My own history

I just found this purse, which I made when I was about 14:

Embroidered braids to hide seams

Embroidered braids were used to cover the seams of 14 th century embroidered purses. Frieda Sorber explains this technique in this book:

Ceulemans, C. (1988), Tongeren. Basiliek O.L. Vrouwe Geboorte. I. Textiel van de vroege middeleeuwen tot het Concilie van Trente, Leuven: Peeters

Isis wrote a comprehensive "how to instruction", including pictures: click here.

tassels: 13th century - mid 14th century

These tassels were made for a member of The Liebaart. I used:

• Aurora fine 2 ply spun silk in blue and red
• yellow embroidery: Devere Yarn, 1200 dernier filament silk
• linen core
  
• size: ca 2, 5 * 6 cm
  

This type of tassels were used in the 13th and 14th century, until ca 1350. Pictures of similar tassels can be found in:

• Hoving, T., Husband, T., Hayward, J. (1975), The secular spirit: Life and art at the end of the Middle Ages: New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art v

• Schneider, J. (1975), Textilien. Catalog der Sammlung des Schweizerischen Landesmuseums Zürich, Zürich: Verlag Berichthaus

• Wilckens von, L. (1991), Die textilen Künste. Von der Spätantike bis um 1500, München, Verlag CH Beck

For online pictures, click here (insert LM 1825 a, LM 1825 b), here or here.

14th century embroidery patterns

These patterns were used for decorating 14th century purses and wall hangings. You can find pictures of purses embroidered with this type of patterns, from The Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, in these books:

• Ceulemans, C. (1988), Tongeren. Basiliek O.L. Vrouwe Geboorte. I. Textiel van de vroege middeleeuwen tot het Concilie van Trente, Leuven: Peete

• Schmedding, B. (1978), Mittelalterliche Textilien in Kirchen und Klöstern der Schweiz, Bern: Abegg-Stiftung

• Staufer, A. (1991), Die mittelalterlichen Textilien von St. Servatius in Maastricht, Bern: Abegg-Stiftung Riggisberg

There are pictures of German wall hangings decorated with these patterns in e.g.

• Schuette, M., Müller-Christensen. S. (1963), Das Stickereiwerk, Tübingen: Wasmuth

• Wilckens von, L. (1991), Die textilen Künste. Von der Spätantike bis um 1500, München, Verlag CH Beck

• white DMC linen floss
• red and green Au ver a soie silk
• 9*15 cm
• original in Victoria & Albert Museum, London
  
• chart by Wymarc

• red, white, blue and green Au ver a soie silk
• 8*16 cm
• original in Victoria & Albert Museum, Londen
  
• chart by Wymarc
  

Embroidery threads for satin/brick/gobelin stitch

Frequently used stitches in 14th century embroidery are:

• satin stitch/ brick stitch
• for "how to" pictures, see Wymarc's German embroidery tutorial
• examples in this portfolio: purse, pillow
  

• gobelin stitch
• example in this portfolio: purse
  

These stitches cover the entire surface smoothly. Modern silk threads suitable for these types of stitches are Devere Yarn 1200 dernier loose twist filament silk and Au ver soie spun silk. Devere Yarn is very glossy, Au ver a soie silk has got more texture. The patch of gobelin stitch on the left is made using Devere Yarn silk and the right with Au ver a soie:

14th century German pillow

14th century German pillow

• silk embroidery on linen
• embroidery: Au ver a soie spun silk
  
• brick stitch/ satin stitch
• 35 cm * 24 cm
  
• original in Kunstgewerbemuseum, Berlin and in Victoria and Albert Museum London
  
• charts are available by Joyce Miller and Wymarc
  

A picture and a description of the original can also be found in:
Schuette, M., Muller-Christensen, S. (1963), Das Stickereiwerk, Berlin: Tubingen

Ca 1320 Swiss purse

Front

Detail Front

Detail Front

Back

The figures on the back represent heraldic motives, similar to those in the Codex Manesse. For a "who is who" of the heraldic motives on this purse, see Schneider, J. (1975)

Purse:

• silk embroidery: gobelin stitch and split stitch
  
• Au ver a soie spun silk
• goldwork: gold thread couched with red silk
• Japanese gold K4. 0.5 mm
  
• 18 cm * 20 cm
  

Tassels:

• Devere Yarn 1200 dernier, filament silk, loose twist
  
• goldwork: gold thread couched with yellow silk
• Japanese gold K4. 0.5 mm
• 12 cm * 2 cm
  
• original in the Sweizerisches Landesmuseum, Zurich, beutel LM 1825a
  

A picture and a descritption of the original can be found in:
Schneider, J. (1975), Textilien. Katalog der Sammlung des Sweizerischen Landesmuseums Zurich: Zurich: Verlag Berichthaus

The Cloisters Museum, New York, owns a smiliar purse. A picture and a description of this purse can be found in:
Hoving, T., Husband, T., Hayward, J. (1975), The secular spirit: life and art at the end of the Middle Ages, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

See also this purse: Sweizerisches Landesmuseum, Zurich, beutel LM 1825b