Sajou Museum & Heritage Large Toile du Jouy Embroidery Chart

Description and Details

A beautiful, large Sajou cross stitch chart inspired by The Toile du Jouy Museum at Jouy-en-Josas which lies near to the original factory that was owned by Christophe Oberkampf.

The pattern is intended to be worked onto off white linen fabric. The size of the motif is 345 x 342 points and the finished work measures 57.5 x 57.5 cm. In order to allow a good working border, it is advisable to work onto a piece of linen 70 x 70 cm.

The pattern chart is 68 x 80 cm for ease of use given the complexity of the design, it is printed in matt and can be written on should you need to mark any references.

The chart has a title to the top which is a copy of the trademark which was printed at each end of the printed fabric and was obligatory in France by Royal decree. The fabric stamp on the chart dates from 1789-1792, the golden age of Oberkampf who was the sole owner of the factory at this time.

The motifs showing the various stages of production are interpreted from a fabric that was printed in 1783 at the factory. The original designs for the cloth were created by Jean- Baptiste Huet (1745-1821) who was an exceptional painter and engraver who enjoyed a longstanding professional relationship with the factory. The scenes show the printing process (using wooden planks), the maddering of the fabric to produce the reds ,the bleaching of the cloth to remove excess dyes and the hand painting of extra colours that could not be produced by way of using madder. Mr. Oberkampf features on the original design with his son and he is also shown in collaboration with Jean Baptiste Huet.

To the bottom of the chart there are examples of other prints that were produced at the factory. Although Toile du Jouy is best known for the scenic prints that were produced, these actually only accounted for around 200 of designs produced at the factory, whereas over 30000 floral and geometric prints were produced. There are 'Mignonnettes' or Ditsy Prints, botanical; prints of flowers and of course there are 'Les Indiennes' which are the Chintzes that originally came from Persia, India and China but that were so popular with Europeans that they were avidly copied despite various bans.

The back of the chart has explanations for the embroidery and it is also and is teeming with historical and cultural information regarding Toile du Jouy and it's production.

This chart is also available as a complete kit in a lovely gift box and I also have smaller charts, kits and gift boxes of the Toile du Jouy designs.

Some of you will already be collectors of Sajou and be more than aware of this extraordinary French brand. Sajou produce haberdashery items made in France to the highest standards (in some cases even produced on the original old machinery). Perfect for gifts and collectors, and for those of you unable to resist a quality that is seldom found in today's mass produced haberdashery products.

Sajou was created in 1828 by Jaques- Simon Sajou, selling haberdashery for embroidery, tapestry, lace, crochet and weaving. His pattern albums are sought after to this day by collectors worldwide. In 2005 the Sajou brand was purchased and revived by avid collector; Frederique Crestin- Billet. Many of the old designs have been faithfully reproduced and there are some new designs that have been added in the Sajou style.

Materials: A1 Chart in a Decorative Sleeve.