Vestments
- Priest Vestments sets
- Epitrahelion sets
- Epigonations
- Deacon Vestments Sets
- Stikharions
- Albs, Priest Stikharions
- Orarions
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- Bishop
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Covers
Church Items
Color
Embroidered icons
3 itemsEmbroidered Orthodox icons — icons worked in silk and metallic thread rather than painted — are one of the oldest and most demanding forms of liturgical art. We embroider icons in our Florida atelier as standalone panels for veneration, and as the central images mounted onto vestments, banners, epitaphioi, and altar covers.
Browse the embroidered icons below, or contact us to commission a specific saint or feast — for veneration, for a vestment, or as a gift.
The tradition of embroidered icons
Embroidered iconography is as old as the Church's textile art. Long before printed icons, the image of a saint or feast was worked in coloured silks and couched gold thread — on the aer over the chalice, the epitaphios carried at Holy Friday, the omophorion of a bishop, and the great processional banners. A finely embroidered icon catches candlelight in a way paint cannot: the laid metal threads shift and glow as the viewer moves, which is why goldwork icons were prized for the dim, candle-lit interiors of Orthodox churches.
What we make
- Standalone icon panels — framed or mounted embroidered icons of a saint, the Mother of God, or a Great Feast, for veneration in church or at home.
- Vestment icon panels — the embroidered medallions and back-panels mounted onto a phelonion, sakkos, or epitrachelion.
- Banner and aer icons — the central images of processional banners, chalice veils, and altar covers, worked separately and mounted onto the brocade.
How an embroidered icon is made
The icon is drawn following the canonical iconographic model, then worked on a stretched frame: faces and hands in fine silk shading (the needle-painting technique), garments and haloes in couched gold and silver thread, often raised over a padded outline for the most luminous areas. Because the embroidery is worked on its own frame and then mounted, the finished icon can later be re-mounted onto fresh fabric if a vestment or banner ever wears out — the icon outlives the cloth it is set on.
Commissioning an icon
Tell us the subject (the saint, the feast, the icon type), the iconographic style your parish follows (Byzantine, Slavic, contemporary), and how the icon will be used — for veneration, mounted on a vestment, or set into a banner. Fully embroidered icons are slow, detailed work; we confirm a schedule and a design with you before beginning.
Frequently asked about embroidered icons
What is an embroidered icon?
An embroidered icon is an Orthodox icon worked in coloured silk and metallic gold or silver thread rather than painted — faces and hands in fine silk shading, garments and haloes in couched goldwork. It is used for veneration on its own, or mounted as the central image of a vestment, banner, aer, or altar cover.
Can you embroider a specific saint or feast?
Yes. We embroider any canonical subject — a patron saint, the Mother of God, a Great Feast, the Resurrection. Tell us the subject, the iconographic style your parish follows (Byzantine, Slavic, or contemporary), and how the icon will be used, and we develop the design with you before stitching.
Can an embroidered icon be mounted onto a vestment or banner?
That is one of its main uses. We work the icon on its own frame and mount it onto the phelonion, sakkos, banner, or altar cover. Because it is mounted separately, the icon can later be transferred onto fresh fabric if the vestment or banner wears out — the embroidery outlives the cloth.
Why choose embroidery over a painted icon?
Embroidered icons belong to the textile tradition of the Church — the aer, the epitaphios, the omophorion. Goldwork embroidery catches and reflects candlelight as the viewer moves, giving the image a living quality in a candle-lit church, and it integrates naturally into vestments and banners where a rigid painted panel could not.
How long does an embroidered icon take?
Fully embroidered icons are slow, detailed work. A small icon panel takes several weeks; a large icon with extensive goldwork and silk-shaded faces can take months. We confirm a schedule and an approved design with you before beginning, and keep you updated through the work.