Found this nice 40's sampler from a company specialised in custom made embroidery, 12 years ago, while looking for clothes at the fort Lauderdale flea market .back then it was a gold mine for vintage .....
Nice close up.....
Typical chain stitch job as seen on your "classic american workwear" from the 20's up to the 60's....
Singer Cornely type embroidery machine ......A French engineer named Bonnaz invented the first sewing machine for embroidery in 1866, soon he joined with the Cornely Company in France to manufacture and market his invention. A few years later Singer received the US Patent.The early ones could work both chain and moss stitch and could sew in any direction . By 1900 models were produced which could make raised cords, double zigzag lines and do two needle braiding. As the Cornely machines were no bigger than an ordinary domestic treadle machine they were excellent for outworkers and did not have to be used in factories only. In America it is known as the Bonnaz machine.
Since the original machine very few design changes have been made and the basic machine has remained the same for well over one hundred years. Today hand operated chenille machines are made by a number of machine manufacturers but cornely and singer remain the standard. These machines must be used by skilled operators only....
I've only just found your blog, doing research for my own (stevemcqueenstyle.blogspot.com). The post on roughout boots came in very handy in particular, thank you! All utterly fascinating.
ReplyDeletenice blog Paul you should sign to RIVETED as a follower as i'm about to do a post about "sand pebble".cheers
ReplyDeleteWonderful article above! I have a large number of Cornely machines. Cornely work is a very important details for Western Wear, and the 50's leather biker jackets. Cornely no longer produce the machines needed for these embroideries.
ReplyDeleteStage as that is, in 2010 and 2011, the cornely stitch work is appearing on the catwalks in Paris and NY. This means the trend will be in everyday fashion soon. Cornely machines, used, can fetch up to $15,000 for the rare models. There are very few machine workers left in the US today, most of the skilled workers are in India and Africa.
I am sure a lot of people will see these machines at garage sales. If you find one, buy it, learn how it works, and save a skill for the future generation Americans!
Remember, fashion always comes back, nothing is new! Lets keep some of our own work, it would save our economy, Restore our manufacturing strength!!