History of Hardanger Embroidery
Hardanger embroidery or "Hardangersom" is a form of embroidery (sometimes called Whitework embroidery) traditionally worked with white thread on white even-weave cloth, using counted thread and drawn thread work techniques. Gina Frost is one of our most avid hardanger embroiderers and you will see photos of her following as well as some of her work.
The exact origin of hardanger emboidery is not known, but itis thought to have its beginning in ancient Persia and Asia. During the Renaissance this early form of embroidery spread to Italy where it evolved into Italian Reticella and Venetian lacework. By 1700 variations of this type of embroidery had spread to northern Europe where it developed further into Danish and Dutch Hedebo, Scottish Ayrshire work and Ruskin lacework as well as Norwegian Drawn Work, as it was then called.
In the period between 1650 - 1850 Hardangersom (meaning work from Hardanger area) flourished in Norway. Flax was grown, carded, spun and woven into white fabric and thread which was used to make and decorate aprons for traditional Norwegian costumes called bunads, as well as other items such as curtains, bedspreads and mats. Modern Hardanger fabric is an evenweave cotton material woven with pairs of threads, typically 22 pairs per linear inch in both directions, referred to as '22 count'. The weave gives a squared appearance to the fabric with distict holes, making it easy to count and work on.
Traditional Hardanger embroidery is worked witha thread colour that matches the fabric, usually white or cream. Using self coloured thread enhances the sculptural nature of the stitches and enhances the details found in some of the intricate filling stitches.
Two weights of Pearl cotton are generally used. On normal 22-count Hardanger fabric this is usually Pearl cotton #5, a heavier weight used for satin stitch Kloster blocks and motifs, and Pearl cotton #8, a thinner thread used for more delicate filling stitches and other surface details.
Hardanger embroidery uses Satin stitch blocks known as Kloster blocks, consisting of 5 parallel satin stitches, worked over a group of 4x4 ground threads. These blocks enclose areas of fabric where a number of warp and weft threads are cut out, leaving a network of loose threads and large holes within the shape defined by the Kloster blocks. Various decorative filling stitches are then worked over the remaining loose threads and holes to create a lacy effect.
