I continue to stitch on my Cromwell Narrative Cloth, and it continues to make slow but steady progress. While it develops, I will be posting some reflections about my earlier Cromwell Trilogy stitchery. This is the first in a series of posts about my first Wolf Hall Quilt, made between 2020 and 2021. It’s a textile piece that comes with a very strong sense of time and place, and the restrictive circumstances in which it was made had a significant impact on the finished work, which only became apparent after it was complete. This post follows on from last week’s
I just love the way you thread the different narratives of reading, visiting, practical sewing together. I love the photo of you and Hilary Mantel, her bangles taken off her arm to not hinder her book signing. I wish I'd got to see her read, I really do. Beautiful, gently inspiring post. Thank you.
Thank you Susanna! As Wolsey says in Wolf Hall, the making of the treaty is the treaty. The making of the quilt is the quilt! And with this piece, the process was more satisfying to me than the finished piece. But I will share some images in later posts.
I suspect that embroidery has always been subversive, if you know how to look, ranging from rebellious young girls stitching deliberate mistakes into their first samplers to today's Profanity Embroidery Group.
Oh yes - I love PEG, and The Subversive Stitch continues to be an important text in this regard. I don’t want to give spoilers, except to say that the concept of “embroidery getting her into trouble” is from The Mirror and the Light.
Dear Bea - lovely photo of you and Hilary - her hand on yours. I'm very much looking forward to seeing you and your Cromwell Narrative Cloth at our Wolf Hall Weekend in June. Thanks for your wonderful stories!
Sorry - hit send too soon. Have you tried any treatments to the cloth akin to mordanting or starching or perhaps anything from artists who treat canvases before painting?
I just love the way you thread the different narratives of reading, visiting, practical sewing together. I love the photo of you and Hilary Mantel, her bangles taken off her arm to not hinder her book signing. I wish I'd got to see her read, I really do. Beautiful, gently inspiring post. Thank you.
Something weird. (In a good way, :-) It's probably the first of these essays that I have read.
I expected to see a quilt as I read; a work in progress. But, there isn't any.
And yet I see it, in my head.
And perhaps even want to do some stitching of my own now.
But her writing is like the opposite of a 'how-to' tutorial. Maybe, a 'how to want to.'
No quilt, and on to some brickwork and other stories.
Weird. Brilliant.
Thank you Susanna! As Wolsey says in Wolf Hall, the making of the treaty is the treaty. The making of the quilt is the quilt! And with this piece, the process was more satisfying to me than the finished piece. But I will share some images in later posts.
I suspect that embroidery has always been subversive, if you know how to look, ranging from rebellious young girls stitching deliberate mistakes into their first samplers to today's Profanity Embroidery Group.
Oh yes - I love PEG, and The Subversive Stitch continues to be an important text in this regard. I don’t want to give spoilers, except to say that the concept of “embroidery getting her into trouble” is from The Mirror and the Light.
Thats the most gorgeous picture of you and Hilary Mantel. Lovely post
Thank you Barrie - a moment I will never forget. He encouragement meant (and still means) so much to me.
Dear Bea - lovely photo of you and Hilary - her hand on yours. I'm very much looking forward to seeing you and your Cromwell Narrative Cloth at our Wolf Hall Weekend in June. Thanks for your wonderful stories!
Thank you David! I am looking forward to June so much!
What an intriguing and captivating post, Lucie. Lots to think about
I love your practice. A random thought on 'bleed
Sorry - hit send too soon. Have you tried any treatments to the cloth akin to mordanting or starching or perhaps anything from artists who treat canvases before painting?
Thanks for the suggestions - I have to be careful not to make the cloth too stiff to stitch through. But I think I have a solution now.
So impressive 🩵
Thank you.