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History and Manufacturing
The Portuguese island of Madeira,
located in the Atlantic
Ocean off the north west coast of Africa, is a verdant flower filled paradise marked by
foliage covered mountains that slope down to valleys
dotted with white buildings. The island’s natural
beauty has been instrumental in many of the flower motifs used in Madeira
hand crafted embroidery.
The tradition of
Madeira embroidery goes back to the needlework practiced in Portuguese
convents in the Middle Ages. The church was the first embroidery patron. An English importer's daughters, Elizabeth Phelps,
popularized Madeiran embroidery in the 1850s. Londoners
couldn't resist the romantic embroidered table linens created
on the island. Soon no trousseau was complete without lace lingerie and
cutwork bed linens.
Madeira embroidered
linens have always been
luxury items, due not only to the labor involved, but the high quality
of the craftsmanship and materials. They are made with the finest silk
threads, linen and cotton fabrics.
Today 20 small
companies remain using a home based skilled workforce, which gain support from the Madeira Wine, Embroidery and
Handcraft Institute, a government sponsored organization responsible for
the promotion and certification of Madeira embroidery.
Tablecloth used by Queen Elizabeth II displayed at the Institute of
Embroidery
The Embroidery Process
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The designer
creates and draws the pattern
onto tracing paper.
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A hand-held stitch counter is
dragged over the pattern lines to determine the number of stitches
required to embroider it. The embroiderer is paid by the stitch.
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A
machine driven via foot pedal perforates the paper along the lines
of the pattern. An ink-pad-like “doll”
saturated with ink is wiped over the paper to
transfer the pattern onto the fabric. Ink drips through the
holes onto the fabric.
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The printed fabrics, a sheet
specifying colors and stitches to be used, and the embroidery
threads are provided for the
individual embroiderers.
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The
finished pieces washed to remove the ink and smoothed by
hand using heavy, flat-faced irons. Final finishing work is
completed in the factory
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Products are inspected by
the Madeira Institute of Embroidery, Wine and Handcraft independent certifiers
for quality and provenance.
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A paper seal is attached to
certify goods as genuine Madeira embroidery
Detail of above
tablecloth
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