Fabric folds, quilting and embroidery...

I have begun to investigate the combination of fabric manipulation through folding and pleating with embroidery and quilting. In addition to consulting specialist books on the history of costume during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, I have also found museum webpages to be very important sources.

Searching for references...

Hand stitching … Erica Wilson’s Embroidery Book

(Faber and Faber, London, 1973) also shows the value of searching through older texts for photographic images of historic fibre works. While many of the images in this publication are in reproduced in black and white they still provide valuable information about stitch and pattern placement.

Searching for references...

Hand sewing techniques… A recent excursion through second-hand booksellers produced a copy of Erica Wilson’s Embroidery Book (Faber and Faber, London, 1973). One of the best features of this publication is the clear line illustrations associated with the sewing stitch instructions. The section on couching stitches was a particular favourite, showing the range of couching techniques that can be employed, from Bokhara couching to couching wheels and brick pattern couching.

References to handstitching

Handstitch perspectives, edited by Kettle and McKeating, also highlights important contemporary practices developed by prominent fibre artists.

References to handstitching

Handstitch perspectives

,edited by Alice Kettle and Jane McKeating, (Bloomsbury, London, 2012) is a wonderful collection of illustrated articles on topics related to hand sewing and embroidery. Many of these articles are based on scholarly historical research.

Records, ideas and visual composition…

I have always referred to a personal library of copyright free images, especially images from the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Some publishers, such as Dover, have actually produced a range of books and compact discs with copyright free images. These copyright free images can provide guidance when I have problems with line and shape components in compositions.

Records, ideas and visual composition…

I have always tried to keep visual records in the form of my own drawings as well as my own photographs. I have used these visual records to develop ideas and visual compositions. Some drawings and photographs are referred to time and time again, others are only referred to on an occasional basis. I frequently find that the process of juxtaposing images or sections of images together can result in new ideas and compositions.