The New Crewel_ Embroidery for Hipsters? | Twirlit

The New Crewel: Embroidery for Hipsters? | Twirlit
http://www.twirlit.com/2009/11/13/the-new-crewel-embroidery-...
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The New Crewel: Embroidery for Hipsters?
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By Heather Huntington on November 13, 2009
I have a confession to make: I sew. I have sewn since I was a kid. For some reason, most people don’t know this
about me, but it’s true.
Not only do I sew, but I actually hand sew. I do a type of embroidery called “crewel work,” which basically
hasn’t been popular since the Middle Ages. The appeal for me is that it’s much more freestyle than needlepoint,
or counted cross stitch, or any of that other precise, mathematical and intimidating stuff.
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The New Crewel: Embroidery for Hipsters? | Twirlit
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The trouble is, since crewel isn’t very popular, there aren’t nearly the amount of kits for it as there are other type
of sewing. And the ones that are still around are all flowers and Victorian ladies. Not exactly my fare.
Until. Until this awesome artist named Katherine Shaughnessy created The New Crewel, using the old crewel
techniques, but putting them into new, hip, modern applications. Further, her book (the aforementioned New
Crewel) gives you instructions and lots of cool patterns too, of which I am totally in love with.
My favorite thing to do of late is to use the patterns and make them as pillows for gifts for friends and family. I
pick a color scheme and pattern that I think said giftee will like the best (I have been known to call and ask fishy
questions like, “What color is your bedding?”). Traditionally crewel is done on white or cream colored twill
fabric, but you can shake things up with any color twill (Shaughnessy sells fabric and yarn on her website).
When I’m done embroidering the front, I take the piece down to my local fabric store and find a funky pattern
for the back. Shaughnessy has a pattern for making the pillow backing (you can sew that part by hand, but a
sewing machine helps. A lot.) Then insert a pre-made pillow insert (I favor 14″ ones that I pick up at my nearest
crafting-weirdo-filled Jo-Ann Fabrics).
The whole thing probably costs about $25 (mostly for the pillow insert and backing; the twill and yarn I get in
bulk) and takes a couple of weeks (I like to sew while I watch TV), but produces a really special present that
matches any wedding registry gift that would cost $100 more. People like them, and they’re pretty perfect for
these lean times.
You can check out Shaughnessy’s stuff at her website: woolandhoop.com.
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