a period workbox_fall 2005

7/31/2019 A Period Workbox_Fall 2005

1/8

AeliaApollonia,c/oKristaBarber750BairIslandRoad#106RedwoodCity,CA94063

Newsletter of the Needleworkers Guild in the Kingdom of the West (SCA)

FallA.S. XXXX (2005)

A periodwork basket


2/8

COLLEGIUM OCCIDENTALISSATURDAY, OCTOBER15 CONCORD

There are lots of great classes in the Needlework and Clothing tracks! Please remember tobring an embroidery hoop & scissors to any class where you will be stitching! There will

also be an artisan's display, a feast in the evening and feast entertainment. Sabrina de leBere is organizing our display and we look forward to a fabulous exhibit of handmadetreasures. Please contact her for more information. If you would like to volunteer to helpwith the artisan's display or sit at teachers' point (and meet our wonderful volunteers) orserve the feast, please jump in and contact the autocrat. It's a great way to meet new peopleand to get involved.

The Needleworkers Guild of the Kingdom of the WestAll are welcome to join us in making and enjoying historical needlework, furthering our knowledge, and developing our skills. Wemeet Saturday afternoon at every Crown Tourney, and we look forward to seeing you and your needlework!

Filum Aureum(The Golden Thread) is published by the Needleworkers Guild of the Kingdom of the West; it is not a corporatepublication of the SCA, Inc., and does not delineate SCA, Inc. policy. Articles and illustrations are copyright 2005 by the WestKingdom Needleworkers Guild, unless otherwise stated. Chronicler: Christian de Holacombe, or 530-758-5407. Fora subscription, we ask for $12 per year for printed copies mailed to you. If this is a problem for you, please let us know. Make checkspayable to SCA, Inc., West Kingdom with a note Needleworkers Guild and send with your name and address to Aelia Apollonia(Krista Barber), 750 Bair Island Road #106, Redwood City, CA 94063.

9:00-10:30AM

TAMBOUR EMBROIDERY

Celynen of Stow-on-the-Wold

Tambour embroidery is a technique of East-ern origin that has been used on textiles forover a thousand years. With a finished re-

sult that is very similar to the chainstitch,tambour is worked with a hook rather thana needle. This is a hands-on class, whichwill teach the basic technique.

Bring: a small embroidery hoop,small crochet hook (size 8-10) or tambourneedle, medium hoop, and crochet floss(not embroidery floss). The instructor willhave tulle available as a practice fabric, aswell as a small number of kits to borrow.

PERIOD PLEATINGTECHNIQUES

Roseline d'Anjou

Learn about the various pleating techniquesused to gather fabric for skirts and sleeves.

WHITE WORK PART 2 OF 4

Caiterina nic Seamus

Learn several white work techniques andpractice on a prepared frame.LIMIT: 4 ............. NO FEE IF YOU BORROW AFRAME; PURCHASEOFFRAMEOPTIONAL.

10:45AM-12:00

BLACKWORK EMBROIDERY

Katheryn de Langelei

Learn the techniques of Blackwork embroi-

dery which was so popular in Elizabethan

England. The bulk of the class will be de-voted to the teaching and practicing ofstitches. A kit and handout will be providedto students. Bring: 5" embroidery hoop,embroidery scissors.LIMIT: 6 ............. FEE: NONE

MAKING PERIOD

BUTTONHOLESSabrina de le Bere

We will make buttonholes, lacing holes anddiscuss welted buttonholes. We will discussnot only the techniques, but where andwhen what types of buttonholes wereused.Bring: small scissors/embroideryscissors.LIMIT: 10........... FEE: $2

1:00-2:15PM

LAIDWORK ANDCOUCHING WITH WOOLON LINEN

Ceinwen ferch Belyn

Laidwork and couching are two of thestitches you learn as we explore these andthe rest of the techniques presented in theBayeaux Tapestry. Bring: 5" embroideryhoop and scissors. Some loaner hoops willbe available.LIMIT: 6 ............. FEE: $5

2:30-3:45PM

14TH-15TH CENTURY

GERMAN EMBROIDERYFelicia Margerye Amondesham

This style of embroidery is both easy andrelatively quick. You will be using brickstitch to create very colorful or subtle motifs and geometric patterns.LIMIT: 6 ............. FEE: $5

PERIOD SEAM FINISHES

Gianetta del Bene

Learn various period techniques for finish-ing your seams.LIMIT: NONE ....... FEE: NONE

4:00-5:00PM EVERYTHING YOU WANTEDTO KNOW ABOUT PEARLS

Kira Leonovna Zhemnadushina

We will examine photos of historical piecesand learn how to spot where pearls wouldhave been applied. I will focus on the useof pearls in opus anglicanum and earlierperiod pieces. You will then choose to doeither a small area design or a line designYou will fill in the small area design withcotton floss and then apply pearls. Alter-nately, you may choose a line design and

couch down cord and cover it with pearlsPearls (fake), ground cloth, floss, beadingneedles and thread will be supplied. Bringscissors, needles and a hoop (max. 6 inchesLIMIT: 10........... FEE: $5

COMING IN THE WINTER ISSUEOF FILUM AUREUM:

The Bayeux Tapestry

2 F I L U M A U R E U M # 2 8 N E E D L E W O R K E R S G U I L D K I N G D O M O F T H E W E S T F A L L A . S . X X X

Guild calendar & projects


3/8

(continued next page >

A period workbox by Christian de Holacombe andMichaela de Neuvill

Putting together a period workbox seemsto be an exercise in gathering little cluesfrom a lot of different sources. So I wasdelighted when I saw what an old friend ofmine, Mistress Michaela de Neuville (OL)had put together for a needlework demon-

stration. Her research is always excellent,and she agreed to collaborate with me onthis article. Michaelas basket is on ourcover, its contents are shown again on p.4,and her needlebook is this issues project.

In my admittedly rather limited re-search, good written sources on period nee-dlework tools are few. As penance for what-ever needlework sins Ive committed, I re-read the one I have, Gertrude WhitingsOld-Time Tools & Toys of Needlework, andwas just as frustrated by it as I was the firsttime I read it. In fairness, the book waswritten in 1928, and it shares that eras atti-

tude that old times and tradition wereeternal and unchanging, so it mixes centu-ries indiscriminately. It also seems to as-sume that life began in 1600. Probably itsa better resource for collectors of 19th-cen-tury needlework tools than for us.

The best source of information on pe-riod workboxes, therefore, is paintings andengravings. While the basket or box is al-ways a small detail, usually over in a cor-ner of the picture, sometimes you can makeout details of its contents. So lets see whatwe can find.

BASKETS & BOXES

What types of baskets and boxes were com-monly used as work boxes? Here are acouple of examples of what seems to bethe most common type of workbasket: shal-low and round, often with the top rim some-what larger than the base. These are fairlyeasy to find at craft stores. Shallow bas-kets also seem to be the most common typein pictures showing other textile crafts, suchas weaving or spinning. Sometimes all you

lids, and a painting from the 1630s showsa small chest of nine small drawers (left,below), with a flat front panel hinged at thebottom to secure the drawers for traveling.You also see boxes with slanted tops (be-low right). These look a lot like writing box-es, and sometimes (as here) have a paddedtop that can be used as a sewing pillow.

can see in them is a pair of scissors or shearsand some balls of yarn or thread. Oftenthere are napkins or pieces of cloth hang-ing over the basket edges as well, either acover or perhaps a work in progress.

Sewing boxes and small chests alsoappear in period illustrations. One commontype is a round or oval box made from athin piece of wood steamed and bentaround. There are also shallow square box-es rather like a modern cigar box, boxeslike miniature trunks with round-topped

contemporary pictures. You also see ordi-nary-looking scissors identical to those weuse today, with ring-shaped handles, andalso the classic U-shaped spring shearsin various sizes. Michaela points out thamany (though not all) 16th-century scissors

seem to have shoulders, with bladeswider than the shafts, as in the photo at thebottom of this page.

KNIVES, AWLS & PRICKERS

Another prominent part of Mrs. Grundeliuss collection of tools is the small knifewe see front and center. Since she also hasscissors, I would guess a knife would morelikely be used for cutting slits for in-stance, buttonholes or decorative pinksor slashes. Pictured below are the match-

ing knife and pointed awl or spike fromthe same collection as the scissors photo.

An awl is especially useful for making round holes for eyelets, because it tendto push threads of the cloth aside whenmaking a hole, rather than cutting themThis makes for a stronger eyelet.

Another type of sharp pointy thingused by period needleworkers is a prick-er for transferring needlework patternsMany period pattern books have holespricked along the lines of the patternsshowing they were actually used for nee-dlework, since a common method of transferring patterns to fabric is to prick andpounce, first pricking the pattern and thenrubbing pounce of powdered chalk orcharcoal through the holes. Michaela madeThe lady in the portrait on this page is the

wife of Philipp Gundelius, painted byHieronymus Beck in about 1575, with someof her sewing tools, in unusually good de-tail. She has a small bentwood or ivory boxcontaining little balls of thread: on the tableare her scissors and a small knife, and justbelow her hands are some pins.

SCISSORS

Mrs. Gundeliuss rather odd-looking scis-sors with open handles show up in other

one herself, using pliers to push the blunend of a needle into a wooden handle.

NEEDLES & BODKINS

One of those perpetual questions frompeople just starting out in historical needle-work is, Didnt they just have bone needlesback then? Indeed, the first needles wereprobably bone, but by the Middle Agesthere was already a thriving industry inmaking needles of brass and iron, Needles(and pins) became cheaper in the laterMiddle Ages when the greater availability

F I L U M A U R E U M # 2 8 N E E D L E W O R K E R S G U I L D K I N G D O M O F T H E W E S T F A L L A . S . X X X X 3


4/8

(A period workbox, continued)

of wire-drawing made it possible to pro-duce large quantities of thin, uniform wirequickly and easily.

Needles were carried in needlebooksand needle cases to keep them secure andprotected. (A pincushion doesnt work aswell for needles: its too easy for them tosink down out of sight into the cushion.)The Museum of London books on Textiles

and Clothing and The Medieval House-holdhave abundant examples of needlesand needlecases, such as these:

Needles come in various types, ofcourse, and there are period examples ofmany sizes, different eye shapes, and nee-dles for special purposes such as sewingleather. One common type is the bodkin, aflat, blunt strip of metal with one or moreeyes, used to thread ribbon or cord througha casing. Many modern bodkins look ex-actly like the period ones, and theyre stilla useful thing to have. Michaelas bone awland a flat bodkin can be seen in the photobelow, and her needlebook is the one illus-trated on the Project Page.

PINS & PINCUSHIONS

Medieval pins were made more or less likeneedles and of the same materials. But pinsneed heads. Common pins probably hadsmall spherical or hemispherical heads thatwere hammered into shape or soldered on.Michaela was able to find some that looklike these for her work basket, handily storedin a strip of paper. Pins were also headedwith globs of glass or with the end of thewire bent over and wound around the top ofthe shank. The Museum of LondonsDressAccessories book has a number of exam-ples and some discussion of pin-making.

Pins seem to have first been stored in

cases, similar to needle cases. In 1409, forinstance, Marie of Sully records in her in-ventory a silver pincase with religious mo-tifs. But pincushions definitely appear by

the 16th century and perhaps earlier.I havent been able to find much in-

formation on pincushion shapes and mate-rials. The pincushions you hear the mostabout are the highly decorative embroi-dered pincushions attached to Elizabethansweet bags.These arent very practical withall that metal thread! Our guilds oldStrawberry pincushion kit (shown in Mi-chaelas basket) is patterned after the sizeand shape of these decorative pincushions,

but is worked in plain wool on canvas.

OTHER TOOLS

Thimbles are relatively boring for our pur-pose because they dont seem to havechanged much over the centuries. Mi-chaelas basket has an ordinary plain brassthimble, which looks remarkably like theMuseum of Londons medieval examples,although the medieval ones tend to beshorter and to have domed rather than flattops. Leather thimbles were also used, prob-ably before metal ones came into fashion.

A lump ofbeeswax is standard equip-

ment for plain sewing, though not as use-ful for embroidery, since you wouldnt wantto wax silk embroidery thread. Its also notvery practical to carry around in our areashot weather, since it melts easily. Ive knownat least one friends project come to griefbecause beeswax melted all over it.

Magnifiers are helpful for those ofus over 40 I, for one, can no longer domost needlework without some sort of mag-nification. Michaela commissioned themagnifying glass you see in the picturesfrom a metalsmith at Renaissance Faire,giving him period illustrations to workfrom, and shes pleased with the result.

One of Michaelas more ingenious items isthe sort ofmeasuring-string that existedbefore tape measures which, at least inEngland according to Janet Arnold, are apost-1600 invention. Michaela has taken alength of stout linen thread (which doesntstretch) and tied knots every nail (an oldmeasuring unit of 21/4 inches, 1/16 of a yard)for a total length of one ell (45 inches). Bothells and nails were common measuringunits. especially for cloth.

THREAD STORAGE

Finding out how medieval embroiderersstored their thread has been a bit of a chal-lenge. Its clear that we dont find modern-

type spools in a medieval context whawe think of as spool shaped. Thread wassold in skeins and had to be wound intosome other form to be practical for use.

One possibility, especially for ordinarysewing thread, is that it was simply woundinto small balls, as we see in Mrs. Grunde-liuss portrait. These would have to be kepin some sort of container (and away fromcats!) to prevent unwinding and tangling.

Another possibility is that thread, es-

pecially fragile silks, was wound fromskeins onto the flat objects known as threadwinders (illustrated below). We know theywere used in the centuries after 1600, andthey seem perfectly plausible for the Renaissance as well, although Im not awareof any surviving examples. Thread wind-ers dont hold a lot of thread and would bebetter suited for expensive thread boughin small quantities.

Simpler possibilities include windingthread around a plain stick, and theres anexample of one from the Museum of Lon-don that has a protruding stop carved aone end, the predecessor of the flared endsof modern spools. Thread could also havebeen wound around a plain flat rectangulapiece of card or thin wood, and insofar as I

can decipher the details in paintings andengravings, that seems to be what we seemost often depicted.

From this discussion, although its avery quick overview, you can see that itspossible to put together a period sewing kithats also quite practical to use. A littlecreative shopping may be required, buit doesnt have to be expensive either. I, forone, plan to enjoy mine.

4 F I L U M A U R E U M # 2 8 N E E D L E W O R K E R S G U I L D K I N G D O M O F T H E W E S T F A L L A . S . X X X X


5/8

T H E P R O J E C T P A G E

Knives have sheaths, scissors have casesor point protectors, and needles andpins need something that keeps them to-gether, rust-free and safe from accidentalstabs. Professional seamstresses may havea non-aggression pact with their pins and

happily walk around barefoot on a pin-strewn floor, but most of us are not so lucky!A needlebook is a little period item

thats quite easy to make. Michaelas is a16th-century type which can be hung froma belt, with pages of fulled wool, a cov-er, and an outer case closed at one end. Alength of ribbon is attached to the spine ofthe book and threaded through a hole inthe closed end of the case, so that the bookcan be slid into the case by pulling on theribbon, holding it securely shut. A tab orloop on the other end of the book makes iteasy to pull the book out of the case andopen it to take out and put away needles.

Michaelas book is about two by threeinches. To make one like it, wash some thinwool fabric to slightly felt it, and when itsdry, cut four or five strips as wide as thebook and twice as long (2 by 6 inches ifyoure copying this example). Make a coverfrom a scrap of pretty fabric (Michaelas isvelveteen) and a scrap of lining the samesize, with a piece of thin cardboard insidefor stiffening.

(By the way, while people in the Mid-dle Ages and Renaissance certainly didntmass-produce cardboard or use it in thequantities we do now, its quite easy to

make for yourself by gluing several layersof paper together, and we do have evidencethis was done.)

When the cover is stitched together allthe way around and the pages are cut, laythem together, mark a line in the center fora spine, and stitch together through alllayers with strong thread.

For the case,youll want twomore rectangles ofouter cloth a littlelarger all around thanyour needlebook

exactly how muchlarger depends onhow thick your bookis, but 1/4 to 1/2 inchlarger all aroundshould be enough.Michaelas are vel-veteen in her perso-nas household col-ors. You also need apiece of lining foreach, and more card-board for stiffening;the case shouldnt be completely rigid or itwill grip the book too tightly, but stiffen-

ing helps the sides lie flat and look nice.For this project, its best to make each

side of the case and line it separately. Thenstitch the two parts together along both longsides, and also across one end, leaving anopen slit in the middle for the ribbon.

Sew a piece of ribbon to the spine ofyour book, and thread it through this gapin the cover. Add a small loop or ribbonpull to the open end of the book cover,and your needlebook is done!

WEST KINGDOM NEEDLEBOOKCOVER PATTERN

While a needlebook really only needs ascrap of pretty fabric for the outside of thecase, its a small enough project that a can-vaswork cover can be finished in reason-able time. In fact, its small enough to makea good trial piece for working on reallysmall-scale canvas, rather than the 8 or 10

stitches per inch many of us are used to. have only just started mine, but heres the

pattern Im using for the front. This makesa cover about 2 x 31/2 inches on 18-to-theinch needlepoint canvas. One strand oPaternayan-type two-ply needlepoint yarncovers this canvas nicely, as long as youdont pull the stitches too tight but allowthem to fluff a little.

A canvaswork front can be combinedwith a canvaswork back if youre ambitious(mine will have my arms on it) or just aback of plain fabric. Ill be sure to posphotos of mine when its finished.

A WORD ON PINCUSHIONS

Pincushions are not at all hard to make. Ivemade all my own for years, and theyrewonderful for using bits of exotic fabric thaare too small to make much else out of. Theonly practical restriction is that if the pin-cushion is actually going to be useful ratherthan decorative, you cant use any fabricthat the pins will catch in or have difficultypenetrating. Mine tend to be denim, velveteen or upholstery fabric.

Most of the ones I make are square orcircular, with a fabric top, a cardboard- stiff-ened base the same size and shape, and along strip of fabric to make the sides. Usu-ally I use a strip that will finish 1 inch high

after seams, to keep the pincushion frombeing so deep that needles get lost in itClose hand stitching with sturdy thread isactually easier than machine stitching forthis project.

Wool fleece makes a good traditionastuffing, and a pencil or knitting needle isa good tool to pack it in firmly. You canalso use bran, or sawdust which you canget for free at a lumber yard (and which Isift before using). I learned to prefer saw-dust after carpet beetles ate holes in mycushion stuffed with bran!



6/8

P O I N T E R S

An Ansteorran RoseS H O W A N D T E L L

then ripped the paper away. The lines onthe star were completely straight. Stitch-ing onto paper in this manner is similar toseveral pieces of Medieval German bead-

work, which were sewn with linen threadonto animal hide parchment.Once completed, I appliqud the bead-

ed panels onto black cotton velvet. I out-lined the appliqus with black and goldtwisted cord and ended with a trimming ofblack bugle beads. My lining was yellowlinen. I did a drawstring at the top, and puttassels on the drawstring. From start to fin-ish, I put in over 500 hours worth of work.

Needlework tools(These are only a few of the many possiblesources; no endorsement is implied.)

The Spanish Peacock has thread winders,needle cases, and bone needles:www.spanishpeacock.com/

Nice pewter needle cases are available fromPewter Replicas, and also from Billy andCharlie:www.pewterreplicas.co.uk/billyandcharlie.com/misc.html

Fettered Cock Pewters has nice inexpen-sive period thimbles from England, snips,bone awl. Note that "stork" scissors wereinvented in the 19th century and are notmedieval.www.fetteredcockpewters.com/

page_sewing.htm

Historic Enterprises and Wooded Hamletboth have nice brass pins. At $1 each youprobably want to use them for decoration,not for sewing!www.historicenterprises.com/www.woodedhamlet.com/

BibliographyMargaret Abegg, Apropos patterns forembroidery, lace and woven textilesAbegg-Stiftung Bern, 1978; ISBN #3-727-29005-6

Geoff Egan, Dress Accessories: Medi-eval Finds from Excavations in Lon-don. 1996, Her Majestys Stationery Office, Museum of London; ISBN #0-112-

90444-0 (reprinted by Boydell)Geoff Egan, The Medieval HouseholdDaily Living c.1150-c.1450 (MedievaFinds from Excavations in London)2004, Her Majestys Stationery OfficeMuseum of London; ISBN #0-112-90490-4

Gertrude Whiting, Old-Time Tools andToys of Needlework. 1928, reprinted1973 by Dover Publications: Dover ISBN#0-486-22517-8 (See the article on p.3 focomments on this book.)

by Giuliana di Benedetto Falconieri

One of the most common complaints I hearabout beaded embroidery is that the com-

mon 11/0 glass beads used cannot be pe-riod. But even smaller beads are shown inJanet Arnolds Patterns of Fashion: Thecut and construction of clothes for menand women c1560-1620 beads 0.8mm(1/32 of an inch) wide, which translates to asize 24/0, about the size of a large grain ofsand! Pictures of gold and glass beads inhistorical beaded embroidery can also beseen on the Medieval Beadwork Page, .

The beads on my embroidery are allglass. I usually stitch with 22K gold char-lotte beads. Charlottes are a very prettybead that is flat on one side, and they add abit of sparkle to the design, but I cant findany reference to charlottes in period, so Iused gold-colored round glass seed beads.

I used both modern and medievalmethods of beaded embroidery. The flow-er and the star are done in the modern meth-od, the backgrounds in the medieval meth-od. The modern method (also known asAthabascan) consists of laying down sixbeads, couching them down, and then back-stitching through three of the beads beforeadding more. The period technique consistsof laying down a strand of beads and couch-ing them in place. The medieval technique

is quicker, but the modern technique is moresecure. The end results look identical onthe front of the work.

The rose and rose background are donecompletely in 11/0 beads. At 49 square inch-es, there are an estimated 11,760 beads onthe front. I used gold beads, black beads,and two shades of green for the flower.

The background is done in silver-linedamber-colored beads. A lot of people thinksilver-lined beads arent period, but theywere used in Italy during the later periodof the Renaissance. Arts & Crafts inVenice by Doretta Davanzo Poli describesglass beads filled with a special gold andsilver paste. There was also an especiallyprized type of glass bead called avventu-rina, a cinnamon colored or amber glassincorporating thousands of glittering speckswhich looked like gold. I thought these sil-ver-lined beads might give a similar effect.

I used three shades of beads on theback of the bag: the darkest near the star.Getting the straight lines for the star was abit difficult to do from only a chalk draw-ing, so I took a printed design, and stitchedit to my fabric. Once that was done, I sim-ply stitched over the outline of the star, and

Front and back ofthe bag; below, a

detail of thebeadwork. Colo

photos of this andother pouches can

be seen awww.bayrose.org/

wkneedle/Qpouches.html

From time to time we feature a particularly spectacular piece of needlework by a Guildmember here for everyone to admire. Nominations are welcome. Pictures, please!



7/8

I N S T I T C H E S . . . N E W S A N D N O T E S O F G U I L D & F R I E N D S

G reetings, dear needleworkers! Idlike to take a moment and publiclythank everyone who has graciously volun-teered to create a needlecase for the 2006Pennsic queens needlecase project. Yourtime and effort are very much appreciatedand will make our kingdom shine!

Aethelmaerc .... Alexandra SinclairAn Tir .............. Katherine McGuire

Ansteorra......... Vigdis Vestfirzka

Artemesia ........ Gwenyth of MouseholdHeath

Atenveldt......... Madelena Hidalgo deValencia

Atlantia ........... Sorcha Fhionn ingheanui Ruairc

Caid ................. Catherine Lorraine ofStonegate Manor

Calontir ........... Felicia MargeryeAmondesham

Drachenwald ... Rhiannon MacLennan

Ealdormere ...... Brid Hecgwiht

East ................. Katherine de Langelei

Glen Abhann ... Caiterina nic SheamusLochac ............. Morgana yr Oerfa

Meridies .......... Evaine ni MacGreger

Middle ............. Francesca von Hesse

Northshield ..... Chiara la Trombottiera

Outlands .......... Ellen of the WesternWind

Trimaris ........... Adriana Tacita

West ................ Margery Garret

Although the deadline for this project isJune Crown of 2006, I enthusiastically encourage all volunteers to complete theirneedlecase as soon as possible, so that wemay proudly display pictures of them onour website. Thanks also to Mistress Iselawho is coordinating this project; she has

always done and continues to do an exem-plary job of organization. Thank you allonce again, for pitching in with our project

Yours in service,

I N T E R V I E W S T H R O U G H T H E N E E D L E S E Y E & MUSINGS

Question: What's yourfavorite needlework tooland why?My favorite is the little pair of thread snipsI picked up a long time ago at some mer-chant or other. I use them on my weavingand spinning too. A friend made a littleleather sheath to go over the blades so Idon't cut myself while rummaging in mybasket to find them, or when I wear themon a cord suspended from my belt. Thesheath holds the blades closed, and thespring in the snips holds the sheath on.

Edwinna of Hawk's Bluff,formerly of Ravenshore (West),

now Dreiburgen (Caid).

As a quilter, both mundanely and in thesociety, my favorite tool is a small pair ofpliers that I borrowed from my lord'stoolbox. The pliers are a great needle pullerfor those times I manage to get the needlestuck in a seam, take too many stitches, ormy hands are just plain tired. I don't sup-pose this is really a period tool, but nodoubt, they had something similiar for thesame useage and same reasons.

Ellspeth Nadel

My favorite Needlework tools are ZiplockBrand 2 gallon freezer bags. I wouldn't becaught without them! As unperiod as theseare they are sturdy, big enough to carry anyof my projects in, can hold my workingreference documentation, and all the mate-rials I need. I always carry embroidery toevents and it is important to me to be ableto keep my projects clean and togetherthrough all of the travels and these fit thebill to a T. One bag usually lasts the entireworking life of a project and then I use a

fresh one for the next project. Every time Igo to the store I pick up a box or two sothat I will never run out.

Martelle Von Charlottenburg, BrightHills (Atlantia)

My favorite needlework tool, at the mo-ment, is a hand-made needle. It has a roundeye, and I've been doing a lot of metalthread embroidery of late (sweet bags, any-one?). The round eye almost threads itself.The metal threads are hard to threadthrough a slit-eyed needle, because they donot want to flatten.

Eowyn Amberdrake, Lyondemere (Caid)

I LOVE my nimble thimble, soft leathermetal on the pad and open at the top so mynail can peek through. I also have an ivorysoap box with implements (needle case-bodkin-scissors-awl) with silver mark circa1848. Nowdays I am a little paranoid to takeit with me to use, for fear it might be thepeice I leave behind...

Arianwen ferch Arthur

My favorite doo-hickey of the moment is aleather thimble I made myself. I love theleather quilting thimbles you can buy, but

they don't look at all period, and I hate touse them at an event, so I took a leatherscrap and made one to fit my finger- itworks great!

Richenda Elizabeth Coffin (Caid)

I have a favorite needle case. CatherineLoraine made it for me years ago. The out-side is made with Aida cloth and the insideis made of a scrap from a tunic she madefor herself. The closing has a bead attached.It is very sentimental to me and I use it ev-ery day.

Elizabeth of the Blue Rose (West)

My favorite, and most useful, tool in myneedlework & sewing basket is my collec-tion of thimbles. The two most usedthimbles are a modern silver quiltingthimble, which is useful for more than quilt-ing, and a worn leather thimble that hadbeen my mothers. The leather thimble isthe sentimental favorite since my motherwas responsible for encouraging my lifelong love of sewing and embroidery.

Elspeth the Semstress of Dunkeld(formerly West, now Middle

My favorite needlework tool has come to

be because I am notorious for breakingneedle threaders. The little wire ones, thehookish ones, the big round loop ones Ican demolish them all in record time. Andwhat I don't break, I lose. Pronto. So myfavorite needlework tool is to use a loopof finer thread as a threader. I can pull aheavy yarn or thread through a smallish eyeusing a loop of fine thread, or even piercethe end of the thick thread with the finerone and then drag it through the eye.

I've also learned that a needle's eye hasa right side and a wrong side for threading, depending on from which side thepunch was driven to make the eye. I canthread a much more recalcitrant thread go-ing the same direction as the eye waspunched than fighting the microscopic ridges the punch has formed on the other side

Caiterina nic Sheamus (West

I'm going to echo the recommendation of2 gallon ziplock bags: they're wonderfulwonderful, wonderful. Second favorite toola tailor's awl: the sharp point and verysmooth steel come in handy at the oddestimes. If I'm working eyelets its a neccesityIt's also good for picking out stitches and

(continued next page



8/8

C R E D I T S & C O N T A C T S

GUILD MENTORS

These people are here to help you with your needlework questions!

Catherine Lorraine ..................... Sunnyvale ....... 408-732-8581 ..... [email protected] St. George ....................... El Cerrito ........510-215-5879..... [email protected] von Hesse.................. El Cerrito ........510-525-1401..... [email protected] de Scotia ......................... Pinole ............. 510-741-9885 ..... [email protected] MacPherson ................... Sacramento ..... 916-331-8066 ..... [email protected] nighean Eanruig ..... Colusa............. 530-458-4144 ..... [email protected] of Stormholde ................. Live Oak ......... 530-695-3022 .... [email protected] of Falcons Claw ............... Modesto .......... 209-824-0931 ..... [email protected] of Call Duck Manor ......... Palo Alto ......... 650-493-7756 ..... [email protected] nic Sheamus ............... Vacaville ......... 707-628-4473 ..... [email protected] Whitehart ......................... S.Luis Obispo . 805-934-9252 ..... [email protected] Goldbender ................... Santa Cruz ...... 831-429-9020 ..... [email protected] of Bradford ....................... Oertha ............. 907-338-4692 ..... [email protected] de Montfort ................... Oertha ............. 907-344-5753 ..... [email protected]

LOCHAC LIAISONS (Worshipful Company of Broderers)

Bess Haddon of York, Guildmaster .................................................. [email protected] the Mouse, Guild Patron .................................................. [email protected]

DEPUTY MINISTER & CHRONICLER

Christian de Holacombe ............ Davis .............. 530-758-5407 ..... [email protected]

SERVICE PROJECTS COORDINATOR

Isela di Bari ............................... Monterey ........831-385-3040..... [email protected]

GUILD MINISTERAelia Apollonia .......................... Redwood City ............................. [email protected]

GUILD PATRON

Sabrina de la Bere ...................... El Granada ...... 650-712-8405 ..... [email protected]

WEB PAGES

WK Needleworkers Guild Website ............................................ http://www.bayrose.org/wkneedleWKneedle Mailing List .................................................http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WKneedle

for widening holes when I'm working withwool yarn.

Robert of Stonemarche (East)

My baroness pointed me to a wonderfullittle device that is a clip-on, battery pow-ered (4 AA), light with an optional magni-fier and AC power. If you have a table, itwill sit on that. I sometimes set it in my lap

to magnify and illuminate my work if theitem is too small to clip onto. This wonder-ful tool is called the Mighty Bright. It comesin several lovely bright colors. I got minefrom Nordic Needle, but I am told folkshave found it at Borders as a book light.Now if I could find something short of sur-gery to fix the arthritis in my thumbs, I'dbe a happy embroiderer.

Ysolt la Bretonne, Windmasters' Hill(Atlantia)

My needlebook is one of the first things,besides my costume, I made for myselfabout 20 years ago when I first joined the

SCA. It is sometimes the only thing (asidefrom a tiny wooden box containing 6 smallspools of thread) that I take with me toevents and such. It has one "thick" leaf inthe middle that was originally two leavesof black felt that I sewed together. On thetop and bottom of the "thick" leaf I insertstraight pins so that only the heads are vis-ible. The shanks of the pins are betweenthe two layers of felt so the tips don't stickout to prick my fingertips. I also includevarious sizes and types of needles, a fewsafety pins, a small pair of golden storkscissors and a needle threader. The book

ties together with ribbons that are securedto the center outside edge. Eormenthryth the northerne, Wyewood

(An Tir)

Over the years I've managed to collect abunch of cheap fabric-covered hard-shelleyeglass cases that you get with newglasses. They make an excellent case forthose crucial little emergency sewing kititems. The two open wells intended for thelenses will fit the bulky-ish items scis-sors, seam ripper, magnifying glass (no, Inever need this, really!) and you canslide pins and needles into the fabric sides

of the case. They close with velcro, prettysecurely. Since they have the hard shell, it'sharder to stab yourself than when using acloth pouch. As for my least favorite, Ihave a love-hate relationship with my beau-tiful wooden lucet but that's becauseduring the time span between lucettingbinges, I keep forgetting how to do it. AndI have never found a good diagram forlucetting, except for the ones written in anarchaic form of Klingon, which I do notread fluently. Darn it. (I LOVED this ques-tion, could you tell?)

Baroness Lina St Albans (Atlantia)

THANK YOUto everyone who has responded!

NEXT TIME:What was your first piece of needle-work? Do you still have it?

E-mail your answer to [email protected] by December 1st. Please sign your full SCA name andKingdom. Responses may be edited.

Many thanks to Michaela de Neuville (Shelley Monson) and to Tangwystyl (Heather RosJones) for their help with the workbox article, and to Sophia Kress (Marion McNealy) foalerting me to the portrait of Mrs. Grundelius, from REALonline in Austriawww.imareal.oeaw.ac.at/server/images/7015151.JPG

I like those metal binder rings in diametersbigger than 2" for unused floss. I just slideone of the loops over the ring, and by spin-ning the ring, I can open the ring at which-ever color I need without having to take allof the others off too. I can keep a wholecolor family on a ring and it's all completelyvisible, as opposed to being in a bag wherethe color may look different. The best part,for me, is that I can hang the rings fromhooks or clip hangers in my closet, thus

freeing up shelf, drawer, etc. space for othercraft supplies. Bianca di Bari (Atlantia)

My favorite has to be the weaver's scissorsmy daughter gifted me. They are incred-ibly sharp with wonderful points, but arenot as slender as most embroidery scissors.I have found them as useful as embroideryscissors and for other needleart tasks aswell. The only thing I don't use them on ismetal threads. They are definitely a perma-nent part of my basket. Elyn de Haoucmore, Dreiburgen (Caid)

I have a very old 6-inch plastic-and-metal

hoop, at least 20 years old, which I am veryfond of. The original designs of this kindof hoop hold much tighter than the currenversions, and I will be very unhappy if igets out of my possession. Not period, butI've never been able to get a wooden hoopto hold as taut. But I do have a least favor-ite, or at least least-used tool. I can't usethimbles. Every time I put a thimble on afinger, I end up not using that finger, buholding it out like it's injured.

Morgana yr Oerfa (Caid

(NEEDLES EYE, continued from p.7)


a period workbox_fall 2005

Documents