Miao people’s love for embroidering is no less than their love for singing. Both have become part of their life. Their preference for embroidering is closely associated with the saga of Miao people’s southward migration. Legend goes that a chieftainess named Lan Juan worked out a means of recording things through color threads in memory of their trudging expedition. A yellow thread was embroidered to mark their crossing over the Yellow River, and a blue thread marking their crossing over the Changjiang River. Their experiences along the way were all symbolized in the form of embroidery and by the time they finally settled in the new habitable colony, their clothing had been filled with embroidery from collar down to the bottom end of the pant legs, henceforward, young Miao girls will dress up with a splendid outfit embroidered by themselves on the occasion of their marriages with a view to honor their valorous ancestors as well as their native land where they ever lived, and to pass the beautiful heritage on to young generations.
Miao culture is interwound closely with Chinese history of ancient times. Miao embroidery glows with unrestrained enthusiasm and its mysterious and thought-provoking contents.
Miao embroidery is rich in its stitches varying from region to region, among which the most common ones are Plain stitch, Pleat Stitch, Braid Stitch etc., contributing to its diversification and refinement.
Pleat Stitch: First braid the 8-10 plies of thread, and then pleat the braid evenly and regularly based on the referential pattern. Attaching these pleats to the fabric makes a coarse, plain and massive texture with a high relief effect and longstanding resistance.
Plain Stitch: with plain stitches, embroider the crude silk thread onto the fabric flat and evenly making a fine, dazzling 3D effect.
Braid Stitch: still need to make the thread into braids, and then stitch them onto the fabric according to the pattern inwardly producing a bass relief effect.
Pattern Piling: it derives from Supplementary Stitch. First cut the suds-starched silk into equal-sized triangles and then by folding two corners of the triangle, pile them up layer after layer into various geometries, which stands out for its gorgeous colorfulness and free pattern collocation.
Thread Breaking: A single thread is broke into several plies, which are to be starched with suds. Then stitch them finely onto the fabric by the pattern. Embroidery with this kind of stitch exceeds for its neat suture, bright color and embossment effect.
Miao embroidery is the rare treasure of Chinese folk arts. The most intriguing part of it lies in its uniqueness, which means every single Miao embroidery work differs from each other in color and stitch even with the same pattern. It is this trait of marvel that makes it the indispensable item of most discerning collectors.
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