Category: Textiles

  • The last blog post of the year

    We are nearly at the end of another year and this is the final post until 2026. This year has been one of excitement and hope with some disappointments and despondency along the way. As it has often been said though, the bad times illuminate the good and the good times have been very special…

  • Christmas fashion

    Have you ever wondered how we got to Christmas jumpers and t-shirts? Well, wonder no more!

  • Britta Marakatt-Labba

    The Swedish mixed-media artist, Britta Marakatt-Labba, uses textiles to comment on pressing issues such as climate change, land use and her native Sámi heritage. In these works embroidery takes its place alongside other techniques and media to create pieces that tell stories. In the 1970 and ’80s a proposal for the construction of a dam…

  • Bamboo sculpture

    The versatility of bamboo extends to sculpture. Bamboo is strong yet pliable and it lends itself to all sorts of activities including sculpture. Thanks to a friend of the blog who sent this link in to share.

  • Lucia – Sweden’s celebration of mid-winter

    Lucia is celebrated on the 13th December annually in Sweden but the festival has ancient roots. Celebrated for centuries, St Lucy’s Day is a welcoming back of the light at the time of year when the short days mean darkness and cold. To mark the occasion girls and boys dress in white gowns and process…

  • An ancient war cloak returns home

    This week a pauku, a Māori cloak that was designed to be worn during warfare, was unveiled in Auckland Tāmaki Makaurau after being rediscovered in Durham University’s Oriental Museum in England. The pauku was designed for strength with lightness, a very desirable quality when fighting, and its complex structure of tightly woven whatu aho pātahi,…

  • The language of textiles

    We all know certain words have come into common use from the textile industry, but there are some surprises out there. Chetham’s Library in Manchester, UK is the oldest public libraries still in existence in the United Kingdom. It was established by Humphrey Chetham, a sixteenth century textile merchant from Manchester, who left provision in…

  • Carrefour European Quilt Show

    The European Quilt Show is a four day event that brings together exhibitions, workshops, seminars and shopping in the villages of the Val d’Argent in France. Since 1995 the Quilt Show has been bringing together textiles artists, enthusiasts, and professionals and this year the focus was on New Zealand and Australian makers. If any readers…

  • Learn to weave

    If you have ever fancied having a go at weaving, the next taster class will be on Saturday 17th January 2026 from 10am until 1pm. This session will be for anyone who is interested in the fascinating craft of hand-weaving. Participants will be working on a table loom that will be set-up to use immediately…

  • beyond craft: the art fabric

    “The Art Fabric is one of the robust, vital arts of our time.” So begins a book that was published in 1986 that traces the beginning of the rise of textiles as art in the 1960s. This evolution took textiles away from purely decorative stitch and pictorial tapestry into the realm of sculpture and structure.…