Sewing is one of the oldest of mankind’s crafts and basically describes the joining of fabrics through a seam. As early as the Stone Age, people used the first needles made of fish bones or pointed bones, as well as thread made of animal tendons. The mass production of sewing needles made of brass and iron wire emerges in the 14th century. The spinning wheel was invented around the 13th century. This made it possible to produce yarn more effectively. The reason was that yarn made from flax or wool had been a scarce commodity until then due to the extremely labor-intensive spinning process. From the 14th century, cotton was imported from the Middle East to Europe – it was imported to Germany for the first time by the Augsburg merchant Johannes Fugger. Cotton, which was short-fibered and therefore slow to spin, only became affordable with the development of spinning machines at the end of the 18th century.

After this innovation, people were soon interested in whether sewing could also be done by machine. The first patents for a fully functional sewing machine date back to 1790 (300 revolutions per minute). As a result of the breakthrough of electric motors, sewing machines with handwheel drive or treadle drive were soon replaced. Today’s industrial sewing machines achieve 4,000 to 5,000 revolutions per minute. Overedge or safety machines even achieve 7,000 to 8,000 revolutions per minute. The leap to automation came in the 1960s and today sewing is also being performed through digital means.

The first finds of embroidery were discovered in 5000 BC. Today, embroidered clothing is reported from various regions such as Egypt, China and South America. Initially characterized by primarily geometric figures, figurative representations and images later emerged. The first fashion pieces were noble embroideries on the robes and coats of Roman consuls, tribunes and emperors. Monasteries also cultivated embroidery in the Middle Ages to produce liturgical vestments or to refine textiles used in church interiors. Embroidered fabrics were considered a sign of affluence, as embroidery cost a lot of time and money. Aristocratic women learned to embroider in their childhood. Gradually this developed into a guild-like craft, mainly as a branch of the tailors’ guild, occasionally also of the painters’ guild or as a guild in its own right. Such guilds have been known in German-speaking countries since about 1500. Manufacturing began to develop in Central Europe in the 17th century. Given the increasing level of education in the Biedermeier era at the beginning of the 19th century, embroidery also developed in the domestic sphere with the production of useful objects for everyday use to the recreational activities of bourgeois and aristocratic women (tea parties/family circles). In this environment, embroidery continued to develop and many new stitches and techniques were created, such as Hardanger or Ajour embroidery.

Embroidery today is a craft practiced all over the world and is a sign of the finest precision.

The very first documented written crochet pattern dates back to the early 19th century. The first printed crochet pattern was discovered in 1820 in a Dutch newspaper. Crochet, at the beginning of the 19th century, was used exclusively for making lace more quickly. This was considered a classic symbol for the middle class, as this form of needlework was frowned upon in the salons of the elite. Crochet became generally socially accepted in the early 20th century. Every woman had to master the technique of crochet – irrespective of which “class” she belonged to. In the 1930s, interest in crochet declined and it was mainly used for baby and children’s clothing. During the Second World War, most women knitted as this required less wool than crochet does.

Nowadays, crochet is used more in the domestic sphere than in the fashion industry, as crocheted clothing is less flexible than comparable items of clothing that have been knitted, for example. Potholders, decorative blankets and place mats are particularly popular, as are baby clothes and blankets.

“Knitted” or needle-bound gloves were the norm for liturgical procedures as early as the 9th century. Needle-binding involves incorporating several load-bearing threads into weaving patterns. Knitting, on the other hand, involves working with one continuous thread. Differentiation: While knitwear unravels, needle-binding forms an undetachable knot.

The technique of knitting originated around the 13th or 14th century. It came from the Middle East via the Silk Road to Italy and was primarily confined to the high social classes. In Paris, commercial knitting was first mentioned in 1268 with the Paris Knitters’ Guild. Illustrations from the High Middle Ages: simple circular knitting depicted by a rendition of the Virgin Mary knitting. There are records of knitting guilds in the Netherlands and Spain from the 15th century. From the 15th and 16th centuries onwards, there is evidence of the various guilds in Germany. Invention of the first functional hand-knitting loom by William Lee in 1589. Gradually, knitting developed into an affordable technique with which to produce inexpensive clothing. It was not until the middle of the 19th century that knitting spread to Japan and China.  During the Second World War, most women engaged in knitting, as less wool is needed than for crochet. For amateur and home knitters, a number of small mechanical knitting machines have been available since the 1950s, and electric and later computer-controlled home knitting machines since the 1970s.

Today, knitting is the most widespread form of needlework in Europe and major fashion houses as well as boutiques and designers launch their autumn/winter knitwear collections every year in glamorous fashion on the global catwalks and catalogs.

Technik des Strickens entstand etwa im 13. bzw. 14. Jahrhundert. Aus dem Nahen Osten über die Seidenstraße bis nach Italien und war vor allen Dingen der hohen gesellschaftlichen Schicht vorbehalten. In Paris wird 1268 zum ersten Mal das gewerbliche Stricken in Form der Gilde der Pariser Stricker erwähnt. Abbildungen des Hochmittelalters: einfaches Rundstricken in Form einer strickenden Maria. Aus dem 15. Jahrhundert stammen Beurkundungen für Strickgilden in den Niederlanden und Spanien. Ab dem 15. und dem 16. Jahrhundert finden sich Deutschland Belege der unterschiedlichen Zünfte. Erfindung des ersten funktionsfähigen Handkulierstuhls  von William Lee im Jahr 1589. Nach und nach entwickelte sich das Stricken zu einer erschwinglichen Technik, die günstige Kleidung in die Produktion brachte. Erst Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts verbreitete sich das Stricken in Japan und China.  Während des zweiten Weltkrieges strickten die meisten Frauen, da weniger Wolle gebraucht wird als beim Häkeln. Für Heim- und Hobbystricker gibt es seit den 1950er Jahren eine Anzahl kleiner mechanischer Strickmaschinen, seit den 1970er Jahren elektrische, später auch computergesteuerte Heimstrickmaschinen.

Heutzutage ist das Stricken die am meisten verbreitete Handarbeitsform in Europa und große Modehäuser sowie Boutiquen und Designer:innen bringen jährlich ihre Herbst/Winter Strick-Kollektionen glanzvoll auf die globalen Laufstege und in  Kataloge.