Welcome
to the embroidery page of Baroness Kathryn Goodwyn, OL.
I
am assuming that most visitors will be members of the Society for Creative Anachronism
(SCA). As such I will be using SCA names with modern names in parenthesis - i.e.,
Kathryn Goodwyn (C. Kathryn Newell). For those who are not members of the
SCA, I will simply say that it is a non profit social group with strong educational
overtones. We explore and practice virtually any art, science, or craft originally
done in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
This page is the
home of several of my works.
"Stalking the Wild Assisi"
is an article I wrote on my research into that topic. The article contains charts
I used while embroidering my Assisi Learning Sample. It also contains color photos
of the band of my samplers, and back photos showing the reverse side. I have received
a lot of compliments on this article, and am happy to see how close to the top
of the list it is when one Googles the topic. I would especially like to thank
Mistress Christian de Holacombe, OL (Chris Laning) for providing the excellent
photos of the front and back of my sampler.
I would also like
to thank Mistress Mathilde Eschenbach, OL (Rosemary Stecher) for making this
article available on the Web for several years, so that it was available to interested
needleworkers.
The link below will open a PDF file of the article and
its accompanying charts in a new browser window. Please be patient, the
file is large and can take a while to load.
The 1597 Sibmacher book - Published as "Needlework Patterns from Renaissance
Germany"; (a recharting of the patterns from Johan Sibmacher's Schon Neues
Modelbuch of 1597. At the time of my book's publication (1999) the only reproduction
of a Sibmacher pattern book was the Dover one of his 1603 modelbuch. This 1603
book is not the same as the 1597 one - the patterns are completely different.
The Dover Book has been out of publication for some time - it is well worth having
if you can find a copy. The title is Baroque Charted Designs for Needlework,
Dover Publications, Inc., New York 1975, ISBN 0-486-23186-0.
One
can find a free downloadable copy of the original 1597 book I worked from here:
http://daten.digitale-sammlungen.de/~db//0002//bsb00026001/images/
I was interested to see that some of these patterns use two symbols for stitches.
This is not a common occurrence in 16th century patterns. I interpreted these
symbols as indicating two different colors. I chose to chart them in red and black,
but another traditional combination might be blue and red. All of the patterns
in this book are charted.
I am indebted to my publisher, Mary
Denise Smith, for turning out a high quality publication in 1999. I regret that
she disappeared on me, and I never received any royalties. The book never sold
well (to my knowledge) so I am offering it here free, to everyone. As holder of
the copyright, I rescind her ability to publish this book.
The link below will open a PDF file in a new browser window. Please be patient, the file is large and can take a while to load.
Flowers of the Needle
This is a revised edition of the original of 1985, which went out of print
in 1992. Years of persuasion by others finally caused me to scan and digitally
remaster the work. Flowers of the Needle is a compendium of seven Italian
needlework pattern books of the 16th century, from 1531 to 1567. It is a treasure
house of linear (i.e. "free form") and charted patterns, originally
intended for a variety of uses by both professional and private needleworkers.
I tender special thanks to Mistress Mathilde Eschenbach, OL (Rosemary Stecher)
and Countess Ianthe D'Averoigne, OL (Kim Brody Salazar) for their manifest contributions
to this work. Ianthe has broken down the work into its original separate components.
It is hoped that this will make it easier for people to download, especially if
they are not on a high speed service. If there are still problems, a CD version
can be supplied on a case-by-case basis for the cost of printing and shipping.
The links below will each open a volume PDF file in
a new browser window. Please be patient, the individual volume files
are large and can take a while to load.
Introduction (465KB)- Volume I - Niccolo Zoppino, Ensamplario di Lavori, 1530. (7.1MB)
- Volume II - Giovanni Antonio Tagliente, Ensamplario Nuovo, 1531. (6.8MB)
- Volume III - Niccolo Zoppino, Gli Universali Del Belli Recami, 1537. (7.1MB)
- Volume IV - Domenico da Sera, Opera Noua, 1546 (5.9MB)
- Volume V - Giovanni Andrea Vavassaro, Opera Noua Universali, 1546. (5.1MB)
- Volume VI - Giovanni Ostaus, La Ver Perfettione del Disegno, 1561. (10.5MB)
- Volume VII - Giovanni Ostaus, La Vera Perfettione del Disegno, 1567. (4.8MB)
Future Works
Garden of Delights for the Needle. I have decided to undertake the Herculean
task of recharting all of the charted patterns from Flowers of the Needle. This
will, in turn, make it friendlier to modern eyes, which will delight in the patterns
and use them more easily.
The Goodwyn Miscellany. I
had originally intended a small volume of Assisi (voided) work patterns. I still
intend this future work to contain some of these designs, but I have also discovered
a variety of interesting charted patterns over the years. I hope you enjoy my
works, which are humbly offered in the pursuit of the arts.
Acknowledgements
My great thanks to
Dame Christian de Holacombe, OL (Chris Laning), Mistress Mathilde Eschenbach,
O.L. (Rosemary Stecher) and Countess Ianthe D'Averoigne, O.L. (Kim Brody Salazar)
for their help with this Web page. I could never have done it without you!
I would also like to tender special thanks to Mistress Alia Wasa Care, OL (Lynn
Symborski) for her advice and patience with my computer illiteracy. This Web Page
was designed and is being maintained by her, for which I am most grateful!
I
can be contacted by email at c(dot)knewell(at)comcast(dot)net.
