Marghab Embroidery

Marghab is considered to be some of the finest hand embroidery in the world. The company was founded on the Island of Madeira, Portugal, in 1933, by the husband and wife team of Emile and Vera Way Marghab. Only the finest linen from Ireland and Switzerland were used. Working with Swiss weavers, the Marghabs created a special material that Vera described as "clear, crisp, true and easy to launder". This fabric was woven exclusively for the Marghabs. They called it Margandie and it gave them a distinctiveness that was associated only with Marghab linens. The embroidery threads were from France and many of the colors used were exclusively produced for a particular design. When the linens were ready for embroidery, they were brought from the factory to the countryside homes of skilled embroideresses who were paid by the stitch! Some pieces could contain as many as eighty-five thousand stitches and could take embroideresses months to complete. It was said that more than eighty percent of the female population on the island was employed in embroidery and girls learned the art from their mothers at a very early age. There were close to three hundred pattern designs and each of them was named. The linens were sold only in Madeira or to exclusive salons selected by the Marghabs for their reputation for excellence and quality. Among these were George Jensen, in New York, Constance Leiter in Kansas City and David Jones, Ltd. in Australia. After Emile's death in 1947, Vera Way Marghab continued with the business until 1980 and demanded nothing but "perfection" from the factory work, the embroideresses and the salons they were sold in. She died in 1995 at the age of ninety-five.

Much info taken from the book "Perfection Never Less, The Vera Way Marghab Story" by D.J. Cline.

Bird in Cage

Calla Lily

Concha

Delphinium

Flower Pot

Ivy

Sweet Peas

Marlace

Hortensia

Waterleaf

Hope you enjoy as much as I do!
Christine @ www.vintagelinens.etsy.com www.vintagebytessa.etsy.com

Tags: Marghab Embroidery, Embroidery, Fine Linens, Madeira, Marghab, Vera Way Marghab, Vintage Linens

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Permalink Reply by Ramona's Clutter on May 24, 2009 at 10:55am

Christine - Enjoyed this article very much! I love this embroidery and am always on the hunt for it. The patterns are fantastic and seem to go from elegant to whimsy. Keep your eyes out ladies.

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Permalink Reply by Linens and Things on May 24, 2009 at 1:27pm

Thank you so much for your post about Marghab and about Vera. I am absolutely hooked on Marghab. I just recently found two Marghab guest towels of the Flower Woman pattern with the Gremio seals still attached. I am in heaven! linensandthings.etsy.com

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Permalink Reply by ElsiesAttic ~ CEO on May 24, 2009 at 2:16pm

Great Article! I am going to post this in a few places for you my dear!!!! :)

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Permalink Reply by Linens and Things on May 24, 2009 at 2:30pm

My Etsy shop has some lovely things, but I have not listed the Marghab guest towels because I am adding them to my personal collection.

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Permalink Reply by ElsiesAttic ~ CEO on May 24, 2009 at 2:46pm

If you take some pictures you can add it here or write your own blog post... :)

Nice to meet you BTW!!

linensandthings said:

My Etsy shop has some lovely things, but I have not listed the Marghab guest towels because I am adding them to my personal collection.

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Permalink Reply by Vintage Linens on May 24, 2009 at 6:16pm

Linens... I'm so glad your adding your flower woman towels to your collection. To find them with a gremio seal is amazing. The actual Peasants of Portugal inspired Vera to create that pattern. It is written in the Marghab book that "Vera placed in one of her Marghab designs a peasant woman selling flowers in the town square. That particular design was always one of her personal favorites, and as she looked at it she would exclaim, "Isn't she dear?" For those who don't know what a gremio seal is it's a metal tag from the Madeira Institute of Embroidery. Only the best Madeira and Marghab pieces were given this seal after intense inspection for quality and perfection.

Flower Woman

Here is a Gremio Seal

It's amazing how much value a tiny little tag can add to a piece.

Christine @ www.vintagelinens.etsy.com www.vintagebytessa.etsy.com

linensandthings said:

My Etsy shop has some lovely things, but I have not listed the Marghab guest towels because I am adding them to my personal collection.

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Permalink Reply by Linens and Things on May 24, 2009 at 6:27pm

What a very nice thing for you to do! Showing a photo of Flower Woman, quoting Vera Marghab and explaining what the Gremio Seal is. I have had such a great time researching her and would love to go to the museum that has so much Marghab in South Dakota! Thank you so much. Do you care to offer an estimate on the value of my two guest towels?

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Permalink Reply by Vintage Linens on May 24, 2009 at 7:06pm

Linens... In the collector's book, "Vintage White Linens" by Marsha Manchester, she values fingertip towels, which measures about 9" x 14" and have the original paper labels and gremio seal, at $75.00 - $125.00 each. Used guest towels in excellent condition measuring about 15" x 21" are probably around $50.00 or so. I suppose it depends on the design, some being more desirable than others. Of course, Marghab not only made towels, they made tablecloths with matching napkins, placemat sets, dresser scarfs, baby bibs, hankies, etc., etc.. These linens were very expensive when made. Can you imagine how much a tablecloth with twelve matching napkins would cost :0)

linensandthings said:

What a very nice thing for you to do! Showing a photo of Flower Woman, quoting Vera Marghab and explaining what the Gremio Seal is. I have had such a great time researching her and would love to go to the museum that has so much Marghab in South Dakota! Thank you so much. Do you care to offer an estimate on the value of my two guest towels?

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Permalink Reply by Metro Retro Vintage on May 24, 2009 at 9:47pm

Fabulous article!

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Permalink Reply by Deer Path Vintage on May 24, 2009 at 10:16pm

What a great article! I have never heard of Marghab, and this was absolutely fascinating. I'll be on the lookout now.

Thanks so much, Mona

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Permalink Reply by Another Time Antiques on May 25, 2009 at 3:09pm

Excellent! Thanks for posting such great info on Marghab in such a nice, concise writing. Very good intro! I've only had the privelege to have a couple of pieces over the years and have to state how amazing the embroidery is. Hands above any other work! Love seeing the photos/pattern names. Hopefully other folks will add theirs too!

Question: Photo above of the Ivy - is that what is called a breakfast set? A placement type size for a tray with just 2 napkins? And that looks like it is the sheerer Margandie. Is that right?

Here's a direct link to the museum page: http://www.southdakotaartmuseum.com/explore_marghab.htm