Needlework Development Scheme

The Needlework Development Scheme (NDS) was a collaborative project between art and design education and industry. Originally established in Scotland in 1934, its aim was to encourage embroidery and to raise the standard of design in Britain. Financed by J and P Coats, the thread manufacturers, the Scheme was organised by the four Scottish art schools, Pa1962Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Its collection of foreign and British embroidery was available to domestic science and training colleges, women's institutions and schools, as well as art schools. By 1939, the Scheme had acquired some 900 embroideries but the outbreak of WWII closed the Scheme and the collection was retained by the four original art schools.

Information and image courtesy of the V&A museum. 
Panel, Beryl Dean, 1953. Museum no. CIRC.196-1962
http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/n/needlework-development-scheme/

Heritage Skills Exchange

Day 1 - Conservation Workshop 

As a second year student at Edinburgh College of Art, I have been given the exciting opportunity to work with members of the Embroiders Guild and the conservation team at Edinburgh University to preserve and take care of many very precious Textile artefacts that were gifted to the University from the NDS (Needlework Development Scheme) after it's closure.  The aim of this project is not only to conserve but also to interchange skills and knowledge from the very gifted 'expert amateur embroiderers' from the Embroiderers Guild. I am very enthusiastic to learn from embroiderers with such a great wealth of experience.

At the beginning of the day we given a brief induction as to how the conservation team would approach the textile items and what they wanted us to do to help conserve them. 

The items included clothing, christening gowns, decorative banners and even a kimono. 

Each item was to be placed individually inside an acid free box, with acid free tissue. The problem however, was that after years and years of being folded and unfolded many of the more delicate items were becoming irreparably damaged. By making padding different shapes of padding to go in and around garments would help to reduce creasing and protect it as much as possible. 

We were split into groups of three's, 2 students to each member of the embroiderers guild, and given an item. Our group was given a beautifully embroidered women's bed jacket. We came to the conclusion that it would be best to make several different padded 'sausages' to help hold the garment within it's box and to reduce creasing. 

To make the padding we used wadding and a very soft jersey material, which had been washed at a very high heat to remove any unwanted residue before coming into contact with the collection. The wadding was cut and rolled to the appropriate thickness and length, covered in the jersey fabric and stitched into it. 

Womens long sleeved bed jacket, white cotton with extensive brodrie anglais. 

Here are some other beautiful embroidery samples from Edinburgh Universities collection.