Victoria C. Frank,Inc

30/10/2019

Mermaid who resides at Montecute.

30/10/2019

Montecute House is a treasure trove of textiles!

26/10/2019

Our final big event was an exclusive visit to Ickworth this morning. Very interesting house, owned by National Trust and going through a huge renovation.

24/10/2019

Visited the Norwich textile study center yesterday. What a treasure trove! The gloves were worn for hunting, one of the images is all beads and the woman and man? Adam & Eve (in chain mail?)

21/10/2019

Started our day today at Watts & Co which has been in business since 1874. They make all the vestments for Westminster Abbey. And how about this breathtaking passementerie?

21/10/2019

We had a private two-hour tour of Westminster Cathedral today. On this we visited the Chapter House where these wonderful medieval paintings still decorate the periphery of the room. Haunting!

20/10/2019

Here is an evening bag stitched by Mrs. William Morris. May had a good teacher!

18/10/2019

Visited a small but nice exhibition today on Norman Hartnell, one of the Queen's favorite couturiers. Here are some pix of the embroideries executed in his workshop.

11/08/2019

Magnificent Native American bead work at McCord Museum in Montreal!

10/08/2019

Anyone with me in Belgium remember the remarkable medieval tapestries in Tournai? New museum in Montreal has borrowed one.

13/06/2019

How about this expert long/short stitching? Victoria & Albert Museum.

13/06/2019

Here is a particularly beautiful altarcloth spotted today at Westminster Cathedral. Wish I could have gotten closer!

10/06/2019

New Yorker has been clever for 75 years (or more).

08/02/2019

Glorious silks from a silk manufacturer in East Anglia established in 1902

06/02/2019

May Morris embroideries!!!

06/02/2019

Gorgeous monograms found on linen bed covers in Norfolk

03/02/2019

Spectacular dress in the Dior exhibition that uses a rare embellishment technique.

03/02/2019

At the Dior exhibition at the V&A, two 20th century white work interpretations.

03/02/2019

Also two beautiful beaded flapper dresses

03/02/2019

Visited The Museum of London today which has a wonderful costume collection. These pix are taken of a country dress which is displayed behind glass but I think you can see the beautiful whitework on the kerchief or collar

02/02/2019

This tailor has a machine that twists the cord (made of Sabra, the long strands from the agave cactus) as he stitches it on the garment. Ingenious!

02/02/2019

Yesterday we traveled up to the Atlas mountains where we visited a Berber family who made rag rugs. Here they do not plait the rags as we do in the states but cut the cloth into strips and knot them on the cotton warp of a vertical frame. The result is a deep pile like the rug or carpet in your living room. The women make the rugs and the men cure the olives and make olive oil. Wonderful!

25/12/2018

Christmas wishes to all!!

17/08/2018

If you are in or around Chicago on September 20, you might be interested in this free lecture at The Art Institute of Chicago, sponsored by the Textile Society; http://www.artic.edu/event/lecture-portrait-woman-silk-hidden-histories-british-atlantic-world

One of the most popular silk designers in the 18th-century British Empire was Anna Maria Garthwaite (1688-1763), a clergyman’s daughter turned designer. Garthwaite’s designs blended English flora with exotic imported botanicals, including plants from Africa, North America, and the Caribbean, and...

17/08/2018

It's not every day that I receive something this beautiful in the mail. Thank you, Stacey!

14/06/2018

09/06/2018

Flax is the basis of linen, a plant grown best in a cool, wet climate. The pictures below show the plant as it grows (green), as it looks and dried (to L of green plant), as it looks retted (soaking the fibers to decay the outer layer), and, finally, dressed (after the outer fibers have been removed, a process called scutching).

09/06/2018

Ceramic flax flowers installed at the F.E. McWilliam Gallery to celebrate Ulster's linen heritage.

25/09/2017

Working hard to prepare for the upcoming William Morris tours that start Oct 8. Excited!!

07/03/2016

Was in Marrakech at rug merchant with a friend who was shopping. Sandy had been looking at lamb's wool knotted carpets all day long and they were lovely but then the merchant pulled this one out of the stacks - it was remarkable. The lambs wool took the indigo dye unevenly - so sorry $$$ does not grow on trees as this one would be on it's way to my home if it did :)