Elizabethbaertextiles.com

HOME THOUGHTS FROM ABROAD

2012-01-25T18:02:00.000Z

If you followed my recent Blog about a Friendship Quilt 1850's with many names inscribed, including lots of different Dillinghams, you could be surprised to know that within 10 days it has been claimed by a modern Dillingham and will be winging its way to US shortly - what a chance that someone noticed it - and I only have 100 regular followers and few in the States of course. The power of advertising!

Talking of quilts - I do recommend you to go and visit Jen Jones' wonderful Museum and huge collection of Welsh quilts and blankets in Lampeter - click on Jen Jones Quilts for details. She is one of my oldest textile friends and has built her business up from very small beginnings and become the world expert - and she is American by birth. The American Museum near here has a fabulous collection, a best one from each State, and lots of books, classes and info. Try Linda Clift for quilts - she is a very good source for all kinds, from quite cheap chicken feed 30's ones suitable for children - to the very elaborate and early print ones.
from France. She attends all the Talent for Textile Fairs and also has some very original FairIsle knit woollen ones which are unique.

WATCH OUT!

2012-01-23T16:11:00.002Z

Just had news from her server that Kaari Meng's Blog from Hollywood, Calif. THE WARP AND THE WEFT is unsafe, and to use her home page only. She has hundreds of contacts and a wonderful blog.!
Tom Hickman (in France) has also been hacked. Do not download any messages

WITHIN THE FRINGE

2012-01-16T22:20:00.000Z

The top bobble fringe is one I have used on my own ticking loose covers round the hem - I no longer have 'skirts' on my covers. Second is a cotton 'string' fringe which comes in pure white, and blue and white, and is very useful if you want a simple finish to cushions and curtains. The third is a pretty gimp for finishing chair seats and the last is a lovely 'pom pom' fringe which I have used on my best chintz cushions (It does go 'bald' after a time but it is one of my favourites so I renew it from time to time.
Passementerie is one of the glories of French vintage decoration, whether it is the finishing touch on a cushion, the leading edge of fine curtains, the final trim on silken lampshades or round the hem of the easy chairs known as 'crapauds'. The variety seems unending, the colour range immense and the ingenuity and skill of the workers making these intricate designs is amazing! Once upon a time you could buy them, so much per card, in long lengths, left-overs from decorating jobs done by the seamstresses and sold by the boxful,- now, you sometimes find the odd length all priced per yard and not much discount for the whole card! so it has all become very expensive. Similarly the tie-backs for curtains with their plaited silk cords, tassels and fringes, rare and rich, go for over £80 each and if you have 3 windows in your best room, this is quite an addition to all the other costs of dressing a big window in vintage style. Most of this work is still done in France, Spain and Italy, but there are a couple of English firms that can copy and and supply these quality decorations. I was surprised to see that one of them of long standing, Brian Turner, is based in Sawbridgeworth, nr. Bishops Stortford, where I used to live a long time ago when I had not discovered the fascinating world of old textiles. I could have been a nuisance and watched them make this highly skilled and intricate stuff!

WARM FRIENDSHIP

2012-01-10T17:50:00.002Z

I bought this Friendship Quilt a long time ago without knowing any more than its name - these quilts were made by groups of friends who got together to sew and work on such quilts, enjoying the chat and company and making warm and cosy quilted covers that decorated their beds and kept them warm, but I do not know where it was made - It has few clues but most of the squares have names written in a fine hand in Indian ink and they include 7 different Dillinghams, 2 Waldorfs, and a dozen others, also the addresses, Saratoga, Galway and Washington Co, and the dates 1840 and 1848. I am inclined to think it is therefore an American quilt and maybe there is a town somewhere where the surname Dillingham is still around - I should be so interested to hear. The quilt is very, very worn but still complete - it hangs over my banisters looking very pretty, and is still good enough to hang in a prominent position, but not for use on a bed. Price £130. or a special price to any Dillingham around!
NEXT DAY I've already had one query so the hunt is on!The following names are on the quilt: Dillinghams: Betsey D. Punicus, Ruth H., Catharine L., David V. ,Elizabeth, Sylvia, Retory(?), Margaret, Amy D. ~Washington Co. Other names are Hannah Tubbs Galway, Francis Sheldon, Rebecca Habron, Ann Sheldon, Lawrence, B. Downs, Diana Houster, Lucy Bennett, Ruth Hallett, Mary Parnall, Margaret Waldorf, Amelia Ann Sheldon 1840, Jane Perkins Saratoga, Sylvia Leary. Some names are difficult to decipher, the ink has faded and the cotton is thin
More details from Elizabeth dbaer@onetel.com

DECORATIVE LINEN SHEETS

2012-01-07T13:35:00.002Z

Two examples of large fine linen sheets with decorative embroidery and openwork borders. Both in first class condition - probably kept on one side for 'best' and little used.
Upper sheet measures 10'2" X 7"4 with initial T.B. or J.B price £165
Lower sheet 10' X7'8" initial M.R. elaborate border with retours, openwork diamonds, squares, triangles and poix £160. contact Elizabeth Baer at dbaer@onetel.com retours are the extra emb. parts down the sides of the sheet and a mark of good quality linen! Poix (peas)are the large polka dots emb. typical of 20s and 30s designs.

IT'S A WRAP

2012-01-03T22:43:00.002Z

My linen stores

When you have done all the work of washing and ironing your linen, it is good to add the final touches to a well-ordered linen cupboard, so that when you open the door, you can see neat piles stacked up ready for use. The rule of three applies to all small articles that have initials in the centre - they should be folded in three parts so the initial is at the centre and then they can be folded again to make the item shorter to fit on a shelf. This applies to face towels, napkins, table cloths and sheets where the initials are an important feature of the design. Pillow cases and hankies usually have the initial in one corner, and you can still use the rule of three but ensure that the initial stays prominent and that all similar items are pressed into the same size and shape so they can be piled up. This may all sound too fussy, but it means you can find and identify 'best' from 'everyday' when you are in a hurry with guests arriving, and keep track of numbers very easily. If you have read my Blog on Napery earlier you will know this is an honourable art and if you style yourself Mistress of Napery it will make you proud of your linen cupboard or room. French women have many conventions for folding including a very special one for sheets known as 'a l'ancienne' which means that all the edges are hidden within and the resulting long slim shape fits onto narrow shelves in their armoires.

WORKING AND WASHING

2012-01-02T19:37:00.002Z

A view of the linen cupboard at Freshford, Avon

If you are the proud owner of fine French linen and there are just one or two little things that bother you, perhaps the following might help, gained after renovating and restoring hundreds of old French sheets, possibly even thousands, but who's counting?
When you get your sheets home and before washing, you may want to remove any stains and/or ironmould marks. There are several good chemical solvents that work well, but I find the best are in the supermarket shelves in France next to the detergents - they seem stronger and are more specific. Rubigine anti-rouille rust stain remover is brilliant, but be careful,as it does not harm the linen but is actually a very powerful and toxic acid.
Old discoloured linen needs a good long soak in several changes of plain cold water over several days to soften the inner core of the fibres and to remove the tobacco stains that seem to invade all French fabrics and soft furnishings. After this, give the linen a good hot wash with an oxygen based powder (bleach is not recommended unless you are desperate). If there is delicate embroidery or fine lace, wash on gentle programme in a pillow case or by hand in a bath - do not spin or twist, and hang out to dry on a line in the sun and wind or flat on the grass. Use a light starch for a crisp glossy finish but remember that this does yellow in storage. I would never send precious lace and embroidery to an ordinary laundry - fine decorations can be ruined and you may not even get your own linen back as some of the staff have a good idea of the value of the finest items and several of my clients have had unfortunate losses.

A LITTLE FALL FROM GRACE!

2011-12-30T18:41:00.000Z

Christmas luncheon with Her Grace! This is the Grand Dining Room at Chatsworth, home of the Cavendish family and the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire A beautifully arranged table, chairs lined up for dozens of guests, trees laden with baubles, it is a feast for the eyes with dashing red walls, golden ceiling and huge crescents of lights and candles - what more could you want?? just a jolly good ironing of the tablecloth and a tweak to get it straight, sorry, I wish I hadn't noticed it!

BUYING THE BEST

2011-12-27T17:38:00.004Z

In the last three blogs I have tried to describe the differences between the three kinds of fabric woven to make sheets in France; fine linen, fil, and hemp. If you are buying any of these, you might find it useful to run through these pro.s and con.s to get good value:
Good points deserve better prices:
Perfect or almost unused condition.
Very fine linen lawn, even and white with no faults.
Really large sizes. Anything over 7' wide is good and anything over 9' long is exceptionally long. Old
French beds were usually only 4' wide and the sheets were not tucked in but hung down the sides.
Best handwork on top border including Richelieu, ladder stitch and other drawn thread work, and other
hand- made lace in perfect condition. Retours are the continuation of the main border pattern, worked a short length down the sides of the sheet - always a sign of good quality bed linen.
Distinguish between slightly uneven home-made family needlework and the professional evenly worked
designs. The latter will stand up to laundering much the best. Perfectly shaped large elaborate initials, often infilled with French knots (skilled work).
Crowns and coats of arms (usually worked perfectly in the convents by the nuns) on extra large finest
lawn linen, rare to find and commanding very high prices, they are fragile, need careful hand-washing and
often only suitable for display rather than daily use.

Extra large fine linen sheet with hand-made lace and good initials in a pretty frame

Lower prices for the following:
Metis in soft shades of beige is a bastard mix of linen/cotton, useful but not valuable like pure linen.
Sheets that have been turned side-to-middle, where the small initials (about 1" high) are one side of central
   seam Those that have large initials, one each side of central seam are o.k. but you should always check
   side seams and the long central 19c. seam for gaps in stitching and worn or frayed bits.   Central seams that
   are oversewn with strong thread with a whipping stitch can make a ridge that is not so comfortable to
   sleep on - best central seams are stitched very finely edge to edge.
Hemp sheets that are very loosely woven and will stretch and sag with machine washing.
Frayed edges denote heavy wear, also torn centre seam. Pin holes in finer linen where sheet has been
folded and pressed too often. Avoid patches, darns and stains.
Sometimes there is a rent or tear where a metal spring from the bed has pierced the sheet, if the rest is in
good order, it can be worth repairing the rent with a neat patch.
Cloudy colour usually means that the sheet was very stained and bleach has been used.
Elsewhere I have recommended products for cleaning and removing stains such as ironmould, etc.See Blog Clean Sweep.

HEMP SHEETS

2011-12-25T19:02:00.000Z

A good hemp sheet with hand-sewn hems

I have written a few notes on the differences between the kinds of linen you might find and buy in France. Hemp sheets are rarer and much sought after and only occasionally to be found in good condition. This is because the plant was grown by the poorest peasants for their own use for clothing and bed linen and these were used until they fell to bits. It grew like a weed and used little water and no chemicals in the growing and preparation of the fibre so it was extremely economical. It was immensely useful on the farms and the boats for fishing lines and nets, for tyeing up crops and weaving sacks, for harnessing animals and carts and every kind of domestic cloth. The weave is usually a little looser than linen and though it starts off in quite a dark shade of fawn, and is a bit string-like, it bleaches with washing to a beautiful cream and the cloth gets much softer so that it falls in loose folds. Hence it is now much used for curtains and for upholstery on furniture. In certain areas of Brittany they wove the very coarsest cloth which is of blanket weight and is very nubbly with a porage colour and texture. This is highly prized by many top decorators, and is rare and expensive to find in good condition. There are also some coarse herringbone 'rugs', very heavy and rustic, which I have been told, were placed under beds (maybe the truckle beds which were stowed during the day under the big beds) to stop the damp rising from the tiled floors. These look wonderful on stone floors and in really ancient buildings. Although the weave of the sheets is rather thick and coarse, it is extremely healthy to sleep in as the hollow fibres of the thread wick away moisture from the body, and the friction of a slightly uneven weave is good for warmth and circulation. Expect to pay over £60 for good hemp sheets and more if they are larger than 6' wide., but there is always the chance of a bargain at a small country Brocante.

A roll of hemp cloth with initial F, tied with natural linen tape

I usually have a small stock of all these sheets, but at present none of the rugs. I only buy sheets in good condition, but I have a pile of good smaller pieces ready for embroidery, cushion backing and for other small
confections from £15 to £35. Enquire at dbaer@onetel.com for sizes and prices.

FULL CIRCLE

2011-12-22T17:47:00.007Z

IT'S CHRISTMAS ONCE AGAIN AND I SEND YOU ALL MY GOOD WISHES FOR A HAPPY HOLIDAY AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!
If you would like advance notice of all our Talent for Textile Fairs for 2012 and have not already informed me of any change in your Email address, please send it to dbaer@onetel.com and you will be Emailed by me by the end of January. The full list of events will be sent by the usual Mail-out by post in March 2012 with the forms to apply for invitations. Regards Elizabeth

The wreath was made with tickings from Ian Mankin.

METIS is very French!

2011-12-17T20:51:00.002Z

The word means 'mix' and that is exactly what it is - usually 35%cotton and 65% linen - the reverse of our English union which is our cheap and hard wearing sheet fabric, where there is much less linen and ours feels softer and more like calico. Metis came on to the French nmarket in the early 1900s and was hailed as an easy wash and iron bedding material, much less heavy than pure linen. It was a very popular wedding present and part of the dowry and that is why you often see pairs still wrapped up in the original cello.

They were considered by some as being rather low-grade and cheap and lay in the back of the linen cupboard. Some dealers try and charge the full linen price for them - but no French housewife would pay that - 45 Euros is plenty. The material is a very pleasant creamy shade and I have used it a lot for curtain linings, bed ends, valances and small accessories - it sews and tailors very well and you can get a good sharp look with it. The sheets are usually larger than the hand woven 19c. linen sheets as they were commercially spun and woven in big factories which had the big looms. The two previous Blogs try to explain the difference in value and cost of three main types of linen sheets in France

FIL is LINEN

2011-12-14T22:08:00.000Z

'Fil' linen sheets are the good common linen sheets that were in every-day use in France right up to the invention of nylon, polyester and polycotton. 'Fil' is usually coarser than percale (fine cotton) and a sturdy material with slight ridges and uneveness when it has been hand-spun and woven on narrow wooden looms, mostly 19C. It is just off-white and feels cooler than cotton. It is quite heavy to wash and iron but can be boiled, washed and hung on a line or dried in the old fashioned way flat on the grass in sunshine - the more it is washed the tighter the weave interlocks with itself. It needs a hot iron to press or can be simply folded while very slightly damp with others piled on top and it comes out pretty well; if you can get someone to hold two corners and you have two and you pull against each other, this is the trad. way to get the edges and corners aligned when you fold. There are usually a pair of initials in red cotton cross-stitch in one corner - not very large, but if in the centre, then it is likely the sheet has been 'side to middled' for longer wear. If, however, there is a large pair of initials, each side of the centre seam (which is quite usual because of the narrow loom widths) then you can be sure the two sides have not been reversed, so you need to check the two outer sides for wear. The initials vary a lot - some people make a feature of them on cushions and curtains, others remove them if the sheets are very long and make them up into patchwork, etc. Most dealers add a little to the price if they are elaborate - but if they are rather amateur it may detract from the value and you can say so to the seller! The very best initials (see example below) are usually early 20th. C and more expensive. The most usual fault with these heavy linen sheets is that they have been stained with fold marks while lying on old chestnut shelves which mark them and these are quite difficult to remove - I do not recommend bleach. but a lot of washing will make them fade.

Top quality embroidered initials, showing fine centre seam.SOLD

Professional work with many different stitches. SOLD.

Prices will be between £50 - £150 depending on size, condition and how elaborate and expert the embroidery is. Check that the width is enough for your bed - French beds are much narrower than ours and I would not buy one under 6ft wide.

BEDDIE BUYS

2011-12-11T18:17:00.002Z

Buying linen from abroad, and antique as well, can make you a little uncertain what to go for, so with experience of buying in France for 25 years or more I will give a few hints on the good, and not so good buys. Much depends on the quality you need, but condition is almost more important!

This magnificent extra large sheet(14' X 9') has everything, finest lawn, several feet of wonderful satin stitch
embroidery showing water lilies, grand initials, splendid coronet, hand worked lace, and is in perfect almost
unused condition. P.o.A. On Offer.(Dec.2011), now SOLD, but I have another exactly similar but with Iris flowers
and foliage at the centre and on the revers (down the sides of the sheet) and also immaculate condition. The
designs are very reminiscent of the Monet paintings and date from 1890 or so. These are very rare it known as
Birthing Sheets and measure a huge 14ft X 9ft excluding Valenciennes lace frills. P.O A Scan
available and a bit more history!

The very best and the most expensive are the big sheets, over 7ft wide and 9 ft long, in fine smooth lawn, with no bumps or irregularities in the weave, hand sewn hems, with fine hand-embroidered decoration, flowers scrolls and large initials often with infill of French knots, and coats of arms or coronets denoting previous aristocratic owners (la noblesse). The finest may have insertions and/or frills of best hand-made lace and all will be in perfect order - repairs to embroidery and lace are extremely difficult. When held up to the light, there will be no weak areas, or rows of fine pinholes where the linen has worn through ironing and folding, and no cloudy patches where bleach has been used. These may cost over £500 in the current market.
My next Blog will cover the more ordinary, everyday fil linen sheets which are available in most decent antique fairs and are a more practical buy.

Mother of Pearl Buttons and others

2011-12-07T23:09:00.000Z

Mother of pearl buttons are my favourites -the French used a great many on their linen and clothes after the bone toggles and buttons of the early 19c. There are special double-thick with tiny holes for men's shirts that look almost like pearl studs and there are delicate pastel shades, all attractively packaged to catch the eye of the seamstress. I bought a huge lot of them from the attics of an old lady who had retired to Burgundy to bring up a handicapped child and she told me that she had sold her buttons from a factory at Sees to C.Dior, Schiaparelli and all the couturiers in Paris of the 30s and 40s.
The factory, the biggest in France, made every kind of button, m.o.p., tortoiseshell, turtle,leather, papier mache boot buttons (I still have lots for Steiff teddy bear eyes - NOW SOLD OUT) casein, black metal , etc. etc. Almost all are gone but I have a couple of hundred left, all from 1926 or earlier. Picture of the factory, closed late twenties. Boot buttons, bottom right.

I recently sold the last of my teddy bear eyes to a French lady, Nicolette Pede who has set up a new business in Tremolat, Dordogne, hand -making teddies and their wardrobes in trad. old French fabrics. They are very lovable! THESE PAPIER MACHE BOOT BUTTONS WERE IDEAL AS THEY HAD A METAL LOOP AT THE BACK WHICH COULD BE JOINED TO ANOTHER BUTTON EYE WITH WIRE AND THEY WERE THEN UNAVAILABLE TO HUNGRY CHILDREN!

It's good to be in the Red

2011-12-03T22:51:00.000Z

If you can get hold of the stylish and enthralling bi-monthly textile orientated magazine Selvedge, you would find in the last March/April copy two double spreads showing the brilliant red and white tickings that I collected from France in a wonderful scoop-up near the Loire. After hunting for tickings for over 2 years and being told that they had all been burnt or used up as rags to clean machinery, one day I climbed up a rickety ladder into the roof space of a huge old hay barn, and there I found hundreds, all tied up in bundles ready to go to the rag merchants, but long forgotten. They lay there, rotting under a leaky roof, nibbled by rats and mice who enjoyed the grains left by the old straw fillings, but glowing with rich reds and vibrant pinks, all in stripes, and I knew I had found my golden fleece! See my Blog 'Ticking all the Boxes' and 'French Affairs' and others! I can't stop loving them.
Kaari Meng has now got my archive of samples - about 150 of them, that I saved before selling them all -and has done a bit of research and so they have become part of textile history. Kaari is a clever and inspirational author, designer and shopkeeper in Hollywood, contact her http://www.frenchgeneral.com/ and check her excellent blog. It's full of good news!

JUMBLE JELLY

2011-11-30T21:48:00.006Z

If you saw this sign above a shop, could you guess what they sold inside?? Well, come to Silver Street in Bradford on Avon and explore this great new shop - I almost wrote emporium, because as you trawl through its stock you realise that it is one of the most useful places you could find to source everything to do with knitting and sewing - the range is wide and interesting and right up to date - in the last week I have found pale silky ribbons, sewing machine needles for sewing jeans and denim, and monster reels of thread in every colour - while there I was tempted by so many novel and useful ideas for trimming and finishing sewing works, braids of cut-out jumping reindeer asking to be fixed to cakes, crackers and knitted hats and gloves,

buttons, hooks, eyes, zips and all haberdashery. The welcome was charming and these girls know what they are selling and doing and they have lots of workshops for would -be sewing students of all ages - good fun and a good way to make new friends in the town. This is saving me long and expensive shopping trips to Bath so I am really grateful for this new addition to the many snall speciality shops we are lucky to have here in Bradford on Avon, all with helpful and friendly owners.Ring 01225 866 033 for more info. Jumble Jelly,10 Silver Street, BonA .BA15 1JY

A LINEN BASKET CASE

2011-11-28T22:54:00.000Z

This picture, reproduced in a thumbnail size on a back page of W.of I. was my introduction to buyers in the U.S. I knew they were all very keen on the original tickings that their ancestors had brought with them when they colonized America, but I had no idea that they were hungry for new patterns that they had never imagined or seen before and were anxious to copy as soon as they could, before their rivals got hold of them. I was very gratified to have visits from all the top decorators you might have heard of; Lauren, Klein, Brunschwig and many others. They were all very charming and seemed to enjoy a visit away from London 'and down in the sticks' and they all asked me for little samples of as many as I would give them - but by this time I had become a canny dealer and would only let them have the whole piece - no messing about with little samples! I, myself, was so surprised to discover much later, that there was still a wealth of much more elaborate multicoloured tickings in Germany - beyond my reach at the time. These were really wonderful shaded stripes with up to 17 different shades in them, really skilled weavers' work and with immense possibilities for decorating in new ways. I found them in a recycling feather factory, (imported into France from dealers who scoured the charity shops in Germany), where the feathers were sterilised and re-used for ski wear and bedding, but the stripey covers were just chucked out and sold as rags for cleaning heavy machinery. It was a real treasure-trove find, but another Blog will recount the rather dreadful work of presenting them in good selling condition. You would not want to handle them without gloves and definitely not mix with ordinary washday linens! and so they were all carted home in black dustbin plastic liners with a string round the sack-neck in the back of our car, to await disinfection and sanitary treatment at home.

A BOOK FOR ALL TIME NOT JUST BEDTIME

2011-11-23T19:04:00.002Z

The Book of Fine Linen by Francoise de Bonneville

The up-market, bi-monthly magazine SELVEDGE has a good offer this week of £5 off my favourite linen book: The Book of Fine Linen by Francoise de Bonneville. Originally published in France, and normally costing £35, it is a most beautiful compendium of pictures, photos and articles about every facet of the subject Linen. Every time I dip into it I find fascinating facts about trousseaux, a mass of useful examples to study, early origins, customs, history and much more, all written in a very elegant style, and a pleasure to look at. Offer available until April 2012. The luscious linen sheets are a sample of the excellent photography. If anyone is interested, I have a spare, secondhand copy of this valuable tome, in brand new condition, for sale -NOW SOLD to a reader in Australia . A good present for a linen lover.

STUMPWORK IN THE GARDEN

2011-11-17T18:40:00.002Z

A wonderful example of stumpwork or Restoration raised-work embroidery showing Solomon greeting the Queen of Sheba. The mermaid and kingfisher bird are particularly charming and the wealth of detail of the costumes, the flowers, creepy-crawlies, beasts and trees (note the bunches of acorns) are there to delight us all, and for us to admire the skill of the needlewoman who created this scene so many centuries ago and which is still in such brilliant condition (shown by Witney Antiques at a recent Fair). Click on this to see the full picture (a beautifully dressed lady), stag (naked) lady in waiting (charming) castle (magnificent) and owl and squirrel in feather and fur.

MOTHER HUBBARD AND HER CUPBOARD

2011-11-15T16:46:00.004Z

My previous Blog shows my Irish Housekeeper's cupboard, or linen cupboard, with all its shelves full of French linen torchons (tea towels and household cloths) That was three years ago and it is now down to bare shelves. It has worked hard for me and my buyers have always admired the regular piles of linen, folded into little groups of similar stripes and checks and showing every type of domestic drying, cleaning and covering cloth treasured by the diligent housewife (which I am not). It measures 12" deep by 6ft.6" height by 8'6" wide, so needs a good wall space to back it.

The cupboard is all in pine, circa 1810 with panelled doors, with locks and one old key, and the central doors fold back on themselves so you can see the whole array in one go. It has ventilation openings covered in decorative wirework panels. I bought it in Bath about 20 years ago, it moved with me from Freshford to Bradford on Avon, where it may be viewed, and it is now past its date by 200 years, We have had a lovely new bathroom tacked on to this room where I keep all my best linen and that will be my new spare bedroom - toile curtains already up, wallpaper hung, and I need the wall space for a toile double bed to complete my Jouy rasberry pinky-red scheme and that will be the end of my linen store which is de-moted to a lower floor! Is this up- or down-sizeing? Contact dbaer@onetel.com for further info.

Where did I put that Towel?

2011-11-14T17:11:00.002Z

The French housewife of pre-war years was a very methodical worker who followed the traditions and customs of her mother and grandmother. Her wedding dowry, if her parents were rich, could consist of dozens of sheets and all the other bed and table linen required for a large family, masses of all kinds of torchons, the ubiquitous coarse cloths used for cooking, baking, butchery, dairy work, etc., and a great pile of tea towels for drying different vessels after washing up; for pots and pans, for cutlery, for china, and extra fine for glass (woven with red check pattern). Tea towels all had stripes running through them and most had neat red initials embroidered on one corner. Some (especially from the Basque region), have very glossy, elaborate weave patterns, and many of my customers have used them to make kitchen curtains, cushions and bench seating as they obviously stand up to hard wear and lots of washing. All are unused and often still tied up in their original string packs from the convents and small cloth mills where they were woven and hand-finished. I am showing them here in my capacious Irish Regency pine housekeeper's cupboard which was designed to hold all the linen of a large household, all kept under lock and key. The cupboard is now surplus and for sale, as I am converting the room into a spare bedroom. It's a pretty wonderful piece of 'household' furnishing, genuine and useful in any large room.All details from me at dbaer@onetel.com .

Bright as a Button

2011-11-10T17:24:00.000Z

We all have our button boxes and children love to rummage in them and string them into gaudy necklaces. I was once in the Saturday outdoor market in Orleans, France, (large and good fun) and was staring down at a large crate full of boxed loose buttons, red, blue and white, thinking how bright they shone in the sunlight. The trader, desperate to get rid of them, pressed me to buy them and said I would not be able to resist his ludicrous price. If I took the lot (probably surplus from a knitwear factory) for the price of 150 Francs, i.e. £15) he would even carry them to my car. I FELL FOR IT! A very heavy load, and I reckoned there were about 10 or 12 thousand good bright (glass) buttons. I sold nearly all over five years, packed into Bon Maman jam jars with red check screw-on lids. I now have a 3 jars left for sale, I have not changed the price, about 300 for £3. My grandchildren made these jolly door stops for me on a wet afternoon., and when young children come to my 'shop' I tip some out and invite them to make pictures and then put them back! This gives 'Mum' some breathing space to do her shopping.

LOOKING BACK

2011-11-09T15:02:00.000Z

THIS WAS THE IMAGE THAT LAUNCHED A THOUSAND VISITORS to the American Museum and who visited our Textile Fair there on Sept. 1st. I have such a lovely collection of thank you's and compliments for a wonderful day and the adjectives/comments are 'gorgeous day, smiles all round., special event,

extremely enjoyable and profitable, jolly near perfect day, a delight, superb venue, beautifully organised, incredibly impressed by numbers of buyers, meticulous organisation, wonderful fair, lovely day in a super venue, much appreciated, a great show, many of my customers turned up, one all the way from France, and so on. Fitting everyone in diverse spaces was a bit of a jigsaw puzzle and it was difficult to make them equal in size with various architectural features making the rooms irregular, but my general impression was that most dealers had plenty of interested customers and the customers were overjoyed with the amazing selection on sale and the very high quality of all the merchandise. It was an inspiring day for many to make use of the superb facilities of the Museum, its buildings and the beautifully kept gardens and grounds. My thanks to all those who made such a splendid effort and were so helpful and cheerful all through a very long day. We hope to be invited back to the Museum next year and as usual would be by invitation from my office.

My Blue Heaven

2011-11-04T23:15:00.002Z

Though a lot of French fabrics have red in them (the dye was called Rose Madder), there is also a tremendous lot of indigo blue. They learnt how to use the dye from the Far East, particularly Siam, and it was quite a complicated business to get the different shades - it all depended on the quantity of dye and the amount of 'dips' in the vat as well as exposure to sunlight which changed the muddy greens to the brilliant blue we know. Blue was used for many household linens like these tickings which were feather bed and mattress covers, pillows, bolsters and household cloths. They always look crisp and clean and appeal to most of us for kitchen, nursery and holiday house decoration. In particular, most men find them very smart and attractive. You know how they like blue striped shirts, socks and ties!

A doctor once told me that this is because men's eyes are not good at perceiving blue and they therefore have a great need for it in their colour spectrum.

TORCHONS ROUND THE KITCHEN

2011-10-31T19:21:00.000Z

THESE ARE TYPICAL TORCHONS (TOWELS OR CLOTHS) used in French kitchens to dry, clean and wrap, china, cutlery, glass, iron pots and pans, as well as preserve bread, meat and fish, and keep flies off . Most kitchens in old France had open fires for cooking, with hobs and chains to fix the saucepans at different heights as well as spits for roasting and any ovens were mostly used for bread baking. For the Sunday roasts, the pans were often carried down to the bakers' ovens which were still hot and were empty - Frequently without hot water, no handy detergents and dim lighting, it must have been a hard and awful job to get the pots and pans clean. The Pot au Feu was a staple with bits of meat and any veggies being thrown in to make a hot nourishing dish and of course, all kinds of casserole were popular, economical and filling. The first course was often soup taken in a bowl, and supped, with plenty of bread, and the next was the more solid bits fished out and put on a flat plate. Washing up was done in big flat stone sinks and of course the soft, creamy pottery soon became cracked and chipped. The drying cloths came in many weights and patterns - coarse and dark hemp for black pots, lighter linen for china and and very fine for glasses - with special ones for cutlery as well. They were hung to dry from rows of hooks and sometimes you find enamel racks with the different labels printed on them. Hemp, linen and cotton were used in varying mixes and amounts, depending on local crops and weavers, and you can still find masses of them at any good linen stand at antique fairs and brocantes. Most have initials neatly embroidered and they come in large sets - I would not bother with any that are worn or stained!

HANDS ACROSS THE SEA

2011-10-30T15:46:00.002Z

strips of hand dyed linen on old hemp sheet
to make a smart shopping tote

ticking scraps left over from cushion-making

long narrow strips gathered and hand-sewn make good non-slip hangers
ticking and provencal print scraps

more ticking squares added to a n old coarse-woven sheet for a contemporary look cushion

It's always nice when someone you know gives you a mention, especially if it is favourable - and Kaari Meng, my old friend (but she is actually quite young) has written a skittish Blog about my frugal ways. She is quite right, I never throw anything away and that does not mean that I have awful piles of useless rags cluttering up the place! What I actually do is much more interesting for me - it's a form of sieving, rather like a granite quarry where all the stone has to pass a certain size and be bagged up in separate packs and sacks The biggest pieces, which are often the cut-off bottoms of too long curtains, often slightly weather- marked from the open French windows of French country chateaux, are cut into wide strips and mixed with toning plains to create cushions, using up the old braids and trims to make a pleasing frame. The smaller pieces are cut into long strips about 6" wide and then cut again into lengths up to 12" long and joined together with short seams into strips in two or three different patterns (they could be all blue, or multicoloured tickings with the stripes placed in alternative directions, or mixes of plain and pattern). They will make more cushions and tote bags; and other oddments will make a band across the bib of aprons with pockets to match, and the final scraps, especially pretty printed 19c. cottons, are bagged in new poly. display envelopes and sold to quilters and toy makers who love all vintage bits and can use the tiniest scraps for faces and paws. .No problems getting rid of buttons which I remove from all throw-away items and I have three friends who will always dispose of them to keen collectors. My scheme is to join up with like-minded friends and start the merry-go-round spinning.

An Apron for every Occasion

2011-10-29T11:48:00.006+01:00

I confess that aprons and all 'work wear' have a special appeal for me and in France they come in a very wide variety of material, size and shape for both men and women. Many are for specific jobs and to me, are a sort of link with the daily work and lives of past generations. My collection includes indigo linen, straight, long ones for cooks and gardeners with large pockets at the front; womens' everyday cream linen and hemp on a waistband for general wear, usually with neat cross stitch initials and two pockets; then there are the housemaids' in whitest lawn with bibs and ties and pretty circular pockets at the front. Butchers and chefs have big sturdy affairs with one side higher than the other to make a good wrap, and a protective patch across the midriff, often in a hemp and cotton herringbone weave. Bistro waiters' gear are not much more than a short square across the front, with pocket for cash. The final group are the girls' dark printed cotton and serge traditional costume wear, sometimes gathered and frilled with interesting stitched detail round the waist. The most impressive (and difficult to track down) is the sommelier's (wine waiter's) apron worn in restaurants, indigo or black heavy linen with leather straps, and pockets for the corkscrews, napkin and other tools of the trade. Since typing this blog, I have sold some of the above to an opera company, so stock is very low - all now on my shopping list!

POP GOES THE WEASEL

2011-10-24T10:33:00.000+01:00

    It's great when you have a successful Fair and both buyers and sellers are happy.   I have recently had two very good fairs in a row and am glad that both were such fun and worthwhile. The American Museum fair was quite hard work but it was wonderfully busy and the atmosphere was so lively and cheerful - many of our old friends and customers made the effort (some we had not seen for several years) and had a really good day out with their friends. Everyone seemed to find something to buy that pleased them
and as they all got in for free with our invitation, they may have had a little pocket money to spend! They also got to see the beautiful features of the Museum and its estate, with gardens and arboretum so I do hope they will go back there when they have special friends to stay and want to take them out for the day. Sitting on the long terrace with tea and a cookie from the coffee shop with that fabulous view across the wooded valley is quite a treat!
My next Fair date was at the delightful Meeting House in Ilminster - a lovely small market town with the famous Dyers draper's shop complete with most of the original fittings - quite a period gem!
   There I sold the pretty cherry fabric illustrated on my recent Blog, several lengths of the Hungarian sack cloth for covering chairs, stools and ottomans, and I must now work through this winter to find new and exciting textiles for my next season of fairs which will start in March. All the people on my mailing list will get invitations then (March 2012) listing our programme of fairs and I think I may have an exciting Country House venue in line. Sellers and buyers take note !

A WEEK OF WORK

2011-10-22T19:32:00.000+01:00

It's strange how some of my weeks seem to follow a pattern - - last week was all about large shipments of natural and coarse linen and my buyers were not interested in the pretty, the decorative and the finer weaves. One big lot of hand-woven matched linen sheets (25 from the same household - which is so rare to find) has gone, as I prophesied, to the US, another big lot of rolls of Ukranian roughest weave is leaving for New Mexico, for film costumes, and the third lot of coarse natural 'taupe' sheets will be used to dress up a cottage near here, lined and interlined, to keep out the cold winds of winter. I think the original weavers and gatherers of these fibre crops, hemp and flax, would be very surprised to know how far their wares are travelling, and how very pleased the customers for this coarse stuff are and how keen they are to find it. The Flemish finer linen sleeping-bag liners (I had a hundred in July), have all gone and I was pleased that so many were bought by people who sew and make things and I do hope they all turned out o.k. My own efforts got bogged down with the wrong needle in my machine, taken on holiday with me to France!!! but I am now ready to go full steam ahead and will publish results (if they are worth it, which I doubt).

RAVISSANTE!

2011-10-15T20:41:00.001+01:00

These, oh so pretty, French bed hangings, do, I think, come into the category of just 'ravishing'. I spotted them spilling out of a cardboard box at the big French textile/antiques fair at Montpelier last week. They looked so tired, so dirty, so crumpled, that I was suspicious they would fall to bits if I pulled them out to inspect. They were yellow with old tobacco fumes(the French will smoke in bed) smelly and weighed down with heavy metal curtain rings, but I decided to risk the lot and staggered to my car with all in a plastic sack to keep the car's air nicotine-free. Later, back home, to my delight, a couple of days in three changes of cold water, some oxygen powder and mild soap, they have come up to something very near their original beauty and are now very bright and usable with original colours and patterns seen at their best.See later BLOG Any Connection and Pretty Good. The big long soak is my secret for removing the dinginess of old cotton fabrics with white backgrounds - it does most of the work for you as it is soaking the inner core of the woven threads and the oxygen powder will then release the grease and dirt that is trapped deep in the material which your washing machine is unlikely to reach in a short wash. See later BLOG Any Connection? and Pretty Good, for more about the curtains.
I use the same process for our own hankies, pillow cases and underwear that are losing their sparkle!(SORRY TO MENTION THIS DIRTY WASHING IN PUBLIC!)
I really like this delicate Spring flower design with its ribbon twirly borders - so easy to complement with either blue or pink accessories in a bedroom with a few touches of green if you must! All for sale - four very deep PELMET bed curtains and a good big full length one, and a canopy, all lined, interlined and in good used condition but with several poor patches on the linings. A real challenge for the home do- it -yourselfer! The touches of mauve are so typical of French flowery patterns and I love it all! A bigger (photo) shot is to follow.

Can anyone please date this print for me?

ANY CONNECTION ?

2011-10-15T20:36:00.000+01:00

Modern repro Braquenie

On my last buying trip to France I bought a very large quantity of printed cotton, all made up into four- poster bed hangings, and thought that the pattern of little bunches of flowers and twisted ribbons in an alternate blue and red ribbon trellis, was one of the very prettiest I have seen - so simple and fresh; I wondered if it might be a Braquenie (one of the best and most famous of the pattern printers from the 18C. onwards until Pierre Frey took them over). So I was rather excited when I saw a very similar pattern (by Braq. and Pierre Frey repro) in a magazine feature this week. The cost is £156 per metre, a bit more than I paid for my shabby chic bundle! I would love to know whether my attribution could be correct? What think ye? Has anyone ever seen this pattern before?? Do copy, if there is no copyright; I think it is a winner as you could go with the blue ribbon, or with the pinky red for your room decoration. See BLOG Ravissante

THE SACK OF UKRAINE

2011-10-13T17:24:00.000+01:00

Grain sack from the Ukraine with initials and with pouring lip

French easy chair (one of a pair) covered in Ukrainian sack cloth,
note the 'lumbar swell' back support feature, so comfy!There is a small elegant sofa to match - if you have room!
These original furniture items are very reasonable as I like to turn this sort of stock over quickly and go to France and find more.

This post will be more picture than print - a grain sack showing one of the lovely shades that were introduced to these humdrum articles in daily use on the farms of distant Ukraine - beautifully hand-sewn with strong hemp twine, they are grain-proof and often have a pouring lip at the top end for avoiding spillage and waste and a piece of strong hemp cord to tie round the neck of the sack, with two buttonhole stitched eyelets. The stripes denote the village or farm from which the grain came so the empty sack could be returned to its owner or possibly filled with the milled flour, and some of them have large initials embroidered in big cross stitch half-way down the sack. I used to buy similar sacks from Hungary and my first sale of them was to a very top designer who used them to cover some easy chairs and the upholsterer made the covers with the initials bang in the middle of the back, which was a really good touch and a talking point.. I gave up the Hungarian sacks as they seemed to be everywhere, no longer exclusive, and the colours of the stripes were very strong in blue and red; and I now prefer the softer more natural shades of caramel and soft blues and creams produced further East and in Northern Europe. They are so much easier to blend with existing furnishings and more closely woven for good shape and long wear; covering chairs is costly so go for the best!

EMBROIDERERS! FOLLOW THE THREADS!

2011-10-08T21:42:00.002+01:00

A new Exhibition on October 20 - 23, 2011, 10.00 - 4 pm. at West Barn, Barton Grange, Pound Lane
Bradford on Avon, BA15 1LF. 0FF THE FROME ROAD AND NEAR THE FAMOUS TITHE BARN.
This is an Exhibition of Creative Textiles worked and shown by a group of local embroiderers; some have been studying together on a course at Missenden Abbey, Bucks. If you are interested in machine embroidery, this will be something to enjoy. Their last year's efforts were a great success and this year they will be even better! The Barn itself is a most delightful venue, recently fully restored and adapted, and is well -warmed and lit. Nearest easy parking is in the Station Car Park and the Barns are a short walk away along the river. Small gift items for sale. Free entry,

PETROL price GONE up?

2011-10-06T15:34:00.002+01:00

Is this the future for lowly Brocante dealers ?- Fresh air and pedal power are all very well, but they might run out of puff as well - and what would the rain do to all those cardboard boxes? I have to say this is a French joke in a women's glossy.

From the UKRAINE to the UK

2011-10-04T23:00:00.001+01:00

A cartload of sacks has arrived here all the way from the Ukraine, near Russia, and I am absolutely delighted with both the quality of the weaving and, even more, with the soft natural shades of the stripes on them. They are all in pale earthy shades which blend with any decor and look particularly good in a relaxed, comfy room where there is not too much pattern - they go well with sea-grass carpeting and somehow seem very much at home with both antique and contemporary furnishings - - like most hand-made materials they are classic and good quality and it shows! and will last a lifetime.! They are mostly about 50 years old, unused, and cost around £45 for a large sized grain sack. - two will cover a small armchair. I have covered and sold about ten pairs of such chairs during the last few years and the customers are delighted with them!

PUTTY AND PAINT

2011-10-04T14:29:00.002+01:00

I have been chasing the new top fashion shades of taupe, pewter, porage, fawn, putty, beige, nude or whatever you like to christen them and I have just acquired a lovely batch of unbleached linen sheets in a perfect shade which should please those who are able to follow the fashions of house decoration. I found this lovely picture of a French (painted?) bed which is exactly the same shade, now in the newly decorated home, Ven House, deep in the South West, of Jasper Conran. I love its simplicity (see W.O.I. current magazine)

My sheets will probably go to L.A. where they may be used to cover bespoke easy chairs and sofas often bought by the Hollywood crowd who are always wanting the latest must-have. Recently it was deep leather chairs for the 'den', before that it was white linen, a luxury fashion that took a lot of washing and dry-cleaning, now it is linen and hemp in unbleached shades and next I hope it will be my wonderful striped sackcloth in bumpy texture woven in the Ukraine, and now piled high in my wine vault stores. Here in England, decorators have been using hemp and linen in natural colours for ages but it takes the U.S. a little longer to get used to these rough and rustic vintage stuffs and, quite honestly , they are now a bit late on the scene - Hemp is almost finished and linens are going the same way, and the new, sold by top fabric design firms, are so very expensive and really not quite in the same class, as they cannot be hand-woven any more. The Ukrainian coloured stripes are all in soft earthy shades which blend with any colour scheme and are a good choice for hard wear and a sturdy country house look. I am very happy in my newly covered upright armchair covered with two Ukrainian grain sacks, and I don't think I will wear it out. I have had two extra arm-pieces made which are easily washable and take up the dirt from my grubby gardening hands and if I have visitors I can whip them off in a trice!

CORNELLI - TAMBOUR LACE ON MUSLIN

2011-10-02T11:56:00.000+01:00

Cornelli were one of the most delightful discoveries I made in France. They seem to be unknown in this country so I will try and describe them - they can still be found very occasionally with quality linen dealers in France. They are long, elegant curtains, usually 8 - 9ft long, made with fine cotton muslin. The muslin is embroidered with a machine (a Cornelli) that follows the design drawn with blue lines; I do not know how these were drawn or were they stencils or iron-on transfers? The stitch is always chain stitch and is similar to the bed covers made with net and a crochet type tool stretched over a circular drum, called tambour lace; the patterns vary from the most dainty and elaborate floral designs often loosely joined with scrolls and curls, to others (probably later in period), in elaborate geometric patterns, greek key, borders in straight lines with boxes, angles and corners and have an Edwardian classic Adam revival look.

see tiny pin holes at top near the flower

Almost all had shell scalloped borders in a vandyke or scrolling edging, along the leading edge and base. They were usually to be found in pairs, occasionally in larger groups, and I have never seen the same pattern again. It seems they were made in many small workshops and factories from 1860 or so until the turn of the century. They were considered essential for shielding the furnishings in the best rooms, from light and sun, and helped to filter the dirt that came in through the windows from the dusty unmade roads and driveways as the horse-drawn traffic rumbled by. The most common (new) use for the cornelli is to decorate four poster beds in a light feminine style which is elegant and pretty to look at, without stiffling the sleepers within - it can make a welcome change from all those yards of expensive chintz which festooned the bedrooms of the 80s and 90s, lining the pockets of the fabric firms and the decorators and causing some husbands to wince at the cost! If you buy them (they are no longer cheap as the decorators have dug them out) you need to check them very carefully for small pin holes and wear half way down where they have been gripped by hands or tied back with 'embrasses' (tie-backs) and suffer damage. Very few are quite perfect and slight damage is to be expected if they were used over 100 years ago. Pairs usually cost about £200 or more, in good condition. Only hand wash (can be risky if they are fragile!) and a very light bath of starch can help them if they are a bit floppy.

THE CHERRIES ON THE CAKE

2011-10-01T21:28:00.004+01:00

NOW SOLD

Fine cotton with cherries

Dainty Indienne pattern

These little treasures, short lengths of very fine cotton, were raked out of a mixed-up stall in France recently and are so typically French - cherries were grown there in huge quantities and the sight of a cherry orchard is very delightful - they hang neatly in pairs and decorate so much of French kitchen ware. They are embroidered on the linen pelmets for windows, shelves and mantelpiece, appear on aprons, tea towels and even sheets (often worked into the initials of the owner) a'plenty on china and enamelware and the combination of green and red is a well known stimulator for your appetite -I hardly need it when enjoying my French meals! The other little cotton piece is another type of design which I like very much, much more boudoir than kitchen, and the chain of medallions with little roses is an adaptation of the Indienne patterns so popular at the turn of the century (1900s). This would have been used for discreet little shelves and cupboards, work baskets, cushions and 'necessaires' known as cartonnage which the inventive sewing ladies were so good at. They covered blotters, booklets, letter racks, glove and fan boxes with great skill and were just so neat!

CLEAN SWEEP

2011-09-28T19:18:00.000+01:00

I thought it would be good for many of us handling old and worn textiles to learn of simple remedies for removing stains - I have suggested Rubigine from France for removing iron mould (rust) stains, it's just magic! Vanish for ordinary ones and Napisan for restoring bright whiteness - others have said sunshine, I say moonshine, and , lying on the grass - the sheet, not you - and soaking may be the most important part of the process - just two or three days in plain cold water can work wonders. Any more suggestions? I do not find Stain Devils very useful so far! but I daresay Health and S. forbid greater strength of chemicals. The French seem able to poison their families much more easily. Please send your suggestions and I will print - we are all in this together and it is so good to rescue spoilt and damaged articles for further use. DID YOU KNOW STARCH, AFTER A LONG DISAPPEARANCE, IS BACK ON THE MARKET? Personally I only use it occasionally and a little goes a very long way (see my future Blog on Cornelli muslin curtains from France) and I was surprised to hear that powdered starch will be back at our wonderful local ironmonger's next week - will it still have a robin on it? I never liked the 'plastic' starch which was also jolly expensive, just as I hate furniture 'cream' made with silicon which wrecks old woods with its plastic seal., and as an ex-bee-keeper, know that there is nothing better than old fashioned beeswax, turps, etc.

Birds in the bush

2011-09-28T10:43:00.000+01:00

These birds date from the late 19c. and are beautifully printed on fine cotton and known in France as Indiennes. Many different versions of birds, flowers and plants were designed at the height of their fashion and the new chemical dyes give some a very brilliant colour. It was the Empress Josephine who loved 'la Nature' in every form, who encouraged the French print manufacturers to design them and they copied the new patterns which came into France on the Eastern and Indian trade routes - they were a novelty and in a very different style to some of the older classical styles of the Napoleonic period and the more romantic Eastern visions of the jungle with exotic flowers, bamboo and tropical birds with brilliant plumage were extremely popular. Many different colours were used, all sizes of birds from little tree creepers to massive parrots and raptors were copied and in general, the smaller the birds, the earlier the design. The later ones showing fierce claws and beaks are not to everyone's taste and might cause nightmares! I have examples of birds of the first kind in brilliant blue in my kitchen, and very sweet multi-coloured ones in a bathroom and they are very light and pretty at the windows. They are liable to rot and fade as the cotton is so fine but I now have a splendid example in crimson just in from France, which is a door curtain, already gathered and with matching braid in what appears to be unused condition and quite unfaded. It would split to make two narrow dress curtains or cover a small chair, or possibly make a very dashing item of dress.

Stains on the characters

2011-09-26T20:49:00.002+01:00

I have had a query about those wood stains that mark and spoil some of the old folded sheets from France (chestut wood shelves are to blame). It has been suggested that good old Marseille soap is the best treatment and it may well work if the stains are light and fairly new. If this soap, which has some olive oil in it, I understand, does not work after a good long two -day soak in cold plain water, a light brushing with the soap is the best, try nail brush, then I have two remedies which often work - one is the oxygen powder Vanish which you can apply as a paste for a short while and then rinse, or a soak in Napisan which is used to whiten babies clothes and nappies, and does not scorch the material - bleach is the very last resort, applied with cotton buds directly along the lines and rinsed as soon as they move, the trouble with bleach is that it leaves 'cloudy' stains behind and spoils the creamy look of old linen. Constant washing and exposure to sunshine will lessen the stains but will take much longer and if you are using the sheets as curtains, is not practical. Good luck!

The American Museum in Britain 5stars event.

2011-09-23T16:14:00.000+01:00

HOW SHALL I START? THE WEATHER WAS TRULY WONDERFUL, WARM SUN ALL DAY AND WE ALL THOUGHT IT MATCHED THE SMILING PEOPLE WHO NEARLY OVERWHELMED US AT OUR BIG TEXTILE FAIR - THEY CAME IN THEIR HUNDREDS, ALL DAY LONG, HAPPY AND (CARE)FREE, WITH THEIR FRIENDS AND PARTNERS AND USED THE SPARE CASH, CREDIT CARDS AND CHEQUES TO TREAT THEMSELVES AT OUR SPLENDID ARRAY OF TEXTILE GOODS - NOT JUST ENGLISH AND FRENCH, BUT EXOTIC AND RARE TROPHIES FROM REMOTE AND UNKNOWN PARTS OF THE WORLD - OUR INTREPID HUNTER-GATHERERS ARE REALLY INTERESTED IN THE UNKNOWN WORKS OF SMALL SPECIALIST GROUP WORKERS IN ASIA AND AFRICA AND HAVE FASCINATING TALES TO TELL - THESE ARTEFACTS WILL NOT GO ON FOR EVER - THEY EVENTUALLY END UP IN MUSEUMS AND BIG STUDY COLLECTIONS AND WE WERE LUCKY TO HAVE JOHN GILLOW (AUTHOR AS WELL) MARTIN CONLAN AND BARBIE CAMPBELL COLE TO CONTRIBUTE THEIR ETHNIC THINGS. ALL OUR STALLHOLDERS WERE SO DELIGHTED TO HAVE SO MANY INTERESTED AND BUSY SHOPPERS IN THESE DIFFICULT TIMES AND THE BUYERS COMMENTED ALL DAY LONG ON THE SUPER STANDARD AND WELCOME FROM THE MUSEUM PEOPLE AS WELL AS OUR t4t MEMBERS! ALL IN ALL, IT WAS A HUGE SUCCESS FOR US AND I DO THANK THE MUSEUM FOR ALL THEIR EFFORTS TO MAKE THE GARDENS AND EVERYTHING ELSE LOOK SO GOOD AND GIVE US A WONDERFUL DAY. WE HOPE THEY WILL INVITE US BACK AGAIN WHEN THEY HAVE GOT THEIR BREATH BACK!

FRANCE IS ONLY A LONG SWIM AWAY

2011-08-30T21:42:00.000+01:00

wE ARE OFF AGAIN WITH AN EMPTY CAR, EMPTY ZIP BAGS. AND WE HOPE TO PART FILL THEM WITH A GOOD ASSORTMENT OF fRENCH DELIGHTS, NOT JUST CHEESE AND WINE, BUT ALSO A SELECTION OF THOSE LOVELY THINGS THAT SOMETIMES GRIP YOU WHEN YOU SEE THEM ON THE STALL OF A DEALER, WHO SOMETIMES JUST REGARDS HIS STOCK AS CLEARANCE JUNK AND CANT WAIT TO GET RID OF IT
AND WHO THINKS THE FOREIGNERS ARE JUST MAD TO BUY OLD JUNK THAT IS CERTAINLY NOT A LA MODE AND BELONGS TO THE DAYS OF HIS GRANDMOTHER.

apologies - American Museum

2011-08-28T21:52:00.002+01:00

ONCE AGAIN I MUST APOLOGISE TO ALL THOSE WHO HAVE APPLIED THESE LAST TWO WEEKS FOR INVITATIONS TO THE T4T TEXTILE FAIR AT THE AMERICAN MUSEUM ON THURSDAY, SEPT 1. WE HAVE HAD TO STOP SENDING INVITATIONS OUT AS THERE IS NOT ENOUGH ROOM IN THE CAR PARKS(2)FOR ANY MORE CARS AND THE BUILDINGS WILL BE OVER-FILLED BEYOND THEIR CAPACITY. YOU CAN PROBABLY FIND PARKING (PAYING) AT THE NEARBY UNIVERSITY CAMPUS. WE HAVE THEREFORE RELUCTANTLY CLOSED THE LIST AND HOPE YOU WILL UNDERSTAND. IF THERE ARE TOO MANY PEOPLE TRYING TO GET INTO THE FAIR BUILDINGS, WE MAY HAVE TO CLOSE THE DOORS TEMPORARILY, BUT THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHER ATTRACTIONS TO VISIT AND WE HOPE ANY CRUSH WILL SOON DISPERSE.. VISIT AND ADMIRE MARILYN MONROE'S 20 DRESSES IN THE EXHIBITION GALLERY, THE MANSION HOUSE WITH ITS WONDERFUL HISTORICAL AMERICAN FURNISHINGS, THE COFFEE SHOP, THE EXCELLENT GIFT AND REPLICA SHOP, THE MOUNT VERNON GARDENS AND THE ARBORETUM, ALL INCLUDED IN YOUR FREE INVITATION.

BREAKING NEWS - FULL TO BURSTING!

2011-08-20T11:16:00.005+01:00

WE ARE NOW COMPLETELY FULL WITH CARS AND PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN MUSEUM -WE MAY HAVE OVERDONE IT AND THERE COULD BE WAITS AND QUEUES! THERE HAS BEEN A TRULY AMAZING REPONSE TO TALENT FOR TEXTILES DEALERS' INVITATIONS AND BLOGS (FOR WHICH MANY THANKS) AND WE KNOW THAT THERE WILL BE CROWDS BUT THERE IS PLENTY ELSE TO SEE AND DO IF YOU FIND OUR FAIR TOO FULL - WE ARE TAKING ALL MEASURES TO EASE THINGS AND HOPE YOU CAN BE PATIENT - THE COFFEE SHOP WILL BE OPEN AND THERE,TOO, I WOULD SUGGEST YOU CALL IN REALLY EARLY OR RATHER LATE FOR ANY REFRESHMENTS ESPECIALLY SHOULD THE WEATHER BE WET AND YOU WANT TO SIT FOR A BIT UNDER COVER! REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR INVITATION CARD FOR FREE ADMISSION.

Cheaper by the Dozen

2011-08-19T17:36:00.000+01:00

My husband's grandfather was a big and canny farmer - big man with big ideas. One day he returned home from Newmarket with a gross of screwdrivers, announcing proudly "they're cheaper by the dozen" - that was 124 screwdrivers! Maybe I follow in his (large) footsteps because I've always loved buying by the gross, things that are small, cheap and unusual. I like to be the sole owner of something very attractive, queer and well under £5, that will bring people, even children, to my stall at a Fair. My best wholesale venture was to invest about £90 in a small warehouse full of pre-war pill boxes, red for dangerous medicine, and a beautiful collection of glass reels for holding surgeon's sutures and a lot of other medical paraphenalia in fine glass - atomisers, and pumps, etc. I had a stall in a stately home near Cambridge, and to my delight found that these all intrigued the many doctors and nurses from that area - especially Addenbrook's, a training hospital nearby. The little pill boxes I sold by the dozen, for dolls house hat boxes and many went to jewellers for rings and earings. Some went to children for the tooth fairy! The lovely glass reels and thread winders in 5 different sizes and many different colours (colour coded for speedy sorting in very pre-war operating theatres) went to embroiderers and crafts people and especially to fly-fishing experts. I actually met some retired nurses who remembered using these charming obsolete things. Alas! I sold every last one so have none to illustrate!

SEW LITTLE TIME

2011-08-15T20:26:00.002+01:00

I have set myself a simple project - to see how many useful things I can make out of one length of beautiful Flemish fine linen in a pale shade of taupe. It is actually a lining for an army sleeping bag and is part of a job lot I bought recently in France. As taupe is one of the top shades now in demand (including stone, slate, gravel and any other sort of building material as well as metals like zinc, pewter, etc) I will then see if my clientele agree! (Mary Portas, go away!)
I reckon I can make a short gardener's apron with three pouch pockets, an oven glove, a tote bag, a cushion, a pot holder, a purse on a string, and maybe a pair of fringed table mats for my supper, just using my sewing machine and a few pins. I'll let you know with a pic. in two weeks time!

6ft Flemish linen sleeping bag liner - army surplus stores - £22 each
on sale at the American Museum Fair

CELL WORK on show

2011-08-13T17:34:00.002+01:00

You may have noticed that I am a supporter of FINE CELL WORK, the prison charity that trains long term inmates to do fine needlework which is later sold for their benefit. I have seen their work and it is of the highest standard and I like to think that they have an interest and skill which will improve their morale and the money they earn will start them off when they leave the prisons. To that end, local volunteers will be present at our big fair at the American Museum, next month Thursday Sept 1st 10 - 5pm, at the entrance to the Stable building with a fine display of work, all for sale. They accept special commissions.

A RIOT (of colour)

2011-08-08T22:44:00.004+01:00

     Far away from Brixton, Croydon, and Tottenham where they have these apalling youth riots, I've turned to the bright beauty of this Collier Campbell design now being exhibited in LONDON.     This is the sort of textile, whether modern, vintage, or antique, that gives me great joy and I start thinking how and where I could use it to best effect!     At the present time, I am very keen on all the natural stone, metal and earth colours, but they do need some good splashes of colour to catch your eye and welcome you as you go into a room. Pictures can do the same and an interesting lot of lamps with pretty shades in jewel colours will add a touch of luxury.
   I have just been to France (Brittany) and visited a few fairs hoping to add to my stock of attractive floral prints and some jolly striped tickings.   I found none - just one ticking I sold the day after returning home - and now the cupboard is bare - I was able to find some good really rough hemp sheets, hand-woven and very grainy in oatmeal shades, plus masses of good offcuts from a workshop which will be useful for people making cushions, table mats and tote bags (I'm bringing them to the American Museum fair)   I did find one beautiful shirt smock with fine embroidery on the collar and 6 tiny and amazing hand-made linen bobble buttons - I think it must have been a wedding shirt, it is so beautifully embroidered on such coarse heavy fabric and I find it a very touching example of skill with very primitive materials.
   While in Brittany, I went back to see my friend in the France profonde to hear more about her family.  She told me her mother never learnt to read or write and was a washerwoman for the village for 27 years. She washed the clothes and sheets and hung them to dry on a line which went right round a field that she hired from her landlord, the local chateau owner.
She soaked it all first in cold water, then boiled it up in a great copper, used blocks of soap and a brush to clean everything, rinsed it in another lot of clean water and carted it out to her washing line - rain was a disaster and sometimes she had to re-wash to get rid of the mud, and then there was the ironing and folding. My friend, aged 14, with her 3 brothers, had the job of delivering the laundry back round the village.    Her mother lived long enough to see her daughter open an antique shop which specialised in antique costume and linen, and was so pleased she had an easier life than hers.

Picking up the threads again

2011-08-06T14:59:00.002+01:00

Sorry, my computer crashed the day before I WENT OFF TO FRANCE AND HAS ONLY JUST BEEN RESTORED TO HEALTH AND ACTION, it was suffering from builder's dust and very sick! so I have had a lot of catching up to do with over 80 emails awaiting my attention - now all dealt with and it's on with the show. I have today sent out over 200 invitations for the American Museum Fair which is going to be a really special and exciting event. We have 35 dealers from all over and they will be bringing interesting and varied stock from many parts of the world - not just France! I will catch up with some of the big names and special collections in another Blog when I have tidied up the backlog and booked some helpers for the event. It is not too late to email me for a free invitation - I will ask you to complete a booking form and then put you on the mailing list as well if you want to join for next year's events. Email is dbaer@onetel.com

FAIR WEATHER FAIR

2011-07-04T02:47:00.000+01:00

We were lucky with two glorious days of sunshine for the Bradford on Avon Fair - the flowers came out at last; they were a bit shy the previous weekend for the B.on A. Secret Garden event which allowed visitors to visit 10 or so small gardens hidden away in back streets and alley-ways all around our hilly town. We had a reasonable attendance but could have done with more people as there was a very good spread of interesting stock - particularly vintage clothing and some stunning high fashion clothing from China which did sell very well - look out for Slow Loris stand at our Fair at the American Museum in Britain on Sept.1st. Our vintage clothing and textile exhibitors were Sallie and Jim Ead who organise their own textile fairs and the Needhams who come from deepest Devon, again both will be at Claverton, excellent quality all round and a joy to see. Thanks to all who took part - many making long journeys and putting on a great show which our visitors commented on and greatly enjoyed, as well as Ginny's excellent picnic food topped with some glorious meringues!

PASTEL PORTRAIT

2011-07-02T22:52:00.045+01:00

Toulouse, S.W.France

This is the enticing title of an article in this latest issue of Selvedge the fabric and design bi-monthly magazine. The article takes you into the intriguing world of WOAD - you may have thought it was only used by Bodicia (I did for many years) used to frighten the people she fought - and maybe frighten the horses too - but there was a major industry in the area round Cologne, using the clear waters of the Rhine which gave the plants good growth, and the dyeing of linen and cotton, at which the Germans were always very expert and in advance of other countries, with their chemists and scientists. It also tells us that the name Kelsch is a contraction of the description Kolnisch Blau (Cologne blue) and the French word for Woad is 'pastel'. Anyway. it certainly adds to our knowledge of the Kelsches about which I have written a few notes in recent BLOGS, as I had some for sale and there was good interest and lively sales. I still have three good ones available now, all red and white checks, and I was intrigued to learn that the weavers never used any other colours except red, blue and the natural creamy linen. The edited extract was taken from a book by Sandrine Banessy Le Pastel en Pays d'Oc,which is the Department near Toulouse, and you may have heard of the couple there, the Lamberts, who have restored an old dyeing mill and dye the old linen and hemp sheets with the WOAD dyes, very successfully. Not cheap! because for these you need large quantities of deep dye to colour the highly absorbent thick fibres of a hand-woven sheet, and the sheet itself has to be a very good one without any worn parts or discolour. Dyes do not cover up colour faults and the final result can be very patchy. There's more to dye than meets the eye. The term bleu de travail refers to the blue working clothes of France, trousers, shirts, blousons,smocks,
often in denim, but also in every kind of cotton from rough and scratchy to smooth and polished (till it looks like satin). It is a top fashion for the young in London and even conservative middle-aged men are finding it ideal for country wear, working and relaxing - you do not have to own a vineyard to wear dark blue denim. Women love the finer shirts and costume smocks which make ideal cover-ups but these are extremely hard to find, and fetch a high price. French people have special saints days on which they now often turn out in local costume and the finer items disappear quickly from the markets as do coifs, bonnets, fichus, shawls and other accessories.

WILL YOU BE THERE?

2011-06-25T13:33:00.004+01:00

The Stables Auditorium, American Museum

We are all getting rather excited about the forthcoming Talent for Textile Fair at the American Museum (Sept 1st Thursday) although it is two months away. They have had record attendance this year with people visiting the new education complex (where we will have our Fair), and the fabulous exhibition of Marilyn Munroe's 20 dresses. You may have heard on the Box that one of her most famous dresses sold the other day for £2million. To get free invitations for yourself and all passengers in your car, apply by Email to dbaer@onetel.com . I have had the pleasure of being able to invite many well-known and intrepid traveller-dealers who source the stuff directly from far away places and have really interesting stories to tell you about their provenance. There will be over 35 so there will be a huge choice of things to see and buy and I think we should have a memorable day. There is an excellent coffee shop by the main Museum, with light lunches,cookies and cake (all home-made by Inez and her team), and there are many other things to see - the Museum itself, the special US theme gardens and arboretum. the bonnet shop, the log cabin, etc., etc., so you could make it a special all -day visit! Good facilities for handicapped visitors, toilets and parking. Please, don't leave application to the last minute, as I hold the invitations and will be both abroad and then very busy just before the great date! Without an invitation you pay full entrance charges.

The Coach House, American Museum

KELSCHES ARE IN FASHION

2011-06-18T12:19:00.008+01:00

Ten years ago, I bought a load of Kelsches from Alsace Loraine, thinking that the weaves were interesting and very folklorique . Nearly all were unused, hand-woven with lovely texture, with the family initials on them and rarely, pearl buttons or the handmade linen buttons referred to in BLOG re Dorset buttons (FOR DORSET READ GERMANY and BUTTONY). There was no great interest in my finds and I consigned them to the back of my store, out of sight and mind.
Today I cleared the store out, ready for next week's big clearance sale here in Bradford on Avon, at the Church Hall, July 1st.2nd Fri.Sat., and found three neglected Kelsches hiding there. A few weeks ago I advertised some newly acquired ones (I cannot resist them!) and they flew out to keen buyers see BLOG - CHECK IT OUT and KELSCHES IN QUANTITY, now all sold out!

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Cotton check Kelsch 4'7 X 5'5"

Pair of Trad. damask weave Kelsches initials C.P.

So now I have a few more for anyone disappointed and scans below show them in detail - both lots in perfect, unused condition. The fabric makes lovely cushions and seats for antique chairs and benches and I have seen them used very effectively as kitchen curtains, they are very sturdy and washable (40o). The double pair are in a very traditional rustic damask weave that I have seen in table cloths, runners and napkins and has a very strong twill weave background, and are lined in calico - the other is double-sided, so lots more yardage and in a strong cotton. The pair are £140 and the single £55 plus postage. Alsace Loraine is a very prosperous area with a fine tradition of textiles and weaving not to mention a lot of wine growing. They also have coalmines and steel works.
Historically there is still a strong German influence and I think it comes out in their designs, and they have a little girl figure called Hansi in their very traditional costume with a strange black hat, who is often depicted on ribbons, table cloths, china etc., all highly collectable.
I was so interested to read some more info. on Kelsches in a very good article in "Selvedge" magazine today - I didn't know that they only used red and blue and natural white linen and hemp and the name Kelsch was a corruption of the word Kolnisch Blau after the town of Cologne where woad was produced near the river Rhine. A Monsieur Gander has done a lot to revive the weaving of Kelsches; his family of weavers go back to the 17th. Century in Alsace . see http://www.tissage-gander.fr/

BREAKING NEWS

2011-06-17T15:59:00.013+01:00

JUST TO REMIND YOU OF THE REST OF THE PROGRAMME FOR THIS SUMMER ,WE HAVE THE FOLLOWING FAIRS ARRANGED

CHURCH HOUSE, CHURCH STREET, BRADFORD ON AVON, BA15 1LN, on Fri.Sat. July 1st 2nd
Special: A huge choice of Welsh quilts, blankets, picnic rugs from Jen Jones (the world expert!). A new exhibitor; who will show wonderful, smart tailored clothes made in China. (Martin Conlan.)
Two new exhibitors showing good quality vintage clothing and accessories. There is still time (just!) to apply for the invitation which is necessary for the Fair at Bradford and also for the Fair at the American Museum. Apply by Email to dbaer@onetel.com

Church House

Stable and Coach house Exhibition Halls A.M.Museum

AMERICAN MUSEUM, CLAVERTON, BATH, BA2 7BD on Thursday, Sept.1st. Grand opening fair in the new beautiful estate buildings. As well as our big Fair, (over 35 exhibitors all selling quality textiles), there is the main Museum and the stunning display of Marilyn Munroe's 20 dresses, all free, if you apply to me for invitations. More info and pictures on later Blog WILL YOU BE THERE?
Email dbaer@onetel.com FOR APPLICATION FORM FOR BOTH FAIRS. THE MUSEUM WILL CHARGE FULL RATES IF YOU DO NOT HAVE MY INVITATION.

WINTER HEDGES

2011-06-08T23:08:00.020+01:00

   I was at our latest TforT Fair at Poundbury, nr. Dorchester, in the Pummery Square Hall, today, this was equipped with a lift and every convenience and good parking, and was a very splendid version of a traditional market hall with open spaces and pillars below and rooms above for large events such as ours. The whole building was filled with every kind of textile and from every period.   One of the most interesting stands was Martin Conlan's with a kaliedoscope of Chinese garments adapted to British fashion. We have seen people queueing up at two previous fairs round his clothes rails, and have persuaded him to bring his large and attractive stock to both the fair here at Bradford and to the American Museum. You will be surprised at the designs, and the incredibly good value of properly tailored ladies wear.
While there I met an old friend and we talked at length about Dorset buttons (she is quite an expert) and I was able to tell her that I had recently bought a good quantity of the extremely rare high-top buttons, actually made in Germany by a firm called Adler, printed on the cards.   See my Blog FOR DORSET READ GERMANY.    My friend suggested that these were made in areas that were very skilled in lace-making.
   Then we discussed laundry wheezes for removing stains and agreed that moonshine on a frosty night was even better than sunshine for bleaching linen and removing stains; and then she mentioned Winter Hedges, I'd never heard it before - it was the nickname for the so called Shiela Maid ceiling airers made of metal brackets with wooden slats through them for drying and airing laundry in a kitchen or scullery. I am so old fashioned I actually have two, one in my laundry passage room and one in the garage - all in frequent use and dripping with French linens; I don't like tumble dryers, they take a lot of lint out of the clothes, and are not good for linen and hemp. Known colloquially as 'winteredges' dropping the h, there is a reference to them in an 18th c. inventory of the stately home, Harewood House in Yorkshire.

LOOKING FORWARD

2011-06-02T21:33:00.002+01:00

A beautiful Welsh Quilt from Jen Jones who will be exhibiting and selling with us at the Fair at Bradford on Avon, July 1st.2nd. and also at the American Museum on Sept 1st.

You need an invitation card for both these fairs so please apply Email to E.Baer at http://www.dbaer@onetel.com/ Talent for Textiles, our informal textile fairs organisation, has done its best to cover most of the South West, though Cornwall seems a stitch too far at present. I have been asked to hold similar textile fairs in a client's old barn near Guildford and I regularly get complaints from the North that there is nothing like ours going on there. There is nothing to stop anyone getting on with a scheme - ours started 20 years ago with an evening run by three dealers in a room lent for the evening by an antique dealer. It cost us nothing and the visitors came by invitation and from that simple beginning we have now built up a mailing list of over 1600 names - they are invited every year and all get into our fairs free of charge. The rents from the stallholders pay for the venue and all of them are still with us for every fair. The caterers take away a reasonable profit and I think everyone is rather happy!

Media friends

2011-05-29T18:52:00.007+01:00

This month's Home and Antiques magazine features vintage linens in great variety - I was pleased to see some of my T.for T. customers and friends in it ; Jane Sacchi, Carole Wilson, Polly Lyster and some in the textile world like Kate Forman, Kath Kidston, Caroline Zoob, and other names to drop from the pages of the glossies! It is good to know that we have watched some of the early beginners in textiles make it to the top of their respective trees, and that others, already there, have found it worthwhile to buy and collect with us while they sought inspiration and built up their collections and are now world celeb.s in the decorating world.

A rich display of trifles and a rainbow of old tickings. An old smock shirt and a view of odds and ends.
French stock has a je ne sais quoi thing about it? n'est ce pas?

It is also good to know that many of our private customers come to us for some very special fabrics and decorations and that we have helped them achieve their own exclusive schemes. Many of us have taken trouble to search out rare and difficult- to- find items for them. We had some special visitors from Missouri here recently and one honed in on Linda Clift's unique Fair Isle knitted bed quilt, lovingly pieced on a tweed backing, and couldn't wait to show her friends at home this unique bedroom accessory. We all need our friends to spread the good news of Talent for Textiles events and I can assure you that the more we network and recommend each others' special lines, the happier the clients are and the more they come to our fairs with their friends and buy. I am going to write a little piece on the word Vintage which is now bandied about in the fashion and textile articles.

For Dorset read Germany

2011-05-29T18:44:00.022+01:00

Linen buttons from Germany similar to Dorset buttons. Lower examples are the rare high top pattern. The brass ring is all buttonhole stitched and then the spokes are added , sometimes to be completed with stitches worked in ever wider circles from the centre, or is it the other way, from edge to centre? My efforts with string and a curtain ring and darning needle not surprisingly, were not at all successful!

Mini Dorset buttons on a yellow card (sign of third quality sold in home market)
Disregard the old address on the leaflet - I have moved nearer to Dorset!

My Post on Dorset Buttony has to be updated - I know now that these lovely and decorative buttons made with a brass ring and needle and linen thread were also made in Germany and explains why I have often found them on the bedding, kelsches and pillow cases that I have bought in France and which I know were imported to feather factories from German charity shops. I now have some of these very special buttons which were once made by the thousand by home workers and very poor women, men and children, for a few pence per card and were sold in haberdashery and drapers shops. A skilled worker could make a gross in a day! 'High top' was the rarest and only recently has a man re-discovered the technique of making them. The others were called knobs, birdseye, singleton, mite, crosswheel, cartwheel and honeycomb. One of the advantages over bone and m.o.p. buttons was that they would easily pass through the mangle after washing. These 'Dorset' buttons were in great demand for costumes made for the Hardy film and that was when I first heard of them and found some at Shepton Mallet fairs. I have tried to copy them but found my fingers far too big, the needle far too small and the thread far too thick to do a good job - I have a good W.I. leaflet on how to do it if anyone would like a copy. Email me. http://www.dbaer@onetel.com/

Kelsches, quilts and covers

2011-05-27T11:55:00.004+01:00

Bedding in France has always been a very important part of the household goods In early times there were feather beds which were downproof bags, the size of the bed, not hanging over the edge like our duvets, and there were often two to soften the feel of the hard wooden slats of the primitive beds and placed under the sleeper. Next came the sheets which were usually hand-woven, consisting of two lengths of linen or hemp woven on the narrow wooden looms of every village and many convents and priories. They were handstitched, the best were edge to edge with tiny close stitches which avoided the hard -edged line of sewing made by whipping both edges together. Initials were added in one corner, usually red cross-stitch and all seams were also handworked. Over the top was another feather bed which acted like a tea cosy locking in the warmth all round the body. In addition you sometimes come across a very small and soft eiderdown, also known as an edredon, which was specifically placed over your feet to keep them extra warm.On top of that was a quilt, handmade with scraps from clothes and curtains, sometimes quite a work of art., others just a jumble of scraps from the rag bag. The best, often used in Provence, and called Boutis, were made from printed calicos which had Indian or Persian small designs and floral motifs, often dyed and printed in the town of Mulhouse near the German border, where there were highly skilled manufacturers, who led the way in dyeing and printing, dress fabrics, pretty foulards and fichus and other fabrics for decorating interiors. Otherwise covers were made with coloured plain throws and also thick white cotton sheets (called Marcella - an obvious contraction of the port of Marseille which imported cotton from Egypt India and the Far East.) I have written elsewhere of the linen Kelsches peculiar to Alsace Loraine. The feather bags were known as coutils, but that is a word almost forgotten. See post about pillows and bolsters for more bedtime stories. CUSHIONS DOWN AND OUT FROM EIDERDOWNS.

OX-EYES and SHADES

2011-05-23T23:05:00.002+01:00

These surprisingly decorative patterned macrame little hangings were specially made to shield the eyes of the oxen from the flies that pestered them. I do not know if these were for special festivals, processions or what, but like so many French textiles they were made for a specific job and made with great skill and care - very fit for purpose! This is the last pair I have - I used to find them in Burgundy and near Bordeaux where the oxen were used for tilling the fields and vineyards. All were different in colour and pattern so I think there may have been an element of competition for the best among the local crochet and netting experts. I have shown the colourful fly sheets with lovely stripes elsewhere which were used to keep the flies off the backs of the animals; and the ox-yokes, heavy chestnut wood sort of brackets to link the oxen pairs together, have often been converted to hanging lights with parchment shades and extra ironwork to hang from the beams of old farmhouses and bars. The huge carts for carrying the hods and barrels now stand unused around the farms, while tractors and trailers cope with the heavy loads - I have not seen a single ox in my recent travels.

FLEMISH LINEN

2011-05-21T21:53:00.008+01:00

Last month at a French fair, when I was running low in funds (not unusual by the end of the morning and no A.T. M. handy), I saw an interesting pile of 'taupe' Everyone seems to be into taupe, which is French for mole, and is a pale dirty beige, or khaki shade. As I felt the tightly woven linen I remembered buying some similar linen fifteen years before and selling it to an American decorator who converted these sheets into tab-topped hangings for metal four-poster beds which were easily available then and used them in her other commissions;

As this lady took all I had, I always wanted to find more as I knew they were winners. So fifteen years later, I hit the right spot and was able to stock up - I told the seller I wanted as many as he had and he replied that he had 1000 in the van behind his market stand. That was 900 too many for me and my low funds, but I weighed the car down with this great find and have been selling them ever since. They are finest Flemish linen sewn into sleeping bag liners for the French army - their M.O.D., like ours, restock every so many years and the surplus is sold in big auctions where dealers go and buy in bulk. These liners are so closely woven that they are waterproof, they make up very smartly and are easy to pipe and tailor. They are being used for clothes (jackets, skirts and trousers) table mats and napkins, bed valances and bed ends, cushions, etc., Taupe happens to be the shade of the year, (together with all the other 'stone' colours, brown, grey, slate and so on). I can send a small sample if you like - email me -the bags measure 6'10 X 3' double sided. Unused, clean, £25 each plus postage, so they are a real bargain. The linen is absolutely top quality and very fine and strong. I have mixed the linen with bright striped ticking and checked Kelsch material and it is stunning! Well anyway a top Spanish decorator thought so and ordered 14 bespoke for 2 Royal homes to put into garden rooms!
My latest contact in USA is ordering a couple of dozen to cover some special armchairs - taupe is the new 'in' colour over there as well as here - stone colours, slate, granite, sandstone etc., are cool and restful.

French fine linen sleeping bag liners

HomeThoughts from abroad

2011-04-21T22:19:00.015+01:00

As we leave the scenes of the big 'deballage' (literally, the lorry off-loading) fairs of France, we usually have a post mortem review and think how we can do better next time. Getting there at the crack of 8 o'clock is essential if you want to see the best before someone else snatches it up - a good torch and big zip bag are both useful - the textiles are often spread on the floors of the big aerodrome hangars. When there are 7 or 8 further hangars to explore, in no kind of order, the hunt is a bit of blind man's buff combined with luck and two pairs of sharp eyes now wide open! The sellers are casual and inclined to give that famous Gallic shrug of the shoulders if you point out the damage, stains and other faults. But if you hold it up to the light and check the condition and make a fair offer, they will often accept as they know that French buyers are unlikely to go for their stock and you may be their only interested customer as well as a pro. The difficulty is to find the really special pieces and they are scarce and very expensive. I bought a lovely striiped oxen coat (used to keep the flies off the cattle) and an unused horse blanket in a splendid checked ticking with leather straps. but both were too expensive! I did hit on a lovely lot of checked linen kelsches (the handwoven covers for feather beds in Alsace Lorraine) which are excellent for sturdy seat covers, curtains and cushions for rustic rooms, kitchen benches, pine furniture and cottage curtains - I found them still in their carrier bags under a trestle table and was glad I had poked around and got them into the light, and bought a big stack for my new Talent for Textile fairs. A good search can be more rewarding than a hectic dash round just skimming the top layers of the stalls.

Molleton - SUMMER SLUMBERS

2011-04-21T21:18:00.000+01:00

You may not have seen, let alone heard of, the molleton blanket. It's a French summer blanket in flannelette, with stripes each end, a distinctive knotted fringe, and often has initials and numbers actually woven into the border, a sign that they were ordered in some quantity for the client. These were very much part of the dowry of brides living in a hot climate, in the Southern half of France, the evenings are hot there and steamy, but later in the night the temperature goes down and that is when you need a light soft cover to keep you warm in bed. I have sold a great many of these, mostly for holiday use and for children - to a log cabin in Aspen ski resort and to a new mother who covered nursery furniture - nice and cosy and washable for a new baby!

I find them in strange plaxes in France - often wrapped round furniture just like our removal men use old army blankets to protect the Chippendale. They stay snowy white unlike the woollen ones which go so yellow and cannot be boiled! I sell them for about £45 each in really good condition.

MAKING HAY WHILE THE SUN SHINES

2011-04-19T14:52:00.013+01:00

I was very cheered and encouraged by the rows of nice things everyone has contributed to Linda Clift's piece on our new Talent for Textile Fair at Glastonbury. Here lay the riches of the Abbey tithes, the harvests of the Abbey's rich lands.
Get to http://www.textile@lindaclift.co.uk/ Linda wrote a very generous approval of the site and produced, with the aid of her clever camera, a whole gallery of shots that give you the complete scene - much better than any wordy description, and then there are a host of notes of approval from many friends and dealers who are all backing it up to the hilt, telling everyone about it and distributing flyers by the dozen. This is the way to get the crowds we need for such a big space and no amount of black and white expensive advertising will do it as well. I have actually managed to get the news out to several thousand people in a news bulletin that goes to most villages at very reasonable cost as well as the Mendip Times, and hope that the readers and their friends will come along - it is still up to you, the readers and the stallholders who are attending, to get this new event known in the West and to build it up as we have with all our other Fairs. The whole thing is free entry as usual; fair, museum and grounds, so all you need to spend will be in the pretty little shop very much angled at the thousands of school children who visit the Somerset Rural Museum there, and maybe a cup of tea and home- made light refreshments in the cosy little cafe with garden seating, surrounded by a locally crafted willow fence, (especially if you fancy going up the path from the farmyard to the famous Tor high on the hill above the farm). Friday, May 20th is the date, open from 9 am to 4 pm and I advise getting there early for easy car parking and a good view of all the exciting and colourful textiles on display, with some interesting byegones, small antiques and brocante. There are 25 stands with dealers from all over the South West and this is the first ever antique fair in this wonderful 14C. timber and stone building which has a remarkabvle history but has not been used before for events like ours. I will print a little map later early May.

FAIR PLACES

2011-03-27T13:44:00.092+01:00

Followers of Talent for Textile Fairs will know that we choose our venues with care - plenty of room for shopping, viewing, chatting, eating and parking. We have two new places for your interest and pleasure and the first is in new area for us - Glastonbury - it has a strong local interest in colour, pattern and costume, an ancient town full of history and with many medieval associations, and a really stunning building, the 14th C. Tithe Barn which we are lighting up with strings of festive festoon lighting; we hope this will be a bit of a land mark event for all our visitors. There are added attractions of Museum, shop, cosy cafe and the path to the famous Tor, so there will be plenty to do on a day's outing. We are advertising heavily and looking to all our stallholders to spread the word! May 20th and everything free except the cup of tea and homemade cakes! I WILL REPEAT THIS WITH SMALL MAP NEARER THE DATE.This is an old Blog but I think the view of the interior is so stunning it is worth repeating and we are hoping that next year will see a repeat of this event - plans will be published early next year on this site and my website.
Our other big fair (we seem to be growing fast in well-established and successful sites), is the American Museum who welcome us back after a year's absence while they restored the old Georgian estate buildings into two vast pavilions, equipped with everything needed for modern exhibitions and lecture halls. Although we hardly need to blow our own trumpets - the fame of the Marilyn 20 dress collection has thrilled everyone, so I will just say that if you want to come with your friends, all for free, you must write to me with a SAE to get the printed invitation which will admit you and your party- otherwise full charges apply. E.Baer, Church House, Bradford on Avon, BA15 1LN. Come early to both fairs if you want to see what we have got for you!

The Baer News

2011-03-25T18:22:00.000Z

The Baers are off again - this time for some serious buying in N.France at Douai and again right down South at what is called 'le Triple' 3 big trade fairs, one after the other, down in the Southern part. Packing empty bags into an emprty car and putting our best buying boots on, we hope to find some worthwhile delights and bring them home to show at a long series of fairs here in the South West. If you are not on our mailing list, and would like news and invitations, email me at dbaer@onetel.com with you name and full postal address and I will send all details or you can look at my Blog, BREAKING NEWS which describes them all, http://www.elizabethbaertextiles.blogspot,com/ The TforT. Fairs (Talent for Textiles), all with free entry, are proud that they still have all the original sellers with them at every fair - have managed to keep up a very high standard of goods despite the rarity of some articles and have continued to offer a helpful and friendly service to everyone interested in textiles and decoration. We continue to grow with every fair and number many hundreds amongst our customers and supporters. The brochure above shows typical scenes.

STROUD GOES GLOBAL

2011-03-21T17:53:00.000Z

Stroud and the valleys around have always been a centre for textiles and there are miles of old mills along the roads and rivers nearby where many kinds of cloth were woven. There was plenty of wool around and it was a flourishing industry till cheap imports and other fibers reduced demand. The huge old buildings have been converted into many other businesses but Stroud itself has always kept up a big connection with textiles and fabric design and this forthcoming Fair in Bisley (4 miles out of the town) will have some of the top dealers in this country selling their own stock, after giving lectures at the World Tex. Festival which is going on in April. in the town. Just to see and handle the rather wonderful and very rare clothing from remote tribal areas of the near and far East is a worthwhile experience if you love pattern and colour and there will be some fascinating decorations and ethnic jewellery to admire and buy. I will be there with two T4T colleagues and we will bring the best of our French and European stuff.

HANDS ON!

2011-03-20T13:59:00.000Z

A fine example of English gloves 1660-80 (sold for £3800) Such a pretty pair! Both my mother, my grandmother and I wore olain long white kid gloves for our weddings which had a slit at the wrist with tiny m.o.p. buttons to allow you to squeeze into the palms -they were frequently washed, leaving the soap in them without rinsing to keep them supple and then had to be stretched on special glove stretchers which had a scissor action and were poked down each finger to get the original shape back. They were dusted with talcum or fine chalk inside and kept in fabric covered long boxes wrapped in tissue - you can still see lots of the old boxes very similar to those for fans in French Brocante collections and they are very collectable with dainty patterns and ribbon bows - all for my lady's boudoir!

Keep your Shirt on!

2011-03-17T21:00:00.000Z

The beautifully made smock shirts that were worn by French workmen during the 19th and early 20th C. have lasted well into modern times and are still worn, but now mostly by women, but rarely by French women!
Made of linen or hemp, hand sewn, they are square-cut like most English smocks, and the shoulders, collars and cuffs are double thick to take the wear of tools and hard work. The buttons are sometimes of bone or m.o.p. and the stitching is unbelievably even and fine, almost like machine work. These shirts were worn everyday only by men, over strong serge or corduroy trousers and stood up to endless washing in the 'lavoirs' of the villages and towns. When I first started buying from the old armoires in the country, I was offered hundreds for almost nil Francs -later they found a market at seaside resorts as beachwear for the tourists who loved the blonde look; but they had one disadvantage - because the French body was smaller and narrower than Anglo Saxons' and had very short and narrow arms, they could be uncomfortable to wear and work in. Nearly all have beautiful red embroidered initials and frequently my clients have found their own. The fine stitching and gathering, and numerous little gussets are so very skillful, and one cannot imagine how they sewed such fine seams on such rough and heavy cloth, and the fine, even gatherings at neck and sleeves must have been incredibly difficult to do.

HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT....

2011-03-16T13:51:00.008Z

The next T. for T. Fair will be on Friday,. May 20th. at Glastonbury Abbey Barn in the grounds of the Rural Museum - this is a new venture - a much bigger Fair than usual because we have plenty of room so we have been able to invite many from our waiting list and scout around for other West Country dealers who have interesting stock - we are inviting some who deal in decorative stuff, small antiques and byegones to add variety. The Museum is right next to this Abbey Barn and the path up to the TOR is behind the barn and will be an adventure for the energetic. All these attractions are free entry courtesy of Somerset County Council. Good home-made teas in the cafe to reward yourself for all efforts! I confirm that the date is Friday May 20th.

SMOCKS FOR CHILDREN S.O.S. for ragged costumes

2011-03-14T18:21:00.003Z

JUST HAD AN URGENT (THE FILM PEOPLE ALWAYS PRETTY DESPERATE FOR TIME)
REQUEST FOR OLD LINEN OR HEMP CHILDRENS SMOCKS AGED 10 - 14, IN ANY SORT OF STATE (PATCHED, DARNED ETC) CAN BE ROUGH SMOCK-WORK FOR A FILM BEING SHOT AT THE DOWNLAND MUSEUM. PLEASE EMAIL ME DBAER@ONETEL.COM OR TELEPHONE ME 01225 866 136 IF YOU CAN HELP - I HAVE FOUND THINGS FOR THIS BUYER BEFORE AND WOULD LIKE TO HELP HER AS SHE HAS A DEADLINE. By a strange coincidence I had a buyer from the Museum on the very same day and I was able to help her with a big pile of worn remnants for a project there - There really is a market for damaged, repaired, shabby fabrics of the right kind - don't throw your bits and pieces away! One of the film wardrobe ladies told me that she had bought coarse old sheets (in good condition) and then had to torch them, slash them and stain them to get the right look - and she was thankful to use my distressed sheets at a much cheaper price of course and not wreck good linen.

'OLE BLUE EYES

2011-03-14T13:23:00.000Z

Many of our visitors to the TALENT FOR TEXTILES fairs will have met Jen Jones and have seen her great displays of Welsh and other quilts. She is the acknowledged expert in this field and writes books, lectures, and has now opened a quilt museum in Lampeter, Wales. She has exhbited several times at the American Museum and will be with us at some of our summer fairs This wonderful example of the finest needlework, and also a stunning pieced design, is to be seen in her forthcoming new exhibiton at Lampeter in the old Town Hall, and is from her own personal collection - I am always amazed that in a poor country and with little education, Welsh women had such exceptional skills and designed such original and gorgeous patterns. Jen has some stunning newly- worked designs coming in from Africa, which are based on her old quilts with many others that are for sale. Telephone 01520 180610 for viewing. Click on designs below to see the full beauty of the stitching.

BREAKING NEWS

2011-03-08T16:21:00.002Z

There seems to have been a lot of bad news and scandals in the papers and on the box - how about treating yourself to an entertaining day in a pleasant old building and joining a lot of like-minded people to look at, enjoy, and possibly treat yourself to some interesting vintage textiles, costume and accesories for yourself and your home - Spring is the time to shake off all the gloom of cold dreary days and refresh yourself - (there is such a good cafe at the first fair of the year at Ilminster). All our Fairs are part of the Talent for Textiles informal group and we are on our 51st event - there seem to be a lot of new Fairs in the West and this means that we are becoming a good destination for professional trade buyers and collectors. Almost all the dealers who were with us for the first fairs are still with us at every fair and they are all experienced ladies who search for the best and can offer many top quality goods, Trust us! Look at the following list planned for this year and email me at dbaer@onetel.com if you would like invitations. All our Fairs are free entry. Click on print below for larger size.

Proper Cardi!

2011-03-06T14:24:00.000Z

This was a common nickname for a sharp Cardiganshire character intent on 'besting' you. The article about clogs on Lois' Blog (morgaine le fay antique textiles and more ) reminds me of a marvellous old girl I knew as a child. She lived, alone, on a little farm with a river running beside, near our favourite beach Traeth (beach)Penbryn . She was a fine figure, with a head of snowy white hair usually worn with hairpins falling out, under a man's flat cap. She was very bonny with lovely smooth pink cheeks, always wore a flannel shirt and a black wool skirt, with a red flannel petticoat underneath, often a shawl, also black wool with a fringe, round her shoulders, fastened with a big safety pin, and,over her skirt she tied with binder twine a big farm sack. Below were thick black hand knitted wool socks and the clogs. She had some cows and used to call them "Bwlch, Bwlch" in a tremendous voice we could hear in our holiday cottage just across a small valley. One day she was completely toothless and she mumbled to us children that she was calling the cows on the little bridge beside her house and her false teeth had fallen out and been swept away. My brother and I were quite hysterical with laughter - false teeth were a funny and slightly taboo subject for us anyway and I confess that it was a good story to repeat to all our friends. Actually there was another story about this old spinster that fascinated us. When she was a child, Nanw was bitten by a mad rabid dog and she was taken to Paris and innoculated by the great Louis Pasteur himself at his clinic and cured of the rabies. RIP Nanw Davies, Penbryn, Cards.

HOME and AWAY

2011-01-24T17:59:00.005Z

I am off away till the 26th February, collecting my annual dose of sunshine from sunny Tenerife. I hope I deserve a holiday as I have been busy planning all our Talent for Textile Fairs for the year and will be posting off the programme to everyone on my mailing list during the first week of March, in addition to a newsletter sent January to those who have Email - sorry, I cannot afford to send it to everyone by post.
Our first fair is the popular Ilminster one at the Meeting House on March 12th, 9.30 am - 4pm. Free entrance for everyone and a very social occasion with lots of old friends meeting again. Your usual hard-working dealers will be there with new stock gathered during the winter months and you can have a good chat over coffee or something a bit stronger in the popular cafe there.

CURTAIN CALL My 'heavenly' curtains!

2011-01-18T12:54:00.001Z

This beautiful Tree of Life design is a copy of a Palampore 18c. wall hanging or bedspread from India - it was copied as Le Grand Genois (Genoa) by Braquenie, famous French fabric designers now owned by Pierre Frey. The cotton is very fine and the printing immaculate, with many charming details, the 'rockwork' at the base, the strange whorls on the trunk, the fanciful and fantastic flowers and the glorious mix of colours. I bought 3 curtains at a Fair a long time ago and used 2 for my dining room window - the third curtain (shown) is hung as a straight panel on the wall opposite. They give me joy every time I look at them. There is a new and lovely book about these pieces called Chintz by Rosemary Crill of the V.and A Museum. See also my reference in the Post 'More about Petworth '- for another good book about French toiles. The 'painted' chintzes were first produced on the Coromandel Coast of India and then shipped along the trade routes to ports in France, England and Holland where they were highly prized and became very fashionable. Later versions (1860s)were made in Genoa and were known as Mezzaras and were designed to be worn over crinoline dresses. All are now rare and valuable and in good condition fetch many hundreds of pounds, if not thousands. I was lucky to find two in a bundle of linen I bought, almost unseen, thirty years ago, and have enjoyed ever since., without realising their rarity and value. A visit to Christies and the Museum at PORT LOUIS, Brittany, has revealed their fascinating history and provenance.

French Affairs

2011-01-14T21:20:00.001Z

I have had a wonderful, long love affair with French antiques and textiles - I was first hooked on the dashing, striped tickings used for the old feather beds that kept the French and many other nations, warm in bed. Tough, closely woven, down -proof in jolly stripes, they were filled with feathers, and also straw, maize shucks and horsehair, two underneath on the rigid planks of uncomfortable slatted beds, and one on top, acting rather like a tea cosy. The French were fairly conservative with the colour in the weaving; using mostly indigo blue in wide and narrow stripes and rather less in beige and red fine stripes, but other countries wove them in hundreds of different brilliant stripes, in every colour except green(which was thought to be unlucky and was a difficult dye to manage). Sometimes they were made with a long slit on one side so that the contents could be stirred up by hand in the morning and easily removed when soiled , but of course feathers had to be sealed in the bags with very tiny stitches. This image, with my name and address, printed in World of Interiors Magazine, brought me dozens of buyers who had never seen tickings in such brilliant combinations and the big US designers sent reps as many were keen to add to their collections, and these were unique and without copyrights.

BLUE COATS AND BLUE STOCKINGS

2011-01-02T14:46:00.017Z

This news picture of a pupil at Christ's Hospital, Horsham, E.Sussex, rang a bell with me, as many years ago I purchased a similar coat from a Brighton dealer during a severe snow storm, brand new (not 1552) thinking the heavy Melton wool cloth would repel snow, rain and wind. I was specially keen on Tudor clothing and my brother had purchased a broken -down Bluecoat school, in East London., to restore. I thought this would be an interesting bit of memorabilia for his project. Alas! all the lead was stolen from the roof and the plan was a disaster, so the coat went to the back of the wardrobe where it has been ever since! This is a generous size 14, as new, full length with a brilliant mustard yellow flannel lining and some brass buttons inscribed Edouard VI Rex who presumably was the founder of the school, back in Tudor times.. It is now for sale. Melton cloth, originally from Melton Mowbray, is a thick wool cloth with a short nap used for outerwear and overcoats - I think the guardsmen in London all wear them for sentry duty and ceremonials as it is almost impervious to rain and is eztremely warm. Coat now SOLD

OLD LANG SYNE

2010-12-31T16:39:00.011Z

I do not think 'SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT'' will ever apply to my old friend, Bryony Thomasson, about whom I wrote a little post A legendary dealer some long time ago. So it was a great pleasure to hear from her daughter Mary today who seemed to have read it (by chance? - I do not know) and she said that the stuffed figure of Jean, the faithful follower and companion maraicheur, was actually sitting beside her while she (Mary) emailed me! It was so good to have this link with the golden times of the Brocante world and I hope this tells Mary what a generous and helpful person Bryony was to those whom she wished to encourage. She certainly told me lots of wonderful stories about her finds in remote areas and was very conversant with local customs and was on intimate terms with some of the old farmers who were clearing out their barns. She also had many connections with the convents which were at that time being disbanded and their enormous stores of linen, laundries, workroom remnants weaving works were being scattered to anyone who would buy them. She knew the names and use of the many strange garments the nuns wore and she had connections with the charity Emmaus who disposed of surplus belongings for their charitable homes housing some of the aged and disadvantaged S.D.Ps (Sans domicile permanent) . She was very helpful in passing on good clients interested in buying rustic items and when she heard that I had been dealing in sacks and string, rope and twine, as well as hemp and linen, the knot was well tied and we kept in touch over several years; I spoke to her when she was terminally ill and she said the best thing that had happened was that an American friend/client had bought her entire collection and was going to kept it intact and displayed in an old barn in Connecticut and that made her very happy. R.I.P. Bryony. Click on brochure to see more! It's a very good example of display and full of info.

CHRISTMAS AND THE NEW YEAR

2010-12-26T21:20:00.020Z

Flowers made with modern ticking fabrics from Ian Mankiin, London
Click to see the detail..

This is to wish all my readers a very happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year. I seem to have collected quite a few new readers in the States - welcome to you all - I do appreciate your interest and please do send me any thoughts and queries that you may wish to share. I am a great admirer of Kaari Meng of French General, Hollywood, Calif. USA. and her most interesting Blog The Warp and the Weft. You can reach her for lots of inspiration at Kaari@frenchgeneral.com Don't miss it - she brings parties to France which have been a great success and huge fun for all! Another good one with lots of info. about every kind of textile is textile@lindaclift.co.uk Best wishes to you all, Elizabeth.

MONKEY BUSINESS

2010-12-18T18:01:00.000Z

The first time I saw a design of little monkeys swinging through jungle trees was down the Kings Road in London. It was on a pair of early 19c.chintz bed covers in a very smart antique shop called Browns. I was shocked to hear they were more than £30 but you have to know that this was in 1950 when I was newly married and trying to furnish a little mews house on a wage of £5. 50 a week! Somehow they stuck in my brain and next time I saw another pair of lovely green chintz counterpanes with ivy leaves in a trellis pattern and a rich border with red berries for £10, I bought them to console myself! In fact I got them from Robin Eden in Pickwick, Corsham, on my way for a Cornish holiday. I was to meet his son Matthew, another antique dealer, nearly 30 years later, when I moved to Freshford and I was able to tell him that his father (much missed by many) had started my love of old textiles.

I have always loved the 'singeries' but they are quite rare - porcelain, silver, carvings and textiles were decorated with monkey figures in the 17th .18th C. and give a playful, exotic Eastern image to European designs. The picture shows a good example and comes from the collection of Julia Basset who lives in France and is a well known textile dealer. I saw her at the Textile Society's Fair in Kensington in Septembrt. She has lovely and rare things and often takes her textiles to Newark Antiques Fair..

INDIENNE ROSES

2010-12-08T21:19:00.006Z

I love this gentle Indienne design from France, late 19th C. The flowers and buds are in soft misty colours so the bolder brown branches make an effective trellis, running in diagonal lines across a background of tiny dots and other greeny- gray flowers that hardly show. This diagonal line is very important in designs and particularly effective when used on wallpapers and curtains.

A long time ago when I learnt a bit about flower arrangements (I had two flower shops for several years) I was shown how to create a diagonal line across large arrangements, taking one colour from top left to bottom right using four or five stems of the same flowers and pulling them forward or recessing them alternately and repeating with another colour from top right to bottom left. It not only gives a life to the design but gives a rhythm and line to the whole.which is very satisfying to the beholder. This has a sort of connection with the S, or serpentine line, which artist and classic draughtsman, William Hogarth, decreed was the' line of beauty' in the 18th Century following the High Rococo movement in furniture and art designs.
If you look at the beautiful calicos of 19C. they often have interesting backgrounds of dots, wormlike squiggles (vermiculate) tiny geometric diaper patterns which add to the depth and charm of the overall design - something that modern copyists often leave out and neglect. The dots (picotage) were made with a board that had pins driven into it and then the board was hammered on to the cloth with the dye on it - this was because it was almost impossible to get the fine pattern on an engraved metal 'bat'. A lot of Colefax &Fowler designs do have this feature - I think John Fowler was very exact in his reproductions of beautiful old fabrics that he found in the country houses he helped to re-furnish and restore. There were coral, seaweed, mosaic and other popular patterns all used for the background of larger designs;. in fact inspiration was often from nature - leaves, ferns, feathers, all used in repetitive forms.

Do you find Camel a bit tame?

2010-12-05T22:37:00.000Z

As I look at the fashion pages of the magazines, I seem to be invaded by a caravan of camels - warm and cosy for a top layer, soft and bland for the cashmere underneath with a swirly chiffon skirt below in caramel, shoes, bag and curls to blend and so I then turn the page hoping to find a brilliant accessory that will lift the whole ensemble and raise my spirits - I find an echo of all this now in decorating a room - at the moment I am sorting out a small maisonette and trying to make a plan to suit my purse as well as attract a good tenant. I now see that I have myself been in a camel mood (except that in underwear it is called ecru), and while it hasn't given me the hump I feel I must pep it up, or I and my house will look like the Sahara sand desert. I have recently had two easy chairs and small settee upholstered in lovely porridgey hemp in stripes that are caramel to butterscotch (all sackcloth from the Ukraine) and these sit on a mushroom fitted carpet. I have decided that the dining chairs shall have a fairly graphic orange and green print and the curtains will be of the same material (a neat Laura Ashley remnant). I shall pick out the red in a couple of cushions and the lampshades. I will add one upholstered side chair in orange and red silky stripes and hope the room looks cosy and inviting, with a spark of colour here and there. A pine tramp-work framed mirror goes on the wall and a series of red and black pictures showing painted panels in an Italian 18C. style will complete the job. Upstairs will be in my favorite pale turquoise with a bit of French painted furniture in pastel shades., pale blue bedding and bluish flower print curtains and light canewood bedside tables and matching chair.. Hopefully I will find a calm tenant to take up residence and my safari-inspired interior will work.

COPPER TEMPLATES

2010-11-29T22:02:00.000Z

YOU WILL KNOW THAT FRENCH WOMEN WERE VERY KEEN ON HAVING ALL THEIR LINENS MARKED WITH THE INITIALS OF THEIR MARRIED NAME - IT WAS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE DOWRY, AND REFLECTED SOME OF THE PRIDE THEY FELT IN HAVING BEAUTIFUL SHEETS AND FINE UNDERWEAR WHICH THEY HAD COLLECTED OVER THE YEARS.
I went to a rather good fair at Fayence, in Provence behind Nice, and found an old friend selling lots of linen. He rather diffidently opened a large metal box and showed me an amazing collection of different patterned alphabets in copper, all unused, and arranged in little cardboard boxes. He explained that they had come from a linen factory where the bridal trousseaux and dowries were woven and that the templates, with powder tamped with a stiff little brush, were for marking the initials of the bride, ready for embroidery. They were all complete and unused and varied from very small, for hankies and underwear, to very large, about 6" high and with elaborate swirls and decorations, meant for sheets. I think there were 12 or more sets, in every possible combination and in many sizes, using all 27 letters of the alphabet. I took them to fairs and they were a great success and people found many uses for them, decorating their craft work and so on. After about a year, one of my friends suddenly decided to buy all the big ones and she started a wonderful bespoke business - she placed the double initials, well spaced out, and pushed acrylic paint through, like a stencil, and she used white paint on a blue linen ground, and blue on a white linen sheet. The resulting fabrics thus had the personal initials of the clients who hung them as curtains and bed drapes and found many other uses for these exclusive designs. It was such a simple idea (though it did demand patience and skill to get the spacing right) and I thought she deserved her rich reward for a very original invention. As Polly Lyster had the business of dyeing the hemp and linen, it was a rather good example of co-operation by T4T members working together. We all made a reasonable profit for our work and the customers had something quite original and exclusive.

SHOWING THE FLAG

2010-11-23T17:36:00.000Z

When I bought this pretty little tablecloth lovingly embroidered with hearts and flowers in red, blue and white, the seller told me that it had a secret message in the design. It was embroidered during the last war by a patriotic housewife to show defiance to the occupation, the colours are taken from the tricolor flag of France and the hearts an obvious symbol of patriotism. Such small acts of bravery remind us of the cruel times suffered by the French under Nazi rule. During the war there were acute shortages and the women used to gather nettles, thistles and broom to spin and weave into cloth for clothes and home; the broom made a very lovely silky golden fabric which is rare to find but much prized for its colour and softness.

A MODERN TALENT

2010-11-16T18:10:00.006Z

The name Georgina von Etzdorf will ring many bells. Her silks and scarves were the talk of the town several years ago and now, after a long break, expanding in other directions,she is back with treasures from her archives to sell in time for Christmas. Although I deal in old textiles, I am fascinated by her bold and innovative designs and colour combinations and this could be a chance to give something rather unique for Christmas that could be someone's best fashion accessory. The enclosed invitation is for all lovers of fine design and they will be welcome at Shrewton, not far from Salisbury, and the entrance fee of £1 will go to the Alzheimer charity. Refreshments available. THE DATE IS SUNDAY NOV.28th 12 pm - 5 pm

The place is Zion House, Salisbury Road, Shrewton SP3 4EQ. Tel. 01980 621940.
I have kept the picture on the right for many years - an early work of her art entitled WURLITZER
which has a wonderful 3D dimension and embodies the harmonies and swelling sounds of the organ in a very graphic way. I like the idea of two different arts being joined in this way - music and art and design.

RED IN A COLD CLIMATE

2010-11-13T21:54:00.002Z

This watercolour, 'Red bedroom, hunting lodge' by Alexandre Serebriakoff, shows an interesting interior design which is vibrant and warm. There are a great many different striped treatments, including the half-drawn blinds, and I felt myself drawn to the warm and stimulating colours of all the soft furnishings; the rich rug, the red tablecloth, the bed ends, the trellis pattern bedcover, pennant pelmet and striped curtains, with plenty of lighting in table lamps and bracket wall lights for dark winter evenings. Little book case, small ornaments, vase of flowers, mirror and w.p.b. complete the details and I guess this was painted in the 1920s? With a bright fire in the grate I can imagine a wonderfully cosy bed-sit in a rather grand style! It's always interesting to see how other people decorated their houses in other countries - we are used to seeing the fabulous ballet costumes and jewels of the Russians and the grandest of palaces, but everyday living in more modest houses is difficult to discover.

INDEED TO GOODNESS ME!

2010-11-09T19:19:00.000Z

WELSH QUILTS discovered by a fanatical American collector - you will know that I mean Jen Jones , Queen of Quilts, from Llanybyder, Ceredigion, who has the biggest and best collection in the world and who has recently opened this Museum. It could make a very nice day out if you joined with a friend and motored there (the roads there are good) and looked at her museum collection with excellent home-made snacks in the cafe, and maybe visited her cottage where you can try out on actual beds her big collection of quilts and blankets for sale. You might think that her quilts would be very expensive as she is such an expert, but in fact she has lovely covers at all prices and her Comfy quilts in pretty Paisleys sell fast - I buy them myself from time to time as I remember them fondly from my childhood in Wales. They were printed, usually in pretty Paisley designs, in Manchester, usually in a large diamond outline and they are reversible, as inexpensive alternatives to the traditionnal hand stitched and stuffed Welsh quilts.

GO FOR IT!

2010-11-04T23:13:00.001Z

The rag markets are turning out to be a great success - although the term rag might put you off, you can, in fact, find some very useful things and occasionally make a good discovery which will please you - antique dealers often have to buy mixed lots to get what they want and will discard some of the odds and ends that they cannot display or sell easily - they would rather clear them out in a clean and neat state for a very low price than have them turn into surplus rag-bags at the bottom of the pile! So you might find some unfinished embroidery that it would amuse you to complete, or an odd length of braid or cord that is just right to finish off your own-made cushion, or a length of cheap cotton that will cover your ironing board or make the lining for a knitting bag you intend finishing for Christmas. You never know! The whole thing is full of fun and go, and there is quite a rush to be the first to grab the bargains - and I can assure you that there are plenty around for the sharp-eyed. You need to have your measurements ready with you and track that treasure down before someone else does. Good luck! See previous blog LOOKING FORWARD for more info on Rag Markets

BRETON FASHIONISTA

2010-11-03T16:07:00.002Z

For a people who mostly lived in small stone built farmhouses and little cottages with dark grey slate rooves, the costumes of Brittany are surprisingly rich as shown in this picture of local dress by my friend Alain Le Berre's antiques barn, at La Plage du Ris, Douarnenez, well worth a call if you are serious about genuine Breton costume and many other special antiques. He speaks English. The people lived by hard work on the sea and the rather poor soil but created magnificent costume with much goldwork and very fine lace.
There is quite a lot to discover in Brittany,and one of the most attractive little towns is Locronan which is full of beautiful large stone houses that apparently belonged to the pirates on the high seas nearby! It has excellent antique fairs in the streets and squares, and shops full of local arts and crafts. These old towns have spectacular stone built churches and clusters of fine memorials all around them. All the cafes and restauranrts sell wonderful fresh fish and shellfish - usually with lots of chips - but you can always ask for a salad.

HAY, NONNY NO

2010-10-27T22:48:00.002+01:00

I have made a new pair of curtains out of some rather battered old ones, French
Indiennes late 19th C. The linings were shot so I used some rather dashing old red linings of the period, and made the curtains up in French style - they often layered the three fabrics, top patterned, interlining and lining on top of each other. trimmed all the edges and sewed them together with the edges raw. Then they used a special braid which had two rows of pattern, this was folded down the centre longways and it was sewn by hand down the front and back of the curtain edge. It seems to work very well, and helps to preserve the edges which often get damaged by sun, hands pulling and the metal tie-backs

Indienne print, late 19C.

The charming design includes red roses and foliage and garden tools, a flail, spade and baskets of fruit in trophies well spaced across the fabric. There were endless versions of these themes which had already been used the century before in the Toile de Jouy designs, showing romantic scenes of lovers, cherubs and peasants dancing, all with flowers, fruit and romantic buildings incorporated in the overall design. These Indiennes were highly popular because the Empress Eugenie was known to use them for her own clothes and for furnishing the Royal palaces and the French printers produced masses of these pastoral and floral patterns

COFFEEHOUSING

2010-10-21T18:12:00.000+01:00

This blue coffee pot is part of a machine embroidered border made in France quite recently to decorate kitchen shelving, pelmets and mantlepieces. These were very popular in the twenties and thirties and the picture on the right is typical of the borders worked by house-proud housewives. I think the patterns must have come in ladies' home or needlework magazines because there are a great many of them still about, some rather crude and comic, showing chefs chasing geese and cockerels, and others more artistic with bunches of cherries and fruit, coffee mills, spoons and other kitchenalia. They often had buttonhole edged scalloped borders and often come in quite long lengths. Applied to nursery and kitchen curtains they can be quite attractive.
Many kitchens in France in the big old houses faced North or had very little natural light, and were furnished with dark brown oak or chestnut furniture, so the housewives must have felt the need for something gay and colourful while they slaved away in a gloomy place.

French Leave

2010-09-27T21:12:00.003+01:00

Once again off to gather a few bits but mostly to extend the summer and find peaceful uncrowded places to explore Back on 15th Elizabeth. Entry on 19.10.10. this date turned out to be over-optimistic - we got involved in the French strikes on our return and as all transport services were cancelled, we had to drive the long journey from Avignon home (over 900 miles) instead of the ease and comfort of Auto-train, TGV and Calais crossing. The worst was not knowing if the petrol strike would catch us out and the fact that none of the services would give out any info. at all, even the telephone and Websites were blank! We saw the gathering crowds of schoolchildren and many others gathering for the manifestations and suspected it would become ugly and spread fast - and so it did and does.
The weather was perfect, a French Indian summer, and we took our ease in a favourite hotel with lovely terraces and gardens , had many a picnic and some good meals - the French can still cook! But life is now very expensive and the antique goods are mostly far too high for re-sale. However, I did load up with masses of old French bleues, the old workmens' dark blue jackets, blousons, shirts and aprons - all attractive old workwear that is enjoying a fashion moment in this country - and especially among the young in London. I now have a good row in many sizes hanging on the washing line, and they make a change from the popular white and cream linen and hemp smock- shirts which I also bought in quantity.

French Seams and Top Ideas

2010-09-23T22:49:00.000+01:00

My latest lot of vintage French curtains, all of the salon or reception room type, have individual details which I find fascinating and inspiring.. There are so many ways to construct and hang fine curtains and I hope a short account might interest would-be curtain makers who want that little extra touch. Now that pelmets are not so fashionable, the top gathering and pleating of the curtains is important and can give a touch of luxury and expertise that may please you and your guests! The first is a cord trimmed top, where a thick cord matching the richest colour in the silky tapestry woven curtain, is laid and knotted over the goblet pleats - very effective if the cord is really chunky and slightly glossy - silk of course is the best. Two pairs and an extra bed curtain available now.

The second, pastel chintz Indienne, has hand-covered buttons placed over the soft gathered pleats and the leading edge and the bottom have a charming gathered frill with piping holding it in place, just R. of button,- every seam and frill and all piping is entirely hand sewn with the tiniest stitches, as well as the lining of course. 6 curtains, but only 5 tie backs! The third example is a single pair in a fine cotton print with simple gathered top and it does have a pelmet which is gathered in 5 soft ruched swags, all edged with very good (and complete) pom-pom trim. I would say very suited to a pretty bedroom or small sitting room. All curtains are at least 8' drop, in very good condition, date from 1880s, and are for sale at moderate prices. View by appointment near Bath, email dbaer@onetel.com

CHINOISERIE

2010-09-16T15:17:00.006+01:00

Pagodas, fishermen, parasols and exotic birds conjure up a Chinese scene for me and my very favourite fabrics are the Chinoiserie prints of 18th C France. Many were copied from the designs of Jean Pillement whose etchings inspired fabrics, wallpaper, lacquer work and porcelain. The beauty and richness of Eastern civilisations was carried by the ships of the East India Companies to the great ports of Lorient, Marseille , Amsterdam and London, and the rich and fashionable classes eagerly adopted the new decorative styles. and copied them for their houses and wardrobes.

The Dancing Lesson is one of the most charming and I have a large panel of this in the raspberry red colour which was one of the most popular colours produced from Madder plants and cheaper than some of the other vegetable dyes. Toile de Jouy was expensive, even then, and was often mixed with the Toile de Vichy a large red/white check to complete the furnishing in a room, lining pelmets, backing chairs and making bed valances.

Children's Towels, Help me find

2010-09-06T14:40:00.005+01:00

I have just had an SOS from dealer friend asking for a source for Victorian children's towels - I have never seen or heard of them but there may be some lurking out there and if so the film co. will be very grateful -contact me at dbaer@onetel.com if you have anything likely. I have had a lot of dealings with wardrobe ladies and it is well worth running round for them as they are always short of time, their deadlines are terribly short and they do tend to come back to you if you can help. I have just sold a load of damaged linen sheets for dyeing and making up for another epic film and was pleased that someone (as always) found a good use for 'seconds'.
I will give you full credit, of course.

The Real Thing

2010-08-29T20:19:00.012+01:00

This charming scene is one of the designs by Jean Baptiste HUET who drew many scenes for the original Toile de Jouy factory. He was specially gifted in drawing animals and rustic scenes in a romantic and idealised style. This is dated 1783 - 89 and is only known in red. The toile is named l'Escarpolette (The Swing) with all its romantic associations and also shows a coach and donkey carrying the happy couple away! Several large unused pieces, bright as could be, had been stashed away in the attics of the Chateau de Montesquieu, nr. Bordeaux, and appeared at a country Antique Fair, where I spotted them in a dirty cardboard box.
Funnily enough, the seller told me it was a Beautiran print, (he came from nearby Bordeaux) but when I found it in my book of Jouy patterns, that made it that much more special! Jouy is much sought after and it was good to find even a snippet in good condition. Each little scene could make the centre of a luxurious cushion or chair seat! Would M. Huet approve??

THE LUXURY OF LINEN

2010-08-28T17:11:00.002+01:00

All hand embroidery

On my last visit to France I had the luck to purchase the entire contents of a linen room, all from a prosperous bourgeois house where everything was of the best quality. I have now sorted it all out and can offer a lot of extremely good value linens, all clean, pressed and ready for use. Remember that a lot of French 'double' sheets are only just over 6' wide so these are a really good buy if you have a normal English size bed:
Extra long fine weave linen double bed sheets 10' long X 7' and 8'width
some with openwork hemstitching £20 - 25 each
Fine linen initialled double bed sheets with similar borders, extra large £45 each
Finest cotton percale double bed sheets, very large, 4 rows of drawn thread work and reveres
very bright white, £55 each, as new. 2 different pairs large fine linen, superb initials (pics.) £85 each, as new.
About 30 assorted linen double bed sheets, all v.g.c. £25 each various widths and lengths.
Fine lawn baby pillow cases with broderie anglaise borders, £6 each, linen cot sheets, £5 each, tablecloths £15, heavy linen sleeping bag liners,£20, etc.

Large quantity of double, pure linen sheets, many very large over 10' long, seconds, which have professional repairs, (mostly extremely neat double seamed patches along sides), which could have many uses for dyeing, accessory making, cottage curtains, sofa throws, cushions, crafts, already used for film costume and fashion designs. To clear, £10 AND £15 each. Most of this last lot NOW SOLD, BUT THE REST STILL FOR SALE! I have no room for these and would sell them even cheaper as a job lot! 6 odd ones @£5 each!
Email me at dbaer@onetel.com with your phone no. to view in Bradford on Avon, nr. Bath.