& shy; Picking up embroidery needle she quickly and quietly focused
& shy; In the industrial era of machine embroidery, hand-embroidered products that work slowly gradually fade out of view. However, Lin Xi, who was born in the embroidery family, went around pockets and picked up needle to study again three years ago. Two years ago, she studied from Lin Yuquan, a famous Taiwanese embroidery artist, and became a successor of Fujian embroidery in Fuzhou.
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& shy; Both sides of the Strait jointly inherit Fujian embroidery
& shy; Lin Xi grows in embroidery family. Her great grandmother was good at palace embroidery, and the peony on her grandmother’s wedding dress condensed the blessing of her great grandmother with thousands of stitches. Unfortunately, the exquisite technique was lost during the Cultural Revolution. Lin Xi picked up embroidery needle when he was 6 years old. He had some learning samples and did not study hard. In 2013, she met the dragon and phoenix gown who worked in a wedding dress shop. The embroidery embroidered by the machine made her feel that she lacked aura and life. At the age of 37, she decided to resume hand embroidery.
& shy; She extensively studied all kinds of stitches and felt the unique charm of Fujian embroidery: using bright colors and exaggerations to contrast huamel visual effects. Compared with Shu embroidery and Xiang embroidery, the embroidery thread of Fujian embroidery is mainly glitter thread and silver onion thread; The embroidery method is mainly Panjin embroidery. Fujian embroidery has many essences, such as nail thread embroidery, ancient dragon scales, ten thousand words lace, etc. The most difficult thing is embroidery three-dimensional pattern.
& shy; Because the finished products of Fujian embroidery are mostly used for costumes and sacrificial occasions, they are gradually declining. In 2014, Lin Xi went to Taiwan to worship Lin Yuquan as a teacher. His senior brother Su Shicang often helped. At this point, Lin Xi became a successor of Minxiu in Fuzhou. Lin Yuquan’s master is Yan Xun Xiang from Fuzhou to Hangzhou. 70 years ago, Yan Xianxiang crossed the Taiwan Strait and founded Chengfu Embroidery Village in Tainan to promote Fujian embroidery.
& shy; Master Lin Yuquan emphasized that learning embroidery should have “Three Hearts”: meditation, determination and patience. Where is the heart, where is the needle. Lin Xi, who couldn’t sit still, was laughed at by his friends at first. “They all said I am ‘Zhang Fei embroidery’, but I am sure this is the way I want to go. As long as I don’t lose everything, I will do it”.
& shy; Lin Xi is embroidered “Double Phoenix with peony”
& shy; See embroidery as a test of strength
& shy; Yesterday, in Xinhua Creative Park, Aotou Fengling Road, Cangshan district, the reporter saw Lin Xi wearing T-shirts and overalls. The careless Lin Xi was extremely bright and vigorous, and he laughed like a “laughing aunt”, which was not the gentle and quiet embroidered woman in her imagination at all.
& shy; But as soon as she picked up the embroidery needle, she quickly quieted down. The embroidery cloth is lower spring tip in one hand, and the needle leads in the other hand. Each stitch is the size of rice grain. Flying needle shuttle, the “double phoenix and peony” which combines Suzhou embroidery and Fujian Embroidery gradually took shape. Two Colorful phoenix flying high, with gold embroidery hook edge, lifelike, as if to fly out of embroidery cloth.
& shy. One embroidery often destroys two or three bottom pictures. Slowly, patience is tempered. Every needle should consider the texture and direction of embroidery thread, and it is often four or five hours to sit.
& shy; If she was worried, she went to the yard to watch the running water of the small bridge and waited until she was determined. “If you are impatient, the embroidery will be rough. If you see embroidery, you will see people.” In the hall, Lin Xi put two embroideries of peony together to compare: the distance between the petals and pins of one embroideries is obvious, which can clearly distinguish the transition from four colors; the other one has 9 less colors and 12 more colors. The color transition is natural and no obvious stitches can be seen. “It can be clearly seen that the previous one was embroidered in a few days, while the other one was carefully carved, with 16 hairline rule pieces in one line for embroidery, with fine stitches, only nail of the size can be embroidered every day.” Lin Xi said.
& shy; Every stitch is a test of patience and determination. Daily embroidery, will it be boring? Lin Xi said, “This is what I am sure to do. Embroidery makes me find my own happiness.”
& shy; Grab cotton and squeeze out three-dimensional patterns
& shy; Work slowly and embroider the true feelings
& shy; To do work well, it must be used first. Lin Xi has a wide variety of embroidery needle collections, big and small, with straight music. Nearly 30 kinds of embroidery threads of the same color series are collected in each type, which are bundled into groups from shallow to deep, clearly showing the gradual effect of color transition. She also collected 6 Kinds of glitter threads used in Fujian embroidery.
& shy; The three-dimensional sense in Fujian embroidery clothing is made of cotton, which is hard to touch after embroidery. “Grasping cotton and shaping by hand” is a unique skill. Nowadays, few people master this skill. Many embroidery products in Fujian directly compact cotton or fill it with plastic foam. Lin Xi skillfully used the technique of “grasping and shaping cotton by hand”. While compacting cotton, she sewed it on the embroidery cloth with needle and thread, and taught it to her students. “We are not in a hurry to innovate. Improving skills and restoring tradition are the key.” Lin Xi said that she and her senior brother were copying classic embroidery, slowly finding the delicacy and beauty of the old years. She firmly believes that what is carried by hand is national culture, which conveys the warmth between people.
& shy; Lin Xi remembered that there was a wedding dress embroidered by her grandmother in her wardrobe, which was a red coat with a front in the 50’s of last century. The red peony on the wedding dress was always new. Grandma wore it and walked out of her mother’s home. She was Merry Matrimony and had a happy life. Similarly, grandma also embroidered blessings into her mother’s wedding dress.
& shy; When touched by fingers, there is temperature. Lin Xi opened Yanfu embroidery village in Fuzhou, sewing handmade cheongsam, fixing glitter thread on cheongsam through the gold embroidery needle commonly used in Fujian embroidery, and embroidering various patterns on bags by hand, each embroidery is unique. She said that every woman must have a piece of crafts that can be passed down, which can withstand the years and hide memories. Each stitch and line is meaningful. (Reporter Wei Yuyan/Wen Yangyong/photo)
& shy; Minxiu-Panjin embroidery stitch fixed glitter thread on cheongsam