Art In Needle Work: A Book About Embroidery

Embroidery begins with the needle, and the needle (thorn, fish-bone, or whatever it may have been) came into use so soon as ever savages had the wit to sew skins and things together to keep themselves warm&mdash;modesty, we may take it, was an afterthought&mdash;and if the stitches made any sort of pattern, as coarse stitching naturally would, that was embroidery.<br><br>The term is often vaguely used to denote all kinds of ornamental needlework, and some with which the needle has nothing to do. That is misleading; though it is true that embroidery does touch, on the one side, tapestry, which may be described as a kind of embroidery with the shuttle, and, on the other, lace, which is needlework pure and simple, construction &quot;in the air&quot; as the Italian name has it.<br><br>The term is used in common parlance to express any kind of superficial or superfluous ornamentation. A poet is said to embroider the truth. But such metaphorical use of the word hints at the real nature of the work&mdash;embellishment, enrichment, added.