This doll was made as part of my City and Guild Part 2 in stitched textiles. We had to write a history of English embroidery and I looked particularly at Elizabethan embroidery. I based the doll on Bess of Hardwick, a remarkable woman of her day and a great needlewoman herself. She rose from minor gentry to be Countess of Shrewsbury, married to George Talbot, sixth Earl of Shrewsbury. I am lucky to have been able to go to both her great houses in the north of England, Chatsworth House, which she lost and Hardwick Hall her final home. She lost Chatsworth after a fall out with her husband and built Hardwick for herself and her children. I tried to use several techniques used in Elizabethan dress, to the left shows the little ruff and a tiny blackwork collar, blackwork being introduced by the Spanish at the court of Katherine of Aragon. Beneath shows a tiny velvet book, it would have been a book of psalms or a book of hours and I have chosen to try out stumpwork, making a raised strawberry with picot leaves, french knot seeds and machine made cord scrolling. The little bag with a butterfly motif uses the technique of making cross stitch motifs on linen, carefully cutting them out and than appliqueing them onto velvet or other rich cloths. The bottom picture shows the machine detailing on the kirtle or panel skirt made to sit under the over dress. In keeping with the period the doll has a linen shift in white under her clothes, a red linen underskirt and no knickers! Tudor ladies didn't wear any, it seems crazy to think that they were practically sewn into their garments every day, either that or were held together with pins but no one had come up with the idea of knickers, could have been quite drafty.
This doll was made as part of my City and Guild Part 2 in stitched textiles. We had to write a history of English embroidery and I looked particularly at Elizabethan embroidery. I based the doll on Bess of Hardwick, a remarkable woman of her day and a great needlewoman herself. She rose from minor gentry to be Countess of Shrewsbury, married to George Talbot, sixth Earl of Shrewsbury. I am lucky to have been able to go to both her great houses in the north of England, Chatsworth House, which she lost and Hardwick Hall her final home. She lost Chatsworth after a fall out with her husband and built Hardwick for herself and her children. I tried to use several techniques used in Elizabethan dress, to the left shows the little ruff and a tiny blackwork collar, blackwork being introduced by the Spanish at the court of Katherine of Aragon. Beneath shows a tiny velvet book, it would have been a book of psalms or a book of hours and I have chosen to try out stumpwork, making a raised strawberry with picot leaves, french knot seeds and machine made cord scrolling. The little bag with a butterfly motif uses the technique of making cross stitch motifs on linen, carefully cutting them out and than appliqueing them onto velvet or other rich cloths. The bottom picture shows the machine detailing on the kirtle or panel skirt made to sit under the over dress. In keeping with the period the doll has a linen shift in white under her clothes, a red linen underskirt and no knickers! Tudor ladies didn't wear any, it seems crazy to think that they were practically sewn into their garments every day, either that or were held together with pins but no one had come up with the idea of knickers, could have been quite drafty.
Such beautifully embellished details! Bess of Harwick is gorgeously attired. Your handiwork is lovely!
ReplyDeletehugs,
Teresa in California
http://amagicalwhimsy.blogspot.com/
Thank you for you kind words, she was a joy to make and I loved every moment of her. Face is a bit odd but I seemed to have been going through a phase of heavy tea dyed faces, any way thank you and best wishes.
DeleteCarol in Lancashire