Blackwork

by Mary Gostelow

Blackwork, or black-on-white embroidery, has long been a popular craft among needleworkers. Often referred to as "Spanish work" because of its association with Catherine of Aragon and its possible connection with Moorish Spain, blackwork has also been well-documented in portraits by Hans Holbein the Younger and other 16th-century artists.
In the present carefully researched work, this beautiful, distinctive, and age-old craft receives a comprehensive treatment from veteran needlecrafter Mary Gostelow. She first offers a fascinating background history of blackwork, tracing its use in England, the United States, and other countries. Clear, concise descriptions of stitches and equipment — needles, ground fabric, embroidery thread, and more — accompany discussions of contemporary styles and suggestions for innovative patterns. Originally applied to clothing and household items, blackwork is still used today to embellish table linens, bedding, wearing apparel, pillows, wall hangings, and other domestic articles.
Enhanced with 140 illustrations, including many close-up sketches of blackwork designs, this intriguing and valuable how-to book will appeal to needlecrafters wanting to apply the time-honored techniques of blackwork to new projects in decorative embroidery.

Genres: Crafts, Nonfiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 27, 1976

Reviews

[The Itsy Bitsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really have a deep abiding interest in blackwork, I mostly finished this because I had started it several months ago and felt like getting my "to read" shelf a bit under control. Even so it was interesting and informative and much lighter then the typical 70s craft instruction book tends to be. The focus here is primarily on history and design theory. There is a brief explanation of the most common stitches but not much in the way of instruction or patterns. Despite the other 5 billion craft ideas I have either percolating in my head or half done in a box somewhere I still came away from the book thinking about what I could do with blackwork, which is I suppose probably the best indicator of how well a craft book does its job.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The strength of this book came from the fact it was a history of blackwork rather than a blackwork pattern book, and therefore it contained a wealth of information from one of the doyens of embroidery, Mary Gostelow. Of course, like so many books, once we got through the historical chapters to the final chapter - 'Practical Blackwork' - its age started to show.

But it is quaint to read paragraphs such as:

"Home-embroidered blackwork is not generally considered suitable as a decoration for today's fashion conscious lady: it is frowned upon even more for her avant-garde gentleman. But what is to stop an embroiderer producing a blackwork tie? It would be original, in both concept and design, and it might suitably complement the plain bright-coloured shirts and outerwear of today's man."

Hmmm, perhaps not.