Mountmellick Embroidery - Technique and Uses

Technique and Uses

Mountmellick embroidery uses predominantly knotted and padded stitches to create beautifully textured whitework embroidery. The work features a characteristic knitted fringe. Other forms of lace, such as crochet or bobbin lace are not authentic trims for Mountmellick work.

The embroidery was usually employed on items of household use such as doilies (toilet mats), nightdress cases, brush and comb bags, bedspreads/coverlets, and tablecloths. Though the work was white, it was so sturdy that it could be easily boiled white again.

Today, Mountmellick embroidery is enjoying a resurgence of popularity around the world. A museum at the Mountmellick Development Association in Mountmellick has been opened to permanently display articles of Mountmellick embroidery for all to see. The National Museum of Ireland (Dublin) also has some beautiful examples of the work, as does the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum outside Belfast and the An Grianan Adult Education College at Termonfechin, County Louth.