Join us in July for one of our Embroidery Day Classes at Hampton Court Palace.  We have a few remaining spaces for all levels including Introductions, Developing Classes and a Masterclass for the more Advanced stitchers.

15 & 16 July: Developing Goldwork: ‘Flower’  Learn traditional Goldwork embroidery with this stunning flower design.  Experience traditional materials with gilt threads and wires on a rich linen fabric.

16 July Introduction to Embroidery: Starburst  Learn the following traditional techniques: back stitch, chain stitch, stem stitch, button hole, herringbone, satin stitch and French knots.

Two separate 1 day classes on 20 & 22 July: Developing Opus Anglicanum This one day experimental class focuses on exploring the effect of shading and garments as well as looking at underside couching patterns.

24, 25 & 26 July: Masterclass Advanced GoldworkProject  In this three day class the Goldwork bird design uses a variety of advanced traditional techniques, including felt and hard string padding; couching threads, applying pearl purl and leather kid; cut work, broad plate and basket weave over the string.

16 August Tour & Taster: Introduction to Stumpwork Enjoy a Talk & Tour of our current exhibition Stories in Stitch in the morning with a Taster embroidery workshop in the afternoon.

For more Introduction Classes at Hampton Court Palace in the next couple of weeks, please click here.

For all forthcoming Day Classes across the UK & in Dublin, please click here.

Alternatively, please contact Noleen Wyatt-Jones by email or call +44 (0)20 3166 6938

Bridget Maynard, a past pupil of our Head of Studio and Teaching, Anne Butcher, recently brought in a very rare find to our Embroidery Studio and caused great excitement.

Bridget’s piece was a Stumpwork picture that she purchased at an art fair in Battersea.It appears to be from around the mid 17th century at a time when domestic embroidery was a popular pastime and designs could be purchased pre-drawn onto the fabric. Since the early 15th century design books have featured different elements that could be combined, making it easier for embroiderers. For example, the stag that appears on this piece can also be seen on an embroidery in the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool and the Kingfisher is also on an embroidery in Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York. The design here has the traditional combination of royalty, figures, castle, church, foliage and animals.

All embroidery has been worked directly onto the background fabric, except the needlelace slips. The embroidery looks padded as there are a lot of threads on the reverse left loose and hanging (see right of the pear tree). There is a combination of silk embroidery along with some Metal Thread embroidery. The stag is worked in the most exquisitely fine gimp thread that has been couched around the shape in parallel rows.

Very excitingly, small remains of a couched down peacock feather were found within the caterpillar embroidery, between the two ladies, just under the head. (It can be seen more clearly in photograph than with the naked eye).  Unusually the Moss Stitch parrot has an underlying layer of embroidery.

This Stumpwork piece has previously undergone some conservation work as it has been covered with surface couching which is now deteriorating as well.  Our Embroidery Studio has secured some of the weaker areas of this conservation using invisible thread. There was also evidence that adhesive treatment had previously been used, which had unfortunately caused some damage (see top right of donkey for remains of paper and adhesive). This has been left untouched and just received support from the new fabric that the piece has now been placed upon, but will show the journey the piece has been through.

It is amazing to find a piece like this for sale and an absolute treat for the Embroidery Studio to have conserved it.  Thank you to Bridget for bringing it to us!

We were approached at the end of 2016 to produce a Laudian Fall for the Altar in the Royal Chapel at Hampton Court Palace. A Laudian Fall or altar cloth takes its name from Archbishop Laud who advocated High Church Principles and especially emphasised liturgical ceremony. A Laudian Fall has rounded corners at the front so is a large semi-circle when being made.

In our 30th anniversary year at the Palace, what better way to celebrate than to work with Historic Royal Palaces to create an important historical piece of embroidery that can be enjoyed for many years to come.

It is an all season Festal Frontal so the base colour has to be cream, however we also felt that it was important to feature some of the blue that is so dominant in the chapel’s stunning ceiling. The fabric used is St Margaret’s Brocade which includes a coronet and Tudor rose in the figured pattern.  The weave is a mix of cream and metallic gold which is subtle and catches the light as it is viewed from different angles.

The design is ‘The Glory’ which contains IHS, a cross and three nails. The Glory and lettering was applied to Cloth of Gold with blue silk forming the shadow on the rays and the background of the central area. The fabric is edged with a combination of gold Japanese thread and Pearl Purl along with a blue twist to echo the blue silk. The nails are worked in silver kid leather and decorated with silver passing to form the head of the nail.

We worked closely with Canon Antony Howe, the Deputy Priest in Ordinary and Chaplain at Hampton Court Palace, and John Barnes, now Chief Executive of Historic Royal Palaces.

The Frontal needed to be completed for a very special service taking place on 13 June 2017 which was attended by Her Majesty the Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh.  It was the Centenary Celebrations for the Companions of Honour who include Sir David Attenborough, Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maggie Smith, Lord Seb Coe and Sir John Major.  Dr Susan Kay-Williams, our Chief Executive, also invited with Margaret Dier, RSN Tutor and member of the RSN Embroidery Studio who had designed the Fall.

Come and see Embroidered at the Palace.

Open all week until 13 August at Hampton Court Palace, our latest exhibition showcases work from our students and Embroidery Studio, and celebrates the 30 year anniversary of the RSN at the Palace.

This special exhibition features a wide range of contemporary embroidery from the RSN’s past and current students, including pieces inspired by Hampton Court Palace.  It also features some photographic images of the unique and memorable projects embroidered by the RSN’s Embroidery Studio over the last  30 years.  Embroidery pieces range from the Moomins and a bird of paradise dress to the chimneys of Hampton Court Palace and even Henry VIII.

RSN Chief Executive, Dr Susan Kay-Williams commented: “The Royal School of Needlework was founded in 1872 and moved from Kensington, London to Hampton Court Palace in 1987.  The exhibition captures contemporary work from our different courses and highlights some of the exciting and fascinating projects completed at the Palace.  We are delighted to be able to share all these wonderful pieces and stories with visitors to the Palace and give a snapshot of life at the RSN.”

The exhibition features over 70 pieces and can be found at the East Front of the Palace, through the Garden Shop.  Entrance is included in the cost of the Palace entry ticket and the exhibition opens from 10am – 6pm.  It is only open for a limited time, so don’t miss your chance to see it.  We recommend buying your Entrance Tickets to Hampton Court Palace in advance via their website as this is cheaper.

Congratulations to our Students graduating this year from our Future Tutors  program me.

They have all achieved such amazing work and we are thrilled that they have already started teaching Introduction Classes at Hampton Court Palace this summer.

Join us w/c 10 July for a series of exciting new designs from our Future Tutor Graduates including:

Mon 10 July – Introduction to Blackwork: ‘Apple’

Tues  11 July – Introduction to Embroidery: ‘Indian Elephant’

Thurs 13 July – Introduction to Embroidery: ‘Seaside Postcard’

Fri 14 July – Introduction to Jacobean Crewelwork: ‘Peacock’

Sun 23 July – Introduction to Appliqué: ‘Hot Air Balloon’

We have many different Day Classes across the UK over the summer at Hampton Court Palace, Bristol, Rugby, Glasgow as well as Fashion Museum Bath, London’s Victoria & Albert Museum and in Dublin, Ireland.  Click on the links for more details.

We are delighted to announce that we will be running a bespoke Family Tour of our Stories in Stitch exhibition on Wednesday 9thAugust at Hampton Court Palace.

This is an ideal opportunity to introduce children or grandchildren to the art of hand embroidery with a visit to our popular Stories in Stitch exhibition and Taster embroidery session.

The exhibition is full of characters they will recognise including Mary Poppins, Spiderman, Alice in Wonderland and Little Red Riding Hood.

As part of the session, the children will hand embroider this cute fox design (image left).

The Family Tour starts at 11am and lasts 1.5 hours.  It costs £25 per family which includes one adult and up to two children (recommended for children over the age of 5).

To book please click here or contact Natalie Thew on +44(0)20 3166 6939.

The first of our two Degree Award Events was held on 25 May.  Congratulations to our Degree Student winners pictured left who were acknowledged for their outstanding work and achievements this year.

We are very proud of all our Degree Students as their stunning creations go on display around the country.  We hope you have a chance to visit one or more of the exhibitions below.

Our Second Year Degree Students’ work is currently on display at the Devon Guild of Craftsmen in Bovey Tracey, Devon.  The exhibition called Off the Surface conveys the diversity of the art of hand embroidery showcasing the students’ contemporary hand embroidery, alongside the traditional treasures from the Collection which inspired the students’ creations.   The exhibition will be on display until Sunday 9 July.

Our First Year Degree Students will have worked displayed at The Dark Self Exhibition at York St Mary’s from 7 June to 3 September.  The Dark Self is a major new exhibition by Susan Aldworth exploring the experience of sleep.  Aldworth uses the pillowcase as a visual metaphor for sleep, and it is a recurring motif.  Visitors will be immersed in the installation – One Thousand and One Nights – which consists of hundreds of embroidered pillowcases sewn by people from all over the UK, including our First Year Degree Students.  The Gallery York St Mary’s is in Castlegate, York, YO1 9RN. Click here for more details.

Our Third Year Degree Students will have their work on display at Hampton Court Palace at our forthcoming Graduation Show from 8 – 17 June (closed Sunday 11 and Tuesday 13 June). Pre-book your place here.

Also you can join us at New Designers Part 1,Business Design Centre Islington, 28 June – 1 July where we will also be showcasing our students’ work.

Our Embroidery Studio was recently commissioned, with permission from Queens Park Rangers (QPR) Football Club, to create a one off bespoke hand embroidered badge. Our client, mother of an avid life-long QPR supporter, was eager to surprise her son with this special gift. The family’s love of the QPR team spans four generations dating back to pre World War One.

The football team started out playing on waste ground in the Queens Park Ward, near Harvist Road in North London. They amalgamated to form Queens Park Rangers in 1882 and settled in Loftus Road in 1917. They become well known in 1967 after their promotion to the 2nd Division and subsequent triumph at the League cup under the astute management of Alec Stock.

The original design of the early QPR badge, comprised a shield based on the crest of the borough of Hammersmith; crosslets from the arms of Edward Latymer (a 17th Century nobleman who donated money to the education of poor boys); three horseshoes from the family crest of Sir Nicholas Crisp who donated money towards the Parish Church in the 17th Century; and a scallop shell from the arms of George Pring, a surgeon at Hammersmith hospital in the early 19th Century. The RSN Studio has recreated this iconic emblem using Goldwork and Appliqué techniques on coloured silks and black wool. The piece features metal cutwork, pearl purl outlines and black stitch detailing.

Francis Peacock, delighted recipient of the completed badge commented;

“This project is a testament to both the expertise of the RSN and the ingenuity of my mother. I would like to thank all those at the RSN who contributed in any way to the production of my QPR badge. The intricacy of detail is most impressive.  The QPR club badge has changed many times over the years but the badge you have so lovingly created is at the heart of the history of my favourite team.”

The RSN Embroidery Studio works on new commissions as well as conservation and restoration.  Click here for more details or call +44 (0) 20 3166 6940.

If you would like to see some of the fantastic work our C&D Students create then don’t miss our annual Summer Exhibition.

Taking place from Tuesday 4 – Sunday 9 July at Hampton Court Palace, the exhibition features Hand Embroidery by our Certificate & Diploma and  Future Tutor Students. It will showcase a variety of techniques including Silk Shading, Black and Goldwork.

Entrance is free.

Visitors should enter the exhibition through the RSN Shop which can be accessed via the Governor’s Gate at Hampton Court Palace.

The exhibition opens daily, 10.30am – 4.30pm.

We have a few last minute spaces coming up.  Join us for a Day Class and kick start your summer.

10 & 11 June: Introduction to Appliqué & Goldwork – Crown at Hampton Court Palace
Learn to stitch this stunning Crown design using a mixture of Appliqué and basic Goldwork techniques over two days.  You will cover how to apply the fabrics and then cover the edges using various couching methods.

10 June: Introduction to Silk Shading, RSN Rugby
Also known as ‘painting with a needle’ learn this beautiful technique on this one day Introduction Course.

11 June: Introduction to Embroidery – Butte rfly, RSN Bristol
On this Introduction to Embroidery class you will cover some of the more commonly used stitches which will enable you you to build up your skills in order to tackle the next project you have in mind with confidence.

17 June: Ribbonwork Pinwheel at Hampton Court Palace  Students will be able to come up with their own design and learn a range of different stitches. The pinwheel will include one embroidered side and one plain fabric side.

24 June: Whitework – Introduction to Mountmellick, RSN Exeter  This introductory class is designed to introduce you to the core stitches and materials used in Mountmellick.  You will learn traditional stitches such as Mountmellick stitch, long armed Feather Stitch, Van Dyke Stitch and other

To view all forthcoming classes in Exeter

To view all forthcoming classes in Hampton Court Palace

To view all forthcoming classes in Bristol

To view all forthcoming classes in Rugby

To view all forthcoming classes in Glasgow

or call Noleen Wyatt-Jones, our Day Class Administrator on 020 3166 6938

Globally established Neo POP artist Philip Colbert is excited to collaborate with the Royal School of Needlework, to create a series of NUDES for London Craft Week 2017.

Working on a range of five new artworks, this unique collaboration fuses traditional and contemporary art, revisiting the classic genre of the Nude painting to create a bold and humorous series of hand embroidered pieces.  The project explores the marriage between the RSN’s historic traditions of hand embroidery with Colbert’s contemporary pop voice.  Using their unrivalled expertise and skilled artistic interpretation, the RSN has translated his work to achieve a bold, new step in Colbert’s work.

Philip Colbert explains:

“I wanted to make a connection between thought provoking, contemporary imagery and historic hand embroidery techniques and craft traditions. I feel it’s the perfect marriage for a work of ART, and who better to collaborate with than the Royal School of Needlework.  I created a series celebrating attractive larger ladies, they are much bigger than the skinny 60’s ideal of the nude by American artists such as Wessleman and Litchenstein. Our society has become bloated with over consumption so theseladies are a much more contemporary representation of the Pop dream.   Painting is such an exhausted medium, I am excited to further develop the powers of fabrics, exploring sculptural possibilities and varying te xtural components to image making.”

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

“The RSN relishes the contemporary nature of these works and has been delighted to translate Philip Colbert’s ideas into larger than life images.  This collaboration has enabled us to showcase, not only the expertise and technical skills of our Embroidery Studio, but also the way that embroidery can be used to create a statement and piece of art.  We look forward to demonstrating our work as part of London Craft Week in Philip’s Studio.”

One piece, ‘Nude with Tyres’, (shown above) has already been completed and will be on display at the Gazelli Art House in Dover Street, London during London Craft Week.  It has been constructed using the hand embroidery technique of Appliqué, a process that can be used to achieve large scale pieces.

RSN Studio Stitchers will be completing the Nude Series at Colbert’s East London Studio in Shoreditch from 10am – 6pm, Wednesday 3 – Friday 5 May during London Craft Week.

Colbert is renowned for his sequin and embroidery works on Canvas, and his high-profile fashion brand THE RODNIK BAND, his artwork was included in the recent World goes pop show at TATE MODERN and has been described as the “Godson of Andy Warhol” by André Leon Talley.

Hand Embroidery Techniques
Appliqué is when one or more fabrics are applied to another fabric. A piece of embroidery can be created using a combination of different fabrics with padding, various edging techniques and embellishments.

‘Nude with Tyres’ has been heavily padded to create the curves needed to bring a sense of realism to pop art styled figures. The padding used was carpet felt which can be cut, layered and moulded forming a range of heights. This was then encased in woollen felt to smooth the surface ready for the fabric application. The top fabrics used are linens for the flesh, Melton woollen fabric for the stockings, denim for the hair, leather for the nipples and boucle wool thread couched on woollen fabric to produce the pubic hair. The background fabric is white cotton Duchess Satin with the tyres in laser cut leather.  The coronet has been worked in cloth of gold.

RSN Degree Students have attained national recognition in two prestigious design competitions.

Jasmine Dawson, 2nd Year Degree Student, was awarded Third Prize in the regional London heat of the Society of Dyers and Colourists International Design Competition, designing for a ‘circular economy’. The brief focused on colour and its use in the design process.  First launched in 2002, the Society of Dyers and Colourists International Design Competition is an annual competition, open to students in 14 countries. Jasmine has ambitions to work within interior design and create bespoke textiles for interiors.

Anna Holmes, 1st Year Degree Student (image right), was awarded First Prize in the Worshipful Company of Glovers of London. Student Glove Design Competitions are run annually to encourage practical and innovative glove design. The brief was to design fashion gloves with a symbolic message.   The 2017 competition winners will be presented with their prizes at a lunch at Plaisterers’ Hall in the City of London in July. This was the first year that the RSN Degree Students have entered this competition.

Angie Wyman, Degree Course Leader, said:

“This is a fantastic achievement for our students to gain national recognition of their work at such an early stage in their studies. These successes also affirm the quality of the learning experience that we provide on the Degree Programme.”

For more information on BA(Hons) Hand Embroidery for Fashion, Interiors, Textile Art click here.