What Needles?
Tricia writes:
Before we get lots of questions, I thought I would add a blog about what needles we will use for the goldwork. You can see in this picture a #8 embroidery needle and something called a #10 Japanese needle.
In the 1600’s needle eyes were being made by both stamping and boring. Stamped eyes tend to be long ovals with burrs of metal inside where the two halves of the stamp come together. The bored eyes are drilled out and the eye is left smooth and round or oval shaped. There is more to this – but this is it in a nutshell.
There is some scant evidence from German needlemaking documents that goldwork was being done with egg-eyed needles. I have been working with historians/needle experts in Germany trying to find conclusive evidence for this hypothesis in relation to 16th-17th century English embroidery. Certainly I have found that using a needle of this description is the difference between a good experience and not being able to work with these metal threads at all. We do have evidence that needles that look like this were being made at this time frame.
I discovered this in the late 90’s when I was attending Japanese Embroidery classes (Kurenai-Kai) and had recently been studying a goldwork jacket at the MFA. It hit me that the Japanese handmade needles would be great for taking thick gold threads through the linen. I tried and found it worked great. Before that I had resisted teaching these types of stitches, as it was just too hard with conventional needles.
Artisans using ancient techniques make the Japanese needles. I know of one maker. If anyone out there is familiar with other makers in Japan or other countries, I would be very interested in hearing about them as the supply is sometimes difficult to get in the USA in bulk. There are twelve sizes available from the artisan that supplies Kurenai-Kai. Being hand made, they are also quite expensive – over $10 each. You try never to loose one! I have had the same set now for over 28 years.
Tricia
Tags: Japanese embroidery, MFA, needles, Tricia
March 7th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
I got my Japanese needles at the Japanese Embroidery Center in Atlanta, GA. They have an online shop that offers hand-made needles:
http://www.jecstore.bigstep.com/category.html?UCIDs=1259841
The prices range from $9 – $19 – right! Not something you want to lose!
March 9th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
I’ve just spent a week on my fourth Japanese Embroidery Course in Bournemouth, UK. A needle was dropped a few times and believe me we search hard to find those needles! Luckily all were found and returned to their owners
CA
March 10th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
I’m curious if it is possible to give us an idea of how fine the needles were in the early 17th century? I have the impression that there were very fine needles — but how did the needles of the time compare to those we use today?
So often people (but generally not the people involved with this project!!) have an idea that only coarse, crudely manufactured tools were available during this period. I’d love to find another little bit of information to refute this notion.
Thanks,
Carolyn
March 14th, 2008 at 6:24 am
Carolyn-
The most fustrating thing to me is that we don’t have any needles of this time period that I have been able to view yet. By this time, needles had gone from brass to steel but not stainless steel. Therefore the vast majority rusted away. The two needle museums in the world don’t have needles prior to late 1700s, except the very, very early ones that were brass found in the Museum of London. Those ones are large and crude. I have a friend who is a needle historian and he had needles that dated to 1790’s. He gave me one. I will photo it and put it on the blog.
One of the stitchers who has participated is also an archeologist and has been keeping her eye out for needles found in anerobic conditions on something like a spanish gallion for me. I have more to write on this topic – think I might need to leave the comments and go to making a few blog entries on this subject after checking my notes to get my facts correct!
Tricia