I have not seen the movie, “Mamma Mia,” but a reader wrote to ask if the bed covering shown is Redwork. For a brief time, a photo of this piece was shown on a website. Unfortunately, it has since been removed since I first saw it there.
Knowing next to nothing about Greek embroidery, but about to find out tons more, I asked members of the Quilt History List for their input. One member consulted Dr. Linda Welters of the University of Rhode Island’s Department of Textiles and Design. She states that red silk on cream, in linen or cotton, worked in a darning stitch that almost completely covers the ground fabric, was traditional in the 17th & 18th centuries on a Greek island called Naxos. Those pieces appear to be woven (and most likely were not used to film the movie).
I have ordered a book titled, Embroidery of the Greek Islands and Epirus Region.
Traditional Redwork, as we know it, dates from the late nineteenth century and originated in Kensington at the Royal School of Needlework. Outline Stitch embroidery in other colors is an offshoot from the use of red thread, originally. Turkey Red was a stable color that would not fade or run when wet, thus its popularity, soon followed by blue, green, and later, the new pastels of the 20th century.
This is a 19th century “splasher.”
We, textile aficionados, are always on the lookout for quilts in movies and on daytime TV. Sometimes we can get very picky as to whether the quilt shown is true to the time period being represented. One recent movie I did see was “Gran Torino.” The first textile I noticed was the Hmong wall hanging, a “story cloth” on the wall, and was thrilled that the piece of authentic Hmong work was included.
We love to hear from readers and always will try to come up with an answer, sooner or later. Many thanks to Dr. Welters for weighing in on the subject of Greek embroidery. One can readily see why the study of textiles can become a permanent preoccupation. There is always more to know and understand!
Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications
