Those of us lucky enough to go on the recent trip to London on the 20th June were treated to a sunny day full of wonderful colour and pattern!

We started our itinerary by visiting the Fashion and Textile Museum in Bermondsey.  Some members will be familiar with this innovative exhibition space, founded in 2003 by fashion designer Zandra Rhodes.  But for many of us this was our first visit, and we were astounded by just how much beauty could be crammed into such a relatively small space.  The current exhibition, Paint!Pattern!Print!, covers the work of hand painted textile designers Collier Campbell, from the founding of their partnership in the 1960s, up to the present day.  Susan Collier and Sarah Campbell were sisters with an enormous flair for artistic, painterly designs, and for a long time were key designers for Liberty.  Even if you didn't know their work by name, you would undoubtedly recognise some of their iconic fabric designs.  Although Susan Collier sadly died in 2011, Sarah Campbell continues to work and to teach - in fact she was taking a class on the ground floor of the building as we were leaving! Every inch of this sumptuous exhibition was filled with kaleidoscopic beauty, and even those with more minimalist tastes could not help but be impressed by the richness of these gorgeous paintings, fabrics, clothes and furnishings.  It remains open until 13th September 2026.

​After seeking out lunch from the many appealing cafes around the museum, we moved on to the elegant William Morris Gallery at Lloyd Park in Walthamstow.  Although a much cooler, more spacious setting in a Georgian house with a beautiful garden at its rear, this venue was also buzzing with life and colour.  They were holding an open day, with a large farmers' market taking place outside, music, games and lots of visitors, all of which added to the welcoming family atmosphere.  Inside the house, we were able to see a wide range of artefacts related to Morris and displays explaining his business, artistic influences and philosophy. This was fascinating, as it moved well beyond the world-famous fabrics for which he is perhaps best-known, and showed detail about his drawing, publishing, writing, production processes and retail.  We were also able to spend time in the Women in Print temporary exhibition (sadly now finished), which celebrated 150 years of women designers at Liberty.  More CollierCampbell here, but also garments, fabrics and designs by many other wonderful female designers who have formed the backbone of the design department at Liberty for decades.  Again, the impression was one of a sumptuous love of colour combined with painterly skill and incredible craftsmanship - a real feast for the senses.

As always, our Live Events Coordinator Barbara Coe had organised the trip incredibly carefully, providing very comfortable transport, regular breaks for refreshments, and a fascinating itinerary.  And the company was excellent.  If you have never been on one of her day trips I would highly recommend them - you will return feeling replenished and renewed. ​

Saturday 13th June 2026 – The Roaring Twenties!
 
In the 1920s the opinion emerged that the history of everyday life should be preserved and celebrated in special museums leaving a legacy that we still value and enjoy today. 

The delightful ‘secret’ walled garden at Strangers Hall Museum in Norwich was the perfect setting for a 1920s themed garden party to celebrate a hundred years since the gifting of the Museum of Norwich at the Bridewell in 1926 and Strangers Hall in 1923 to the City of Norwich.  
Several members arrived dressed in period costume, some wearing original pieces.  The C&TA resources team had arranged an impressive display of period dresses showing everything from plain white lawn day dresses to shimmering evening creations and a stunning silk, beaded wedding dress worn in 1923 by Marion Marjorie Nickell-Lean for her marriage to Sir William Prince-Smith, 3rd Baronet of Hillbrook in Yorkshire.
 
Lisa Smith-Clare gave a diverting talk about the radical changes of styles in everyday dress for the women who had come through the struggles and trauma of the first world war.  She wore a beautiful dress and cloche hat that she had made from original 1920s patterns and we delighted in the image of outrageous flappers painting butterflies on their knees – maybe an activity for future events?!

We were privileged to sponsor and support the annual 'Spring Fling' event at Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse on the late May Bank Holiday Monday.  Despite it being one of the hottest days of the year so far, more than 300 people attended the event, and were treated to tractor rides, sheep shearing and farrier work demonstrations, farm visits and a fascinating insight into the Flax and Fleece Project being run by the Norfolk Museum Service showing how flax is grown and turned into linen to make clothing.  The museum inside the workhouse was also open, and lots of visitors took the opportunity to look round there too.

On Saturday 23rd May 86 members were delighted to be able to meet once again in the Town Close Auditorium at Norwich Castle for the C&TA AGM.  

The formalities of the meeting were quickly completed: in her Chair's Report Caroline Whiting ran through the highlights of another busy and very successful year for the Association, including participation in the VE Day 80th Anniversary Silver Wings exhibition at the Forum in Norwich, participation in Heritage Open Days, sponsoring two awards for textiles projects at the Norwich University of the Arts, and, via our biennial Geoffrey Squires Bursary Awards, being able to give grants to two fascinating research projects.  All of this was alongside a lively and incredibly varied programme of live events and online talks and discussions, and being able to support the curation and/or purchase of several new items for the Norfolk Museums Service, including those which are now helping to bring the new Royal Palace Reborn exhibition to life.

Caroline also made two significant presentations: in recognition of her long service to the C&TA and expertise in the history of Norwich textiles - shawls in particular - Jean Smith was awarded a Life Presidency of the Association. In addition, tireless work over many years for the C&TA by ex-Chair Joy Evitt was recognised as she steps down from acting as temporary Membership Secretary, and she was made Vice President.  Both of these remarkable women have made incredible contributions to the preservation and understanding of Norfolk textiles and their history, and their hard work, determination and grace serves as an excellent role model to those inspired to follow in their footsteps.

Treasurer Eunice Warren gave her clear, comprehensive report of the financial transactions of the Association over the year and reassured us of a very healthy financial situation.  Two committee members were re-elected and two new committee members welcomed: Juliet Wells will be taking over as Membership Secretary, and Alison Smith has also joined.  They were both warmly welcomed.

A happy group of members spent a fascinating day at the Costessey Centre recently learning about the history of knitwear under the expert tutelage of designer and Resource Collection Coordinator Isobel Auker and ex-C&TA Chair Joy Evitt. 

It was a beautiful sunny Spring morning and Isobel and Joy had pulled together a wealth of textile treasure for us to learn about and examine.  When we arrived the room was packed with fascinating and beautifully presented resources, providing an inspiring environment right from the off. 

Joy began by giving us a brief history of the development of knitwear, from the earliest evidence of handknitting, through the rise of knitted garments as a saleable commodity and important cottage industry in the Middle Ages, the development of frame knitting and industrialisation of knitting processes, to the invention of the latch hook in the late C19th, which enabled circular knitting to be done at enormous speed and revolutionised the industry.  On the way she also drew in the importance of knitting as a social activity, which saw enormous popularity in the Victorian era, and the way in which increasingly sophisticated industrial machinery during the C20th had spurred haute couture designers to make innovative creative use of knitwear in their collections.  She and Isobel had recently visited the Framework Knitters Museum at Ruddington, near Nottingham, and they had both found this fascinating and inspired us all to go! 

Isobel followed this wonderful historical tour with some more detailed information about the construction of particular historical knitted garments: the kind of (k)nitty-gritty detail that C&TA members love! We learnt about the development of shaping in stockings, and she also showed us some beautiful examples of C16th felted caps that she had made.  These were knitted and then felted to be waterproof, and the Cappers' Act in 1571 decreed that everyone above the age of 6 had to wear one.  The designs were strictly controlled to denote social status, whilst also maintaining a very profitable monopoly for the Cappers' guild!

Next, Stephen Shayler, who helps to maintain the C&TA resource collection, gave us a wonderful guide to the many beautiful knitted garments that had been displayed for us to look at, which included underwear, swimwear, hand knits, designer items and accessories.  It was a real privilege to have access to all these fabulous garments, as well as to the historical information and resources and knitting machinery that the team had collected for us to look at.  There was even a demonstration of two privately owned circular knitting machines, one of which had been beautifully restored by the owner himself.

Everyone then had a chance to look more closely at all these resources and even to try out some of the knitting machinery, before each selecting an individual item to focus on in more detail.  The team provided a very useful framework to lead us in our 'detective' work, really encouraging us to interrogate the items closely and to think carefully about how and why, as well as when, they were made.  It was this unusual and privileged hands-on access to important, historic garments that truly seems to inspire our members, and there was a real atmosphere of focused attention while people investigated their chosen items, punctuated by frequent sighs of pleasure!

The day ended with a session in which to feedback our findings and enjoy each others' insights into the garments we had looked at, as well as giving the opportunity for wider discussion and to ask questions about both the resources collection and knitwear in general.  Everyone left the session feeling that they had a deeper appreciation and understanding of the work that went into the construction of these clothes and accessories, and aware of the wealth of experience and commitment to conservation and education that is the basis of the work of the C&TA.  Thank you Isobel, Joy, Stephen and Prue for all your hard work and generosity.

It was wonderful to welcome a few new faces to the Crafty Chat this month, and we really hope that the word is spreading about how interesting and friendly these informal online get-togethers can be.  We cover such a wide variety of topics and it is a great opportunity for members to discuss their interests and share information and thoughts on all kinds of topics!

Eunice Warren, our Treasurer, had been to the V&A to see the fantastic exhibition about Elsa Schiaparelli, the Italian fashion designer, and we were all glued to our screens by her photos of the amazing creations in the exhibition.  These ground-breaking and often very unconventional clothes were so elegantly cut, made from sumptuous fabric and crafted with exquisite skill.  Every detail of the outfits was considered and beautifully made: Eunice was particularly enamoured of the flattering, understated suits with oversized buttons, and of course there was plenty of Schiaparelli's trademark shocking pink on display!

Jane Snowdon, one of our members with great expertise in the making of historical costumes, reported on her progress with a recreation of a Norfolk marshwoman's outfit for display later this year at the Wind Energy Museum at Repps with Bastwick, near Martham.  She showed us the original photograph by Peter Emerson that had helped her to create an authentic pattern, which led to lengthy discussion of the practicalities of clothing for working women in the late C19th!  We are all very much looking forward to seeing her wonderful work on display when the museum opens later this summer.  

Regular Crafty Chatter Anne-Marie Tye from the Orkney Islands also introduced us all to Kawandi quilting, a method based on African techniques and developed by the Siddi community in Karnataka, India, to create stunningly colourful quilts from recycled scraps. She was preparing for a demonstration in this technique for the Quilters' Guild, and it is well-worth exploring if you are a quilter!
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The members who 'gathered' virtually on the 17th March had another lovely meeting chatting about recent makes and experiences.  Jenny Fletcher had recently been to visit Dennis Severs' house in Spitalfields, London, and explained the history of the creation of this amazing 'still life drama', and talked about the impact it had on her.  In the 1960s, when eighteenth century houses in Spitalfields were crumbling and derelict, American Dennis Severs bought a house formerly occupied by Huguenot silk merchants, and he and his partner began a thirty year restoration of the house as it might have been during the 18th and 19th centuries.  They collected, begged, borrowed or made everything in the house, living in it themselves as they created scenes from the lives of five generations of the imaginary Jervase family, who were themselves silk weavers.  The result is an extraordinary building - it still has no electrical lighting or appliances in the rooms, no heating other than open fires, and no running water; clocks tick, fires crackle, there are scones baking in the kitchen, the remnants of food on the plates, and a pair of muddy leather boots by the stove.  Severs left messages for his visitors that explain that the occupants of the rooms 'have just stepped out for a minute', and stress that 'the most important thing is what is happening between the surface of your eye and the objects that you see'.  Jenny felt that it was the most vivid experience of an historical atmosphere she had ever had, and was fascinated both by being placed in the role of a 'visitor' in the past, and by the questions the house raises about conservation.  For costume and textile enthusiasts, the house abounds with beautiful fabrics, both clothing and soft furnishings, but be warned - these are used, worn objects hung over doors, squashed into sofas, eaten threadbare by mice - it is not a perfect and pristine museum, but reflects life as it very well might have been lived by a family not always flush with money.

This led to some lively discussion about the preservation of the past and obsession with the new and the perfect - our crafty chatters are often a philosophical lot!

For those interested in visiting Dennis Severs' house, at 18, Folgate St., you can find more information here - the experience came highly recommended.  https://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/
​And for textile enthusiasts, look out for the blue plaque telling you that the famous eighteenth century silk designed Anna Maria Garthwaite lived in the house next door!

​This led to some lively discussion about the preservation of the past and obsession with the new and the perfect - our crafty chatters are often a philosophical lot!

For those interested in visiting Dennis Severs' house, at 18, Folgate St., you can find more information here - the experience came highly recommended.  https://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/
​And for textile enthusiasts, look out for the blue plaque telling you that the famous eighteenth century silk designed Anna Maria Garthwaite lived in the house next door!

On the 14th March a large group of members gathered at The Costessey Centre to hear a very interesting talk by John Miners.

John grew up in a textiles family in Halstead, Essex, where his father Peter, like many members of the community, worked at the Courtaulds mill.  Courtaulds had been an incredibly successful company during the nineteenth century, producing high quality silks and later, black silk mourning crepe.  In the early twentieth century they were one of the first companies to investigate the use of artificial fibres such as viscose, and when John himself joined the company on leaving school, the Halstead works was one of three thriving Essex sites belonging to one of the world's largest textile manufacturers.

​In a world where reproductions of historic designs are now so popular, it is easy to imagine that these fabrics were perhaps ahead of their time.  Our members were certainly delighted to see them up close and spent a wonderful half hour examining the fabrics in detail and choosing their favourites!  John is the custodian of an impressive archive of samples, some of which never went into production, and it was a real privilege to be allowed to share them with him.

Julia also told us about her historical costume making: she is a member of the Sutton Hoo Interpretation Textile Group in Suffolk, and volunteers regularly with the Textiles Team there, modelling Anglo-Saxon clothes that they have made themselves and helping visitors to understand more about the daily life of Anglo-Saxon people.  She showed us the dress that she has made from nettle fibre and linen, decorated with beautiful embroidery, and it really inspired us all to visit the wonderful museum at Sutton Hoo to see both the site of the ship burial there and also the full size re-creation of the original ship which is currently taking place in nearby Woodbridge.

There was lots of other chat too - we admired Jane's sheep bunting (yes, bunting made of tiny sheep!) and Jackie's beautiful dragon quilt, and also heard about the UNESCO-backed initiative called 'Living Heritage in the UK'.  This is a government supported project to record and preserve 'intangible' aspects of heritage in the UK, and covers many arts and crafts.  Further details can be found on their website at ​https://livingheritage.unesco.org.uk/ ​