All weekend I stitched and stitched  to get the first panel of the cap project finished. Other than stopping to plant 4 roses in huge pots on our terrace and to make enchiladas, all I did was stitch. I wanted so much to have the whole first panel finished in silk to show you today. Alas and alack, it’s not finished. (Alas and alack: Used to express sorrow, regret – I always wanted to use that phrase!)

Here’s how the cap looked Monday afternoon when I got home and took photos in the sunshine. Can you see the changes and what I’ve added? The Tudor rose in the middle is slightly different (French knots in the middle), there are a few little leaves now stitched, the little blue flowers are done and the blueberries are half done. Part of a leaf is done next to the rose buds, but I had to stop last night when I couldn’t hold the needle any longer!

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Today I’m going to answer two very specific questions about the cap project. Both of them have been asked by readers in the comments section of the site and also in emails.

Firstly, how did I choose the colors i am using for the Cap? I looked at the colors in the drawings in Thomas Trevelyon’s book and decided to use those with the addition of purple to represent wealth. Here’s a photo of one of the few pages of embroidery designs that’s colored in the Commonplace Book.

I think the simple colors of red, blue, green and gold are beautiful together. When the gold is added it’s gong to be lovely, I’m sure.

The other question was about how I got the pattern for the cap from the Folger Online library onto a piece of paper and then onto the fabric. That’s more complicated.

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I’m finding with the Trevelyon’s Cap project that my inner eye isn’t as good as my inner ear. I’m a musician and was a professional for 25 years. I can hear music in my head and write it down. What I can’t do (yet?)  is imagine something in my head and then create it, knowing exactly how it will look when it’s finished. My inner eye isn’t well developed.

For example, this leaf (which has been corded Brussels stitch in Gilt Sylke Twist and corded Brussels stitch with gold and silk) has now been restitched in long and short shading. I think it’s better. Until the whole piece is finished, though, I won’t be sure.

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The most inspiring piece of embroidered clothing in the Fashioning Fashion exhibit was a silk taffeta petticoat. It was embroidered in China, for the western market,  in 1785.

The workmanship is perfect as far as I can see.  Each stitch is carefully placed and perfectly executed.  It looks delicate and fresh. I want to be able to stitch that well someday.

It was fabulous. It was amazing. I want to go again and again, and next time I’ll take binoculars so I can really, REALLY see all the stitching.

The exhibit is in 4 parts: a timeline of the change in the silhouettes for men and women from 1700 – 1915, the textiles used and how they changed as production techniques changed, the tailoring of the garments which included hoops, corsets, cages crinolines, and bustles and the trim on garments. As described in the exhibit “the disparate trim techniques featured in this section were by and large unified by two humble object: needle and thread. Working with needle and thread constituted the foundation for embroidery, quilting, and some lace. Skillfully worked luxurious trimmings often represented the largest financial investment of the garment’s construction.”

It certainly did in some of these garments! I could only guess at the number of hours it must have taken a team of people to stitch. What’s more amazing is that these garments are still in one piece! No one cut them up to make new garments out of, no one unraveled the gold to sell, no one threw them away. When I think of all the beautiful dresses we know Elizabeth I had and that none of them survived, it really is unbelievable that these are here for us to see.

A coat and waistcoat covered with goldwork. He would have been blinding when he enter a candlelit room!

Skirt and coat worked in the finest crewel wool thread.

Silk embroidery on silk skirt. This piece left me speechless and I studied it for at least 30 minutes. It was stunning.

And caps, three different caps for me to study!

Silk and metallic thread. The little strawberries are lovely!

Blue silk with silk and metallic thread. Mounted on the wall too high for me to see all of it...rats!

The fabric for this 'At-home cap' has a warp floating patter and then is embroidered with silk and metallic threads.

My husband enjoyed himself as well – just as Christina predicted he would! Fortunately I am blessed with the most patient man in the world as my husband and he happily waited while I studied and studied the embroidered pieces.  There were copies of the book Fashioning Fashion in the exhibit on the benches provided for us to sit when we got tired. The book adds so much to the exhibit; more detail and information about the embroidery and the garments. The audio guide was good, but naturally didn’t go into as much detail about any one aspect of the exhibit. The book seemed to be in much more detail. I’ve ordered it from Amazon in the UK and when it arrives, I’ll be pouring over it to learn more about what I saw!

If you are anywhere near Berlin and can manage to come see this exhibit, DO!

The first leaf went very well, the second one… not so much. What happened in between the first and the second? I was tired. Not late at night tired, but middle of the day sleepy. I could tell (if I’d paid attention!) that I was tired because I got short tempered. I yelled at my stitching…things like “You stupid thread!…Come on needle, go where I point you!…” Did I stop? No, I did not. That old work ethic kicked in and I was determined to continue onward, no matter what.

I’d decided to do the two large leaves in the center of the design in corded Brussels stitch using gold Japan thread for the cords and two shades of Mulberry silk for the body of the leaves, darker on the inside and lighter on the outside. I began by working chain stitch all around the outside of the shape and up the center vein of the leaf. I then put in the cords from the left side to the center and then from the right side to the center.

I wanted to leave a channel for the gold passing thread that will go down the center, which is why I stitched two separate ‘ladders’ of gold thread.

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This weekend is going to be wonderful. In fact, the next three months Berlin will be wonderful if you’re interested in fashion or embroidery – or both! The exhibit “Fashioning Fashion” is here from April 27 – July 29, 2012 at the German Historical Museum.

The exhibit was first opened at the LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) in October, 2011. Now all the exquisite pieces have been sent here.

Here are a few images from the exhibit.

Vest, France 1789-94

The Needle Needs stand is now set up and in use in my studio at home. I can say that it’s a wonderful improvement on what I was using before. It’s more attractive and easier to use. My favorite thing about the stand is that I can turn over a piece of work so easily.

When I brought it home, I knew already that I would be doing something to extend the stand so it would support the slate frame that the Trevelyon’s cap project was on. After looking at it closely in the workshop in the UK, I knew that adapting it for my specific use wouldn’t be difficult.

By extending the side arms to their longest point and spreading them apart quite far, the width of the frame was fine. Now I had to tackle the depth of the frame and get it on the stand so it was balanced and the whole thing didn’t tip over onto my lap. There are two black knobs at the top of the stand where the arms attach. I needed to raise the fabric and frame above those knobs so they didn’t push into the fabric and stretch it.

I looked around my studio for about 3 seconds and decided the two pieces of wood I’d been using across my IKEA towel bars to create a makeshift stand would work perfectly. They are just thick enough that they raise the side arms of the slate frame high enough so the black knobs in the center of the Needle Needs stand don’t push into the fabric. Above you see the wood pieces attached to the stand with masking tape, but I use the stand for smaller frames frequently so I’ve since changed to rubber bands.

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The rose below is only 1 inch/2.5 cm long. It’s little. The entire face of one side of the cap is only 4.5 inches/11 cm tall and 4 inches/10 cm wide. The cap is a miniature version of a full sized cap.

The key words in these sentences are “little and miniature”.

For a while now I haven’t been at all happy with how this whole project was progressing. Everything looked clumsy; more like a child’s crayon drawing than a delicate piece of needlework. Of course, I asked Nicola about this and her insight was invaluable.

When working something in miniature, everything has to be scaled down. Not just the pattern, but the materials and the stitches as well. Above you see the new, done to scale rose. Below the old version using the thicker (but oh so beautiful!) Gilt Sylke Twist. Of course the design has changed a bit so it’s more detailed but I could do that using silk and I couldn’t using the GST.

The other thing I decided to do was to simplify the stitches I was using in such a small space. I wanted to use the GST because I think it’s just beautiful thread. However, this meant finding stitches that showed off the thread and didn’t detract from the design.

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