Stitching frame from the thrifting store near my job

Embroidery hoops and frames are tools used to keep

fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, and different types of fabric. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is no ...

taut while working

embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...

or other forms of

needlework Needlework refers to decorative sewing and other textile arts, textile handicrafts that involve the use of a Sewing needle, needle. Needlework may also include related textile crafts like crochet (which uses a crochet hook, hook), or tatting, ( ...

Hoops

An embroidery hoop or (earlier) tambour frame consists of a pair of concentric

circular Circular may refer to: * The shape of a circle * ''Circular'' (album), a 2006 album by Spanish singer Vega * Circular letter (disambiguation), a document addressed to many destinations ** Government circular, a written statement of government pol ...

or elliptical rings. The larger ring has a tightening device, usually in the form of a metal screw. The artisan repositions the hoop as needed when working over a large piece of fabric. Embroidery hoops come in various sizes and are generally small enough to control with one hand and rest in the lap. Hoops were originally made of

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

, or

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and Tooth, teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mamm ...

;Christie, Grace: ''Embroidery and Tapestry Weaving'', London, John Hogg, 1912 modern hoops are made of wood or

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

.Reader's Digest ''Complete Guide to Needlework''. The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (March 1992). , p. 10 Hoops may be attached to a table-top or floor stand when both hands must be free for sewing, as in making

tambour lace Tambour lace refers to a family of lace made by stretching a fine net over a frame (the eponymous ''Tambour'', from the French for drum) and creating a chain stitch, known as tambour, using a fine, pointed hook to reach through the net and dr ...

. Standing floor frames and lap frames allow the crafter to keep both hands free for working, which increases the speed and precision of work performed.Wilson, Erica: ''Erica Wilson's Embroidery Book'', New York: Scribner, 1973, p. 24. Some modern embroidery hoops, instead of having a tightening device, has a rubber band-style ring that fits over the fabric, and the smaller ring. Very thin plastic hoops are also used in

machine embroidery Machine embroidery is an embroidery process whereby a sewing machine or embroidery machine is used to create patterns on textiles. It is used commercially in product branding, corporate advertising, and uniform adornment. It is also used in the ...

Scroll frames

A scroll frame or embroidery frame keeps the entire piece of fabric taut, rather than just the piece being worked. It is made of four pieces of wood: two rollers for the top and base, and two side pieces. Each of the rollers has a piece of fabric securely nailed or stapled along it and holes in its ends to hold the side pieces, which can be secured in place with wing nuts to adjust the width of the frame and the tautness of the stretched fabric. The ends of the ground fabric are

sew Sewing is the craft of fastening pieces of textiles together using a sewing needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era. Before the invention of spinning yarn or weaving fabric, archaeol ...

n to the rollers, which are turned until the area of the fabric to be worked is stretched within the frame. Frames are used in

needlepoint Needlepoint is a type of canvas work, a form of embroidery in which yarn is stitched through a stiff open weave canvas. Traditionally needlepoint designs completely cover the canvas. Although needlepoint may be worked in a variety of stitches, ...

and other forms of canvas work as well as embroidery. Image:Embroidery frame.jpg, Embroidery frame Image:Embroidery frame freestanding.jpg, Free-standing embroidery frame with fabric attached

Notes

References

*Christie, Grace (Mrs. Archibald): ''Embroidery and Tapestry Weaving'', London, John Hogg, 1912, als
online at Project Gutenberg
*Reader's Digest ''Complete Guide to Needlework''. The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (March 1992). *Wilson, Erica ''Erica Wilson's Embroidery Book'', New York: Scribner, 1973. SBN 684-10655-8

External links

Embroidery frame c. 1740-1790 at Historic Hope Plantation
{{embroidery Embroidery equipment