Punto Antico & Reticello

I have always been a fan of Giuliana Buonpadre's embroidery and her books. She makes elegant things which are always tastefully done and her creativity inspires me.

I told you a little about one of her books in this post on Reticello.

I tried to visit her at her little shop in Via S. Egidio in Verona in 2007 but alas, she had broken her leg and the shop was closed.

I was pleasantly surprised later that same trip to meet her and her lovely husband at the Italia Invita Forum in Rimini.

In 2009 concern for her health was widespread as she had a bout of cancer as I understand it but thankfully she recovered and is once again teaching, traveling and writing.

In the little shop in Verona now there is the association "Le Amiche di FiloFilò" or "the friends of FiloFilò", FiloFilò is the name of Giuliana Buonpadre's original association. Classes are available.

This year Signora Buonpadre released a new book, starting a new series called "Sulle tracce del filo" [Following the tracks of the thread], the first of this series is titled: Lenzuola, Samplers a Punto Antico [Sheets, Samplers in Antique Stitch].

These are books of great instructional value as they are produced for the most part in three languages: Italian, French and English. They include clear photographs and professional images and stitch diagrams. The best thing I like about them is that they show a stitched sample beside the pattern diagram so you can see what the stitch or motif will look like when completed.

This particular book is more advanced in the level of expertise needed to stitch the designs, that is, it goes beyond the basics and the projects are more labour intensive and time consuming than some of her previous books. The combination of Punto Antico and Reticello motifs is very pleasing to the eye.

There are instructions for cutting, finishing and hemming sheets and various styles of pillowcases, a stitch glossary and instructions for classic embroidery, pulled thread and needle lace stitches, corner treatments and a lovely introduction in which Signora Buonpadre describes the path she followed which led to this latest publication.

If you join her website, you can download sample pages of her books, though there aren't any examples of this particular volume, the samples of previous book's pages will give you a good idea of the format of this one.

You can also purchase directly by filling out the request page on her website.

Chiaramonte Gulfi

Chiaramonte Gulfi was known as the balcony of Sicily in the previous century for it's panoramic position: it rests atop a hillside at nearly 700 metres above sea level and looks out over the Ippari Valley. On a clear day you can see the Mediterranean Sea in one direction and Mount Etna in the other in a breathtaking view you can take in from the Villa Comunale.

We started out from our hotel in Comiso which is relatively nearby, taking the only bus which turned out to be the school bus that stopped at all the surrounding towns before taking the students to Chiaramonte Gulfi. What initially seemed a short journey was really a very long and winding road on a bus full of enthusiastic and boisterous students!

You live and you learn and since we were in an adventurous mood we took it in stride and climbed the steep road to Chiaramonte Gulfi from the bus stop at the foot of town happy to have arrived at last. In a bar where we had fantastic pastries we learned where to go to get tickets for the Sicilian Drawnthread Museum [Museo dello Sfilato], impressed that all the men we asked knew all about it.

At the Museo dei Cimeli Storico Militari [Museum of Historic Military Relics] in the main Piazza Duomo (which is where you need to buy your ticket to the museum) we met a lovely lady who offered to accompany us to the Drawnthread Museum.

The Museo dello Sfilato lies in Via Lauria 4 at the top of a steep stairway but there are signs pointing you in the right direction made of ceramic tiles:

Our guide pointed out many other things along the way and we admired many sets of embroidered curtains in the houses that we passed:

The museum itself seems small but is packed solid with needlework and definitely worth the trip.

Entrance Hall of the Museo dello Sfilato, Chiaramonte Gulfi.

We spent a lovely morning drooling over all the clothing, table linens, household furnishings and other exquisitely embroidered items in the museum and our guide told us as much as she could about the museum and the works within. She was a member of the Associazione dell'Arte del Ricamo e dello Sfilato a Chiaramonte Gulfi [Association of the Art of Embroidery and Drawnthread of Chiaramonte Gulfi] so her love of the embroidered pieces shone through when she was telling us about them.

A couple of weeks later at the Italia Invita Forum in Parma, we met other women from this association who had a booth at the Forum. A friend bought me a birthday gift of a piece of Drawnthread work from them which has the embroidery known as the Chiaramonte Stitch:

Close up of the Chiaramonte Stitch.

There is a great tutorial of this stitch on Tuttoricamo, click on the British flag for the English pages, then click on "How it's Done" and then "Chiaramonte Stitch".

We hired a driver from the travel agency in the Piazza Duomo to take us back to Comiso so we could be back in time for our lessons with Roberta Rizza in the afternoon.

Special thanks to Elisabetta for the use of her photos!

Buratto

The art of embroidered Buratto fabric is ancient in Italy. There was even a pattern book released about 1527 by Alessandro Paganino which you can download at the On-Line Digital Archive:

Records of her possessions after her death suggest that the Florentine Queen of France Catherine de Medici herself embroidered on Buratto perhaps bringing it with her from Italy (for more info see my article in Piecework Nov/Dec 2010).

Until quite recently this fabric was only made in a small town in Tuscany using the special ancient loom required to weave it. The art of embroidery on Buratto had all but died out.

On a recent visit to the Fondazione Lisio, I was pleasantly surprized to discover that they had plans to acquire one of these very rare specialized looms and begin to weave Buratto fabric in the ancient style.

This is so new to them that they have not yet had time to translate the page in English on their website, so I'll give you a quick translation of what it says:

"Buratto netting at the Lisio Foundation 

Among the reproductions of ancient weaving techniques that the Lisio Foundation boasts in its long history, there is now a new one: Buratto netting.

The term derives from the Latin bura (coarse cloth) and indicates a fabric produced on a loom and consisting of a more or less open weave depending on its intended use as either a sieve used in silk or flour production or, if made ​​with finer threads, as the base for hand embroidery. Evidence of embroidered Buratto dates back to the sixteenth century and to 1527 and the oldest Italian extant book of patterns: The burato: book of embroidery by Alessandro Paganini (ed. Venice, Paganini).

This ancient textile technique of both weaving and embroidery, was revived at the beginning of the twentieth century by the ladies Virginia Nathan and Clara Onori of Antella (a hamlet of Bagno a Ripoli near Florence), founding a school with the aim of providing a source of livelihood which would help relieve the domestic economy of the area.

Today at the Foundation alongside the Jacquard looms on which our master weavers create fine velvets and brocades, there is a loom, just as important as the others, on which Buratto netting is hand woven thus continuing a local tradition that was almost lost."

Photo copyright Fondazione Lisio Arte della Seta, Firenze.

You can watch a video of how it's made on YouTube.

In 1989, there was a booklet produced to document the recent history of the revival of Buratto embroidery in the early 20th century and the activity it enjoyed throughout the later half of the century called: La Tradizione del Buratto all'Antella [The Tradition of Buratto in Antella]. This book is extremely rare and difficult to find but packed with photos of embroideries of the period including some which were prize winning entries in local exhibitions. It is also a catalogue of the show held in Antella at the time.

It is the most information I've ever seen written on Buratto and it's related history.

Here is a close up of what a piece I have looks like, this was purchased from the Fil-Mec booth at the Italia Invita Forum 2011 and to the best of my knowledge was not woven at the Fondazione Lisio but by a woman in Tuscany working on her own ancient loom.

Heartfelt thanks to Ebe Ciampalini Balestri without whom I would never have seen the book described above.
Thank you Giovanna for the heads up!

Frette Monograms

I was leafing through some online copies of the old Italian art magazine Emporium (online courtesy of a project of the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa) and happened upon this advertisement from the January 1902 issue:

See the girl is spinning thread and there are Flax flowers growing out of the pot beside her.

It reminded me that I had had some requests for more scans from my Frette catalogue which I wrote about in a post last year.

Now, keep in mind that the catalogue is enormous! It's probably A3 paper size or something close to it so of course it doesn't fit in my scanner. Each page must be scanned in three pieces and then I have to put them back together in Photoshop. This is largely why I haven't done anything yet but I thought this morning while everyone else was still asleep I'd see just how long it took me to do one page.

Well, it took a lot longer than I expected but now that I've established a series of steps, it might take less time to do more. In the interests of conserving storage space for the files on Blogger, I started a Flickr set and will link from there.

I can't make any promises about when I'll get the whole thing done, but check back every once in a while to see if I've added any more scans.

Here is the first one which I selected at random:

Check out the Antique Pattern Library for a different Frette album which has charts and patterns for alphabets, borders and more.

Pizzo Margarete - Macramé

Margarete Naumann was born in Chemnitz, which is near Dresden in Germany in 1881. She invented and then taught what is known as Margarete lace in the early years of the twentieth century.

You can learn more about Margarete Naumann and her lace at this website.

What I want to tell you about is the Italian interpretation of this exquisite form of Macramé because as I've told you previously, I love the Italian approach to this art which most North Americans turn their noses up at remembering plant holders and other items of the '70s made of rough jute and hemp.

I first noticed Adriana Lazzari's work in a book that I didn't buy at the time (and still regret) called Natale Macramé which had little figures for a Nativity scene made of Macramé. She caught my attention again with a book on little Macramé angels and then I was struck hard by the cover of her latest book and knew I could fight no longer, I had to have it!

The introduction translates:

"Margarete lace - what is it?
It is a particular lace that derives from traditional macramé, invented at the beginning of the 1900s by Margarete Naumann and patented as "Margaretenspitze". She wanted to break the bonds of the rigid knotting patterns of the time creating a particular way of making lace. This "new" technique allows one to develop the work in all directions, making both flat and three dimensional elements. You don't need designs or patterns because, with knowledge of the basic rules you can compose the lace according to your own creativity. Gathering the threads into bundles and gradually letting them out, using simple, double, triple, quadruple and multiple knots, adding and subtracting threads during the working you have the possibility of designing modules or elements for custom making a lace personalized to your own imagination.

......... A few years ago I discovered this particular lace, studying and elaborating it and now I want to pass it on to you through this book.

Here you will find the instructions for starting from the basics and arriving little by little to making more and more elaborate and complicated laces.

I hope with this, my work, to revive this old and forgotten but always wonderful technique."

The book is just under 85 pages long and the text is in Italian but there are lots of step-by-step photos and while I have not yet had a chance to try anything (I just got it!) I would venture to say that if you already have a good working knowledge of Macramé, you may have little trouble figuring it out. There are 15 projects of increasing difficulty the last of which is the design on the cover.

This book is available at Tombolo Disegni, look under the Libri/Books section and then under Libri/Macramé – send an email request to order.

Chiara Vigo, Master of Sea Silk

I told you a little about Byssus, called Sea Silk in this post last year, a fibre made from the Pinna Noblis now only found in Sant'Antioco, Sardinia.

Last May I went to visit the Museo del Bisso [Byssus Museum] in Sant'Antioco and met Chiara Vigo, the last master of this ancient art.

The Byssus Museum where you can find Chiara Vigo in Viale Regina Margherita, 111, Sant'Antioco, Sardinia.

This video series explores the Holy Veil of Manoppello found at the Basilica del Volto Santo di Manoppello [Basilica of the Holy Face of Manoppello] in the province of Pescara, Italy. The second part of the series talks about Chiara Vigo and Byssus thread. Signora Vigo travelled to Manoppello to determine that the Veil was made of Byssus.

Inside the Byssus Museum in Sant'Antioco are several areas where you can look at Byssus in it's various forms. There are displays of the Pinna Noblis, raw Byssus as it looks when first collected, the hand-spun thread, embroideries made with Byssus thread and weaving frames with fabric being woven which has Byssus designs.

When enough people have entered the one-room Museum, Signora Vigo explains the history and the technique of collecting, processing and using the Byssus threads. This is not a commercial enterprise by any means and there is nothing to purchase.

The Signora however does not keep the thread from you, she hands out raw, spun and treated thread (it must be dipped in a secret liquid of ancient formula to give it a silky soft texture) for you to touch and examine. Embroideries and woven pieces are also offered for examination.

Our group had people from many far away places and she gave each of us who were from other countries a length of Byssus thread and instructed us to tell people and especially children about Byssus. She promised me that if I could get a group of children to write to her from Canada, she would produce an embroidery in Byssus thread for them. The walls of the Museum are covered in letters from children around the world.

Unfortunately, you cannot see the sparkle that this thread has from this scan. It sparkles like gold and changes colour depending on the direction of the light. It is so very soft and makes you understand instantly why it is called Sea Silk.

Photo by Roberto Rossi.

Go to Roberto Rossi's website to see more great photos of Chiara Vigo, Byssus and the Museum or go to Chiara Vigo's blog to learn more.

Punto Antico Bullion Flowers and a new book

I want to tell you about the sixth book on Punto Antico by the Association Il Punto Antico which I picked up while in Italy this last time:

Tasteful modern interpretations of this Italian technique designed by Bruna Gubbini. This latest book is 155 pages and has a lot of designs for fun projects like box covers and needle books and more traditional fare like tablecloths but done in a completely modern way using the latest fabrics (like Graziano gingham!) and coloured threads. Text is Italian and English and there are many step-by-step instructions covering stitches not covered in the previous books.

One of the elements of Signora Bruna's work which has long fascinated me is her Bullion Flower. I have tried it in the past but just couldn't get the hang of it. This latest book has step-by-step instructions and I finally managed to produce a nice one so I'm showing you how here below. These Bullion Flowers are fantastically textured and create nice little decorative elements to any work of Punto Antico.

You will need a milliner's needle for best results. I used #12 Ritorto Fiorentino pearl cotton and some 38ct Sotema 20L Italian linen.

To start, you need to build yourself a support/guide. I started the thread with a waste knot:

Go over 4 ground threads for each stitch. Pull a little firmly to open up small holes which you'll need later for the Bullions.

Don't pull too tightly though, your stitches should be firm and not loose otherwise they will show later.

Once you get to this point, turn the work 45 degrees and continue as before to complete the "cross" shape.

Each corner has two Bullions, pull tight so that they are small and the centre of the "cross" shape opens up.

Working clockwise, make two Bullions on all outside corners.

Not bad, Bruna Gubbini's are truly beautiful but this one turned out okay for me although I had to do a few tries to get my Bullions small enough to fit them all around the "cross" and still have a hole in the centre.

What do you think? In groups they are magnificent or they can be used as the centre of a bigger Satin Stitched flower. Doing a few of them will definitely get you over any Bullion Knot fear you might have! The raised element sits very nicely on top of the fabric providing texture to your work.

If you would like to read more about the author, go to Tuttoricamo and click on the British flag for the English pages, then click on "Prominent Characters", then under the "Today" column you'll find Bruna Gubbini. I watched her buying some fun fabrics at a quilting booth at the Italia Invita Forum... it make me wonder what lovely creations she'll have in her next book!

This book can be purchased online directly from the Associazione Il Punto Antico's editorial website.