Threads of time.

The History Behind the Art of Sewing. 

In this post Covid 19 world, with the economy in decline, women are slowly having to face the task of finding work to supplement the family income or accommodate a bulging budget. Many have turned to the opportunity of working from home as jobs in the office work force has taken a hit. Many have turned to the home arts for inspiration and income, me included, and the art of sewing is one of the avenues open to us artistic types.

With this newfound necessity and interest, it would be nice to reassure ourselves that our chosen pursuit is not a mindless past time but has a rich history and technique; passed down to us by cherished hands… our mothers, aunts and caring teachers.

What is sewing?

Simply put, it’s the craft of fastening material together, be it leather, cloth, canvas etc. using stitches made with a needle and thread.

Over the years, the art of sewing came to include needlecraft; as clothing featured embroidery, ribbon embroidery, needlepoint, cross-stitch, patchwork, quilting, crochet and knitting. 

The History of sewing

The art of hand sewing is at least twenty thousand years old. Starting with the stone age, fur and skin clothes were fastened using bone and hone needles that had no eyes. In the 15^th Century iron needles with eyes were invented. Later sewing needles were made of steal.

From then on, sewing was done by hand until the 19^th Century. The industrial revolution saw the invention of sewing tools and the sewing machine and today most sewing is done by machine.

The 19^th Century also saw the invention of the clothing factory and with it the mast production of the clothing industry. This saw a decline in the home sewing of the new “modern woman”. Now a woman could go out and buy a mast produced, ready-made, often lower cost outfit than it cost them to make at home or by a custom dressmaker.

In the 20^th Century progress saw sewing machines became affordable and they came in all shapes and sizes with all sorts of accessories and time saving creations; like Ebeneezer Buttericks’ paper patterns that could be traced over cloth, cut out and sewn at home.

All this invention, however, did not see hand sewing die out. It is still practiced today and is associated with custom dress making, couture fashion and quality tailoring.

A woman’s world

There used to be a time when every girl was taught to sew and darn and embroider; and every woman on her engagement or marriage was gifted a sewing machine and sewing tools by her mother.

This art of needlecraft has shown a predominant relationship between women, needlework and design. Sewing was a way for the women of the Elizabethan and Victorian years to prove their femininity and worth as home makers and then as wives and mothers. 

Women sewed out of necessity, sewing for the home and for family. Sewing, embroidery and knitting were likewise viewed as suitable amusement and activity. Needlecraft in all its forms was seen as an essential of femininity and virtue. 

However, until the 1900s a married woman in Britain (and the colonies under British rule) could not own any property as she has no legal status independent of her husband. So, she could not own a sewing business or even collect a salary if she worked in a sewing establishment.

Sewing tools that were considered feminine and thereby, low in value were among of the few things a woman could bequeath to her daughters, sisters, nieces or friends.

Much has changed now but the techniques are still the same; tweaked a little yet still around.

Men who worked in a woman’s world

men had no such difficulty under law. While sewing was a woman’s claim to femininity; men sewed because they had to, to help themselves or earn a living.

Sailors mended and sewed their own clothes. Tailors of the 18^th Century sewed for men working mostly on men’s cloths and on the more elaborate forms of women’s wear such as the pleated gowns of the 1750’s to 1770’s.

The tools of the trade

The tools and implements used by women were works of art in their own right and often reflected the modern decorative styles and manufacturing technology of the time; lending a certain “air” to the status of the women who owned them.

From the steel cut buttons that sparkled under candlelight to thimbles that displayed coded messages; such sewing tools were the possession of wealthy women. The poor women had no elegant tools. They earned their living in the trade of dressmaking, shirt making and millinery; working on “piece work” at home for inadequate pay, with simple tools that were purchased by one or more and shared by everyone.

The invention of the sewing machine by Isaac Singer in 1851, as a labor-saving device representing modernity became an object of status when it first appeared and it wasn’t until after 1900, when prices began to drop that poorer women could finally buy one either on “loan” or putting aside a little at a time to do so.

Home sewing is still around

It was never really lost even though it was no longer needed for the feminine identity. The second world war saw to that; with its rationing, the “make do and mend” programme.

In the more recent years, the art of sewing and needle crafts have been reclaimed by women and its traditional techniques elevated and refined to an art form. The niche involving this art has expanded and exploded to include not only itself but any fabric and textile crafts... quilting, lace making, embroidery and cross-stitch, rope making, canvas work, macrame, spinning, tatting, rug making and hooking, weaving, knitting, crochet, shoe making, and felting.

So, ladies; grab your needles (be they knitting, crochet, sewing needles or any other) and get started. Our world of sewing has changed, and we now have a world of our own that we can be proud off; all it takes is your imagination and a good set of needles!