To ornament it, the material should be stretched on a frame, the centre marked, two lines drawn (tacked in with fine silk) vertically and horizontally at right angles to each other, A A and B B. Then marking off an inch along all the edges for turnings, a diagonal line is drawn from A to C and again from C to D.

The parts enclosed within these lines and D E are where the ornamentation is worked, including the orphreys. Space for these should be marked out next, or they may be worked straight on to the stuff; in any case, all except the one which covers the seam should be stitched on before it is taken out of the frame.

The making up is done simply by stitching it together in the first place so as to make a circular band; then the top edges are placed together, turning in the inch (or whatever is allowed for). A slit nearly the depth of the turnings should be cut at C and a snippet cut out at A (see diagram). It is then to be sewn neatly together along the top, G meeting G, with A at one end and D at the other.

When this is done the infulæ are sewn under the edge of the mitre at the back, and a lining (previously prepared of exactly the same shape, but a trifle smaller) slip-stitched all round the lower edge and kept in place by means of a few stitches at each point.

The mitre should then be folded quite flat, and the edge of the folds outlined with gold twist or fine cord; a little tuft of silk and gold thread, or a small gold acorn or some such small ornament, is sometimes fastened on the apex of each angle.

This is for a simple linen mitre, for the more gorgeous ones, preciosa and aurifrigiata, a band of leather is sometimes placed inside between the outside and the lining, wide enough to reach from E to B and C where the angle begins (4 inches in diagram). The triangular pieces are cut out before making it up (along the dotted line in diagram), and another piece of material (not necessarily like the rest of the mitre) is cut to fit, and sewn neatly all round, before the edging of cord is put on. The shape of this top piece will vary from a square to any lozenge, according to the angle at which the point of the mitre is made. In my diagram it is a right-angle, and so the top would be 8½ inches square. It should have an interlining of something light, yet fairly stiff. Parchment used to be considered the correct thing for this interlining, but a good collar interlining or tailor’s canvas will suffice.

CHAPTER X
ON EUCHARISTIC VESTMENTS, CHALICE-VEIL AND BURSE

The Ornaments Rubric as it stands at the beginning of our Prayer-books has been an open field for controversy for many years. So much light has been thrown by this means upon customs and observances once almost forgotten and fallen into neglect (which obviously at the time of the Rubric were before the eyes or fresh in the memories of all Church-people), that we can now once more picture to ourselves, without effort, what our forefathers strove successfully to retain as permissible for the maximum (if not absolutely commanded as the minimum) of distinctive vesture and ritual to be used in the services of the Church of England.

For the Celebrant—the Amice, the Albe, the Girdle, the Stole, the Maniple or Fanon, and the Chasuble.

For the Epistoler and Gospeller—the same vestments, except that instead of the Chasuble a Dalmatic or Tunicle is worn.

For the Altar itself—a Frontal, Fair linen cloth, two Corporals (or Corporal and Chalice-veil, or Corporal and Pall), Purificators, and Corporal-case or Burse.

The symbolism of the vestments may be considered in a two-fold aspect: both as signifying the garments worn by our Lord at His Passion (and so keeping before the eyes of the congregation the ‘continual remembrance’), and, secondly, as representing the virtues required in the ministers.

Thus we may see in the amice, first, the cloth with which our Lord was blindfolded when the Jews struck Him on the face, and, secondly (as it is first placed on the head), ‘Hope—the Helmet of Salvation.’ In the albe, first, the white garment in which He was arrayed by Herod, and secondly, Innocence of Life, or a ‘conscience void of offence toward God.’ And so, of the others, the girdle, stole, and maniple may represent the cords and bands with which He was bound and scourged, and, secondly, purity or chastity, and the yoke of Christ. While in the chasuble we see the royal robe in which He was mocked as king, and, secondly, covering and embracing all, the glorious grace of charity.

The amice, albe, &c., will be more particularly described in the chapter on Linen-work. The altar-frontal we have already spoken of. In this place we will consider the stole, maniple, chasuble, and dalmatic.

In a little book such as this, the primary intention of which is to be of practical use to the embroidress, we cannot do more than touch upon the very outside margin of history. It is, indeed, extremely interesting to trace back to their primitive uses and beginnings all the articles of vesture and ornament used by the Church in her services; but I can merely remark in passing upon the evolution of the Liturgical garments, which seem to have proceeded gradually from the most simple and elementary requirements;—begun by necessity, continued by reverence, and completed by symbolism.

Putting aside, therefore, learned research into the origin of the stole (orarium, stola) and the maniple (mapula, sudarium, mantile, or fanon), we need not go further back than the ninth or tenth centuries to find them in general use by the clergy much the same as we see them now.

The stole and maniple are usually made to match, and follow the colour of the season, as shown by the altar-frontal. About 9 feet is the full length of the former and 3 feet of the latter; 2 yards of damask will be sufficient for both, if the stole has a seam in the centre, and half the width only of 27-inch damask is required. And the best shops will supply the half-width if requested to do so; but if other vestments are being made at the same time, with the same material, it is more economical to get all the silk in one length, as it will cut to more advantage than by getting the pieces separately.

The width of a stole and a maniple may be from 1½ to 2½ inches in the narrowest or central part. (They are sometimes made wider, but are not so convenient to wear under a chasuble.) They may be perfectly straight from end to end, as in Illustration A, or they may widen out by degrees from the centre to the fringe, as at D. They may have a square end added on like C, or begin to widen from 8 to 10 inches above the fringe (see B), or, again, only just over the fringe, as in E and F. All these are typical ancient examples.

As to the decoration of them, as a rule they were either woven in gold thread or embroidered richly throughout the whole length in gold diaper patterns, or geometric devices, with crosses, roses, &c., at intervals; or with figures, as in the celebrated Durham relics of St. Cuthbert. The fringes were often very handsome, either knotted or plain, in various colours or of gold alone; sometimes tassels at the corners were used instead of fringe, or little golden bells.

The material of which they are made should be rich and handsome—by preference the same as the chasuble. A deacon’s stole[8] should not be so richly decorated as that of the priest.

The chasuble (chesible, casula, planeta, amphibalus, pænula) seems in very early days to have been the ordinary outer dress of the clergy as well as the one worn at the celebration of the Eucharist; no doubt the latter would be handsomer both in material and ornamentation, so as to make a distinction. The most usual form would seem to be that of a semicircle joined up the front, leaving an aperture sufficient for the head of the wearer to pass through. It may possibly have been of a completely circular shape to begin with, with a hole in the centre like a poncho or a gaberdine. It may have been cut away at the sides for convenience, till by degrees it arrived at the two typical shapes of ‘Gothic,’ or pointed, and ‘Roman,’ or square. The former has always been more generally used in our Church, but the latter was not uncommon at the time of our Rubric. Fig. III. shows the early form of Gothic. It is from one of the tombs in Worcester Cathedral of the early thirteenth century; there are numbers of equally fine ones to be seen on the effigies of priests and bishops in our old parish and cathedral churches all over the country; the older they are, the fuller and softer-looking is the vestment as a rule. They often have one straight orphrey (or pillar) in front and a Y-shaped cross at the back (where the square-shaped ones have a Latin cross). Sometimes they have a Y-cross in front also. Occasionally there is no orphrey in front, as in Fig. III. It is not unlikely that the orphrey was added to cover the seam.

Another and very graceful way of decorating the chasuble is by embroidering it over the shoulders between the arms of the Y-cross, either on the back alone or extending over the front also. This kind of ornamentation is called the ‘Flower,’ and may be seen on the chasuble of St. Thomas of Canterbury (p. 58) and also on Fig. IV.

Almost the only difference between a modern chasuble of a good ‘make’ and the old Gothic is the seam on the shoulders, which makes it less cumbersome to wear.

Although the Gothic may be the more artistic garment, the square chasuble can also be a noble-looking vestment in its older and ampler form, as may be seen by Fig. I., taken from Rubens’s portrait of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It also gave scope for much decoration, as the broad, plain surface, unbroken by folds, lent itself to more pictorial treatment. There are many in the South Kensington and other museums with representations of the Crucifixion, surrounded by groups of saints and attendant angels.

The chasuble follows the colour of the season. A good average size is 54 inches long at the back (3 or 4 inches shorter in front) and 50 inches wide at the widest part. It takes 6 yards of 25- or 27-inch material, not counting any extra length which may be required for ‘repeat’ of pattern, which must never be forgotten when ordering any kind of figured stuff. When there are orphreys, they should be worked separately on strips of satin, velvet or damask, of a different colour or material from that of the vestment, and applied to it on a frame before joining the two halves together at the shoulders. A medallion may be placed at the intersection of the Y-cross, which should not be too low down.

The material of which the orphrey is made should never be less rich than the vestment to which it is applied.

The DALMATIC worn by the Gospeller or deacon and the tunicle worn by the Epistoler or sub-deacon are very similar to each other in shape and general appearance. The latter is usually a little simpler in decoration.

Many very beautiful examples may be seen in our museums and picture galleries. It was a favourite custom with the Old Masters to represent the Angel Gabriel in the dress of a deacon in pictures of the Annunciation. There were also many well-known ones of SS. Stephen and Lawrence.

The world-renowned ‘Dalmatic of Charlemagne’[9] is still in existence in the Treasury of the Vatican, which shows the freedom with which masters of the craft could treat the decoration of the dalmatic with the happiest results. In these days we generally keep to the two stripes (clavi) and two or four apparels.

The length of the dalmatic and tunicle should be about the same as that of the chasuble or a little shorter. They also follow the colour of the season where there are complete suites of vestments, but for poorer churches it has not always been considered necessary. The lining of all vestments should be of a different colour from the vestment itself. It may be of either silk or linen; the richer ones are preferably of silk, as it is not so heavy and cumbersome as linen. The narrow orphrey is placed straight down each side of the dalmatic from the shoulder to the hem, which may be fringed all round; sometimes a rich tassel hangs over each shoulder, as in the sketch of St. Lawrence.

The apparels are rectangular pieces of silk or velvet, usually embroidered very richly in gold and colours, and made up quite separately from the vestment which they adorn.

They are attached by means of lightly worked tacking or slip-stitches.

For an amice the apparel is generally stiffened with an interlining of tailor’s canvas. It should be about 22 inches long and 3 or 4 inches deep. In use it looks something like a collar, and is sometimes called the amice collar. For a dalmatic or tunicle the apparels may be about 21 × 15 inches for the skirt and 21 × 9 for the upper one; but there is no exact rule about size, only they should not be too long (not more than 21 inches to fit in between the clavi), and for the skirt not too deep.

They are generally shorter on the albe than on the dalmatic—from 12 to 15 inches. They may be of any colour; a crimson ground with gold, blue, and white decoration has always been a favourite combination and looks well with most vestments. A bold design and plenty of gold and colour are desirable. Illustrations III. and IV. in Chapter VI. give good fifteenth or sixteenth century designs for an apparel. They are done in these colours. The earlier ones were generally of geometric design, like the stoles in Illustration I., and the interlaced circles with cross in the centre, &c. A piece of rich brocade or damask, &c., was often used instead of embroidery.

For sleeves and skirt of albe they may match the amice collar. Indeed, I have seen fourteenth-century work in which the stole, fanon, orphreys of chasuble, and apparels of albe and amice are all of the same pattern, and the effect was very good.

The corporal-case, or burse, and the silk chalice-veil are usually en suite with the altar and vestments. It is said by some that the silk chalice-veil is a foreign innovation and has no proper place in the Anglican ritual, but it is of such general use now that we must mention it here. It is usually made of the richest silk or satin, and embroidered all over, or at the corners and centre, or with a border all round and a cross or monogram in the middle of one side, lined with silk and edged with a narrow fringe or cord, or made up plain. The design is frequently, but not necessarily, made to match the burse. When this is desired, it is important to arrange it so that the design and embroidery are not spoilt when the veil is in use; for it must be remembered that the burse always presents a flat surface of at least 9 inches square, while the veil is intended to hang over the chalice, so that the centre (with a radius of probably from 2½ to 3½ inches) is the only part that will lie flat when in use. I once saw a beautifully worked chalice-veil entirely spoilt by the heads of the four Evangelists hanging upside down over the chalice. The design had apparently been copied from an alms-dish of Benvenuto Cellini, and was extremely beautiful in itself and quite suitable for a burse, but did not lend itself happily to a chalice-veil.

The burse should be made of rich and beautiful material. In many of the old ones the back was made of leather, or something else useful and strong; but nowadays they are generally made of damask or satin, the same as the front. Nine inches square is a good size. If a chalice-veil and burse are being made to match, 1 yard of 27-inch material will usually be enough for the two. First cut a square of 25 inches for the veil; then two squares of 11 inches each from the piece that is left; this allows 1 inch all round for turnings. When the embroidery on the silk for the burse is finished it should be cut out of the frame with the linen still at the back, not cut away round the work, or it will be apt to show a ridge where it leaves off when it is stretched over the boards; besides, it is needed to protect the silk where the edge of the boards would otherwise come in contact with it. Have ready four pieces of good strong cardboard, cut exactly square, each 9 inches. This can be got at any good shop where mounts for pictures are cut.

Two pieces of fine white linen, each 11 inches square, should be ready, nicely washed and ironed. The linen is to be stretched over two of the boards, the embroidered silk over one, and the plain silk, for the back, on the other. It can be done either by taking long stitches from one edge of the stuff to the other, right across the boards, or by means of a very small quantity of embroidery-paste on the inside of the turnings. Then each linen-covered board is placed with a silk-covered one, and the two sewn together with the finest stitches of over-sewing, in white thread or silk. After this the linen-faced sides are placed together, the silk being outside, and the two sets of board are joined at the left side by means of four or five tiny hinges, worked strongly through the silk and inner lining, in buttonhole stitch of the same colour as the cover.

Some people make the back and front all in one piece of silk, but this is not so convenient either to work or to make up. There is more difficulty in getting the design exactly in the middle and straight on the boards; there is, besides, a constant strain afterwards on that edge of the silk which acts as a hinge every time it is opened and shut.

Another diversity in the way of making up a burse is the letting in of side-pieces, like a purse or pocket-book. This also is difficult to do neatly, and is inconvenient in use; but where it is preferred it may be made less awkward by setting in a straight-edged piece of linen instead of a ‘gusset-shaped’ one, covering it with silk like the burse-cover, and stitching it firmly into a pleat before joining the two boards together. It will then more readily keep in place, and if it bulges when in use it will not look so slovenly as it does when the side-pieces are of linen alone. Many of the old burses were sewn up closely along three sides, with the fourth only left open, but this is obviously inconvenient.

CHAPTER XI
ON BANNERS, ETC.

Ecclesiastical banners vary to almost any extent in size, shape, and material, as well as design.

One of the simplest, much in use in the olden times, was the Banner of St. George, the patron Saint of England. It is suitable to nearly every place and occasion, and consists of a red cross on a white ground, and is of a plain rectangular shape with a fringe or border all round.

The choir banner generally has as its chief ornament the figure of the patron saint, or the emblems of the dedication of the church, or the coat-of-arms of the parish or see, with the name of the church on the upper border. It may have orphreys down the sides, or be ‘parsemé’ with flowers, or the whole of it may be treated more or less pictorially (within a border) with an incident in the life of the saint.

The other banners in general use are those belonging to the different Church guilds and societies working in the parish, such as Temperance societies (a favourite device for this is St. George and the Dragon), Sunday schools, Missionary societies, ‘C.B.S.’ Embroiderers’ Guilds, &c. &c.

Appliqué work, as I have before observed, is admirably suitable for banners, whether the design consists of figures or emblematical devices. The material should be good of whatever kind, and strong, and the work firmly and closely done to stand wear and tear, especially if used in outdoor processions. But a painted banner is really more suited to our climate than a worked one. I do not mean an imitation of embroidery. Nothing could be in worse taste than the pretence of such a thing, but a good painting on canvas or any suitable material, in oils or tempera, which will not be greatly affected by sunshine, rain, or fog, would answer all the requirements of an outdoor processional banner far better than a more delicate embroidered one. After painting I recommend Inlay, and thirdly Appliqué in suitable materials for banners. These methods are described in Chapter VI. But of course for use in a building ordinary embroidery in gold and silks is not out of place where funds permit.

A plain rectangular banner is made up in the same manner as an altar-frontal. But a less simple shape is not quite so easy to finish off neatly. I therefore give a diagram showing how to arrange the making up of a more intricate form.

The banner is laid face downward on the table and the interlining (previously cut exactly to right size and shape) tacked down to it through the centre and near the edges. The dotted lines show how the material of the banner is to be cut to make the turnings lie flat. It is then to be laid face upwards and all the edges turned and tacked closely over the interlining. The outer lining may then be laid upon it, the corners cut and the edges turned, making it about one-eighth inch smaller than the other; the two are then placed together, tacked once more and then firmly sewn all round. If the fringe has an ornamental heading it should be put on last of all, but if not it should be inserted and firmly stitched in place before the outer lining is sewn down. All the edges may be evenly pressed with a warm iron after the tacking-threads are removed.

Next to the plain rectangular shape, the single point at the bottom is the easiest to make up. Proportion in size and shape is the great thing to aim at. A square and a half is a fair one for a rectangle. Variations should be rather in favour of additional length than additional width, but no exact rule can be given, as so much depends on the design.

It should be borne in mind that lines going parallel with the long side tend to lengthen, and parallel with the short side to shorten, the apparent size of any figure.

A banner should not be too large and heavy, in consideration for the person who has to carry it, neither should it be too small, or it will look poor and insignificant, however good both material and workmanship may be. If possible it should be worked on both sides, as the expanse of lining which is displayed when it is in use is not very interesting to look upon, and is in evidence for quite as long a time as the front during a procession. Vasari says that Botticelli invented the method of work I have described as Inlay for the use of church banners, considering it more effective than any other kind of work and having the advantage of being equally visible on both sides of the banner. Botticelli drew beautiful designs for needlework of this kind, but it had been actually in use for other purposes many centuries before.

Some of the finest specimens of early English Church embroidery which have survived to our time are to be seen in the funeral PALLS or herse-cloths belonging to the old guilds and companies. It seems to me that it would be a good thing if each parish church had now such a decent and seemly covering for her departed as was customary in earlier days.

The pall is still used at the burial of great persons. Those of us who were present at the funeral of Queen Victoria will not have forgotten the beautiful one worked for that occasion by the ladies of the Royal School of Art Needlework.

The terrible masses of black velvet, &c., used in the last century seem to have left a sense of recoil in the minds of many against the use of the pall altogether, but if it were once realised that black is altogether unnecessary (white or red or blue and gold being quite as often used in former times in the English Church) I think that the idea would be generally approved of having one beautiful covering for the use of rich and poor alike.

Of course, it would not be possible or suitable for every simple parish church to have such magnificent embroideries as are shown, for instance, on the illustration here given of the Saddlers’ Pall, or as the Fishmongers’, Vintners’, or other rich merchants’ guilds, but a handsome cloth of red or blue brocade with a text worked on the border, or a simple symbolic design in appliqué repeated at intervals, or a plain cross (the sign which can be read and understood by all) going over it from side to side and from end to end, would not be very costly. The centre of this one is of rich red and gold velvet brocade, and the border is magnificent with coloured silks, gold, &c.

Desk-hangings, which are of use for the better preservation of the books laid upon them, and sometimes desirable as introducing a little colour and comfort among the wood and stone-work of pulpit or reading-desk, are usually, though not necessarily, of the same colour as the altar-frontal or other hangings, so far as the ground-work is concerned; the embroidery also ought to harmonise in colour and style, especially if they come into view at the same time. The same may be said of almsbags, book-markers, kneelers, and any other textile furnishings there may be.

For a desk, a piece of silk or velvet, &c., should be measured wide enough to cover the flat part of the desk (allowing a little extra on each side for ‘turnings’), and the length should be sufficient to hang down about 12 to 16 inches in front only of a pulpit desk, but both back and front of a faldstool or prayer desk: 6 to 8 inches is deep enough for these, which should be embroidered and fringed both front and back. A simple border-pattern either upright or lateral in motive looks as well as anything here, as it is not intended to attract particular attention to itself.

Altar and office-books may be covered with very beautiful embroideries, and if the materials of which they are made are good and substantial they will stand a fair amount of wear and last many years.

Almsbags should not be very elaborately worked, as they soon wear out or yet dirty when in constant use. Three-eighths of a yard of twenty-four inch material is enough to cut two if arranged in the manner shown on the diagram, thus:—

It will be noticed that the back of each bag A, is cut in one piece and the front, B, C, is cut in two pieces. The interlining, which should be of a good quality of tailor’s canvas, is cut in the same way; the silk or linen lining—the ‘business’ part of the bag—is made a very little smaller than the worked part of the front B.

To make up the almsbag, after the embroidery is worked on the silk (or whatever the material may be), the linen at the back may be cut away round the work if it makes it too clumsy. Then interlining and embroidered front are tacked together, corners cut and curves nicked before turning the edges over, the upper part of front and the whole back treated in the same way.

Then the stout silk or fine linen lining is joined along the sides and bottom with fine back-stitching, and the upper edge hemmed down to the top of embroidered front and along the dotted line of upper front (see D).

The two parts are then first tacked, then sewn together with fine over-sewing, done in silk of the same colour as the material, and the bag is finished. Sometimes a fine cord is sewn all round the bag. The embroidery ought to be fine and close to wear well; it is a nice little piece of work for beginners to try their hand on.

Kneelers frequently consist merely of mats and strips of carpet, and certainly from an artistic point of view good carpet is better than poor needlework. But if people will have the patience to do it there is no need to have bad needlework when there is an ideal stitch for the purpose which requires no technical skill in embroidery—which calls in fact for nothing in the worker but diligence, patience, and accuracy in counting. I refer to the good old cross-stitch, which unfortunately has got itself into disrepute by its devotees trying to make it do work for which it is manifestly by its nature unfit, and by the crude colouring which was common at the time the so-called Berlin-work was in vogue.

If we return to the early pattern-books of German and Venetian origin (there are many republished in the present day) it should be quite easy to choose good and suitable ones from among them, avoiding as a rule those sold in shops as ‘exclusively ecclesiastical,’ which are generally hideous, and also any that make attempts at shading naturalistic foliage and blossom: see that the design frankly acknowledges the limitations of the method and thus makes artistic use of it (see Illustration F, Chapter XII.). Good strong wool or silk and linen canvas should be selected and the work done with a ‘rug’ needle.

This work is easily made up, the edges turned over and strong flax or hempen cloth hemmed to it. An interlining of coarse felt may be added if extra thickness is desired.

The modern use of the BOOK-MARKER in the Holy Bible, Office, and Altar books seems partly to be occasioned by the absence of illuminated Initials, Versals, &c., which in former days assisted the reader in finding his place in the book. But there was often in medieval times a small handkerchief (sudariolum) attached to the altar-book by a ribbon for the use of the officiating priest, and this string would naturally sometimes be used as a ‘marker.’ In the course of time, like all other things used in the sanctuary, this would become resplendent with gold and embroidery, till the ornamental took the place of the useful and remained only as a symbol.[10]

Book-markers should not be wide or clumsy or they defeat one of the objects for which they exist—the preservation from wear and tear of the books in which they are placed. It would perhaps be more convenient if they were fastened into the binding, but as this is seldom done effectually in the first place, and they soon get worn out, the movable ones, which can easily be replaced, are now in general use. A simple device at each end and the appropriate finish of a good fringe are all that is necessary. For the sake of harmonious appearance, and not for any ritual reason, they are usually made en suite with the vestments and altar.

When working book-markers sufficient ribbon should be left below the design to turn up and cover the back of the work. The raw edge will be turned in and it will be slip-stitched along the top and over-sewn down both sides. The fringe is then over-sewn to the extreme end of the marker. If the ‘head’ of the fringe is not suitable for this treatment, the ribbon that covers the back of the work may be cut separately and the head of the fringe inserted between the two. The back may also be embroidered.

CHAPTER XII
ON THE PRINCIPAL STITCHES USED IN LINEN-WORK

In all the previous chapters I have assumed that the embroidress would carry out the suggestions given by means of gold and silver thread, floss silks, &c., working them either directly upon some rich fabric such as silk or velvet, or else on linen with the ultimate purpose of transferring it to the more precious material, or, thirdly, on a linen ground which is eventually covered so entirely with embroidery that no trace of the original material appears. I have mentioned coloured linens and linen thread as desirable materials where economy is a consideration, to be used for the same purposes and in the same manner as silk and gold, &c.

I now propose to treat of linen-work as a separate branch of Church needlework, different both in regard to the materials employed and in the method of using them.

To begin with, as the ground-work will be of white linen, which naturally requires frequent washing, the decoration of it must either be detachable (as in the case of ‘Apparels’), or it must be of such a nature as to withstand injury under the necessary processes of the laundry.

This limits the materials for the embroidery to linen thread, cotton, crewel wool, washing silk, and a certain make of tambour gold which can be conveniently worked through the substance of the linen.

It excludes (generally speaking) all loose surface-stitches and highly raised relief work; but on the other hand it allows of many curious and diversified stitches which can only be worked satisfactorily when done in the hand without a frame, such as chain-stitch, buttonhole, &c. &c.

In choosing the materials, whether it be the linen itself or the embroidery threads, a careful judgment is required to select only the best and most durable. If colours are to be used in the ornament, it is well to test them beforehand as to their behaviour under the ordeal of washing. The guarantee of the labels on many of them is insufficient. The linen itself ought also to be washed in boiling water before the cutting-out or embroidering is attempted. Hand-made and grass-bleached linens are much to be preferred to the more perfect-looking but less reliable products of machinery.

Linen thread for embroidery is not so easy to work with as some of the cottons prepared for this purpose; but it looks so well when carefully handled that it repays a little extra trouble in the using. It is apt to come untwisted in the friction through the stuff, and then to break rather readily; the remedy is to roll the needle between the finger and thumb from time to time during each needleful, to keep it twisted right, or to change hands, working with the left if possible, or from the opposite end of the work where it is convenient. The needlefuls also should not be too long.

‘D.M.C.’ cottons (of which there are a great number of different kinds) are very nice-looking and pleasant to work with; the colours also are good.

For white work I prefer Clark’s Anchor (à broder), the numbers from 5 to 10 being especially good and useful.

The Stitches

There is a great variety in the stitches which may be employed in linen embroidery, but for each separate piece of work it is best to keep to one or two only. In the accompanying sampler I have contrived to show about a dozen different ones without seriously interfering with the unity of the design; but it is to be taken merely as a sampler of stitches, and of those only the most desirable for Church linen.

All this kind of work should be solid and firm without being drawn too tight. It should never be so tightly done as embroidery which is worked in a frame, if the linen becomes puckered or drawn out of shape it will never ‘come right’ afterwards, so the stitches ought to be well practised on a waste piece of linen till the right degree of tension is ascertained. A want of due regard to this is the cause of much disappointment in work done in the hand; if too loose it soon becomes shabby, and if too tight it makes a series of small holes all round the work, after repeated efforts of the laundress to make the thing lie smoothly by means of much stretching and heavy ironing.

In general method, embroidery worked loose in the hand differs from that done in a frame, in that each stitch is completed by one action of the needle instead of two, as it goes in and out of the stuff.

Satin-stitch, marked A on the sampler, is nearly always padded first by running a few stitches backwards and forwards in the opposite direction to that of the satin-stitch, which covers it by going ‘over and over,’ the needle going in at one edge of the outline and coming out at the other as nearly as possible at right angles. The stitches should be placed quite close together, and should never be much more than ¼ inch across: if the design shows a wider space to be filled it must be subdivided by a voided line. Some workers pad their satin-stitch very thickly, thinking to make it handsomer; but all very high relief is a mistake from an artistic point of view, as it destroys the delicacy one expects to see in linen-work, and obtrudes itself unduly even when worked entirely in white. Indeed, some authorities go so far as to say that the change of surface or texture caused by the stitchery is the only legitimate effect in white work; but I think the majority would allow a little relief, providing it is not exaggerated, especially as it causes the satin-stitch to lie much more smoothly than when done without any under layer of cotton.

Next to the satin- and chain-stitches I think BUTTONHOLE-STITCH is perhaps the most useful for linen embroidery. Simple buttonholing is worked from left to right, setting the needle in and out at right angles to the outline, holding the thread down with the left thumb at each stitch while the needle goes over it. Both chain- and feather-stitch may be considered variations of buttonhole, the principle of the method being the same in each case, viz. working from left to right (or from the top downwards), holding the thread under the thumb for the needle to pass over as it pierces the stuff and comes out again at one ‘stroke.’

In ordinary buttonholing the stitches are placed as near together as possible: at a little distance apart it becomes ‘blanket-stitch,’ of which there are as many variations as the ingenious needlewoman chooses to make, but which are not appropriate to our present purpose.