Earlier this year The Modern House invited me to contribute to a piece on ‘How to Use Textiles at Home’. It is a thoughtful and insightful feature with views from a number of contemporary textile studios.

Now, with so much time spent at home, and the rare and unusual feeling of time on my hands, I thought I would write a little follow up about the textiles we cherish and live with everyday.

Please excuse the amateur photography - done at home with no lights or proper kit.

To pick up a metaphorical thread from the original article, and at the risk of self-aggrandisement I will begin by quoting myself:

I find that pieces that come with a narrative are likely to hold much longer appeal. At home we have lots of textiles that have been made by friends, mixed with inherited family pieces, vintage pieces picked up on travels and odd pieces of my own work. Knowing a little more about the story behind a piece will make it much more valuable to you…

Above is a beautiful hand-woven cushion by dear friend and fellow weaver Catarina Riccabona. The yarn is unbleached linen - you can see the almost metallic sheen of the flax fibres as the light plays against the multiple weave structures. Against this intricate and subtle ground run a pair of hot coral bands. The contrast between warp and weft yarns in these placement stripes suddenly throw the weave structures into sharp relief. Delicious.

Next are a pair of hand-woven floor rugs by Rachel Scott. We have one on either side of our bed, and they are wonderfully welcoming to bare feet. The yarn is all undyed British wool, which Rachel spins herself before weaving. In the rug on the right you can see Welsh black, Herdwick and Manx wool amongst others.

Rachel weaves all her work by hand on a frame using the tapestry technique. She has been working in this way for many many years, and I find something very reassuring about the constancy of her work.

There is a post (from a couple of years ago) about Rachel’s work on our journal here where you can read much more about her practice.

The image above is of a screen-printed linen cushion by design duo Vicky and Theo of Thorody. I first came across Thorody when I sat on a selection panel for the Crafts Council. I was immediately struck by the beautiful ‘handwriting’ in their work. The patterns, although precise and graphic also have a wonderfully hand-drawn haptic feel to them.

On our bed we have the first sample trial blanket of the Sourdough design. One of the perks of the job is having the chance to bring a new blanket home to ‘test drive’ when we launch one. We have a luxury of choice at home, but somehow the Sourdough is the one we both return to over and over again. There is something about the pattern, the structure, the weight and the yarn that seems just ‘right’. The limestone grey face of the blanket is woven in an undyed British wool mix - mainly Suffolk wool with a little Jacob and Welsh Black for seasoning.

Not strictly an interior textile, but the little linen bag above is very dear to me. I picked it up in Lithuania many years ago when I spent a mid-winter residency there. Lithuania is famed for its flax fields and its linen mills, and the fabric which this bag is made from gets better and better with time and use. A couple of months ago the handles (which were originally in matching fabric) started to wear out, and I replaced them with this grass green webbing. I am very pleased with the juxtaposition of the colours.

The images above and below are of a quilt that I inherited from my grandmother. I remember her bedroom very clearly - the bed with its high wooden headboard, and this quilt always laid on top. I don’t know anything more of its provenance, but it is hand-quilted with very fine stitches, and must be the work of a professional quilter.

Over the years it has become quite worn in areas - especially along the edges and where it has been folded. I am slowly mending and patching it, although my stitching by no means measures up to the original. It’s been a work in progress for many years, and I now find I am doing what it fashionably known as ‘visible mending’.

Lest you think we live without colour, here is a little cushion which I embroidered a few years ago. I find great pleasure in hand-sewing, and it feels very liberating to be able to spend hours and hours on piece which - were it properly costed - would be completely unviable.

And finally, an exquisite bit of joy made by my friend and passementerie weaver Jessica Light. I would not usually have myself down as a ‘tassle girl’, but this one is made for me - quite literally. It is in a beautifully heathered Shetland wool - a mix of a beautiful rust and a warm stone colour - with a bitter chocolate leather cord. It brings me much happiness.

You can read the original Modern House article here.

And please see the links below for more on each maker I have mentioned:
Catarina Riccabona
Rachel Scott
Thorody
Jessica Light