{"product_id":"waitlist-the-wordsworth-harp-needlecase-embroidery-kit","title":"Waitlist for The Wordsworth Harp Needlecase Embroidery Kit","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis piece is based on an original needlecase by Edith May Southey, the daughter of Robert Southey, friend of William Wordsworth and the United Kingdom’s Poet Laureate from 1813 to 1843. This treasure is housed in the collection of the Wordsworth Museum Trust in Dove Cottage in the Lake District.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Her harp needlecase was handmade from silk-covered card, decorated with tiny shamrocks in applied gold foil and the strings formed from graded sizes of needles. As well as being an exquisite object in its own right, the piece is of particular note for the Wordsworth Trust, since it was the topic for his poem ‘On Seeing a Needlecase in the Form of a Harp’.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e With the kind permission of the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/wordsworth.org.uk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eWordsworth Trust\u003c\/a\u003e and as a tuition project for \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/www.crewelwork.com\/pages\/needlework-tours\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eLady Anne’s Needlework Tours\u003c\/a\u003e, I was allowed to create my own take on the original harp. In my version, the design is based on William Wordsworth’s favourite wild flower, the Lesser Celandine.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The decorative panels are fully embroidered, using a range of beautiful silk and metal threads in a variety of surface embroidery techniques, all of which were used during the Victorian period. In a true marriage of old and new, the project combines age-old hand skills with very modern technology.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The three types of card for the construction have been created by James Cropper, master paper-maker, whose firm have been making paper since 1845. The paper is cut by laser to give highly precise shapes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The wooden finial and form which supports the harp’s soundbox have been created by my father, a master gunsmith and fishing rod builder. The 2% gold, specialist metal embroidery threads have been created by the master wyre-drawers at Benton \u0026amp; Johnson in Warwickshire (founded in 1685).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The silk threads are from Au Ver à Soie, a Parisian family company which has been making threads since 1820. The specially selected set of gradated needles was created, with great attention to detail, by ‘Tulip’ based in Hiroshima in Japan, the home of Japanese needle-making for over 300 years.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The needles in Edith’s harp were simply pushed into the fine silk fabric but I have refined this to include a wool baize needle holder. Wool baize is a traditional fabric for storing needles and helps to protect them from deterioration.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This fabric is made by A W Hainsworth and Son of Pudsey, Yorkshire, wool weavers since 1723. You may wish to order a\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/jennyadin-christieembroidery.com\/product\/engraved-dome-for-wordsworth-harp\"\u003e hand-blown glass dome with a turned wooden base\u003c\/a\u003e to display and protect your finished harp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  The dome can be engraved with the Wordsworth poem on which the design is based, in a hand-written script in keeping with the period.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Jenny Adin-Christie","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54363382743382,"sku":"KITHARP","price":255.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1037\/5318\/7670\/files\/Shop-Portrait-Crop-The-Wordsworth-Harp-Needlecase-2_1674ec97-ded0-4892-9397-8f561649d3f1.jpg?v=1782573976","url":"https:\/\/jennyadin-christieembroidery.com\/products\/waitlist-the-wordsworth-harp-needlecase-embroidery-kit","provider":"Jenny Adin-Christie Embroidery","version":"1.0","type":"link"}