Credit: SEAB
A metal thread that draws curved lines, adds relief to the embroidery and shines like a medal. Bullion embroidery is a decorative technique that fashion has “borrowed” from the military and ecclesiastical worlds, and which has recently been making a comeback thanks to the aesthetic maximalism that is replacing quiet luxury.
It is a technique that few people know today, and that very few are able to execute by hand, explains Roberto Scannerini of SEAB, a company specializing in embroidery and craftsmanship for the fashion industry. “Our workshops are located in Pakistan, where we have had a production unit since 2000 and where our artisans work on frames, with the precision and patience required to turn a design into reality.”
It is in fact a process that requires hours and hours of manual work: “A simple, single-color emblem can take an entire day from design to completion, while multicolored ones can take two days or more. These are the most complex but also the most contemporary: many people think bullion embroidery is only silver or gold, but we actually have a color chart with 250 variations.”
But what exactly does this embroidery consist of? It is a tubular element made from a metal wire wound into a spiral, inside which the embroidery thread passes. The bullion therefore remains on the surface, like a long bead: the segments are cut and laid down to form the design, and each element is secured at the ends with a stitch that remains invisible.
Bullion embroidery can be applied to a support such as a patch or directly onto the material to be decorated, from fabric to leather (even directly onto a shoe upper), and even onto calf hair. It is an embroidery technique that offers extraordinary beauty but is increasingly rare due to its artisanal complexity, and which is now returning thanks also to the revival of military aesthetics, with the Napoleon Jacket once again appearing on men’s and women’s runways, bringing with it opulent epaulettes and richly embroidered insignia.
