Here’s a question for you: have you ever heard of goldwork embroidery?

I’m guessing that most people would have a vague idea of what it is, and say that it’s simply embroidery with gold wire. If we’re being honest,that’s probably about as much as most people could tell you about it. It’s a skill that has lost much of its appeal over time, partly because most people no longer have the time or inclination to embrace the art, and also because in many ways goldwork embroidery has been superseded by modern materials and technologies.

Yet we still see it all around us: priests wear robes and vestments embellished with goldwork, and you could hardly fail to notice it at the recent Royal Wedding of William and Kate on the cuffs and collars of the army regalia. Goldwork embroidery is more common than you might think. Here at Golden Hinde, we’re still passionate about goldwork, and we hope over the coming months to share some of this passion and enthusiasm with you through a series of articles and blogs about the craft, the techniques and our courses and exhibitions. What we sincerely hope is that in our own small way we can help to keep goldwork alive and well. So, let’s start with the basics.

What exactly is goldwork?

Goldwork is the art of embroidery using metal threads or wires. It’s an ancient skill that’s been around for centuries. The beauty of goldwork embroidery doesn’t just lie in the intricacy of the design, or the skill and artistry of the craftsmen who produce these pieces: the true beauty lies in the way that the light plays on it – by that, I mean the shimmer and the sparkle of the reflections that bounce off the goldwork.

‘Goldwork’ is actually a loose term, and is often used even when the threads are imitation gold, silver or copper. This has always been the case: most of the metal wires used to make the threads have never been entirely made of gold. They were usually made of gold-coated silver (silver-gilt) or sometimes cheaper metals: even then the actual percentage of real gold was verylow. Today most metal threads are available in silver, and sometimes copper as well as gold, and some threads are also available in a variety of colours.

How is goldwork applied to garments and fabrics?

Goldwork is always applied to the surface of the fabric (surface embroidery) and is applied by hand with a needle and thread using traditional, basic embroidery stitches mainly couching but also chain stitches, button hole or blanket stitches, running stitches, satin stitches or cross stitches. If you can’t picture what surface embroidery looks like, just think of the Bayeux Tapestry.

The goldwork threads are held on to the surface of the fabric by a second thread, which is used to be made of fine silk, but a polyester thread last alot longer. The ends of the thread are generally either cut off, or are pulled through to the back of the embroidery and carefully secured with the couching thread. This is done using the loop method or we use a plunging needle bigger threads can be taken through using a tool called a mellor, or a stiletto, which helps to position the threads and create the holes needed to pull them through.

In the next blog we’ll have a look at some of different types of metal threads.