Anyone have any good black work patterns? Or know where I could find some?
I do some blackwork on my embroidery machine and use this site. I'm sure that you can use it for hand emboidery as well, if you don't have a machine. http://blackworkarchives.com/ (ftp://http://blackworkarchives.com/)
Reconstrucing History sells some patterns for blackworked night caps.
http://www.dragonlore.net/free_patterns.php (http://www.dragonlore.net/free_patterns.php)
This is the one I have used. There are about 25 different borders.
Janet Arnold, Patterns of Fashion 4 works well since she has a lot of extant garments and details the embroidery designs.
Genievea, that site is awesome!! I originally thought it was the site I was going to post (http://www.dragonbear.com/sample1.html), but now I see it's a different one--and I see at least three possibilities for the embroidery on my St. Catherine chemise (http://pic50.picturetrail.com/VOL417/1033223/17480040/394392194.jpg)!
That is one of my favorite portraits! 93 Looks like the one on the chemise. I have tried several of them from the site using the Holbein stitch and they have come out pretty good.
Also http://www.prettyimpressivestuff.com/blackwork.htm (http://www.prettyimpressivestuff.com/blackwork.htm) has a ton of information and links, though many of them are dead links.
http://www.stitchstitch.info/english/blackwork/plain%20fillings%20thumbnails.html (http://www.stitchstitch.info/english/blackwork/plain%20fillings%20thumbnails.html) is another great site.
There's a version of 93 on the Dragon Bear site I had my eye on, too. Number 85 (http://www.dragonlore.net/blackwork/free/085.gif) has the little squiggles coming off the serpentine section, which to me are an essential part of the design on the original. The funny thing is, the St. Catherine chemise is actually not blackwork, but some kind of very odd-looking embellished goldwork. I had tried several times to copy the design but it never turned out well, and when I finally got a really, really good version of the painting to blow up (http://pic50.picturetrail.com/VOL417/1033223/17480040/394392192.jpg), I realized why: because it's not actually that pretty IRL! ;D LOL. My samples actually looked pretty darn close to the original... which is why I didn't like them. So I was both disappointed and felt very freed when I found that image, because it allowed me to choose a similar-looking blackwork pattern I actually liked!
When can we see *your* work?
Quote"When can we see *your* work?"
I am still suffering identity sewing block...I had hand sewn in one of the chemise sleeves...then realized that it I had sewn it on inside out. Needless to say I ripped out the stitching and it is now a crumpled mess on my sewing table.
I posted this in the In Progress back in March, the blackwork is finished now on the neck but as stated above lol nothing else has been done.
(http://i564.photobucket.com/albums/ss89/Genievea/Tudor%20Smock/Front.jpg)