Linen vestments from Tyrol

26/3/2018

For the past couple of months, I have been investigating a particular silk embroidery technique from Tyrol. In lieu of a better name, I called it 'Italian couching'. Since this name is already taken in the embroidery universe for not one, but two very different embroidery techniques, I have dropped it. The sparse German literature on the matter refers to it as 'linen vestments from Tyrol'. Perfect! Taken.

What is so special about this particular silk on linen embroidery? Several things. But my most recent discovery involved the embroidery technique itself. Upon closely studying my pictures I had taken in the Diözesanmuseum in Brixen, I discovered that there were no short stitches in the laid-work. Not even when a shape narrowed. Hmmm. Not a 'normal' Bayeux stitch in silk after all. So what did the stitchers from Tyrol do different?

Basically, to achieve a curving petal or leaf, they sculpt their laid-work when placing the long couching stitches on top. As this is a little hard to explain in writing, I made my first ever instruction video. You'll see me work a simple leaf. Whilst stitching the laid-work, I sometimes push previous stitches out of the way. When adding the long couching stitches, I really 'work' my laid-work to form a nicely curved leaf with really nice tips. And I think this is the reason why the Tyrolian stitchers 'sculpted' some of the embroidery elements: really, really nice tips! And I think this sculpting is what makes this style of embroidery differ from, for instance, the Castelo Branco embroidery from Portugal. But please correct me if I am wrong.

By the way, you can help me a lot in promoting my Vimeo channel! Please take the time to not only like my video, but please also subscribe to my channel. The more views, but especially subscribers, and my videos will get noticed by many more stitchers. I will try to add to my channel regularly. And I also have an ebook in the pipeline on these linen vestments from Tyrol. So far, I have written up instructions for two of the eight flower designs seen on the chasuble from Brixen.

12 Comments

Rachel link

26/3/2018 21:19:32

Enjoy your holiday - after six years, you both deserve one!

Jessica Grimm link

27/3/2018 08:23:19

Thank you Rachel!

Mabel

26/3/2018 21:57:15

Jessica jullie samen een hele fijne vakantie en geniet van je rust veel liefs en fijne Paasdagen. Hans en ik gaan 4 dagen met de 4 kleinkinderen op pad. lieve groetjes.

27/3/2018 08:24:28

Dank je wel Mabel! Jullie ook veel plezier.

velia

26/3/2018 22:33:34

Love what you are doing. I certainly will see your video and recommend on fb, if it is OK with you.
BTw, this would be a fabulous on line class.

27/3/2018 08:26:38

Thank you Velia! Please do share on FB. How would an online class differ from an ebook? What extras do you expect from the class that you won't get in the book?

Catherine link

27/3/2018 00:27:06

Firstly, enjoy your well deserved time off!
This is an interesting technique, thank you for sharing. It’s interesteing to see a stitch like laid work worked in a slightly different way to give a different effect. Many possibilities!

27/3/2018 08:28:22

Thank you Catherine! And good luck with packing up and the move.

Dawn Fox Cooper

21/4/2018 20:42:11

I watched the video. The visual part was very good with great detail, but unfortunately I could not make out any of the audio. I is a technique I have not seen & it looks marvelous when completed.

I look forward to seeing more videos & hope that the audio may be clearer in the future.

Thanks

23/4/2018 16:53:06

Thank you for your comments Dawn! Unfortunately, I don't have the funds at the moment to buy professional equipment to do something about the quality of the audio. That's why I put a full transcript of the audio in the description of the video. I hope that helped!

méri link

15/6/2018 19:52:50

Hi Jessica, only today I found your site and blog. Congrats. For sure you are an artist !

I couldn't notice the difference between your laid stitch and the Castelo Branco laid stitch. Could you explain better what you mean, please?

15/6/2018 21:29:26

Thank you Meri! Have you watched the video? I don't think that you would do that in Castello Branco. If the shape narrows, you would use smaller stitches to fill it. Not so with the majority of the laidwork on the Tyrolian Vestments. You keep your stitches long and you push/shape/sculpt them in place with your long couching stitches. Does this make sense?

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Linen vestments from Tyrol

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