We are delighted to announce that The Duchess of Cornwall will be the new Patron of the Royal School of Needlework.

At the end of 2016, Buckingham Palace announced that Her Majesty The Queen would be stepping down as Patron from a number of charities, including the RSN. The Queen became Patron of the RSN in 2002.

Dr Susan Kay-Williams, Chief Executive of the Royal School of Needlework said:

“We are extremely grateful to Her Majesty for her support and would like to say a huge thank you for being our Patron. The Royal Family has supported us from the beginning and we are delighted to continue this relationship with The Duchess of Cornwall as our new Patron. We very much look forward to working with The Duchess.  Her Royal Highness’s support will be invaluable in raising awareness of hand embroidery as both a traditional and dynamic contemporary art form.”

The RSN has had royal support from its foundation in 1872 through Queen Victoria’s third daughter, Princess Helena, and received its Royal status in 1875 when Queen Victoria became Patron.  The Queen Mother was initially President and then in 1937 became our Patron. When she died, Her Majesty the Queen became Patron. The Duchess of Gloucester is President of the RSN.

The RSN has worked on every British Coronation of the 20th century including designing and making the Robe of State for Her Majesty the Queen in 1953 using 18 varieties of gold thread. We also created the balcony hanging at Buckingham Palace for The Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002.

The RSN Studio has the privilege of working on a great variety of projects; large, small, old or new there is always something fascinating to see. Our Embroidery Studio recently restored an altar frontal from St Mary’s Church in Oatlands, Weybridge. The piece was in remarkably good condition but sadly, despite careful storage and handling over the years, there was deterioration in some areas.

The beautiful design of wandering vines is worked in gold and silk threads with areas of applied fabrics. The gold is couched with a brightly coloured silk thread, which contrasts with the gold to create a stunning effect. As the stitches stand out against the gold they can be used to create a pattern that adds texture to the piece, this is called a Diaper pattern. This Or Nué technique has been used throughout the piece and it was these stitches that disintegrated leaving the gold unsecured in places. This is a common problem with pieces worked in silk.

When the altar frontal arrived in the Studio the first task was to identify areas that required attention. The fabric was quite stable, so we decided to dismantle the altar frontal as little as possible. The lining was removed and work commenced on re-securing the g old.

Image on left shows before work commenced. Image on right shows afterwards.

Next, we assembled materials, threads and equipment that were sympathetic to the piece, but would allow the repairs to be worked without distracting from the overall design or further damage to the piece.

Our Studio space has always needed to be dynamic in order for us to work jobs of various sizes, so the next step was to create space and a suitable working environment to accommodate the size and weight of the piece.  In order to maintain the integrity of the design it was important to work stitches carefully and accurately to secure the lifting threads. Often, with projects like this, it transpires that there is more deterioration than is initially identified.

During the project, members of the St Mary’s congregation joined us on a Stories in Stitch Talk & Tour and were able to witness the work for themselves. They were delighted to see part of the process and the piece being restored to its former glory.

Towards the end of November, the piece was returned to the church and on 1 January 2017 the altar frontal was rededicated in a special service which RSN Studio stitcher, Masako Newton, attended.

For more information on the RSN Embroidery Studio, click here or call +44(0)20 3166 6940.

The Royal School of Needlework is delighted to be part of a collaboration between the British Fashion Council and Google.  Unveiled at The Fashion Awards 2016, the project is an exciting digital educational platform that brings to life the creativity, heritage and craftsmanship of British fashion.

The new platform g.co/britishfashion features content from fashion icons – brands, designers, makers and craftspeople, creatives, photographers, stylists and models – and uses technology to tell their stories. It is a single destination that educates and inspires future generations of young fashion creatives, designers and students.

Visitors can watch giants of the industry – from Burberry to Vivienne Westwood – in specially curated digital exhibits through innovative and immersive digital experiences.    They will also be able to go behind-the-scenes of top craftspeople and producers of British fashion, including the Royal School of Needlework.

Click here to view the RSN’s exhibit.

There are over 1,000 assets to explore, including over twenty multimedia exhibits, twenty-five videos and three virtual reality experiences, all accessible from anywhere in the world, on desktop, laptop or mobile. Visitors can explore rich, archival materials from top British fashion houses, sorting their searches by colour and chronology.  They will be able to get close to British Fashion’s biggest characters and moments, reliving Kate Moss’s first runway show at London Fashion Week and exploring profiles of the fashion industry’s key players – from Naomi Campbell to Christopher Bailey.

Dr Susan Kay-Williams, Chief Executive of the Royal School of Needlework said: “We are delighted to be part this unique project and to help educate and inspire audiences around the world.  Traditional crafts such as the art of hand embroidery are part of our heritage and it is fantastic to see this tradition so current again in today’s fashion, whether on denim or silk.  The RSN is the only place that teaches traditional hand embroidery skills to the highest level and we are very proud to be teaching these skills to future generations.”

Caroline Rush CBE, Chief Executive of the British Fashion Council said: “The internet has been an incredible resource for opening up the fashion industry to a new audience, giving young people access to information not previously available. This collaboration represents a new step, bringing together diverse information into one, engaging place. We hope this legacy project will not only inspire but also educate – allowing young people wanting to get into fashion to see the breadth of individuals, skills and careers that make up this multifaceted industry.”

Amit Sood, Director of Google’s Cultural Institute said: “British Fashion has such a unique and revered place within the international fashion industry, and is hugely rich in content, characters, icons and stories. It’s been a joy to work on this project and bring its distinct textures and tales to life through technology – so that now even more people around the world can enjoy it.”

Highlights of the digital collection also include:
•    A super high resolution capture of a couture dress from Alexander McQueen’s SS17 collection, allowing people to zoom in and see its threadwork in never-before-seen detail; and a 360 video featuring the inspiration behind top couture dresses
•    Manolo Blahnik at work in virtual-reality at his London atelier
•    Curated exhibits from and about fashion legends and brands including Burberry, David Bailey, Edward Enninful, i-D magazine, J.W.Anderson, Michael Howells, Naomi Campbell, Paul Smith, Stella McCartney and Vivienne Westwood
•    Decades of British craftsmanship from the houses of Harris Tweed, John Lobb shoes, Lochcarron Tartan and the Royal School of Needlework

The exhibition is available for free online and through the new Google Arts & Culture mobile app on iOS and Android. You can watch all the 360 degree videos on YouTube.