disciplines it is used for, and any alternative names.
- The stitches have been divided across seven chapters, each covering a particular usage, from shading to edging, to make them easy to apply to your own work.
This sumptuous book also showcases historical pieces from the RSN’s unparalleled archive collection, with stunning photography and expert insight, bringing the skills, work and experience of the past to life.
The book is designed to complement the Royal School of Needlework's unique Stitch Bank collection (rsnstitchbank.org), an online project created to conserve and protect historical embroidery techniques.
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The Royal School of Needlework, or RSN, was founded in 1872 with a mission to preserve the art of hand embroidery. To mark the RSN's 150th anniversary, RSN Stitch Bank (rsnstitchbank.org), was launched to continue this mission; digitally conserving and showcasing the wide variety of the world’s embroidery stitches and the ways in which they have been used in different cultures and times.
The RSN Stitch Bank is an ongoing project. More stitches are added regularly and the RSN work with partners around the world to include stitches from different traditions. The Stitch Bank currently includes more than 300 stitches, divided across 28 disciplines, from crewel embroidery to whitework.
Table of Contents
Introduction 6
RSN: The Royal School of Needlework 8
The Stitch Bank 10
Basic stitches 12
Outline and border stitches 42
Filling stitches 118
Shading stitches 204
Open and powdered filling stitches 216
Edging stitches 264
Embellishment stitches 278
Index316
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About Dr. Susan Kay-Williams
Susan has been Chief Executive of the Royal School of Needlework since 2007. During her time with the RSN, Susan has introduced the Degree in Hand Embroidery; the Professional Embroidery Tutor programme; the Diploma in Technical Hand Embroidery, regular onsite exhibitions and in particular, in response to lockdown, teaching online and the incredible resource, RSN Stitch Bank.
Susan curated the RSN’s 150th anniversary exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum and is also author of An Unbroken Thread Celebrating 150 Years of the Royal School of Needlework and The Story of Colour in Textiles
About The Royal School of Needlework
