Katherine of Aragon Was Skilled With a Needle And Thread
Queen Katherine had a talent for sewing. Even after their marriage imploded, Henry VIII asked her to make his shirts and embroider them with blackwork, much to his paramour Anne Boleyn’s irritation. Katherine was particularly noted for her blackwork, a type of embroidery using black thread on a white or colored background, creating a endless patterns and shapes.
Although she didn’t invent blackwork, she is credited with making it popular in England. Katherine popularized it by introducing the Spanish interpretation of the art, influenced by the geometric Moorish designs she would have seen in her homeland.
