Embroiderer's Guild of South Australia: Class in Hungarian Point Embroidery

Photo from Guild Website

I  spent 10am - 3.30pm both days this weekend attending a class in Hungarian Point Embroidery at the Guild. The class was run by Carol Mullan, a Guild tutor for 25 years, currently with the Yorke Peninsula Branch of the Guild. Carol specialises in tutoring Counted Stitch Embroideries and Canvas work techniques as well as teaching students how to design for embroidery.

The Guild description of  the class was Hungarian Point needlework is a more intricate form of Bargello/Florentine embroidery and is usually worked on canvas. In this class students will be working on linen fabric with their own choice of silk or cotton threads. As a number of different patterns will be provided, students can choose to work a sampler or a small draw string bag. The illustration of Carol's finished bag is from the Guild website.

I really enjoyed the class. It was purposeful, and I learned a lot. It was also friendly and relaxed with a lot of incidental learning - shared hints and tips about all sorts of things.
We looked at the beautiful samples Carol brought, and some of her source books before getting down to stitching. Everyone followed their interest. Several students tried out little tile motifs - working some of the basic patterns in a circle rather than a line. I wanted to get the hang of colour change - so set out to work the bag with some colourways.

By the end of the first day, I had worked my way through the green sequence into blue. That night I moved through blue to purple and brown.



I love the sense of play involved - so many possible effects from even one simple pattern. Simply stitching, experimenting and asking questions establishes a feel for the design and a rhythm of work.

After a couple of hours I needed my magnifier. Even using 28 thread-count linen and three strands of cotton, it was much easier - and more accurate - with magnification.

Robbyn Hutton, from the Guild's Education Committee, generously acted as hostess for the two days, bringing home-baked morning tea, organising tea and coffee and washing up for us. It felt really comforting and supportive.

As we stitched today, Carol constructed a bag, showing us each step- a perfect craft guild technique; working alongside the pupils, a bit ahead, modelling and discussing.


By the end of the two days I had embroidered just over half my bag.

I hope to finish the embroidery - and the construction - over the next two weeks, while I am away in Sydney visiting friends.

I will post progress when I can.

I am taking baby steps to come to terms with grief and widowhood. I am so grateful to family and friends for their love and support. I am also grateful for the companionship, sharing, mutual respect and simple decency of  Guild members.