beading

Hawthorne & Heaney visits ‘An Enquiring Mind: Manolo Blankik’ at the Wallace Collection

August 21, 2019 by Natasha Searls-Punter

‘A Girl Threading a Needle by Candlelight’ by G. Schalcken

The Wallace Collection is a hidden gem in London’s art history crown, which even this museum buff and lifelong Londoner has only just discovered. Set in a stunning 18th Century building on Manchester Square (just off Oxford Street) it is hard to believe it has taken this long to come across it. Housing some very famous works of art such as Hals’s ‘Laughing Cavalier’, Boucher’s ‘Madame De Pompadour’ and many Gainsborough’s there is plenty to see if you fancy a bit of an oppulent afternoon in the city. For keen stitchers, there are some stunning tapestry works as well as these 17th century wall hangings from Italy featuring lots of goldwork techniques. Now, until the end of August they have upped the ante a bit further by adding stunning couture shoes into the mix.

Wall hangings, Italian, c. 1650, maker unknown

For a limited time the Wallace Collection is also displaying a selection of footwear superstar Manolo Blahnik amongst their artworks. Unlike many other fashion exhibitions, this is more of an intergration of the shoes in amongst the other art, they sit alongside the permenant collection (sometime on them!) in carefully arranged bell jars. This makes the exhibiton much more intimate as you feel you can get up close to all the pieces on display and all are treated with equal respect.

The selection of shoes in each room has been themed to compliment the artworks they are among. A particular favourite of mine was the oval drawing room where the most decadent shoes Blahnik designed for Sofia Coppola’s film ”Marie Antoinette” are shown amongst the sweet coloured room featuring Fragonard’s ‘Swing’ and Boucher’s ‘Madame de Pompadour’.

From an embroidery perpective there are a few pieces that standout as particulally beautiful. These boots ‘ Lepanto’ (Davee) 2003 look to be a combinations of hand painting and embroidery to a very rich effect.

These pink petal encrusted pair called ‘Amir’ 1997 look like they belong with some of the dresses from the ‘Designer of Dreams’ Exhbition which is still on at the V & A Museum

Of course, there are beads so we couldn’t not mention ‘Zarina’ 2015 which are the very definition of encrusted.

Downstairs is a wall of the original sketches for shoes on display upstairs, showing Blahnik’s distinctive style and flare.

Overall it has all been very respectly done. It is clear from the selection that Blahnik is passionate about beauty and craftsmanship with many skills shown in his designs and revisited throughout the years. There is not much information on each of the pieces, a simple sticker of each one’s name and year leaves you with a few questions perhaps, but lets you enjoy them uninterupted.

‘An Enquiring Mind: Manolo Blahnik at the Wallace Collection’ is on until the 1st Sept 2019, Entrance is free.

Hawthorne & Heaney on Textiles in Art

April 9, 2019 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Embroidery, much like fabric, is not made to last forever. So when we are looking for examples of historical textiles, sometimes, they simply do not exisit anymore as the fabrics disintergrate with age and use. However we do still have a source of what textiles might have looked like in their glory days in the form of painting.

During a recent trip to Amsterdam in the Rijksmuseum, we came across some wonderful examples of historical painting which showed great detail of the textiles that they protrayed.

Girl In White Kimono by George Hendrik Breitner

1894

most likely showing a print of Japanese origin

Pendant portrait of Oopjen Coppit By Rembrandt

1634

Demonstrating the fineness and whiteness of her flat lace collar

Portrait of Emperor Napoleon I by François-Pascal Simon baron Gérard

1804

Depicting traditional goldwork techniques and bullion fringing

We also have had one of our interns, Amy Pickard working on a project for us in house where she chose a painting which featured a beautiful piece of textiles and has been working to recreate it herself.

For the project, she starting point with a visit to the National and National Portrait Galleries. Here she collected primary research of examples of historical textiles. There was a lot of symmetry and geometric shapes as well as a heavy use of floral motifs. It was wonderful to see so many paintings with gorgeous details and being able to name techniques documented.

Hawthorne & Heaney on Textiles in Art London Hand Embroidery

After the trip, the photos were sorted through and drawing were made of some of the details. For this she used a lot of Ecclesiastical paintings or portraits of past nobels.

Along with the photos she assembled a moodboard to help to keep her on track with the aims of the project.

Having attended a tambour beading class with our partner company, (London Embroidery School) she decided to recreate one of the motifs using this technique.

And then followed up with two other samples on velvet in CAD machine embroidery using similar repeats from the isolated motifs.

All in all we are really excited by the outcomes of the project and think that Amy should be really please with them too!

Hawthorne & Heaney for the Worshipful Company of Broderers

October 11, 2018 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Last month, The Worshipful Company of Broderers held a fashion show, dedicated to the best of embroidery in British Fashion. Hawthorne & Heaney was invited to be involved and naturally, it was an opportunity that could not be missed.

The Worshipful Company of Broderers is a livery company, dedicated to the protection and promotion of the art of embroidery. Also known as ‘The Brotherhood of The Holy Ghost of the City of London’, it was originally formed in the middle ages, receiving a Grant of Arms in 1558 and its first Charter on 25th October 1561 from Queen Elizabeth I. Charitable works lie at the core of the company as it functions today, with the fashion show acting as a fundraising event for their charity; Fine Cell Work and the Broderers’ Charity Trust. Fine Cell Work teaches needle-work to prison inmates and sells their products. Established in 1997, Fine Cell Work now operates in more than 15 prisons to empower and rehabilitate inmates in preparation for their sucessful return to society.

On what was a very balmy September evening, the company gathered beautiful examples of british embroidery work from well known designers such as Bruce Oldfield, Clements Ribeiro, Jasper Conran and Beulah, one example of which can be seen above. The show was held in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, London with the ladieswear mostly demonstrated beadwork with an array of evening gowns on show (as seen above).

Hawthorne & Heaney was invited to contribute to the show in the form of these goldwork waistcoats for the gentlemen to wear. These were later auctioned off to raise further funds for the cause.

The first features a circular dove motif on purple with silkworks for the center and a cutwork edge.

The second piece was this striking pair of rampant lions on red.

The lions are most embroidered over raisings with cutwork, a pearle purl edges and silver/red accents throughout.

For more information on any The Worshipful Company of Broderers or Fine Cell Work, follow the links in the text above.

Hawthorne & Heaney :Dismantling of a Victorian Mourning Shawl

January 18, 2018 by Eleanor Rowlands

WHO, WHAT & WHY?

Hawthorne & Heaney was given the Victorian shawl by Sue Thomas from Savile Row bespoke.

HISTORY

In the Victorian era, black was considered the appropriate colour to be worn when mourning the loss of a loved one and in some cultures, this is still the case today. It is believed that the mourning attire was a protection against negative thoughts. By wearing the colour black it also informed family, friends and acquaintances that the wearer had recently lost someone close to them and was a warning not to approach them within this sad period of time. For women, the fashion symbolised the depth of affliction with the colour of clothing indicating the gradual return from black to bold clothing through the hues of purple and violet, this was recognised as the second stage of mourning. The length of time Victorian women wore mourning garments varied on the degree of relationship with the deceased from a week up to a year.

DISMANTLING OF THE SHAWL

The dismantling of the shawl was a very long process as parts of the shawl was originally constructed using an embroidery technique called tambour beading. Tambour is French for drum and is done by using a hook where the fabric is stretched as tight as a drum. The fabric can be stretched by being sewn onto a rectangular frame or placed in a wooden hoop. The Tambour hook makes a chain stitch in a technical order where it will keep each bead securely in place. If the knot or process of the tambour chain stitch was to be done incorrectly then the whole beadwork would come undone. Depending on your experience using the Tambour technique beads can be secured in place very fast this is why a lot of fashion houses such as Dior are well known for using this technique in order to get garments completed on a tight time schedule. To get each bead loose from the shawl the embroidery stitches were cut allowing the bead to be free. Once all the beads were eventually dismantled from the Victorian shawl they were sorted into bags so all the same beads were neatly secured and measured ready to be used again. Below you are able to see photographs of sections from the shawl being dismantled.

NEW PURPOSE

It is very important to Hawthorne & Heaney that the beads are used in another exciting project. This is because of the heritage behind this shawl and the construction that went into the making of it was exquisite. With the shawl being so old it was beginning to fall apart and unable to be restored therefore there was no other option but to take it apart and store the beads safely away until we find a project that will give them a new purpose. We are unsure currently what that project will be but we are sure we will know when the time comes.

Hawthorne & Heaney visit Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

December 21, 2017 by Natasha Searls-Punter

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Runway through the years #Dior #runway #couture

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Every now and then, there is an exhibition that we feel we just have to see, and usually one holds out until it (hopefully) comes to London. However the risk of missing out on ‘Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams’ at Musee Des Arts Decoratifs was one that was too great and we felt compelled to go. So last month, Natasha made the trip to Paris to see the much hyped display.

The exhibition begins with some history about Christian Dior’s family and his life before setting up the house as an art gallery owner and fashion illustrator. A brief introduction to the facets of the house it followed by the first main gallery. In this room, each section is divided by colour, each cabinate displaying a pallette with a variety of dresses, 12” minatures and accessories.

Hawthorne & Heaney visit Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams London Hand Embroidery — Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

As an embroiderer, one of the most outstanding aspects of this exhibition was the level of detail you could see in the gowns and the emphasis that was placed on showing off the incredible textures. These were reflected in the papercut flowers and foliage that hung from the ceiling in a few of the rooms which were inspired by the fragrances that make up Dior’s famous perfumes.

Some of the textiles could be descibed as quite tradtional beading, whilst others would be considered to be more experimental, playing with feathers and layering but all were undeniably beautiful.

They also had an in house embroiderer demonstrating some tambour beading onto a panel of one of the gown and chatting with the public about what she was doing. The piece was framed up in a large slate frame, with one end complete and, the other drafted on. The drafts and drawings for the piece were hanging to one side of her with a partically completed gown on display behind her. The finished gown was part of the final gallery to put the whole process into context.

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Tambour beading demonstration #Dior #tambour #embroidery

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The white gallery was reminiscent of the layout of the Savage Beauty exhibition at the V&A museum in London where you were dwarfed by the pieces, however here the emphasis was placed purely on the cut of the garments. Each one is the toile of a gown we had already seen in the body of the exhibition to explain the development of each piece and the alterations process it has been through to get to the final design.

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Floor to ceiling toiles #dior #paris #dressmaking

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Final last gallery was all the real show stopping gowns, the space itself adds to the gravity of the items on display. They enhanced the experience with moving light displays across the walls which gave the impression of gold snow, unashamedly playing up to the couture fairytale.

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Dior: designer of dreams was magical! #paris #fashionexhibition #dior

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It would be fair to say this exhibition was excellent, going around it all took at least 2 and a half hours going through it all but one could have stayed much longer. The amount of pieces on display and the generous space that was given to each one made it a very leisurely experience. I really enjoyed the way they played with scale in the lay out, starting off the with minatures gallery, then allowing you to get up close with the real sized pieces and then emmersing you in the white and final galleries.

If you would like to read another perspective on the exhibition, have a read of Tina Isaac-Goizé’s thoughts for Vogue here.

‘Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams’ is on show at Musee Des Arts Decoratifs in Paris until 7th Jan 2018 so catch it while you have the chance!

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion

October 13, 2017 by Natasha Searls-Punter

When a major fashion exhibtion comes to London, we love to go and see what it is all about and the Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion Exhibition currently on at the Victoria and Albert Museum does not disappoint. Based in the fashion and textiles section of the museum, the exhibition goes through from the beginnings of Balenciaga as a brand, through to current designers that Balenciaga has influenced.

Starting downstairs, most of the historical garments and accessories are displayed with accompanying notes and toiles. There are a few pieces which have a video animation next to them of how the pattern goes together to make the garment function which are very informative and really demonstrate the complexity of the designs:

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#balenciaga @vamuseum #patterncutting

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This accompanies the actual garment which it explains as well as a calico toile of the garment. A few pieces from the collection have been x-rayed as can be seen in the back of the next video which shows the many layers that go into a piece like this and the hidden support within some of the ‘simpler’ looking gowns.

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@vamuseum #balenciaga #fashion #london

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X-ray photograph of silk taffeta evening dress by Cristóbal Balenciaga, 1955, Paris, France. X-ray by Nick Veasey, 2016. © Nick Veasey

They have a section which is dedicated to the fabric choices and embroideries used in some of the historical Balenciaga pieces. These include a wonderfully rich example of silk shading on a gown with an impossibly tiny waist and a very decadent textured jacket. The base embroidery of the jacket is demonstrated by an embroiderer from Paris based embroiderers Lesage recreating the design. See below for a snippet of the tambour beading over long silk stitching.

Wild silk evening dress (detail), Cristóbal Balenciaga with embroidery by Lesage, 1960 – 2, Paris, France. Museum no. T.27-1974. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

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A little tambour beading demo from one of the videos at the #balenciaga exhibition on now at @vamuseum #embellishment #handembroidery #london

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Going through the exhibition, the different approaches to each of the pieces are explained as Cristobal Balenciaga applied both tailoring and dressmaking techniques to his pieces. He was know for his surgical precision, often pictured in a lab coat measuring and remeasuring sections. A selection of traditional tailoring tools are displyed including shears, pressing ham, chalk shaving box and tracing wheel.

Cristóbal Balenciaga at work, 1968, Paris, France. Photograph by Henri Cartier-Bresson. © Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum PhotosMoving upstairs, the exhibition focuses more on Balenciagas lasting legacy and those he has inspired. Against the dombed ceiling, three videos of current designers such as Mollie Goddard and Gareth Pugh who speak about how Balenciaga has influenced them and their design work. A series of parallels are drawn between contemporary designs and historical Balenciaga pieces such as the below by Hussein Chalayan and Oscar De La Renta which are likened to textured coat and silk work dress previous mentioned.

This exhibition is a well rounded insight into the Balenciaga brand with lots of lovely couture examples and the technical specification to go with them which is interesting for those with and without exisiting fashion knowledge. Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion will be running at the Victoria and Albert Museum‘s Fashion and Textiles Gallery Space (Room 40) until Sunday 18th February 2018 so if you have the opportunity to see it, it is worth the visit. Tickets cost £12.00 and some concessions are available.

All images and videos courtsey of Natasha Searls-Punter (@tashasearlspunter) unless otherwise stated.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Peranakan Embroidery Boutiques in Singapore

July 12, 2017 by Natasha Searls-Punter

During a recent visit to Singapore, one of the team at Hawthorne & Heaney took a sight detour off the tourist trail and visited one of the Peranakan Embroidery heritage boutiques in the suburbs. This small street houses a couple of shops in which they are keeping the more traditional embroidery techniques of the region alive. One such place is called Rumah Bebe which is lovely in itself as it is covered in patterned tiles and gilded woodwork. They house a wide range of Nyonya garments such as sarongs, embroidered jackets and beaded shoes. As is fitting to the work that has gone into them, the pieces are quite pricey, but well worth it for how lovely they are.

Kim Choo Kueh Chang is also next door where you can sample traditional Nyonya cakes from the cafe downstairs made with coconut, condensed milk and pandan leaves which gives them a bright green colour. They have a little shop of trinkets but upstairs is where you will find the best bits as they have a range of embroidered pieces which line the walls and a variety of vintage items on diplay in their exhibition. They explain a little of how the embroidery is intergral to the wedding services of the culture with the examples around for context.

A personal favourite had to be this part completed design, still on the frame which demonstrates a little of the technique that is used to create these pieces and the scale of the beads that form the designs.

To see more of what they have to offer, visit their websites above or watch the video below for a glimpse of the action.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Charlotte Stockdale’s Met Gala Outfit

May 2, 2017 by Natasha Searls-Punter

The first Monday in May each year is always a prestigious day in the fashion calender as it marks the opening of the Metropolitan Museum’s new exhibition and therefore the Met Gala. This year, the exhibition is dedicated to Comme des Garcon’s Rei Kawakubo and is entitled ‘The Art of In-Between’. Taking its theme for the Gala from this year’s muse, the attendees dressed to impress in their own interpretations of Avant-Garde.

You may remember a series of silk jackets we did for the Accessories Brand Chaos last year, this year’s Met Gala gave us the opportunity to work with Chaos again as we were embellishing the outfit of Chaos’s Charlotte Stockdale.

They wanted to create a black on black piece so we made the embellishments all about the texture and relief, working with different weights and qualities of thread to provide definition. Some sections were super dense and flat to the fabric whilst others were given height of various levels within the machine embroidery.

Some sections were cut open to provide another texture with fluffy edges which creates a very matte deep black effect against some of the shinier threads.

The whole back piece centers around the Chaos logo which was treated as if it were a traditional heraldic piece. This became the base on which we could build by hand. A variety of beads were applied into the machine embroidery such as bugle beads and cut jet.

As with most of our bespoke pieces, Charlotte’s initials were integrated into the design in the same heraldic style as the mantelling around the logo.

I think you will agree that the final effect is pretty phenomenal when the machine embroidery, hand embroidery, beading and tassels all come together.

For more details about Chaos and the products they offer, check out their website here.