Latchet darns are bands of weaving; the upright threads are laid, not too closely, to represent the warp threads, then the weft threads are woven in backwards and forwards; the edges are kept free exactly as in the other woven bars. These latchet darns make an excellent finish either to a bag, where they serve to hold the drawing-up cords, or to a dress, where they ornament or keep the belt in position.
All strands withdrawn, when of a useful length, should be carefully kept. They can be used in many different ways to make cords, tassels, or fringes.
CHAPTER VII
LAID WORK—BASKET AND LINE STITCHES
“And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen, and thou shalt make the girdle of needlework.”
A Sideboard Cloth.—Plate VI. gives an example of a very handsome sideboard cloth. The canvas is of the tough hard-wearing type, generally used to cover basket hampers, but under the skilful fingers of the embroideress it became a beautiful piece of work, with which one might well adorn a good piece of furniture. The illustration shows the design, which is of the simple straight-line type. The canvas, of rather a heavy weight, is of a rich warm brown; the threads of floss embroidery linen are in rich blue, tussore colour, emerald green, grey-green, a pale blue-green and brown. The design is placed at the ends, where it forms bars and blocks of rich colouring. It occupies about 8 or 9 inches, 6½ inches for the embroidery, and 2½ inches for the wide band of braid. The stitchery is made up of bars of needle-weaving with bars and blocks of solid embroidery. The wide bands at the top and foot, enclosing the central portion, are of needle-weaving in a perfectly simple pattern. Each band is about 1 inch wide; they are worked in blue-brown and three shades of green. The bar in the central panel is woven in tussore and light green, surrounded by a border in satin stitch of emerald green. The upright bars or straps on either side are woven in bright blue with blue-green crosses in the centre; the chequered squares in tussore and blue are enclosed by emerald green bands in satin stitch. The background of the central panel is worked in chequers of blue tussore and light bluish-green; the little crosses, hardly visible in the illustration, are all in emerald, while the darning stitch, which forms the background, is in bright blue.
Square Stitch.—The remainder of the background is worked in square stitch (see [Figs. L and M]). A fold of the canvas turned over on to the right side has a frayed edge; three or four threads are withdrawn—this gives a pretty soft effect; the fold is tacked down over a creamy-fawn skirt braid, with lines of couching in tussore. These lines have the appearance of back stitching, but are in reality couched down; they are sewn in that interesting method of bygone days, when embroiderers worked much in gold threads.
“Point rentré et retiré.”—The surface thread is pulled through and caught underneath by means of another thread which never appears upon the surface at all; this method has been applied to backgrounds worked in silk, as well as in gold (p. 81). It is economical in use and very durable. One can well understand the reason of its use, but not the cause of its falling out of use. Probably this was due to the gradual decadence of embroidery in this country towards the end of the fourteenth century, or perhaps the then new method of couching—in use at the present day—involved less time and labour.
PLATE VI.
