WOOL & WAX

More Printed Cotton Lithographs… From the same institution...

Thu, 03 May 2012 00:57:30 -0400

More Printed Cotton Lithographs…

From the same institution and period as the astronomical images I posted a while back, these are also amazing.

Circa 1850 - Working Mens Educational Union.

Flotsam & Jetsam Beachcombers of the Frisian island of Texel...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 11:33:49 -0400

Flotsam & Jetsam

Beachcombers of the Frisian island of Texel - Netherlands

Lizzy Stewart http://www.abouttoday.co.uk/

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 11:20:00 -0400

Lizzy Stewart

http://www.abouttoday.co.uk/

The King of Colors With the increasing trend for all things...

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 16:57:04 -0400

The King of Colors

With the increasing trend for all things earthy and natural, chemical free dyeing has been making a resurgence in recent years, bringing with it not just some beautiful patina, but also a clearer conscience for both manufacturer and consumer. Of the many different ancient natural based dyes out there, Woad, a lesser known plant relative and weaker strain of Indigo, is playing an increasing role in that revival.

The Woad, or “Dyers’ Woad”, is a flowering plant that looks like a kind of cabbage and has been cultivated since ancient times, possibly as far back as 1000 B.C. The green leaves can be harvested six times in a year, but it is only the first year the leaves can be used for dying. The process is labour intense and it takes about 1000 kilos of leaves to make 1 kilo of dyestuff. When the pigment is extracted from the leaves you get a green liquid, as the liquid is gradually reduced into sludge it turns blue. Fermentation of these leaves can produce a fairly foul odor, probably because Woad has sulfur-containing chemicals in the leaves. During Queen Elizabeth the first’s reign, she decreed that no Woad processing would be allowed within five miles of her residences based on it’s invasive smell.

The sludge is then dried to rock hard lumps of intense blue dyestuff, later made solvent in a mixture of soda and water. Garments initially lifted up from the dye bath will be yellow, but when the solution reacts with oxygen the color migrates to green, finally ending up blue as the process neutralizes. The length of time yarn, cloth or whole garments are left to soak in the dye baths to achieve complete saturation, depends on the thickness and absorption rate of the fabric. The resultant color left by the Woad, although not as dark as that achieved by Indigo dyeing, is a beautiful classic blue. It’s no surprise then that menswear is increasingly becoming a fan of all things Woad…

All things relative If you’ve ever tried to mentally...

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:09:00 -0400

All things relative

If you’ve ever tried to mentally fathom how big the world is, or maybe how it relates to the surrounding universe, well it’s all a bit overwhelming isn’t it? Perhaps you’ve been getting a little too deep, taken a long walk, had one too many drinks etc, and contemplated how you fit into this whole thing yourself…! It’s all a bit much really isn’t it? But thankfully for us, legendary mid century design duo, Ray and Charles Eames gave this some thought on our behalf. As well as designing the chairs you already know about, they are also known for their documentary style film making, releasing in 1977 the amazing ‘Powers of Ten’.

Both scientifically and artistically pleasing, the film offers a great visual perspective on the relative scale of the Universe, as viewed in factors of ten. We are taken on a dramatic, pre google earth style journey, framing outwards from a picnicking couple in Chicago, ending up at the outer reaches of the Universe. We then enhance inwards again from our furthest vantage point, passing through space and then skin, finally resting within the cells that make up our human bodies.

It likely won’t help you find your way in the world, but then again, maybe it will..?

http://www.powersof10.com/film

Life aboard

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:33:00 -0500

Life aboard

Joan Eardley 1921 - 1963 Joan Eardley, although English by...

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 18:07:00 -0500

Joan Eardley

1921 - 1963

Joan Eardley, although English by birth, became known and revered as one of Scotland’s most prominent mid century artists. Discovering the Kincardineshire fishing village of Catterline in North East Scotland in 1950, Eardley was instantly inspired to paint there. She soon after bought a dilapidated 2-room cottage which was crudely converted into a live-in studio. Eardley loved to focus on singular locations, she painted the same places and scenes over and over, drawing out of them new expressions through color, medium and perspective. Sadly, Eardley’s life was tragically cut short by cancer as she was reaching the peak of her fame as a living artist.

Her Catterline landscapes depict all aspects of the village’s landscape from warm harvest fields to stormy seascapes. She embraced the energy of the weather and the sea, often painting outside in harsh conditions as humbling storms raged before her canvas. Some of her Catterline works with paint expressionistically brushed on, dripped and scratched into, seem to capture an almost violent battle with the weather.

Street Life in London 1876 John Thomson. Great commentary...

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:08:00 -0500

Street Life in London 1876

John Thomson.

Great commentary here:

http://spitalfieldslife.com/2011/03/28/john-thomsons-street-life-in-london/

Hands across the water… The HANDS series, filmed in...

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:59:31 -0500

Hands across the water…

The HANDS series, filmed in Ireland in the late 70’s and 80’s, captures the final years of traditional rural and urban life in Ireland. Inspired by a sense of urgency to record crafts in their natural surroundings before they disappeared completely, film makers David Shaw Smith and his wife Sally, travelled the length and breadth of Ireland and it’s islands, to document the series of films on traditional Irish crafts and lifestyles, where the emphasis is on the skills of human hands rather than on machines.

This film of boat builder and former eel fisherman, Jimmy Furey (parts 2 and 3 linked below), shows the construction of a Shannon One Design, a wooden clinker-built, eighteen-foot racing dinghy. SOD’s are traditionally built on the shores of Loughs Derg and Ree in Ireland and are unique to the Shannon river.

Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XELPt_x08Os

Part 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPNePCOZSZo&feature=related

Wall hangings of an astronomical theme, circa 1850. Printed...

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 12:18:00 -0500

Wall hangings of an astronomical theme, circa 1850. Printed lithographically on cotton, probably to avoid paper duty.

Ensigns - National maritime museum...

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 22:35:00 -0500

Ensigns - National maritime museum archives.

http://collections.nmm.ac.uk/collections.html#cbrowse

I picked up this old photograph album at a flea market in...

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 00:17:00 -0500

I picked up this old photograph album at a flea market in California about 8 years ago. It documents a journey made by a gentlemen from Mansfield Ohio, who travels from the mid west across the United States, to visit some of the most spectacular sights of the west between February 1924 and August 1925.

The places visited up and down the coast from San Diego to Washington, and the frequency of the events depicted in the images, by his very specific labeling of all photographs, suggests a life being well lived. Perhaps a man of means and leisure, or simply the trip of a lifetime.

But the most telling information about the man given away by the images, is his capacity for mountaineering. A variety of hikes and climbs in the national parks culminates in the ascent of Mt Rainier, to the true summit of Columbia Crest at an elevation of 14,411 ft. The highlights of which are documented in a series of photos that give us an inspiring insight into the fashions of mountaineerings golden age.

It’s an amazing item to have in my possession, but it’s sad to think that this chronicle of a man’s adventure of a lifetime has been lost to those who may be connected to him.

Provenance The roots of authentic Guernsey or Gansey sweaters,...

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:54:00 -0500

Provenance

The roots of authentic Guernsey or Gansey sweaters, practical working garments of fishermen and seafarers, can be traced back to late 1800’s Britain. Their initial origins being from the islands of Guernsey and neighboring Jersey, between the coasts of England and France. As the islands names suggest, both are steeped in clothing history, in particular the spinning of worsted yarn.

The garments through fit, yarn and detail are an original lesson in form and functionality. Almost skin tight to trap warmth as close to the body as possible, their sleeves were knit short to avoid being caught in equipment as the men worked at sea, neck openings were symmetrical front to back allowing the garment to be turned around when heavily worn at the front and the elbows. The 5 ply worsted yarn, whose natural oils, tight knitting and the dirt accumulated over time, combined with its seamless 5 needle circular construction gave natural protection from the sea and the wind. The natural fibres, known as seamens iron, still allowed the garment and the wearers body to breath on top of the insulation it provided. Cuffs were often unraveled and then re-knit when they become worn, it was not uncommon to see garments with different shades of navy where the original had faded and met with the new. An underarm gusset in a low set armhole allowed for greater range of movement while working and knit gussets also featured at the sides of the neck to facilitate putting on and taking off the tight fitting garments.

The patterns of the sweaters varied much like Arans, to denote the village or even family that the fishermen was from, a badge of home pride and under less fortunate circumstances an identification system that could allow drowned men found at sea to be returned to their home ports for burial. Patterns across the chest also provided extra insulation from the elements. The signature details around the armhole signified the wearers trade - the ribbing depicted the ladders of their boats and waves and the raised seam at the shoulder signified the ropes from their nets.

The classic garments continued to be worn functionally at sea by everyone from explorers to yachtsmen well into the 1960’s, and indeed can still be seen worn more casually by sailors of today, who’s classic nautical tastes perhaps eschew more modern fabrications, despite their improved functionality and comfort!

Stunning business card of iconic photographer Frank Hurley,...

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 16:20:00 -0500

Stunning business card of iconic photographer Frank Hurley, best known for his incredible images of the Shackleton lead Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition in 1914. The color plates are lesser known of his images from the expedition.

Some great new stuff over at Freemans, and all made within ten...

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 14:02:00 -0500

Some great new stuff over at Freemans, and all made within ten miles of their NY store. How many stores can say that?

http://shop.freemanssportingclub.com/

Photo

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 21:29:00 -0500

Letters from a shipwreck - recovered and delivered!

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 18:42:00 -0500

Letters from a shipwreck - recovered and delivered!

I’m a huge fan of Andrew Wyeth’s work, the paintings...

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 18:07:00 -0500

I’m a huge fan of Andrew Wyeth’s work, the paintings are even more haunting in person and the Tempera technique really draws you further into the imagery. Watching the documentary ‘Snow Hill’ about his life, a greater understanding of the mood of his work is gained and I appreciated it all the more. Well worth a watch for anyone who appreciates Wyeth’s work or is curious about his mindset and approach.

This snippet from an interview with Wyeth gives a brief insight into his experiences and outlook that totally syncs with his work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jahfs2jZq6o

Lost Irish storefronts coming soon to a hipster neighborhood...

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 16:06:00 -0500

Lost Irish storefronts coming soon to a hipster neighborhood near you…

Paul by Linda.

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 23:59:00 -0500

Paul by Linda.