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“All young ladies accomplished! My dear Charles, what do you mean?
“Yes, all of them I think. They all paint tables, cover screens and net purses … I am sure I never heard of a young lady spoken of for the first time, without being informed that she was very accomplished.”
(Conversation between Bingley siblings Caroline and Charles, Price and Prejudice)
In this area of decorative fancy work, many Regency gentlewomen were highly skilled in painting, drawing, decoupage, embroidery, netting and design. Being able to produce a decent drawing was evidence of education and accomplishment; as was making presents such as a netted purse for a brother, or covering screens to be used by the fire as Elinor Dashwood paints in Sense and Sensibility.
Embroidery was a very popular creative skill of the era, it was an easily transportable skill – when visiting friends or family a workbag of embroidery could be taken along. By the Regency era, embroidery designs had moved away from religious symbols to floral designs. Floral designs were often worked in crewel work, woollen thread on a heavier linen for bedding and in tambour using the crochet hook like needle to work a fast colourful chain stitch across the top of the fabric. There were also a wide range of other types of embroidery. Whitework was particularly popular amongst the gentry to work an imitation lace – white work stitches on a fine muslin or cotton could give the appearance of lace, which was far too expensive for most of Jane Austen’s characters to buy. Such whitework pieces were then turned into caps, cuffs or handkerchiefs.
On February 2, 2015, a party of 16 stitchers met at the home of Lynda Hilton to learn the art of Regency embroidery. Led by the very accomplished Gloria Zanella, the ladies learned to make “Bernice’s Posy,” a colorful collection of leaves, stems, goldenrod, and berries stitched on muslin.
To learn more about Regency needlework, click here.
