Defined by the use of two-ply wool, crewelwork is a labour-intensive type of embroidery whose traditional methods are still alive today, resulting in the most exquisite fabric, says Celia Rufey
FABRIC OF LIFE
Crewelwork is embroidery with wool, on linen or cotton cloth. It makes no restrictions on style of design or use of particular stitches, but the wool should be fine two-ply twist, known in the past as ‘cruell’, a word thought to describe the curl in a thread. The most famous historic crewelwork is the misnamed Bayeux Tapestry. Stitched in the years following the victory of William the Conqueror over the English King Harold in 1066, this is a crewelwork made up of a series of individual panels. Despite its topic, and being commissioned by William’s half-brother, Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, this crewelwork is thought to have been stitched in England, using worsted wool from Worstead in Norfolk.
Crewelwork almost disappeared in the next six centuries, though references to ‘cruell’ yarns survive in medieval documents, indicating some use in households. Wool embroidery was taken up again in the 17th century, worked mainly by women within important houses to decorate bed hangings and other furnishings. Design inspirations were a mixed bag, picked from English embroidery traditions and textiles brought to Europe from the East.
Emile de Bruijn, assistant National Trust curator (Decorative Arts), points to elements in some English crewelwork that seem to be inspired by the verdure or lush foliage seen in Flemish tapestries, combined with flowering trees from English Elizabethan embroideries, Indian chintzes and Chinese embroidered silks. ‘The flowering plant designs available in 17th-century Europe share the conceit or stylistic quirk of having different types of flowers growing from the same stem,’ he notes. ‘Borrowing design elements like these was part of the back and forth of commercial and creative exchanges, as in today’s design world.’
Before the crewel needle was threaded, the design was drawn onto the linen. It could come from a pattern book or a pattern drawer might be employed. Women of the household were the skilled embroiderers, but evidence of professional help can be seen in many examples of near-identical designs on surviving pieces. Crewel motifs reflected changes in interior furnishings, with 17th-century large flowers, scrolling foliage and tree-of-life patterns followed by more open designs, with greater inclusion of English flowers. William Morris rescued wool embroidery in the 1860s with designs that reworked traditional themes. He also sold
