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Motifs mixed with heritage patterns

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Brands with a ‘British heritage aesthetic’ 

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Brands with a ‘British heritage aesthetic’ 

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https://www.instagram.com/p/C1wR5IysOz-/?igsh=djhmZGN4dmQyd3Bw

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Making patchwork, a centuries-old practice, continued in Britain during the nineteenth century, but the new fashion was fancywork, which incorporated a wide range of other time honored techniques such as knitting, lace-making, crochet, and embroidery. In the early part of the century, making patchwork in both cotton and dress fabrics was only one of the many handcrafts that occupied women.
Mid-century, there was a revival of interest in making the more labor-intensive mosaic patchwork where embroidery was also sometimes incorporated.

Patchwork continued to be made in the twentieth century, with a revival of interest during the Second World War. This was likely due to fabric and clothing being rationed. The "make do and mend" scheme promoted by the government likely encouraged women to use their scrap bags and be inventive.

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Incorporating fabric scraps and embroidery techniques

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Incorporating fabric scraps and embroidery techniques

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Rural society: society in which there is a low ratio of inhabitants to open land and in which the most important economic activities are the production of foodstuffs, fibres, and raw materials. (Britannica)

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Collections from Daniel Lee's time at Burberry

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Burberry's most recent collections are rooted in British archetypes and attitude. Relaxed outdoorsy elegance featuring heritage icons and a new expression of Burberry Check.

Burberry, the country’s most high-profile fashion brand, has been exploring what it means to be a modern British brand for decades. The challenge for Yorkshire native Daniel Lee, who joined as creative director in late 2022, is epitomised by his choice of a new logo — an old insignia lifted from the brand’s archives, depicting an armour-clad knight on horseback, rendered in vibrant cobalt blue. The knight’s banner carries the word “Prorsum” — Latin for “forwards”. The implication is that Lee’s Burberry is at once future-facing yet deeply traditional. This duality made itself known in Lee’s first two collections. Autumn/winter 2023 was unveiled at London Fashion Week in February last year, and it took the fashion industry by surprise. “We were all expecting a sea of beige and quiet luxury,” says Petersson, “and it was an explosion of a collection — Burberry goes to a rave in the English countryside.” Lee’s second collection, unveiled last September, was more mature. Burberry’s iconic trench coats were back in the spotlight with sensible proportions in sober colours, as was a focus on double-breasted tailoring. “There’s every kind of British personality represented in that collection, from the club kid to the tailored gentleman,” Petersson observes. “To me, it’s the perfect line-up of modern Britishness.” Financial Times

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 The Woolmark Company on Instagram: "Traditional tweed fabrics are woven in a twill or herringbone pattern, but it is the wool yarns used during production that give tweed its distinctive texture and character.

Follow us for more fun fashion facts 🪡
 
[Image description: How tweed became a symbol of wealth. Tweed, a wool-based fabric, was initially created by rural communities in Scotland and Ireland. Favoured for its durability, warmth, and ability to withstand damp climates. In the mid-19th century, the British aristocracy started embracing outdoor field sports like horse riding, with tweed emerging as their fabric of choice. Consequently, tweed became a symbol of status. Fashion designer Coco Chanel’s iconic tweed suits also played a pivotal role in the 1920s, increasing the fabric’s demand. Nowadays, tweed continues to be utilised in various applications, ranging from garments to homeware, all the while retaining its heritage association.]"

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 The Woolmark Company on Instagram: "Traditional tweed fabrics are woven in a twill or herringbone pattern, but it is the wool yarns used during production that give tweed its distinctive texture and character.

Follow us for more fun fashion facts 🪡
 
[Image description: How tweed became a symbol of wealth. Tweed, a wool-based fabric, was initially created by rural communities in Scotland and Ireland. Favoured for its durability, warmth, and ability to withstand damp climates. In the mid-19th century, the British aristocracy started embracing outdoor field sports like horse riding, with tweed emerging as their fabric of choice. Consequently, tweed became a symbol of status. Fashion designer Coco Chanel’s iconic tweed suits also played a pivotal role in the 1920s, increasing the fabric’s demand. Nowadays, tweed continues to be utilised in various applications, ranging from garments to homeware, all the while retaining its heritage association.]"

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1,014 likes, 11 comments - thewoolmarkcompany on February 25, 2024: "Traditional tweed fabrics are woven in a twill or herringbone pattern, but it is the wool yarns u..."

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View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Woolmark Company (@thewoolmarkcompany)

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Researching ways to use fabric scraps as embellishment

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Researching ways to use fabric scraps as embellishment

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Mulberry has played a crucial role in shaping the British heritage of luxury fashion. The brand's substantial influence, rich history, and relentless commitment to quality have solidified its position as a cornerstone of Britain's fashion landscape.

I love the use of lace in this collection alongside classic checked suiting. It creates a modern take on traditional British craft, celebrating heritage design for a new consumer.

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Publication from my local area about farm work

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Farming in Horton Kirby/ Farningham/ West Kingsdown

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Farming in Horton Kirby/ Farningham/ West Kingsdown

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I’ve scanned a few pages from a book about life on the farm. It includes images of my family members working in the 1950s hop picking. I love looking at the clothes they wore and the processes carried out on the local farms.

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My project is an exploration of British rural life and the local farming and craft industries that support rural communities. I’m interested in the deeply embedded heritage craft industries that have supported rural working class people for centuries and how the success or decline of these has shaped countryside life. I’m also looking at the signs of a bygone era left in rural areas through identifying remnants of machinery and pieces of manmade farming material that is scattered across the countryside - many weathered and worn after years without use. These being a symbol of local craft extinction in an industrial age.

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CABBAGE AND MUNGO: HOW RECYCLING RETURNED TO SAVILE ROW  EPISODE #43

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CABBAGE AND MUNGO: HOW RECYCLING RETURNED TO SAVILE ROW  EPISODE #43

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I listened to the Haptic and Hue podcast about the Ecoluxe yarn development which was a great insight into how textile recycling is already happening with tailor's fabric offcuts.

Savile Row, in the heart of London, has been at the centre of high-quality men’s tailoring for 200 years. It has supplied handmade suits, from the finest woven cloth, to film stars and royalty, to statesmen and sportsmen. It has a reputation for quality and excellence second to none. Now it is embracing recycling, and it seems, its top-end clients are happy to pay for it.

It’s incredibly rare to find a recycling loop like this one – especially in textiles – where the waste is turned into quality new material to be used by the same workshops that created it in the first place. This episode tells the story of how this is happening and follows the journey that turns tiny bits of fabric that would previously have been binned, into new bespoke garments, ones that come with great credentials and an interesting story behind them.

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Podcast Episode #43 Cabbage & Mungo: How Recycling Returned to The Tailors of Savile Row - Haptic&Hue Haptic and Hue's Tales of Textiles

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Haptic and Hue's Tales of Textiles tells the story of the revolution happening on Savile Row in London, where the world's finest tailors are embracing textile recycling.

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Craft Map - Heritage Crafts - The Makers

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Here you can search for open workshops to visit, find craftspeople to demonstrate at fêtes and fairs, and to find craftspeople who teach their craft and share their expert knowledge. Use the form below to enter your address and a radius to search our Makers Directory and find a craftsperson near you. You can limit... Read more »

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I went to London College of Fashion to visit the Woolmark archive and access the many sources of media telling the history of Wool in 20th century Britain. I'm interested in using British Wool in my project so this was a great way to learn about the importance of wool and see how the use of the Woolmark symbol and the Harris Tweed Orb has provided authenticity to consumers.

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I'm interested in researching further into village fetes that occur in countryside villages as a way to add further narrative to my project, for example looking at all the classic fayre games such as splat the rat, tombola and tug of war as well as parades and shows from local craft and community groups. I want my project to tell a story of rural life, not just the work involved but the fun too.

The English fête is a social institution which seems forever locked in some idyll of rural Englishness, unchanged since the 1920s.

The Village Fete | Frieze

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Via V&A, Museum of English Rural Life, Brook Rural Museum

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English Smocking has been practised since the Middle Ages and originates from the making of smocks which were worn by labourers. Originally practical rather than decorative like other major embroidery styles, smocking was used to make garments form fitting and flexible as it creates stretch (before the invention of elastic).

Smocks - agricultural labourer's clothes- are worn over the wearer's clothing, as can be seen in this photograph of a young farm labourer in Norfolk. They are usually made from cotton, mostly twill weave, also known as 'drabbet', or linen.

Smocks are largely recognisable by their smocking and embroidery.

Standard hand smocking stitches are:

A. Cable stitch: a tight stitch of double rows that joins alternating columns of gathers.

B. Stem stitch: a tight stitch with minimum flexibility that joins two columns of gathers at a time in single overlapping rows with a downward slope.

C. Outline stitch: similar to the stem stitch but with an upward slope.

D. Cable flowerette: a set of gathers worked in three rows of stitches across four columns of gathers. Often organized in diagonally arranged sets of flowerettes for loose smocking

E. Wave stitch: a medium density pattern that alternately employs tight horizontal stitches and loose diagonal stitches.

F. Honeycomb stitch: a medium density variant on the cable stitch that double stitches each set of gathers and provides more spacing between them, with an intervening diagonal stitch concealed on the reverse side of the fabric.

G. Surface honeycomb stitch: a tight variant on the honeycomb stitch and the wave stitch with the diagonal stitch visible, but spanning only one gather instead of a gather and a space.

H. Trellis stitch: a medium density pattern that uses stem stitches and outline stitches to form diamond-shaped patterns.

I. Vandyke stitch: a tight variant on the surface honeycomb stitch that wraps diagonal stitches in the opposite direction.

J. Bullion stitch: a complex knotted stitch that joins several gathers in a single stitch. Organized similarly to cable flowerettes

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I did a little test of some English smocking on one of my scrap fabrics using the honeycomb stitch technique which is functional and decorative.

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The traditional rural craft of swilling, a type of oak basket making is native to Coniston in Cumbria. ‘Like the oval ring of hazel that forms the structure of an oak swill basket, this ancient craft has turned full circle and has returned to its beginnings – from cottage industry to full-scale commercial enterprise and back to cottage industry again. A now unfamiliar object, even to those well-versed in rural crafts, the oak swill basket is traditional to the broadleaved woodland native to Southern Lakeland and would have seen many uses over the centuries from the coast, the farm, the factory and the home.

Swills were used for coaling steam ships, in mines, mills, ironworks and many other industries. On farms they were used for broadcast sowing, harvesting root crops and for feeding animals. Their domestic uses included , laundry, log, garden and shopping baskets, even cradles.

The swillmaking industry declined rapidly in the post war years which mirrored the rise in mechanization  and other technologies such as plastics.

Historically these durable oak and hazel vessels have been used to carry and store a multitude of cargos from cockles and charcoal to bobbins and even babies. Every town and village in Southern Lakeland would have had a ‘swill-shop’ with a team of craftsmen working hard to satisfy the huge demand for such a versatile object. Today, only one ‘swill-shop’ remains; manned single-handedly by Owen Jones, the last full-time oak swill basket maker, who like that oval ring of hazel has turned his own full circle, from childhood woodland beginnings to a career in aviation and back to his beloved woodlands once more.’ (Via merchantandmakers)

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My postdoctoral project comes directly out of my PhD thesis which was a social history of linen during the long 18 th century. Linen was used by rich and poor for underwear and on beds and tables. Its ubiquity across all ranks of society makes it ideally suited to an analysis of how relationships with textiles varied over the life cycle. 'The Fabric of Life: Linen and Life Cycle in England 1678-1810' therefore considered experiences across the life cycle, exploring infant clothing, child labour and the temporality of domestic work within a Lancashire household. Adult daily life was uncovered through the themes of respectability, the commercial significance of linen and the relationship between bodily intimacy and the creation of emotional meaning. Finally the thesis finished by exploring burial practice with burial in wool rather than linen, which was forced by the 1678 Act for Burying in Woollen for economic reasons.

The thesis showed that linen was only dominated by cotton for plain textiles in the 19 th century. Linen's superior durability and cheaper price, alongside its essential roles in everyday life, meant that it continued to be used during the long 18 th century. It took decades for cotton prices to fall far enough to change established material culture traditions. However by the 1830s, the British and Irish linen industries were in rapid decline. They were victims of low cotton prices, lengthier fibre preparation processes and a slower rate of technological innovation.

My postdoctoral project follows up where my thesis left off by investigating how mechanisation and falling cotton prices transformed working-class dress in the first half of the 19 th century. Engels recorded a dramatic change in what people wore.

Wool and linen have almost vanished from the wardrobe of both sexes, and cotton has taken their place ... [The working class] is scarcely ever in a condition to use a thread of woollen clothing; and the heavy cotton goods, though thicker, stiffer, and heavier than woollen clothes, afford much less protection against cold and wet, [and] remain damp much longer because of their thickness and the nature of the stuff.

Friedrich Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England, (1844)

This bleak summary of the clothing privations of the working class centres on material changes. Engels bemoans the disappearance of wool from labouring wardrobes, replaced by stiff, absorbent cotton, an inferior insulator. Centuries of reliance on linens and woollens were over.

I will explore these dramatic and rapid material changes over this academic year. In 1800 working-class people wore linen underwear, men wore woollen outer clothing, and women wore cotton, linen and woollen dresses. By 1850 the cotton, linen and woollen trades were fully mechanised in England. Hand-spinning had largely died out which prevented industrious families from producing their own textiles to reduce costs. By 1844, according to Engels, their choices were basically limited to one textile - cotton.

The effect of manufacturing changes on working-class clothing has been little studied, yet it is another facet of the Industrial Revolution's effect on daily life and the global rise of cotton. This project directly traces the impact of these changes on what people wore. It focuses primarily on members of the working class able to choose their clothing, rather than the poor forced to wear uniforms by institutions.

I will complete two garment studies this year: underwear and trousers. My research into underwear asks when did the majority of working-class people begin to wear cotton not linen underwear (shirts and shifts/chemises)? Was the price of cotton fibre grown in America more important, or the full mechanisation of production in the 1830s?

I will also examine the rise of trousers. Before 1800 only sailors wore trousers, while everyone else wore breeches. In the early 19 th century trousers spread across the working class and they were then adopted by the middle and upper classes. Old Bailey crime records testify to a growth in their popularity: trousers appeared in 161 cases in the 1800s and 2018 in the 1840s.[1] This case study will look at the materials used for trousers by the working class and whether they changed over the period. Was cotton exclusively used as Engels suggests? I will also examine how quickly the trouser fashion spread, whether men in some areas were more resistant than others.

My sources will include Quarter Sessions records from Yorkshire and a (still to be chosen) southern English county, surviving objects, images, autobiographies, adverts, shopkeepers' inventories, merchants' records and novels.

The evidence given at the Quarter Sessions provides insight into working-class clothing choices, textiles and colours as the following example from the West Riding Quarter Sessions shows. In early September 1826, Enoch Ant and John Wilson allegedly stole unfinished wool cloth from a manufacturer. Both were chimney sweeps. Wilson's wife stated that John and Enoch made a pair of trousers out of the contentious cloth, an unusual example of domestic male production. However their endeavour was not successful, the trousers did not 'fit him well between the Legs' so Charlotte Wilson altered them to fit 'better'.

The case was taken to Court because John unlike Enoch took his stolen kersey to a tailor who was suspicious because it was 'unfinished' or 'raw' and got a hawker to ask around for missing cloth. This means the final finish had not been applied to the textile. Kerseys were cheap woollen cloths. They were woven and then the surface was felted. The unfinished kersey lacked its fuzzy surface. Kersey protected its wearers against the elements and it was cheap, therefore it was popular with the lower classes. The stolen kersey was drab, meaning that it was undyed and was a grey-beige colour.

Clearly all chimney sweeps were not clad in stolen textiles. However, this case gives an example of what was considered appropriate and even desirable cloth for these two chimney sweeps. And it was even worn by one, if only for a few days before discovery. Examples like this will help to build up a picture of the clothing and colours worn by working-class people in 19 th-century England. Furthermore, because a specific textile name is given, we are able to get an idea of what the outfit might have looked like, even if we don't know the exact cut of Enoch's trousers. The case also inspires questions - did John and Enoch have trousers because they were more practical garments for chimney sweeps? - Did certain professions adopt trousers earlier than others for practical reasons?

In summary, my postdoc examines the first half of the 19 th century, a period with an unprecedented rate of change in working-class clothing. To uncover the role of mechanisation and declining fibre prices I will look at changes in fibres used for underwear. Research into trousers will also consider issues of materiality, as well as uncovering how quickly this new fashion spread amongst the working class.

Florence Montgomery, Textiles in America 1650-1870 (London, 2007)

Vivian Richmond, Clothing the Poor in Nineteenth-Century England (New York, 2013)

John Styles, The Dress of the People (London, 2007)

[1] Advanced search 'trowser* trouser*' on 03/03/2015.

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Re-Fashioning the Working Class: Mechanisation and Materiality in England 1800-1856 - On History

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This post has kindly been written for us by Dr Alice Dolan, Economic History Society Anniversary Fellow. My postdoctoral project comes directly out of my PhD thesis which was a social history of linen during the long 18th century. Linen was used by rich and poor for underwear and on beds and tables.

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Horse Whim, originally West Kingsdown, Kent and moved to the living museum for conservation

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I visited the living museum to experience a walk through a rural community throughout different times in history. Many rural buildings from across the south of england have been dismantled from places where they would have originally been used. They were then re-erected at the living museum in Sussex for conservation. I found it really interesting that buildings from my home town such as this Horse Whim now live at the museum as it creates a nice link between my family photographs of working on the farms and the kinds of buildings and machinery that would have been involved.

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British Council (crafts) - The Museum of English Rural Life, Reading

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The British Council is the UK's international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. Their mission is to promote a wider knowledge of the UK abroad and develop closer cultural relations between the UK and other countries, in order to improve the UK's international standing, prosperity and security. The British Council sourced a collection traditional craft products and tools made and used around the British Isles to promote 'the work of our traditional craftsmen and women'. The major part of the collection was prepared immediately after the Second World War for a travelling exhibition which was sent to Australia and New Zealand. The MERL acquired the traditional crafts collection in 1960 and 1961.

This collection of craft products includes wood worked items, baskets, pottery, leatherwork, tools, metalwork, textiles, and more.

More Information

The objects are catalogued on the online database. Search using the phrase 'British Council collection'

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British Council (crafts) - The Museum of English Rural Life

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The British Council crafts collection at The MERL contains almost 400 traditional craft products and tools made and used around the British Isles.

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Michael Fish, Cecil Gee, Alexon, Wallis, Sophie Rabin

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The exhibition highlights the impact of the Jewish community on the Fashion industry in London particularly in the 20th Century. The exhibition explains how Jewish migrants working and transforming the English textile and fashion trade were the successors to the Huguenots, Protestant refugees fleeing religious persecution in 1600s France, who transformed the English silk weaving trade.

I was particularly interested in the materials used to make the garments on display and how the silhouettes of some of the items are traditionally British designs. It’s interesting to look at these traditional crafts and trades that provided income for working class people in the city and comparing them to the crafts that supported rural communities over the years.

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I visited the repair shop on it’s open day to see the workroom which contains many traditional craft tools belonging to makers on the TV show. The show highlights the skill of traditional craftspeople through repair of sentimental objects, all taking place in a barn in the countryside.

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A celebration of what it is to be Irish, the exhibition explores the creative process behind a fashion brand, whilst paying tribute to Lynch’s roots in the humorous style for which her brand has become known.

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During my trip to Devon in the summer I visited the working Victorian woollen mill which is one of the oldest woollen mills in the UK having been in continuous production since 1797. It was originally owned by world-renowned textile producers Fox Brothers. It retains the full range of buildings and power system features which characterised the development of the 19th century textile mill with much of the machinery that was used at the site in the 20th century. I was able to see the full process from raw fibre to woven cloth as the mill still weaves their own tartans inspired by the Devon countryside.

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Artists/ Designers inspired by rural life

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Artists/ Designers inspired by rural life

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Via London Transport Museum (Harvest Time, Farnborough, Walton on the Hill, Farningham, To the Harvest)

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I saw the Harvest Time poster at the Musuem of English Rural Life and decided to look into the artist who created it (Spradbery). I found he created tens of posters in the 1920s for London Rail, encouraging city goers to venture out to the countryside by train. The posters depict rural areas as idyllic with wide landscape views in soft matte colours.

Spradbery was a watercolourist, linocut printmaker, poster designer and teacher. Born in East Dulwich, London, he studied at Walthamstow Art School and became an art teacher. As a pacifist, he served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during WWI. He exhibited at the Royal Academy. He designed posters mainly for London Transport and the Underground Group, but also for LNER and British Railways (via British Museum)

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Drawing on her upbringing, Katie’s practice primarily deals with illuminating the nuances and materiality of Irish rural farming, highlighting the process of contemporary and ancestral Irish life and tradition which is often understated and overlooked.

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Sheepfolds are circular stone structures used to house sheep and are scattered across the UK.

Goldsworthy’s works are small but effective acts of rural regeneration; public art as a monument to agriculture. (Corridor 8)

The work involved rebuilding or restoring existing, derelict or former folds along the route of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge's walk around the Lake District. These pieces were made over an extended period covering the four seasons.

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The work is drawing attention to the important legacy and material culture of agriculture and craft.

Leahy draws upon the remains of cultural phenomena that have been displaced, or have lost their significance in our “progress-driven”, globalised society. Residues on the landscape of our industrial past and by extension, the impact this intervention has had on our environment also provide material for investigating the repercussions of a society driven by progress.

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Andrew Cross’s haunting digital video ‘An English Field (Barn)’ (2007) depicts the rickety vestiges of a barn, a structure his own father built in 1968, Cross managed to capture it shortly before it finally came down. It’s a representation of the landscape, but one drenched with personal resonance and ephemerality; surely not lost on those who grew up in rural settings and moved to the city. It’s not hard to see the barn’s ghostly shell as a metaphor for the increasing contemporary challenges to rural life.

I like the idea of showing this contrast between the romanticising of rural life and the harsh realities of rural life being left behind for work in the city.

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Remembered Rituals VI seeks to retrieve traces and narratives in nature and landscape through material explorations.

Wood artist, Mark Reddy investigates the humble form of the spoon with a simplicity of purpose. Carved from living wood, bound to the land we walk, Reddy‘s spoons possess a meditative memory of forgotten values and desires. He sees symbolism in the familiar utensil that has occupied a place in our everyday lives throughout our history and cultures. Creating sacred objects which explore the liminal divide between the functional and sculptural, with subtle details and embellishments that embody timeless and universal themes. Deeply informed by the seasons, place, and landscape, Reddy works with wood cut and foraged locally, utilising the innate character and natural energy inherent in his material.

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I saw this suit originally at the V&A Fashioned from Nature exhibition and remembered it as it was described as a garment inspired by the British landscape. Galliano chose this fabric from Linton Tweeds because it reminded him of a bird's eye view of ploughed fields. He described the tufts of mohair as sheep's fleece caught in the hedges.

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SS Daley's AW 23 collection referenced the designer’s great-grandfather’s life at sea and reworked classic British outerwear, knitwear and tailoring.

One designer who’s proven himself a past master in subverting the hallmarks of British menswear is Steven Stokey-Daley, founder of SS Daley, who made his name as a designer by exploring “the theatricality of British elitism”. A 26-year-old from Liverpool, he designs garments that playfully reinvent conservative styles associated with the English upper classes. Boating blazers, schoolboy suits and high-waisted, Oxford-bag-like trousers are reborn in flamboyant, feminine shapes with floral patterns and light-hearted collegiate stripes. “I’m interested in questioning what masculinity is,” Stokey-Daley says. - Financial Times

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Compton Verney have the largest collection of Folk Art in the UK mostly by unknown artists.

‘Folk Art’ – sometimes known as ‘naïve art’ – refers to art made by highly skilled people who wished to express their creative urges but had no formal artistic training. Growing out of the long-established craft traditions in local communities, folk art can encompass objects made for a specific purpose – such as shop signs, agricultural implements and weathervanes – and decorative works created primarily to satisfy the maker – such as street scenes, collage pictures and even moving automata.

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Treading the line between modernity and tradition is key to a brand’s longevity and British designers need to “get the balance right”, says designer Paul Smith. His is one of few globally recognised British labels to weather decades of change — it was founded in 1970 — whilst remaining privately owned. “When I started, there absolutely was quintessential British style, but British style these days is very hard to pinpoint,” he says. “Now, it’s British creativity, rather than style, that’s revered.” Does Smith consciously try to design clothes that feel British? “No,” he says. Instead, he sets out only to design “nice bits of kit” — neither too old-fashioned nor too high fashion. Financial Times

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I love the chunky textures of the tweed, particularly the bottom left with the fringe effect that creates movement. I would like to explore this classic tweed look that is associated with womenswear but create samples for the menswear market.

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Collections made in Britain /using heritage techniques 

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Collections made in Britain /using heritage techniques 

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Hand gathered fabric with digital cross stitch embroidery to create a smocked effect

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English Smocking in a contemporary design

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The Hands that Heal Us is a collection inspired by the ever growing community of makers, creatives, local and social manufacturers all of whom play such an integral part in the Bethany Williams brand and supply chain.

“The primary focus of this collection are the many hands that touch our clothing throughout the making process, through the integration of artisanal and hand-crafted elements, in the form of weaving, knitting, printing, patchworking and embroidery. The life of each garment delicately passes through the hands of our intricate supply chain, and for that we feel immense gratitude to our makers, our tools and our team that surrounds us.” – Bethany Williams

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JW Anderson's Eco "Made in Britain" Collection Celebrates Local Roots

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As beauty and fashion brands begin to welcome more eco-conscious approaches, JW Anderson is also moving towards a more sustainable future. The -based designer and his eponymous label have just released a new eco-friendly capsule collection titled " Made in Britain."

The limited-edition range comprises causal and cool garments that each refer to Anderson's British heritage. To reduce CO2 emissions, every single item in the collection was crafted in UK-based factories using surplus fabrics from past JW Anderson collections as a form of upcycling.

The collection's ready-to-wear garments pay homage to some of the brand's most iconic shapes and silhouettes. The results are shirts adorned with mismatched buttons and visible stitching; a cape that has been patchworked using different fabrics; and a panelled dress crafted together using various scraps of material.

The idea behind "Made in Britain" was to create something new, while remaining resourceful. The range was entirely put together during London's lockdown, where designers and seamstresses communicated via digital platforms to coordinate everything.

All images in this article are courtesy of JW Anderson.

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JW Anderson's Eco "Made in Britain" Collection Celebrates Local Roots

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Eponymous fashion label JW Anderson has just released a new eco-friendly capsule collection titled "Made in Britain."

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AW18 RTW - Based on Scotland using bespoke Harris Tweed

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Rewilding Collection based on caring for British wildlife and the British landscape

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The look of British menswear now- Financial Times article

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The look of British menswear now- Financial Times article

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What is “the British look” for men? I suspect the images that come to mind for many revolve around pinstriped bankers or Brideshead Revisited types in boating blazers — or, at a push, brooding secret agents in dinner suits. These are characters that we have collectively romanticised for decades, but they’re not to be found in Britain now.

Today, a banker is more likely to arrive at work in a Patagonia gilet than pinstripes, and the vast majority of Brits prefer to wrap up against the elements in Gore-Tex, not tweed.

You’re far more likely to see a stylish Milanese or Neapolitan man in an Italian-made jacket, shirt and chinos than you are a Brit sporting something produced in the UK.

“The origins of classic British tailoring are still very much relevant,” says Simon Holloway, Dunhill’s recently appointed creative director. “The history of English dressing, our codes and an anglicised colour and texture palette are constantly referenced in fashion today. Italian and American style is built on the back of everything classic and British.”

Professor Christopher Breward, fashion historian and director of National Museums Scotland, agrees that Britain’s heritage of fine tailoring still has a place in the fashion landscape, as long as it’s interpreted in an egalitarian way. He cites the suit-clad gentleman stereotype as a “staple of literature and film”, but warns against the danger of oversimplifying menswear with nostalgia alone. “If nostalgia is used creatively, it’s a rich source of inspiration, but it can at times result in a caricature that cleaves to outdated social hierarchies,” he says.

“British fashion always expresses tensions,” Jules says, “between high and low, smart and casual, upper and working class or black and white. That’s what makes it interesting.”

The look of British menswear now (ft.com)

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Traditionally used for canal boat signs, lettering on farmer’s wagons and fairground decoration, sign painting has had a long history in rural England, also developing into a craft used in urban settings. ‘The craft of painting signs, originally using pictures or symbols as very few people could read, is an ancient craft with examples dating back to Roman times. Painting lettering on signs became common in eighteenth-century England when literacy rates increased. The development of the craft was effectively complete by the start of the Victorian era, at which point signwriters were in high demand when each shop fascia was hand-painted. The craft declined significantly with the introduction of computer cut plastic signs in the 1980s, and most plastic shopfronts and leasing vehicles moved to plastic signs. However, there were a number of traditional signwriters who refused to abandon the craft. (Via heritage crafts)’

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I want to carry out this project because I want to highlight the beauty in the slow- handcrafted approach and tell the story of life in the countryside through a modern lens.

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My market is slow-fashion which means it is closer to luxury than affordable because these kinds of garments are inherently more expensive due to the time taken and craftmanship involved. However I think this makes quite an interesting element to my project because for a long time heritage crafts have been only accessible to the wealthy so through the use of offcuts and ‘waste’ materials my  project could be about making it more accessible.

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Image of Tweed Production Chart taken at Seaforth Harris Tweed In Isle of Harris

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Excerpts from my dissertation-

Harris Tweed has traditionally highlighted its production process as a journey from land, to loom, to cloth, from the rich Hebridean landscape which provides the lichen for natural dyeing, to the sheep which provide the wool, to the farmers and craftspeople that carry out the clothmaking process to create the final product.

During the 19th century when the Tweed industry was growing, it became an important part of the fashion industry. In Tweed, Anderson explains that before the 1870s, ‘tweeds were primarily worn for sport by elite men and this meant that they acquired strong connotations of land ownership, wealth and leisure’ (2018, pp. 62). This is significant because it meant the consumption of tweed seemed exclusive and became an integral part of elite style.

During the 1990s when the industry struggled, many Harris Tweed weavers physically threw away and destroyed their looms forcing an end to the passing down of skills to younger generations. Many of the island craftspeople retrained in different industries or travelled to the mainland losing their titles as artisans. This was concerning because skill sharing conserves traditional practices. In recent years, the reduction in weavers and the aging of equipment and workforce has become a problem for the business. In Tweed, Anderson explains that by the end of the 20th century, ‘85 percent of the weavers were over fifty and there was no recruitment of younger weavers, largely because of a lack of local, public confidence in the industry’ (2018, pp. 160).

I’m interested in this idea of craft extinction or endangerment and the results of this being physically left in the landscape like the weathered and rusted pieces of machinery and the collapsing Crofters houses I photographed in Harris

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I'm interested in exploring the 'Made in the UK' label and its connotations of authenticity for consumers. For centuries the UK has been known for its excellence in craftsmanship from textiles to silverware to musical instruments, from goldsmithing to sailmaking, the term “made in the UK” has been synonymous with quality and has become part of British cultural identity. There is an intrinsic link between many of the crafts practised in the UK, which mean that the loss of one craft or the diminishment of practitioners often means higher risk and far more challenges for other coexisting crafts.

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Preserving the Heritage of British Craft | David Collins Studio

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David Collins Interior design is embracing British heritage craft within their work, the article highlights the importance of preserving these crafts and the ability for the luxury market to help them survive.

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With its historic legacy of craft and making, Britain is steeped in a wealth of talent still today. Industries have thrived with a rich tapestry of skillsets being honed and developed over centuries as crafts have been passed down to oncoming generations. However, as technological advances increased and digitalisation occurred, many crafts began to diminish, and younger generations turned away from practical careers. Now, as we have become aware of its importance, alongside the reignited desire for investing in independent designers and brands, we are seeing an uptake of such occupations again, as creatives seek to follow their individual passions. Going forward, merging these talents into a contemporary design scene is key to ensure their fruition in the future as well as preserving the quality and intricacy of such artistic techniques and abilities.

Highlighting how our passion and appreciation for craft in the UK is rising once again, the Crafts Council's 2020 Market for Craft report is a good indicator in the shifts which have occurred within the sector in recent years, considering data secured both prior and post the COVID-19 imposed lockdowns. Stating that 73% of UK adults had bought craft in 2019, it brought up interesting factors such as the increasing interest from younger generations (a third of today's buyers are aged under 35) and the rise of online purchasing from makers and craftspeople (10.3m Brits are buying craft online).

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Preserving the Heritage of British Craft | David Collins Studio

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Roddy Clarke explores the role of craft in a contemporary design scene and the importance of preserving such valuable skillsets today.

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Dating back to the 17th Century, for rural villagers not involved in farming, crafts such as embroidery could provide income. Small designs were created using wool from Worsted in Norfolk, using a limited number of stitches, such as stem and seeding. Once a wider colour range was available,  embroidery using this crewel wool began to be used in larger projects and designs. Often embroidered onto silk or linen canvas, crewel wool incorporates decorative stitches such as backstitch, basket, braid, pleated braid, brick, buttonhole, chain, coral, cross, long-armed cross, herringbone, link, long and short, running, double running, satin, seed, split, stem, tent as well as laid work and couching. Traditional motifs include flora and fauna such as stems, branches, flowers and animals.

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Over summer I visited Honiton, a countryside village in Devon where there is a long tradition of lacemaking. The museum preserves the local craft which provides rich cultural heritage to the area.

The picturesque landscape decorated with stunning botanical design provided the perfect setting for Honiton lace makers. One of the main characteristics of Honiton lace is the sprig applique that is influenced by the Devon countryside. The history of the Honiton style dates back to the sixteenth century. (Historic UK)

Technological developments throughout the 1800s meant that by 1870 almost every type of handmade lace could be copied by machine, leading to the disappearance of the handmade lace industry in England by 1900.

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The creation of traditional coracle boats originated in South Wales supporting local fishing and transportation since pre-Roman times. ‘The traditional construction of the coracle - largely unchanged in modern times - is a basketwork frame made using locally foraged wood. Ropework made from animal hair may have been used to secure parts of the framework together, depending on the type (design) of coracle. The waterproof covering was a hide, such as cattle or bull.’

(Via Coracle Society)
‘Coracles have been the backbone of many traditional communities in Wales. Several are also involved in training people to build their own coracles using traditional methods and materials. Coracles have also taken on new lives with some being used as glamping ‘pods’ or public house signs. A swimming pool in west Wales has even been designed to look like a coracle.This versatile boat continues to inspire future generations in surprising ways’ (via bbc news).

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The close link between the making of Aran sweaters and the life of those who made them tells a great story about what is is like to live so rurally.

From its origins, the Aran sweater has been intimately linked to clans and their identities. Aran sweaters were, and remain, a reflection of the lives of the knitters, and their families. On the Aran islands, sweater patterns were zealously guarded, kept within the same clan throughout generations. These Aran sweaters were often used to help identify bodies of fishermen washed up on the beach following an accident at sea.

Today, the demand for the Aran Sweater continues to grow. The lack of skilled knitters, and the economic gains to be had from machine-production of the sweaters, has resulted in a huge fall in the number of hand-knits available. Hand knit Aran Sweaters have become rare and valuable.

Many of the stitches have more significant meanings, relating to Irish rural life and celtic art.

Each stitch carries its own unique meaning, a historic legacy from the lives of the Island community many years ago. The Cable Stitch is a depiction of the fisherman's ropes, and represents a wish for a fruitful day at sea. The Diamond Stitch reflects the small fields of the islands. These diamonds are sometimes filled with Irish moss stitch, depicting the seaweed that was used to fertilise the barren fields and produce a good harvest. Hence the diamond stitch is a wish for success and wealth. The Zig Zag Stitch, a half diamond, is often used in the Aran Sweaters, and popularly represents the twisting cliff paths on the islands. The Tree of Life is one of the original stitches, and is unique to the earliest examples of the Aran knitwear. It again reflects the importance of the clan, and is an expression of a desire for clan unity, with long-lived parents and strong children. via aran.com

I think this idea of each stich having a meaning could be something interesting to play with within my project in order to carry a narrative through my weaving in a more subtle way.

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I’m interested in looking into traditional damasks woven in Scotland and Ireland because I recently discovered my great grandmother was a weaver at a damask linen factory in Dunfermline, Fife. During the 19th century, Dunfermline became a world leader in the manufacture of table linen. Also the materiality of linen cloth and its links to rural life is something I'd like to explore.

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The hand weaving of pure linen patterned damask fabric on jacquard looms.

History

The art of linen damask weaving in Britain dates to the seventeenth century. It was prized by royalty and aristocracy for the breadth of elaborate patterns it afforded - armorial bearings, royal cyphers, historic commemorative events and heraldic designs.

In 1737 George II turned to Irish linen domestic weavers to provide napery for his household, foregoing European providers who to that point had dominated the market. From this time on, the British crown only ordered from British manufactories.

In France, in 1801, Joseph-Marie Jacquard perfected a semi-automatic mechanism for silk damask weaving, replacing the highly labour-intensive draw loom. It was soon adapted for linen damask weaving, reaching Britain by the 1820s.

In the 1850s, with the introduction of power loom weaving, linen damask weaving became fully automated, theoretically ending Jacquard linen damask weaving at a stroke. However, the power loom struggled to match its fineness, quality and soft handle.

Hand woven linen damask continued to be prized, and survived well into the twentieth century. With annual orders fulfilled by John Mc Collum's Manufactory for Buckingham Palace, Windsor, and Sandringham his client list read like the pages from Debretts. In Ireland it continued as a commercial craft until the end of the 1960s, from which point it has been kept alive within museum settings.

Techniques

Local forms

5 leaf: single damask

8 leaf: double damask

Sub-crafts

Jacquard card cutting (3 practitioners known - one at 84 years old)

Traditional Damask Designing and Drafting (2 practitioners known)

Allied crafts:

Silk damask

Poplin damask (silk warp with wool weft)

Issues affecting the viability of the craft

The looms and apparatus are now so rare, they are usually museum artefacts.

No apprenticeship programmes current or pending.

Rarity of card cutting machines and operatives.

Support organisations

Irish Linen Centre / Lisburn Museum, Northern Ireland

Heritage Crafts Association.

Ulster University, Belfast School of Art, Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

Northern Bridge Consortium.

The Textile Society

The Theo Moorman Trust for Weavers.

National Museum Northern Ireland

Craftspeople currently known

Deborah White and Alyson McNamee, Irish Linen Centre

Ian Dale, House of Dun, Montrose, Scotland

Other information

Irish Linen Centre / Lisburn Museum employ two master weavers. However, there are no training schemes. Deborah White worked alongside one of the last traditional damask handloom weavers in Ireland and says it takes 5-7 years apprenticeship to master the trade.

Deborah White was awarded an AHRC / NBC Scholarship in September 2020 with Ulster University; PhD Topic: An Empirical Study of Hand loom Jacquard Design and Production in Ireland. White worked alongside one of the last traditional Damask hand- loom weavers in Ireland, from 1994-1999, after graduating from Ulster with a BA (hons) in Woven and Constructed Textile Design. Recent awards such as HCA's Endangered Craft Award (2019), The Textile Society's Professional Development Award (2019), and The Theo Moorman Trust for Weavers Award (2019), have helped secure an independent practise.

References

Gill, C, (1921) The Rise of the Irish Linen Industry (Oxford)

Collins, B, and Ollerenshaw, P, (eds.) Industry, Trade and People in Irleand, 1650-1950

Crawford, W H, The Impact of the Domestic Linen Industry in Ulster

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The hand weaving of pure linen patterned damask fabric on jacquard looms. The art of linen damask weaving in Britain dates to the seventeenth century. It was prized by royalty and aristocracy for the breadth of elaborate patterns it afforded - armorial bearings, royal cyphers, historic commemorative events and heraldic designs.

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End of warp yarn collected during my visit to Harris Tweed Weavers on Isle of Harris 

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End of warp yarn collected during my visit to Harris Tweed Weavers on Isle of Harris 

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The yarn is cut into strips of about half a metre long so I have had to tie each piece together to create a yarn I can weave with.

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Bag of Tailor’s offcut fabric collected from Anderson & Sheppard

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Bag of Tailor’s offcut fabric collected from Anderson & Sheppard

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A few years ago I did a work experience placement with a trouser maker at Anderson and Sheppard and during our reweave project I got in contact to see if he had any offcuts. As the project was short he wasn’t able to collect many in time but since then I have managed to obtain many high quality fabric scraps which I hope to use to create fancy yarns for my project.

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Process of creating zero waste fancy yarns using my scrap fabrics

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Process of creating zero waste fancy yarns using my scrap fabrics

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Creating knitted fancy yarn using scarp fabric 

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Creating knitted fancy yarn using scarp fabric 

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When I got to see the different fancy yarns on offer at Uppingham Yarns, I was able to inspect them up close and realised that a few were made from a tiny knitted cord. I decided to try and make my own using the knitting machine by incorporating my scrap fabric. Although still quite labour intensive I found this a successful way to create a fancy yarn so am looking forward to experimenting with this technique further.

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https://www.instagram.com/ecoluxe100?igsh=MWNjc3lmeDBhYW1zdw==

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The nation’s rural past revealed in Britain on Film: Rural Life

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Discover vanished rural life on film across the UK with more than 750 archive films added to BFI Player as part of Britain on Film.

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 The Anderson & Sheppard Shops on Instagram: "As part of our on-going partnership with @walesbonner, our team worked closely with Grace throughout the process starting with the choice of cloth and trimmings and ending with the final fittings. A double-breasted overcoat of mid-grey @hollandandsherryapparel 27.5oz 100% wool cloth of midnight blue fine corded cloth. A double-breasted ladies jacket of mid-grey @foxbrothers1772 13-14oz 100% wool cloth. A dinner jacket of off-white @dugdalebrosandco 16oz 100% wool barathea cloth with matching braid on the front edge and pocket flaps. A pair of shorts of black, brown, camel and copper bouclé @lintontweeds 16.5oz check cloth. A double-breasted jacket of camel @hollandandsherryapparel 17-18oz 100% cashmere cloth with turn-back cuffs of Anderson & Sheppard sleeve lining."

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As part of my fabric scraps I collected some waste boucles and tweeds from the recent Wales Bonner collection.

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 The Anderson & Sheppard Shops on Instagram: "As part of our on-going partnership with @walesbonner, our team worked closely with Grace throughout the process starting with the choice of cloth and trimmings and ending with the final fittings.
 
A double-breasted overcoat of mid-grey @hollandandsherryapparel 27.5oz 100% wool cloth of midnight blue fine corded cloth.
 
A double-breasted ladies jacket of mid-grey @foxbrothers1772 13-14oz 100% wool cloth.
 
A dinner jacket of off-white @dugdalebrosandco 16oz 100% wool barathea cloth with matching braid on the front edge and pocket flaps.
 
A pair of shorts of black, brown, camel and copper bouclé @lintontweeds 16.5oz check cloth.
 
A double-breasted jacket of camel @hollandandsherryapparel 17-18oz 100% cashmere cloth with turn-back cuffs of Anderson & Sheppard sleeve lining."

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590 likes, 10 comments - andersonandsheppard on January 20, 2024: "As part of our on-going partnership with @walesbonner, our team worked closely with Grace through..."

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View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Anderson & Sheppard Shops (@andersonandsheppard)

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Daniel Silverstein Zero Waste Patchworks

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Daniel Silverstein Zero Waste Patchworks

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Silverstein’s ‘Re-roll’ technique applies the art of sewing together the scraps that overflow in the fashion industry. He uses this upcycling technique to create unique and imaginative patterns that can result in anything from patchworks to pop culture pastiches.

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Fisher uses a feltloom to create new large denim pieces from denim scraps. The feltloom can also be used for other fibres for a zero waste process. On a smaller scale this could be done with needle felting which I am interested in exploring within this project.

Waste No More

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Fashion designer Eileen Fisher + furniture brand West Elm brings recylced EILEEN FISHER denim full circle for less waste and a longer product life cycle.

The FeltLOOM is used to felt denim + other fabric scraps to create unique fabric with less impact on the world.

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Eileen Fisher Circular Economy | EILEEN FISHER + WEST ELM

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Fashion designer Eileen Fisher + furniture brand West Elm brings recylced EILEEN FISHER denim full circle for less waste and a longer product life cycle. The FeltLOOM is used to felt denim + other fabric scraps to create unique fabric with less impact on the world.

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Made in collaboration with Kirsty McDougall

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Your yarns are even better than I could imagine! They are gorgeous...so subtle and refined. Jennifer B.

My British wool yarns are all exclusive to Laura's Loom. They are spun from fleece which I collect annually from a network of farms in the Yorkshire Dales and Cumbria.
Sheep breeds include my classic mainstay - Bluefaced Leicester - supplemented by Hebridean, Black Welsh Mountain, Shetland and Ryeland. A few other breeds occasionally creep into my stash, including Lleyn, Texel and Cheviot, plus the odd Badgerface and some beautiful Cumbrian alpaca.
My yarn is spun in West Yorkshire and dyed in the Scottish Borders to my own bespoke palette.

Most of the yarn is spun as fine singles for fabric weaving, but it is eminently suitable for fine lace knitting and for tapestry. Occasionally I produce 2-fold yarns that equate to a light double-knit in size.

Click on the options below to see the full range of colours and styles. You can also purchase a shade card catalogue which contains samples of each yarn type and colour. Purchases of 1kg or more qualify for a significant discount. If you would like to order larger quantities please contact me for a quote.

I'm still updating this section so if you can't find what you're looking for get in touch!

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Beautiful woollen and worsted spun yarn for weaving, knitting and tapestry. 100% British wool with traceable provenance.

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Z.Hinchliffe's British Wool from Uppingham Yarns

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British Wool by Z.Hinchliffe

Produced and made in Britain from Blue Faced Leicester sheep, providing one of the softest wools that can be bred in the British climate.

2/11 Nm. 12 WPCM / 28 WPI (wraps per centemetre/wraps per inch)

Blue face lustre fleece is soft, shiny, strong and it has long staples (25-26 microns). The fibres do not have scales on the surface like some other wools (scales are what make our skin itchy) making it soft enough to wear next to the skin. It spins, felts and dyes beautifully. Ecru is recommended for dying.

Available in 250g and full cones (600/700g).

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Z.Hinchliffe's British Wool from Uppingham Yarns

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Produced and made in Britain from Blue Faced Leicester sheep, providing one of the softest wools that can be bred in the British climate. Blue face lustre fleece is soft, shiny, strong and it has long staples (25-26 microns).

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LAunched in 2022 the needle punched hoodies have no need for fastenings or trims and do not create waste.

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Nike Forward Is A New Material Made Differently, Sustainably

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Nike believes the new Forward material will do for its apparel line what Flyknit did a decade ago for footwear.

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by David Burnett

(Click on images to enlarge)

Sudbury is a major silk manufacturing centre with five local firms involved in the production of a wide range of quality fabrics. However, silk manufacture has been established here a mere 200 years or so, whilst textile manufacturing has been established in the town since at least the 14 th century. Then it was weaving woollen cloth and the fine medieval timber-framed merchant's houses in Stour Street were built with the wealth that it created. When demand for the heavy woollen broadcloth declined in the 16 th century the weavers of Sudbury turned to producing lighter fabrics - bays, says, crepes and cotton bunting - in the 18 th century much of the bunting was supplied to the Royal Navy for flags.

THE ORIGINS OF THE INDUSTRY IN ENGLAND

Silk making began in China but by the late Middle Ages the knowledge had been brought back to Europe where France and Italy became the leading producers. In 1609 King James I made an effort to stimulate silk making in England by encouraging the planting of mulberry trees, knowing that silkworms fed on the leaves. Unfortunately his knowledge did not include the fact that it fed on the leaves of the white mulberry, not the black variety which his government was supplying for planting, and the attempt proved abortive.

However, by the end of the 17 th century another monarch's religious bigotry succeeded where James's well meaning efforts had failed. In 1685 the Catholic king of France, Louis XIV, revoked the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the religious and civic rights of Huguenots - his subjects who followed the Protestant faith. All now had to convert to Catholicism or face persecution. The result was a mass exodus of some 500,000 of his Huguenot subjects into neighbouring countries, taking with them their wealth, arts and skills, including silk weaving. Many came to Spitalfields in London, and so the silk industry was established in England.

SILK COMES TO SUDBURY

Silk weaving came to Sudbury about 100 years later. By then the industry in Spitalfields was well established but plagued by frequent industrial disputes between masters and men, particularly over wages. In 1774 the local magistrates in Spitalfields decided to act and began the first of a series of efforts to regulate the local silk industry, deciding to enforce wage levels on masters and men alike. Many masters then began to move production to country areas within easy reach of London but beyond the interference of the London magistrates. And so silk weaving arrived in towns such as Haverhill, Glemsford and Sudbury. Here there were many skilled textile workers who were happy to work at wages that were higher than they could obtain weaving the traditional fabrics but still only two thirds of what the silk masters would have to pay in Spitalfields.

WEAVERS' COTTAGES

By 1844 there were four silk manufacturers and some 600 silk looms in Sudbury although about half the looms were idle 'in consequence of the general depression of that year.' More silk manufacturers arrived in the following years but it must be remembered that silk weaving was still a hand process which could be carried out within the domestic system. This explains the long terraces of three storey weavers' cottages which are still such an interesting feature of the townscape. Many rows were demolished in the 1960s and 70s but good examples can still be seen in Melford Road, New Street, East Street, Station Road and Cross Street. The ground floor was living space, the top floor for sleeping but the middle floor was 'the shop,' a large undivided working area with large windows front and back to admit maximum light. In the centre of the room silk thread was hand wound onto swan's quills or paper tubes which were inserted into shuttles. The women usually did this task whilst the men operated the loom. The loom was set up at right angles to the window so the light fell across the warp. Given this arrangement, it was not uncommon to see windows on the shop floor with missing panes of glass where a fly shuttle had flown off the loom through the window and landed in the street below! In poor light the weaver would light the oil lamp which hung from the loom beam - most cottages had neither gas nor electricity.

The system had many advantages, not least a feeling of independence and the freedom, particularly for a woman to combine winding with other household tasks. However, there was a downside as well. The weaver was totally dependent on his employer who supplied the warp and skeins of weft yarn and then paid for the finished roll of cloth. The employer might dock his wages if he found imperfections in the weaving. Employment might dry up altogether if there was a recession in the industry and even if work was plentiful the weaver might have to wait to be paid until the roll was finished although he might negotiate some payments on account. Perhaps it was not surprising that local handloom weavers had a reputation for 'going on the beer' when they did have money in their pockets!

THE DEVELOPMENT OF 'MANUFACTORIES'

The employer also had his difficulties with the system. It was difficult to train new weavers and to ensure the quality of the finished fabric. Some employers therefore centralised production in a building where they could provide training and supervise work on the looms. This trend accelerated with the introduction of wider hand looms and the Jacquard loom for weaving intricate velvets and damasks; both types of loom were too big to fit into a weaver's cottage.

Nineteenth century documents refer to silk 'manufactories' in the town. Some of these were no more than residential houses which were used as warehouses. The weavers only went there to collect their raw materials and to return the finished roll of cloth. A good example is 49A North Street . Other 'manufactories' were large work shops with a number of hand looms. Most of these have disappeared although the ground floor of one survives at the back of the former manager's house at 41 Melford Road.

Two much larger former silk 'manufactories' survive which are closer to most people's idea of a factory, representing attempts to pull together the various stages of production under one roof including silk throwing (spinning), warping, dyeing and weaving.

The oldest of these is 47 Gainsborough Street. Silk weaving was in progress as early as 1791 in the weaving shop now used as a study room on the second floor of Gainsborough's House next door but the imposing three-storey building at No 47 dates from about 1850. It once had a bank of multi - paned windows on the ground floor in addition to those which survive on the upper two floors facing Weaver's Lane. In 1851 Mr William Hill lived next door at with a connecting door to his manufactory. In 1851 he employed 200 men, 400 women and 200 girls and installed a factory bell to summon them to work each day.

The other former manufactory is now 'The Dental Emporium' which sits on the edge of Acton Square. This two-storey building was built in about 1870 by the firm of Stephen Walters (note the W high up on the end gable) and in turn was occupied by all three of the silk firms which still exist in Sudbury.

Employment in the silk industry reached a peak in the 1850s when about 2,000 silk throwster, dyers and weavers were employed locally. However, a number of firms failed to survive in the decades following the Cobden Free Trade Treaty in 1860; this allowed competition from cheaper French products. The firms that survived this and later recessions in the industry did so by focussing on the quality end of the market and by specialising in a niche market - in the late 19 th century a number of firms specialised in silk fabric for parasols and umbrellas.

THE INDUSTRY TODAY

Today, five silk firms carry on this proud and long history of textile manufacture in Sudbury and we can proudly claim to be the silk capital of England with an estimated 110 metric tons of China silk coming annually into the town. Four are involved in the actual production process. First we have the Gainsborough Silk Weaving Company, founded in 1903 and located on Alexandra Road since 1925. The company produces high quality furnishing fabrics and is frequently approached with special commissions to reproduce historical designs- for example for the restoration of Windsor Castle after the fire. They hold the Royal Warrant as Official Supplier of Furnishing Fabric to HM Queen Elizabeth II.

Next there is Vanners Silk which also originated in Spitalfields and made a late move into Suffolk in the 1870s when they opened warehouses in Glemsford (1871) and Haverhill (1874). A merger with Fennell Brothers brought Vanners into Sudbury and their production is now concentrated at their premises in Gregory Street. Much of their output is tie silk produced on computerised looms which have dramatically increased productivity while assuring the highest quality.

The third is Stephen Walters and Company which began in Spitalfields in 1720 and moved to Sudbury in the mid 19 th century. They produce a wide range of fashion fabrics at their silk mill in Cornard Road and were commissioned to made silk for the wedding dresses of both the Princess Royal and Princess Diana.

Next to Stephen Walters is the the Humphries Weaving Company Ltd. which moved back to the adjacent Ashburton Lodge in 2004, after a 30-year spell in Castle Hedingham. It specialises in exclusive, high quality furnishing fabrics, destined for Royal palaces and National Trust properties, together with specially commissioned design work. They have their fabric woven at Sudbury Silk Mills (which is a shared resource utilised by Stephen Walters, David Walters and Humphries Weaving.) However, the Company retains full control over the production and manufacture process and should be regarded as the fourth working mill/manufacturer in the town. Also on the same Stephen Walters site on Cornard Road is Daniel Walters Fabrics which specialises in designing high end woven jacquard fabrics for leading fabric wholesalers.

(Note: Both Stephen Walters and Vanners have factory shops where their products may be seen and purchased.)

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by David Burnett (Click on images to enlarge) Sudbury is a major silk manufacturing centre with five local firms involved in the production of a wide range of quality fabrics. However, silk manufacture has been established here a mere 200 years or so, whilst textile manufacturing has been established in the town since at least the 14 th century.

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Iinouiio recycles pre and post concumer textile waste into new mixed blend yarns in a range of weights.

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Crafts in the English Countryside Updated-2014

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There are a plethora of textiles on offer, from linens to corduroys, patterned designs to plain and each season, a new raft comes to the market. However, there are some that have enjoyed endless appeal and have hardly been out of use in the past three centuries. Whether you live in a country house or a flat, are looking to upholster a sofa or make a pair of curtains, these are the fabrics that won't lose their lustre.

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The timeless textiles that haven't been out of use in centuries

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Certain textiles go hand-in-hand with country-house decorating and have hardly been out of use in the past three centuries. Gabby Deeming explores the enduring appeal of these fabrics

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Textile waste recycled into a composite fabric is another way of ensuring a zero-waste project.

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Barcelona and London based TAPEgear creates eco-friendly tech cases and sleeves for your laptops, tablets, and smartphones. The latest collection released from this environmentally-aware design team is SHRED, a line of sleeves for your iPad, iPad Mini, iPhone, and laptop. The colorful SHRED sleeves are made out of 100% textile waste from used clothing and household fabrics.

Not only are you helping the environment by not using brand new resources to produce the products, when you're done with your sleeve, it can be recycled.

The soft inner linings come in either red or green and a simple press snap works to secure a tight fit for your devices.

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SHRED: Tech Cases Made from 100% Recycled Textile Waste

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Barcelona and London based TAPEgear creates eco-friendly tech cases and sleeves for your laptops, tablets, and smartphones. The latest collection released from this environmentally-aware design team is SHRED, a line of sleeves for your iPad, iPad Mini, iPhone, and laptop. The colorful SHRED sleeves are made out of 100% textile waste from used clothing and household fabrics.

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Patchwork Earthernware jug by Colin Jowitt member of the Northern Potters Association

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SWING TAGS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST

This original palette of fine worsted yarn is brought to you by Shepley Yarns, a family-owned business based in Saddleworth in the heart of the Pennine hills. Our family name is derived from Old English - meaning 'the shepherds' valley - and we pride ourselves on our ability to combine 200 years of age-old techniques and experience in the wool industry with our passion for sustainable, renewable fibres.

The responsibly sourced wool used in our luxurious yarn comes from sheep that roam freely on the fells and downs of the British Isles and thrive on a simple blend of grass, water, fresh air and sunshine. Every year they are sheared in the Spring months - an essential part of good farming husbandry - which helps rid them of potentially damaging infections such as blowfly strike and keeps them cool during the summer months.

At a time of increasing concern about the future of our planet and the exhaustion of its resources, it is vital that we use naturally occurring materials such as pure wool. If correctly treated, this high quality material will reward the wearer with many years of comfort - and at the end if its lifetime it is fully degradable making it an ideal sustainable and environmentally friendly product. For more information on the steps we have taken towards a more sustainable product, please click here.

To celebrate the natural qualities of our pure wool, our yarn range also includes natural undyed colours, spun using the original colours of British wool pure breeds.

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Home | Shepley Yarns | Pennine Collection

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SWING TAGS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST This original palette of fine worsted yarn is brought to you by Shepley Yarns, a family-owned business based in Saddleworth in the heart of the Pennine hills.

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Our Heritage range is made using the wool from the beautiful fleeces of British born and bred sheep. The collection includes 'Heritage', undyed 100% pure new wool, with its natural nuances as different percentages are blended together to achieve a beautiful variety of shades.

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When using acid dyes it is important to try and exhaust the dye bath so it runs clear when the dyeing is finished. This means there is no waste dye running into clean waterways.

Recipes:

Wool boucle peach

100g yarn

0.5g dye for palest shade

8g Glauber’s salt

4g citric acid

2/14s orange

125g

0.5g chestnut

1g of orange

10g glaubers

5g citric

2/20s green shade 1 (plus mini boucle Hank)

100g

1.5g or less Ochre + 0.25 olive + 0.25 emerald

8g Glauber’s salt

4g citric acid

2/20s green shade 2 (plus mini boucle Hank)

100g

1g emerald 1g ochre

8g Glauber’s salt

4g citric acid

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Upcycling, handcrafting Menswear trend on social media

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Upcycling, handcrafting Menswear trend on social media

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L-R Paul Smith, DSquared, Valentino, Hermes, Stan, Dior, Walter Van Beirendonck, S S Daley

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Helen Anthony strives to remain unique in terms of style and fashion, working to represent a rich variety of different cultures, whilst simultaneously remaining fiercely proud of their British heritage and connection to Savile Row. The brand conveys a certain British eccentricity within their tailoring and styling. The fabric for their designs was supplied by British Mill AW Hainsworth for AW24.