Embroidery is back

Like knitting and crochet before it, embroidery is now making a comeback – with contemporary embroiderers bringing a modern spin to a retro handicraft.

Embroidery is back. Throughout the ages, this highly respected technique has produced beautiful works, from unprecedented tapestries to haute couture and colorful folklore. But over the last decades, embroidery was dismissed, falling into the category of tacky home crafts at worst, or artsy craftsmanship at best. Until 2005 that is, when Dutch artist Rob Scholte put embroidery back in the spotlight by collecting samples of embroidery works found in thrift stores and flea markets.

He was inspired, in his own words, because he could not understand why people preferred mass-produced Ikea prints in their homes instead of beautiful embroidery work, often produced with lots of love and devotion. Scholte reframed vintage milkmaids, windmills and deer. But with a twist: He framed them backward, for he considers the ragged back to be even more beautiful, because it is where the hand of the creator comes to life. It is nice to see that, having gone in and out of style throughout the years, embroidery seems to be appreciated now even more than ever.

But the best thing to happen to embroidery surely is that independent creatives have once again embraced the technique and infected others with their enthusiasm. You can see it happening on online platforms like Pinterest and Instagram. On the latter alone there are almost seven million posts with the hashtag #embroidery. Now that has an impact. We spoke to a few ‘new’ embroiderers to hear their story.