Foreword
Cross-stitch is an embroidery technique that belongs to embroidery, a very old craft that has generally fallen into oblivion today or is considered old-fashioned. Contrary to this popular opinion, I enjoy embroidery and do not consider my products to be old-fashioned or unsuitable for contemporary tastes.
My love of embroidery probably runs in the family—at any rate, my mother was a passionate embroiderer, and when we cleared out her house, it turned out that not only she, but also my grandmother and her sisters enjoyed embroidering and did so frequently, as evidenced by the considerable number of tablecloths that are regularly used in my household. I grew up in a time when it was taken for granted that a daughter would be provided with a dowry. At the time, I viewed my mother's evening embroidery work with some skepticism (to put it mildly), especially since it was clear from the outset that I wanted to learn a profession and work in that field. Once I was married (and still working), I quickly learned to appreciate being able to reach into the cupboard and, without much thought, pull out a tablecloth that matched the chosen china.
After I retired, I also started embroidering. However, I already had enough tablecloths. So I specialized in counted cross-stitch pictures. When you hear that, you immediately think of old-fashioned pictures with the proverbial roaring deer. However, these are far removed from modern motifs and patterns, which became abundantly clear when I looked around for embroidery patterns. While searching for pictures that I would actually hang up, I not only came across the change in motifs and preferred embroidery techniques over time, but also discovered differences in motifs and styles between different countries. This aroused my curiosity about the history of cross-stitch, and I began to research it. In blogs and on other websites, I often found the claim that cross-stitch is the oldest form of embroidery. This quickly proved to be false as I consulted more expert scientific literature. So the history of cross-stitch became, in part, a history of embroidery in general, namely for the period until cross-stitch was established as an embroidery technique.
My history of cross-stitch does not claim to be a scientific work. Various circumstances prevent me from examining the remains of embroidered textiles or preserved embroidery in exhibitions myself, especially since I lack the knowledge and opportunities of textile archaeologists. I was therefore reliant on relevant publications and secondary literature in general, which is not as easy to obtain in the countryside as it is in a city with a university library and comprehensive interlibrary loan services. Under these circumstances, I have limited myself to the broad outlines of the history of cross-stitch. I am always grateful for further information and references.
Cross-stitch is an embroidery technique that belongs to embroidery, a very old craft that has generally fallen into oblivion today or is considered old-fashioned. Contrary to this popular opinion, I enjoy embroidery and do not consider my products to be old-fashioned or unsuitable for contemporary tastes.
My love of embroidery probably runs in the family—at any rate, my mother was a passionate embroiderer, and when we cleared out her house, it turned out that not only she, but also my grandmother and her sisters enjoyed embroidering and did so frequently, as evidenced by the considerable number of tablecloths that are regularly used in my household. I grew up in a time when it was taken for granted that a daughter would be provided with a dowry. At the time, I viewed my mother's evening embroidery work with some skepticism (to put it mildly), especially since it was clear from the outset that I wanted to learn a profession and work in that field. Once I was married (and still working), I quickly learned to appreciate being able to reach into the cupboard and, without much thought, pull out a tablecloth that matched the chosen china.
After I retired, I also started embroidering. However, I already had enough tablecloths. So I specialized in counted cross-stitch pictures. When you hear that, you immediately think of old-fashioned pictures with the proverbial roaring deer. However, these are far removed from modern motifs and patterns, which became abundantly clear when I looked around for embroidery patterns. While searching for pictures that I would actually hang up, I not only came across the change in motifs and preferred embroidery techniques over time, but also discovered differences in motifs and styles between different countries. This aroused my curiosity about the history of cross-stitch, and I began to research it. In blogs and on other websites, I often found the claim that cross-stitch is the oldest form of embroidery. This quickly proved to be false as I consulted more expert scientific literature. So the history of cross-stitch became, in part, a history of embroidery in general, namely for the period until cross-stitch was established as an embroidery technique.
My history of cross-stitch does not claim to be a scientific work. Various circumstances prevent me from examining the remains of embroidered textiles or preserved embroidery in exhibitions myself, especially since I lack the knowledge and opportunities of textile archaeologists. I was therefore reliant on relevant publications and secondary literature in general, which is not as easy to obtain in the countryside as it is in a city with a university library and comprehensive interlibrary loan services. Under these circumstances, I have limited myself to the broad outlines of the history of cross-stitch. I am always grateful for further information and references.