19th-century amateur embroidery developed in Germany and based upon hand-painted charts from which cross-stitch patterns could be worked in a very soft embroidery wool, spun at Gotha and dyed in Berlin, where the charts were printed and painted. The first chart was issued in 1804, and between 1810 and 1840 no fewer than 14,000 different designs were published; by the latter year they had superseded practically all other embroidery patterns in England and the United States.

The wool for this work was dyed brilliant colours in the German taste, and these bright colours and versatility of the embroidery led to its widespread popularity. Besides the usual cross-stitch and petit point used in canvas embroidery, a raised or clipped stitch called Surrey was employed that created a thick wool pile and enhanced the colour and shading of floral designs. Coloured glass beads were also introduced to accent the floral and scenic patterns.