A needlework technique or decorative effect, cutwork involves cutting away sections of fabric in predetermined designs or simple holes and using various embroidery stitches to define or embellish them. The technique is thought to have originated in Italy during the Renaissance period of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, where it was termed punto tagliato. A key component of cutwork is the embroidering of the “holes,” by either filling them in or bridging them through needlework. Cutwork, usually done on cotton or linen fabric, has been used for making decorative and fashion textiles, accessories such as handkerchiefs and head coverings and home furnishings such as bed linen, pillow-cases and tablecloths.

Two main forms can be seen in the European tradition of cutwork: In one, the cut-aways or holes form a minor part of the design, as seen in Norwegian Hardanger lace; in the other, and more popular type, the holes form the central elements of the design, such as in the Italian reticella, the Czech-English broderie Anglaise, the French Richelieu and the Danish Hedebo. Believed to have originated in monasteries in Rome and created originally for use by the Church and its clergy, cutwork was popularised in sartorial traditions by Mary Tudor (1516–58) and Elizabeth I (1533–1603) in the sixteenth century. Different regions across Europe had different forms and iterations of the technique adapted to specific purposes and aesthetics. Outside Europe as well, there were forms and variations of cutwork — some that had emerged independently and some influenced by the European forms. In India, the technique is used in the popular embroidery tradition of chikankari and the eyelet embroidery of hakoba.