Picturesque Pictish Fashion

Tattoos are appearing everywhere on young women these days - what a sensation Cheryl Cole's roses caused in the British Press recently! But this is not new-fangled fashion. Jacques le Moyne de Morgues' watercolour of a Pictish daughter around 1585 suggests, at first sight, a rather beautifully embroidered body suit. However, eliminating the spear and collar and girdle, this girl of North East Scotland is in fact wearing her birthday suit. De Morgues is illustrating the wonder of Pictish tattoos, which were very in vogue at the time. Some say the name Pict was given to this tribe by the Romans to denote their painted (pictus) appearance. It is very probable that this was a fanciful representation but how interesting it is that it echoes the embroidered fashion of the times as can be seen in the portrait of an unknown lady from the Hampden family below.

Possibly more realistic is this example below by John White (British Museum) showing a girl tattooed with stars and stripes. Though I somehow have a feeling that Pictish girls were not the sort to stand still for any length of time!

The last example is by Theodor de Bry (1528–1598) who was a Flemish designer, engraver, printmaker and publisher. He was born in the city of Liège, but around 1570 he fled to Strasbourg to escape religious persection at the hands of Spanish Catholics. Around 1586 he moved again, to England, where he was exposed to stories and artistic depictions of European explorations of the New World.

Needleprint 10th Anniversary - Save $95.

To share our 10th anniversary celebrations with you, we are offering throughout the month of March 2014 a Free Goodhart Samplers Book or a Free Feller Needlework Collection Volume 1 with every copy of The Feller Needlework Collection Volume 2. You can take advantage of this special offer today. It comes with all our kindest wishes in this our last year before retirement.

Friends - A Common Thread - Carol Humphrey * £25 €35 $50 Shipping Included

A follow-on from Quaker School Girl Samplers from Ackworth, in 2008 Carol Humphrey, Honorary Keeper of Textiles at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, authored this monograph on Quaker Samplers and stitching.

The wider world of Quaker stitched artefacts is addressed, in terms of schools, families and traditions.

There are some lovely Irish Quaker samplers.

The Quaker links to slavery are discussed.

As well as the famous Westtown globes and pinballs.

I am sorry this book is now sold.

SOLD Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly 2007 * 4 Magazines * £15 €25 $45 Shipping Included

2007 was a really good year for Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly - they charted a wonderful knottedoek for readers to stitch. A knottedoek is a Dutch dowry cloth, which would have been used to present the money or jewels for the dowry.

There is also a wonderful write-up of Ackworth 2006 for those who want a trip down memory lane - together with this exquisite Ackworth frame charted for stitching.

I am sorry these are now sold.

Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly 2008 * 4 Issues * £15 €25 $45 Shipping included

Here is a complete set of Sampler and Antique Needlework Quarterly for 2008. It is not possible to show you all the lovely items and projects, there is just a quick sampling of pages for each issue for you to see to give you an idea.

For those of you who don't know Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly, you are in for a real treat. The journal is packed with mostly sampler related items and usually includes at least two full charted samplers together with projects for smalls.

I am sorry these are now sold.