Despite how its name sounds, there's nothing mean about crewel, a form of surface embroidery. This traditional embroidery style goes back centuries and is known for its large, bold designs and the wool threads used to make them.
In days gone by, crewel showed up on tapestries, curtains, and clothing. More recently, you might see this type of embroidery framed as art, stitched onto pillows, and more.
What Makes Crewel Embroidery Different?
Often when talking about different embroidery styles, the thing that makes a class unique is the traditional motifs or the stitches themselves. What makes crewel embroidery unique from other types is the materials, specifically the wool threads or yarns. Accurate crewel embroidery uses a 2-ply wool thread called crewel, which gives the embroidery its name.
The History of Crewel
It isn't easy to know the entire history of crewel work, but it dates back to Medieval times, if not earlier. Perhaps the oldest and most well-known crewel piece is the Bayeux Tapestry, which is nearly one thousand years old. It was made in England and given to France.
Crewel rose in prominence in Jacobean England during the 16th and 17th centuries, and because of that, traditional crewel often displays motifs popular of that era. Jacobean embroidery is a style in itself, but it's also usually crewelwork.
Fast forward to the 1970s, and this embroidery style made a huge comeback. The pieces of this era featured bold colors and giant flowers and fun phrases like "God Bless Our Pad." You could even find kits for stitching your favorite childhood characters.
Crewel embroidery continues to evolve, and you can find designs and kits with modern patterns and a wider variety of materials. One thing remains—crewel wool thread.
Materials for Crewel Embroidery
Threads
Because the wool yarn makes crewel the thing, getting the right thread is an excellent place to start.
Crewel wool is almost always labeled as such, and most often, it's two-ply but sometimes comes in one-ply. Unlike standard cotton embroidery floss, you don't separate this thread, and it's much thinner than tapestry wool.
If you're lucky enough to have a dedicated needlework shop near you, they may carry one of a variety of brands, including Appleton wool from the UK. You can also find lots of options online. If you mix different brands, you'll see different textures emerge in your stitching, which is excellent if you want that. Otherwise, stick to one brand for your project.
Fabric
Linen and linen twill is the most common fabrics for crewel embroidery. These fabrics have a close weave that keeps the stitches in place while opening enough for the giant crewel wool to pass through. They are also sturdy fabrics that create a good base for all the wool stitches.
The wool thread may be the one thing that defines crewel, but the fabric can vary, so if you'd instead try another material, go for it! No matter what you choose, do a few tests with the thread before committing to a type of fabric.
Needle
Crewel needles have a large eye and a sharp point. The watch allows the thickness of the crewel wool to pass through, including working with more than one piece at a time. The vital point is good for working through the fabric and piercing the thread from previous stitches.
You'll find these labeled crewel embroidery needles, typically with other ones.