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Thursday 9 June 2016

Old News:19th century designs for satins and silk



 I have titled this post old news as that is exacatlly what it is.... images of an exhibition that ended a year ago!

However, I have only just found these pictures over at Spitalfieldslife and thought they were so beautiful they deserved a share.

All the images (and more) and the text below can be found over at the website

"Rodney Archer, the Aesthete of Fournier St, & his pal Trevor Newton, the Curator, have been busy again, lining Rodney’s magnificent old house with a collection of original French nineteenth century designs for satins and silk velours, created at the Lyons factory of Antoine Donat between 1840 and 1865.

Trevor came upon these designs in a long-abandoned silk mill and they have not seen the light of day since the eighteen-seventies which accounts for their vibrant unfaded colours. Each design is labelled on the reverse with the date and instructions for setting up the loom, and all are for sale – many for as little as twenty pounds.

It certainly makes a splendid display in Rodney’s blue and gold drawing room on the first floor – the one with Oscar Wilde’s fireplace in it – and since these houses in Fournier St were built on the income from silk weaving, it is difficult to imagine a better location to enjoy these rich and extravagant designs, glowing in the February sunlight ."

4 comments:

  1. Old news is GOOD news as far as I'm concerned. Beautiful!

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  2. Oh that carpet! Would love to have seen Oscar Wilde's fireplace, too!

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  3. Sorry for the Daily Fail link, but have you seen this house? I was reminded of it when I saw the post you just made. Its so amazing I could just move straight in..and right in the heart of London! The bathroom is especially wonderful, and I thought of you as soon as I saw it!

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3607603/Crucifixes-spooky-carvings-animal-heads-Inside-forgotten-mansion-lay-126-years-sale-3m.html

    Claire (big_brown_owl on IG!)

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  4. Fantastic way to decorate a house!

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