A stitch in time

Kate Chapman meets members of The Boston Stitchers, a creative community group which combines its unique heritage with innovative new projects.

Boston needleworkers feared the worst when the Embroiderers’ Guild closed its local branches in 2021 – but their organisation has risen like a phoenix from the ashes, after re-establishing themselves as an independent group.

Now under the name The Boston Stitchers, their 45-year heritage remains firmly intact, as does the skill and friendship of the members, who are embracing the changes and forging ahead with new projects.

Chairman and creative director, Heather Wright said: “It’s an exciting time to be involved in the group, which currently has around 40 members, who range in skill level from complete beginners to those with more knowledge and experience, including one original founding member.”

The group holds regular workshops, exhibitions and explores other aspects of working with fabric including dyeing.

“Since lockdown and becoming an independent stitch group, our membership has continued to grow,” said Heather.

“Thankfully we held on to all of our members during the pandemic, by sending out regular newsletters and small kits which people could do if they wanted.

“It was at that point we realised people wanted to work on something that is decorative and functional, rather than ornate and functional. It’s a different way of working for us. We have members who are new to stitching, some who have years of knowledge, members who prefer traditional embroidery, and others who work in a more contemporary way, with machine embroidery, dyeing and felting.

“This group has been going for over 40, probably more than 45 years, and its heritage was something members were not prepared to lose – since becoming independent, it really has risen like a phoenix from the ashes.”

History and heritage
The Embroiderers’ Guild, founded in 1906, is a national charity which aims to build awareness of stitch and textile art and educate people of all ages about the world of embroidery – from the sheer pleasure of stitching to the design, creativity and production of unique inspirational works.

Heather says Boston, like all the other national branches, closed its doors in 2021, leaving just the guild’s headquarters and its national collection open. Rather than lose everything they had built up, the stitchers in Boston banded together to form their own independent group and have continued sharing their common love for the craft of stitching.

Their impressive back catalogue includes a series of embroidered seed packets for a display at Lincolnshire Show and a panel celebrating the achievements of botanist Sir Joseph Banks for Revesby Church. The group also took part in The Embroiderers’ Guild’s 100 hearts project marking the centenary of the end of WWI. Each year now, the group’s work focuses on a different theme, while they also embrace other community projects.

“One year we worked on the theme Gladrags. We explored how much textile waste goes into the ground, how unsustainable that is and looked at what we were using – someone gave us 500 old zips to use in our work.

“I’ve always believed a nice fabric can be used for whatever you want it to be used for; just because it’s a shirt, you don’t have to wear it as a shirt. It’s still fabric, you can use it for anything, and that’s what we focussed on in that year,” explains Heather, who has been a member of the group for around ten years, since moving to Lincolnshire from Oxfordshire.

“During the last year, we’ve looked at rescuing, reusing and recycling old books. If you go to any auction, or tip, there are thousands of old books which have just been thrown away.

“We’ve been asking how we can use these – you can stitch on to paper, dye it, print and paint it, so we’ve been rescuing books. It’s been a really exciting time for us.”

Story in Stitch
In addition to its monthly meetings and workshops, the group has also worked on a rather special project called Story in Stitch, a series of giant picture books – each one 2ft tall – which members of the wider community helped to make. Four of the completed books, two of which had never been seen in public, were on display at Fydell House in Boston on selected dates in July.

Heather says the idea was first discussed back in 2018 when the group was thinking of ways it could do something to show Boston in a more positive light. After a workshop making Illuminate banners, the stitchers got chatting to representatives from Boston Big Local, which had been awarded National Lottery funding to spend on improving the community.

“Our idea of making something for Boston appealed to them, it ticked the box of being an art-based project and they agreed to give us a bit of funding to do it,” recalls Heather.

“They also said it’s got to be a community project, that was a real challenge. It’s okay saying to a room full of people that stitch, let’s make something, but saying it to lots of people who’ve never done it before is very different!

“The stitchers called on community groups around the town – schools, coffee groups and walking groups – to stitch two-inch square panels of fabric, supplying kits to help them. After a eureka moment while watching her son read a story to her grandson, Heather came up with the idea of transforming the completed squares into a series of giant storybooks, full of Boston’s history. Each one has been given a positive, one-word name – Grow, Play, Build, Create, Listen and 2020 – and it is her hope that one day they will travel to Boston, Massachusetts, to be displayed there too.

“What I find fascinating is how people are relating to them,” adds Heather.

“With any textile display, a gallery or museum usually says they cannot be touched while on display. They’re a precious thing, which will eventually decompose.

“When people see the books, and they engage with the idea and find them tactile, they want to reach out and touch them, and we can say, yes, please do!

“At the moment we’ve not decided what will happen to the books, but the more people that see them, the more chance there is of them being found a special home.”

There is currently a waiting list for potential new members to join The Boston Stitchers. To find out more, visit www.thebostonstitchers.com or follow on facebook.com/BostonStitchers

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