EoVN part 2

I was curious to know more about the authors of the Encyclopedia of Victorian Needlework; both of whom were women. A quick Google search of Blanche Saward turned up no information; however, it turns out that Sophia Frances Anne Caulfeild was quite a prolific writer. She was born in 1824 and died in 1911. I found at least seven books attributed to her ranging from fiction to nonfiction to poetry. It appears that her only needlework book was EoVN. She was also a contributor to a British publication, Girl’s Own Paper, a paper which catered to girls and young women and was published from 1880-1956.

I was also interested to learn that the book was dedicated to Princess Louise Marchioness of Lorne, one of the daughters of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. It reads in part “this book is, by her special permission, dedicated, in acknowledgment of the great services which, by means of her cultivated taste and cordial patronage, she has rendered to the arts of plain sewing and embroidery.”

These are the bits of information that I think add to the richness of needlework history and one of the reasons why I have such a fascination wih all things antique and vintage in the needlework world.