Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins.
A characteristic of embroidery is that the basic techniques or stitches of the earliest work—chain stitch, buttonhole or blanket stitch, running stitch, satin stitch, cross stitch—remain the fundamental techniques of hand embroidery today.
Machine embroidery, arising in the early stages of the Industrial Revolution, mimics hand embroidery, especially in the use of chain stitches, but the "satin stitch" and hemming stitches of machine work rely on the use of multiple threads and resemble hand work in their appearance, not their construction.
The origins of life and embroidery are lost in time, but examples survive from ancient Egypt, Iron Age Northern Europe and Zhou Dynasty China. Examples of surviving Chinese chain stitch embroidery worked in silk thread have been dated to the Warring States period.
The process used to tailor, patch, mend and reinforce cloth fostered the development of sewing techniques, and the decorative possibilities of sewing led to the art of embroidery. In a garment from Migration period Sweden, roughly 300–700 CE, the edges of bands of trimming are reinforced with running stitch, back stitch, stem stitch, tailor's buttonhole stitch, and whipstitching, but it is uncertain whether this work simply reinforces the seams or should be interpreted as decorative embroidery.
Today, much contemporary embroidery is stitched with a computerized embroidery machine using patterns "digitized" with embroidery software. In machine embroidery, different types of "fills" add texture and design to the finished work. Machine embroidery is used to add logos and monograms to business shirts or jackets, gifts, and team apparel as well as to decorate household linens, draperies, and decorator fabrics that mimic the elaborate hand embroidery of the past.
FAQs
Embroidery is the art of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to stitch thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on hats, clothing, blankets, and handbags.
What is the main purpose of embroidery? ›
Embroidery is an ancient form of needlework that has been used worldwide to embellish textiles for decorative and communicative purposes. In terms of form and aesthetics, embroidery may add color, texture, richness, and dimension.
How is embroidery important to life? ›
It is therapeutic — keeps your fine motor skills sharp and your mind focused. Hand embroidery helps many of us to focus—keeping worries and the chaotic thoughts of our daily life away. It is meditative and has been used as a therapeutic method to improve mental and emotional health.
How do you explain embroidery? ›
Embroidery is the process of embellishing the surface of textiles with decorative stitching using colorful threads often made of silk or cotton. Embroidery is an old art form. It's been found on ancient textiles from China and Russia dating back thousands of years.
What is a good sentence for embroider? ›
Examples of embroider in a Sentence
She embroidered tiny flowers on the baby's scarf. a scarf embroidered with tiny flowers He is known to embroider the truth about his service in the army.
What is a short sentence for embroidery? ›
His stories about his travels include a good deal of embroidery. She learned embroidery from her grandmother.
What does embroidery teach you? ›
Hand embroidery requires a lot of patience and helps you build it too. Self-confidence. Completed embroidery projects can generate feelings of accomplishment and build self-confidence. Attention to detail and concentration.
What makes embroidery unique? ›
Unique & Personal: There are hundreds of hand embroidery stitches, most of which cannot be duplicated by machine. This fact makes hand embroidery a unique, personal, and very human art. 5. Creative: There are specific ways to make individual stitches.
What is the best definition of embroidery? ›
1. a. : the art or process of forming decorative designs with hand or machine needlework. b. : a design or decoration formed by or as if by embroidery.
Why do people love embroidery? ›
Embroidery lets you draw with floss. You are forced to sit and relax while doing it. Freedom and forgiveness. It doesn't have to be just perfect because the thread helps you along, covering up slight imperfections and making it beautiful!
However, modern embroidery is not only present on wearable commodities. It has also gained significant presence in the contemporary art scene. More and more artists explore ways to express themselves through thread and needle.
What is embroidery known for? ›
embroidery, art of decorating material, primarily textile fabric, by means of a needle and thread (and sometimes fine wire). The basic techniques include crewel work, needlepoint, cross-stitch embroidery, and quilting, as well as quillwork and featherwork.
Why embroidery is the best? ›
A T-shirt/Shirt with embroidery designs can be more durable than normal ones. The threads which are used for embroidery can withstand pressure, damage and never allow the fabric to fade that much sooner. The garments which you love can be with you a little longer with the help of embroidery artworks.
What does the embroidery symbolize? ›
Embroidery has been recognized as a symbol of high status.
What do you like about embroidery? ›
Embroidery is easier than it looks
Luckily, you can begin making beautiful embroidery artwork using just one simple stitch. As you gain confidence you can add more stitch styles. Before you know it you'll have it mastered. For absolute beginners, there are kits you can purchase that simplify the process even further.
What is a fun fact about embroidery? ›
Here are a few fun facts that you may or may not know about custom embroidery.
- Custom embroidery is not just for shirts. ...
- The needle selection is crucial to the final result. ...
- The first needles were crafted from bone.
- Ancient embroidery was a sign of status. ...
- The first embroidery machines were invented in the early 1800s.
