Dress Embroidery Project Unites Women


Twenty years ago, when I was visiting my sister in Alberta, Canada, we experienced a rare family reunion. I had come from Germany and my mother came from Sweden. Then our cousin and her daughter came from Bazil as well. As our family has spread around the world, such opportunities come seldom if ever.

It was summer, but summer in Canada can involve some surprises. We visited the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park, but the icy wind soon led us to take refuge in the Visitors‘ Centre so that our Brazilian ladies could warm up their bare toes. And that is where we saw a lovely patchwork quilt, made up of individual squares sewn by different women, showing aspects of their lives.

Mum instantly had an inspiration. Why couldn’t we sew a family quilt? If we each stitched a square and got our daughters to join in the project we could create a family heirloom that could rotate around the globe. In the end, to only one to take up the project was Mum, who made four squares. The others were not so keen on needlework. The quilt was never completed and never will be. What a pity.

I was reminded of this when I saw a report on BBC News about a dress embroidery project.[1] The red dress embroidery project was started by Kirstie Macleod from Somerset to help marginalized women tell their stories through embroidery and it has unified women around the world. More than 240 people took part and embroidered an image onto the dress that represents themselves and their culture. It has taken almost 12 years to complete.

One of the embroiderers saw the project as an expression of complete sisterhood. Women from around the world joined together not only in an abstract unity but also in a concrete project, making visible how much they have in common. They shared their deepest thoughts and hopes, their experiences and joys. The finished dress is such a beautiful creation, lovingly embroidered by so many hands!

This work of art is a great accomplishment. I hope it will be displayed around the world to show how much women have in common despite their many cultural differences. As a symbol of unity and of the resilience of women in difficult circumstances, this red dress shows what is possible when women work together to make the world a better place.

The global embroidery project took a long time to complete. It must have been a challenge to organize and coordinate, but the women involved did not give up. That is something we can learn from them. Never give up a good project! It may take longer to complete than we thought, but in the end, it will be worth it. Congratulations to all who participated in the Red Dress Embroidery Project.

 

 


Photo: Screenshsot of BBC news documentary


[1] https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-somerset-59181514

 

 

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