Selvedge - Newsletter

March 2007

Amira fell into fashion after a trip to India. During her travels she made her own clothes and nearly two years later her delicate drawstring mini-dresses and blouses – in printed silks and cottons still sourced from India – are available in her own small, eccentric store. Amira, 261 Portobello Road, London W11 www.amirawear.com

SEE… Tibetan Encounters: Contemporary meets Tradition 17 of the most talented contemporary Tibetan artists were asked to create worrks as a specific response to a selection of ancient Tibetan art. The resulting dialogue between old and new reflects their enormous vitality, spiritual awareness and deep understanding of their roots with an aesthetic that crosses the boundaries between east and west. Neuhoff Gallery, 4th Floor, Fuller Building, 41 East 57th Street, NY. www.rossirossi.com 19-27 March

DO… Digital Explorers II As part of a series of free evening events, a talk on innovative techniques and the use of digital technology in textile design with Ismini Samanuidou and Dr Jane Harris will take place on Weds 14 March. The event accompanies the University of Falmouth and Metropolitan Works’ exhibition Autonomatic which explores digital design across a range of contemporary craft disciplines, investigating how it can be positively incorporated.
Metropolitan Works, Creative Industries Centre, 41 Commercial Road, London E1. T: 020 7320 1827 7-15 March
www.autonomatic.org.uk

READ… Shocking: The Art and Fashion of Elsa Schiaparelli With her ‘ Tear’ dress featuring in the Surreal Things exhibition at the V&A, this extraordinary book is the first comprehensive look at the work of this premier style arbiter from the 1920s to the closing of her salon in 1954. Lavishly illustrated with over 300 reproductions of her clothing and accessories, it celebrates a masterful designer who defined dressmaking as an art. Dilys E. Blum, Yale University
Press, ISBN 0-300-10066-3, £45
www.selvedge-bookshop.org

SPRING FEVER
This month we can look forward to a long awaited, glorious Spring! It’s a time of renewal and regeneration, both physically and metaphorically as we peel away layers of woollies and forget uninspired days indoors. And with Mother’s Day on the 18th, it’s the perfect time to be scouring for fabulous fabric creations. We can even meditate on the mother as muse! For inspiration look to the vivid work of mother and daughter teams Maija and Kristina Isola www.marimekko.fi and embroiders Riitta Liisa and Anna-Riitta Haavisto www.embroiderersguild.com.

www.selvedge.org now has nearly 300 textile-related links. To expand the Selvedge ‘family’ please send your web address to design@selvedge.org after you have added the Selvedge web address www.selvedge.org to your own links page, and we will be happy to reciprocate. Don’t forget to browse our Object Catalogue for Mother’s Day gift ideas, like these hand-blocked Les Indiennes napkins by Mary Mulcahy, £45 for six, or a matching tablecloth, £45 www.selvedge.org

Still on the family theme though paternal this time, Mary Moore – vintage textile aficionado and daughter of sculptor Henry Moore – has created The Mary Moore Textile Prize at The Chelsea College of Art and Design. Second year textile students have been commissioned to create a modern take on vintage clothing, to be judged on 13 March by a panel including Kelly Osbourne and Nicole Farhi. The winning fabric will form part of Mary’s 1940s based capsule collection to be showcased at her eponymous shop on Clarendon Cross www.marymoorevintage.com

Another student event to look out for is the window display at Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge. RCA graduates Hsiao-Chi Tsai and Kimiya Yoshikawa’s site-specific sculptural installations, Futuristic Flowers, involving extraordinary plant-like structures and stretched balloons resembling blown glass were commissioned by the famous store for London Fashion Week but you can still catch them if you’re out shopping before 22 March www.harveynichols.com

This quirky crocheted flan from Brighton company Cardigan might prove a welcome treat if your mum’s on a diet! The vision of Kate Jenkins, an innovative accessories designer, her products embody a contradictory mix of elegance and kitsch. And if her tart doesn’t tempt you then take a look at Cardigan’s full range of seriously beautiful stripey wraps and necklaces www.cardigan.ltd.uk

Who would have thought that rescuing a a friend’s shrunken jumper would evolve into a design brand fit for a princess? But that’s exactly what happened to Mary Davis. On 15 Feb, in her capacity as President of UK Fashion Exports, HRH the Princess Royal officially opened the Mary Davis shop. The company was chosen for the visit because of Mary’s passion for bringing her signature embellished handknits made exclusively in the UK into the international market. www.elusivecollection.com

This spring, Sanderson are launching their new fabric ollections. This delicate range entitled ‘ Maia’ featuring prints and embroideries on cottons, linens and silks, is inspired by documents within the Sanderson Archive and by Chinese and Japanese flower studies. www.sanderson-uk.com

MOTHERS DAY GIFT THAT LASTS
Don’t leave it until the last minute, arrange the perfect gift for Mother’s Day now. A subscription to Selvedge demonstrates your affection and gratitude all year round. A pot plant just won’t compare! Your mum will also receive a gift card and charming knitted gift (see below). And remember, you’ll make a saving of up to 30% off the cover price.*

*Only one gift or discount per subscription.

LAY A LITTLE EGG...
As an Easter treat we have a cheerful handmade egg cosy worth £10.25 for every new subscriber and renewal. Crafted by Kent based company The Black Rabbit, the cosies are knitted in lambswool with cotton lining. We will be sending you one of six designs.* www.theblackrabbit.co.uk
Offer ends 30 April 2007

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