As discussed in the previous post, this design is inspired by an early nineteenth-century shawl, collected by Rachel Kay Shuttleworth, and now part of Gawthorpe Textile Collection. The colourful, ribbon-like bands of the shawl immediately reminded me of one of my favourite colourwork motifs, a small, simple pattern which resembles an interlocking vine. The pattern…
Read MoreYou may remember that, last Autumn, I spent a happy day visiting Gawthorpe Textile Collection with Debbie Bliss, Jane Ellison , Claire Montgomerie, and Emma Varnam We designers had been commissioned to produce designs inspired by items in the collection . . . we worked on them over the Winter . . . and today,…
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In between developing kits and other designs, I’ve been working on my Gawthorpe project (which you may remember is a commission to produce a pattern inspired by the wonderful textile collections of Rachel Kay Shuttleworth). The piece on which I’ve decided to base my design is a large coverlet, featuring deep teal-coloured woollen embroidery on…
Read MoreI’m working on my Gawthorpe design. Here’s what I’ve been thinking about. Charles Sillem Lidderdale, The Fern Gatherer (1877) Fern-decorated Mauchlinware Wardian Case Jane Hoodless “Pteridomania Contained” (©Jane Hoodless, 2012) Victorian Fern-fashion Gucci, A/W 2013 For more, see Sarah Whittingham, Fern Fever: The Story of Pteridomania (2012)
Read MoreSome days I wake up and I feel massively, incredibly lucky to have somehow landed here, in this curious new life, as a designer of hand-knits. Last Thursday was one of those days. Because I had been invited — along with Debbie Bliss , Jane Ellison, Claire Montgomerie, and Emma Varnam — to visit Gawthorpe…
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KDD & Co 