Broderie Anglaise in My Textile Art
Broderie Anglaise
If the fashion magazines are anything to go by, one of the trends for Spring and Summer in 2023, is Broderie Anglaise dresses. You might have seen them before when they were last very fashionable over 10 years ago! They are typically white and characterised by round or oval patterned cut-outs in a cotton fabric, giving a delicate, lacy effect. It’s not as delicate as lace, but the cutouts give the feeling that you are wearing a very light dress; perfect for hot summers!
Today’s Broderie Anglaise is most likely produced with precision using laser cutting machines. This has allowed for the Broderie Anglaise effect to be reproduced on other textiles such as leather and felt, which can then be used in areas other than fashion, such as interior design.
Is Broderie Anglaise English?
Broderie Anglaise has been around for a very long time, and even though it translates from French to “English Embroidery” , has its roots in traditional embroidery styles that were popular in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries. By the 19th century, the style became very popular in England (and hence its name), and lasted until the early 1900s.
During the golden era of Broderie Anglaise, the city of St Gallen, Switzerland, was the world’s major exporter of this type of embroidery, producing clothing, underwear, tablecloths and napkins.
"At that time, two out of three workers earned their living from embroidery. The textile industry was the main source of income for the canton until the First World War. After that the popularity of St Gallen embroidery waned. It enjoyed a brief resurgence after the Second World War, but never regained its former market" Ilona Kos, curator of the Textilmuseum in St Gallen
How was Broderie Anglaise made by hand?
Broderie Anglaise involves tracing a design (usually floral or circular) onto fabric, before using a simple running stitch to “trace the outline”. Then with the help of scissors and an awl punch, small, round or oval holes are created in the fabric - I couldn’t find any awls in Singapore, so I decided to make do with a large knitting needle. These holes are then surrounded by embroidered stitches (satin or overcast stitch), creating a lacy effect. Broderie Anglaise is typically done on a white or cream-colored fabric such as cotton or linen, using a white or ecru-colored thread. I have found that the tighter the weave of the fabric, the more difficult it is to do the embroidery. Nevertheless, the work is very intricate and requires a lot of patience!
As with other embroidery work, lot of time was required to produce Broderie Anglaise by hand, and thus the items made were considered very luxurious, and a sign of wealth. Nowadays, with Broderie Anglaise being made by machine, it is less of a luxury, and associated with casual wear.
Broderie Anglaise in Textile Art
Broderie Anglaise is both delicate and intricate, and I decided to adapt for use in my textile art sculptures, especially the intricate and delicate structure of corals.
Texture - This was a sample I did. I love how Broderie Anglaise allows me to create a textured surface with a three-dimensional feel. By adjusting the number of embroidery threads in my needle, or couching additional threads in the embroidery work, I could create surfaces that mimic the organic shapes and textures of coral structure
Open work - I used the cutout work technique and combined it with free motion embroidery to illustrate the fragility and delicate nature of the corals.
Fabric choice - Broderie Anglaise can be applied to any type of textile provided you have the right tools. I chose both organza and cotton for my series of work to show the fragility and porosity of corals, especially the soft corals. The organza was particularly useful in my project, as it could be manipulated with heat to create the soft sculpture corals.
Enrol in my online Broderie Anglaise classes!
My online Broderie Anglaise classes allow you to learn at your own leisure, anywhere, and anytime. Each class comes with step-by-step instruction worksheets, and free download patterns for you to practice at home.
Start with the essentials, learning the techniques of crafting eyelets with my Foundations Bundle, or dive into the Broderie Anglaise Master: Complete Bundle that covers eyelets, bars, scallops, and stem stitches,
𝗕𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: Master the foundational Broderie Anglaise cut-out stitches, from outlining to reinforcing • Discover techniques for crafting both small and large eyelets • Produce unique eyelet effects • Begin your creative journey with my downloadable patterns. 𝗕𝗼𝗻𝘂𝘀 𝗧𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀: Master the art of connecting elements with beautiful stem stitches.
𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲! Discover techniques for small and large 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘀, and reinforcing and 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝘀 across various shapes. Learn to create 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗽𝘀. Plus, enjoy a bonus tutorial on stem stitches to seamlessly connect your designs. Wrap up your journey with 2 final projects that bring all these elements together, showcasing your newfound skills.