C18th Embroidery

Executing the 18th century embroidery design for the Prince-in-Waiting.

Custom 18th Century embroidery pattern developed for the 'Prince in Waiting' character in conjunction with the client's specifications with regard to the heraldic emblems after extensive research, and with the aide of Gail Marsh's '18th Century Embroidery Techniques'.

We made a collapsible 1m x 1.5m embroidery frame to fit the coat front pattern - the largest section to be embroidered. The smaller pieces fitted onto an embroidery frame we already had from earlier projects. The pieces to be embroidered were mounted onto the appropriate frame, and a paper copy of the full design was stitched onto the fabric before the hand-embroidery process began.
The design was stabilised by completing the longer stitch elements of the repeating rose and vine motif. Once this was completed, the metallic thread elements were added next, followed by the small leaf motif that runs the length of the jacket front and edges the pockets. The roses and leaves were filled in next, before the separately stitched heraldic emblems were added as era-appropriate patches. These provided a textural depth to the design.

Finally, the pattern pieces were cut out and the coat was constructed and shipped to the client.

Additional sewers: Annie Proctor & Milly Williams