STUMP WORK

Stump work is a very old art and there are samplers and boxes with stump work on the outsides in the Victoria and Albert Museum.  It is a lot of fun to do, and can be used in many different designs.  It doesn’t require a great knowledge or skill of embroidery stitches to attain a great affect.

The Thelwell Pony was the first piece of stumpwork I tried.  It was worked during classes at a local craft shop.  My daughter drew the pony and rider from a small picture in a paper. I used calico for the background.  The pony is stuffed with cotton wool and pieces of leather are used for the saddle and boots of the rider.  I used card covered with fabric for the rider, and stitched the dust and lines around the figures.  It is mounted on a piece of thick board.

The two ladies heads were worked at an Embroiderers Guild Workshop, and are intended to be broaches or put into small frames.

Needle Lace is used in Stumpwork, and this is how the lavender hat on the next head was worked .  I attended a Stumpwork weekend workshop near Rye with Barbara and Roy Hirst .  Their ‘Raised Embroidery’ is a good instruction book, which includes a bit of the history of stumpwork.

The head in the jar, was just a bit of fun at a workshop

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