Little Pink Dress

Caribbean & Bahamas

Georgetown 8-10 March 2018

I knew from a previous visit to George Town, Bahamas (in the Exumas) of locally produced batik fabrics.  I was fortunate enough to find at Marilyn's Gift shop a gorgeous little pink cotton dress in Andros Batik and some dotty sandals to match – a nice summery gift for little Miss P.  They also stocked a nice selection of other clothes and decorator products in Bahama's batiks.  The fabric prints and colours just seemed to shout “clear blue waters and sunny skies!” 

The staff were very friendly and explained the story of Andros Batik; it may well be the only locally produced (handmade) dyed fabric range in the Bahamas.  Enjoy their story.  I, as always, am looking for fabric lengths rather than pre-made items.  Why sew a dress when you can make a quilt…right?  Just couldn’t resist a little pink dress though… 

Andros Batik: Bahama Pink Dress

George Town, Exumas, Bahamas

Warderick Wells Land & Sea Park, Exumas, Bahamas

Canaries & Rastas

Canary Islands

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 17-30 December 2017

Having not had to check in to Madeira (we left from Lagos, Portugal), this "Completing Clearances" process led us to some interesting areas in Las Palmas; probably not ones frequented by most tourists, although not far from the seemingly endless cruise ship dock and the vast behemoths strung to it.  Luckily, we had our trusty bicycles so attending to such chores and indeed prepping up for an on-board Christmas Celebration, was easy.  Bike paths have been well planned through the city enabling us easy access, so we were soon were done with domestic duties and were able to consider time for a little light entertainment too!

Decoration on outside of  buildings in Vegueta. 
Adam & Eve clearly enjoyed draperies of the day too?

The weather was sunny or .... not!  This was not a December beach day, nor the anchorage
the place to be.  Unless you were Christmas cruzin' and dock-side on one of those enormous ships 

The Canaries, or at least that part we saw, are vastly different to Madeira – opposing planets almost.  We felt a car was essential to escape the city surrounds, but neither of us wanted to drive in the Christmas traffic, so stuck to pedal power, back roads and shops within easy reach. 

My guide book and an interesting web site described a walking tour that included the Casa de Colón (Columbus House) and, given we were following in this explorer’s wake, we rode along the grand cornishe to a small museum in nearby Vegueta dedicated to his achievements.  This building was a stately home for the first governors of the island and it is believed that Columbus stayed here in 1492.  It's not hard to imagine these Islands as an essential stop along the voyage to the New World, remembering that Columbus’ wife came from the small island of Porto Santo near Madeira.  Though the Museum is not really a textile find as such, it was interesting to see a reconstruction of Columbus’ cabin on La Niña, admire a collection of really old charts and maps and of course, do a little "snooping" through one of the area’s grand homes to appreciate how life must have been in the 1500's.  

Casa de Colón (Columbus House) main entrance

Reconstruction of Columbus’ cabin on La Niña

Breathtaking timber detail in Casa de Colón (Columbus House)

Life was not all about battles and trading ships.  Ladies of the time would certainly have appreciated silks and an abundance of natural dyes for those glamorous dresses. The Canaries once supported these industries, with a production history that goes back to the 16^th century.  Now however, the Silk Museum in El Paso is (so I’m told) the only place to find a working silk weaving studio.  Cochineal natural dye is another matter and is commercially grown on Lanzarote.  Sadly, there wasn't time to visit either venue due to Christmas closures and our hectic schedule. Well, maybe next time.

Only the best silk for this dress?

Great views from the Cathedral

Watching the dinghy fleet from the Cathedral Bell Tower

Reminiscing

Corfu
12^th August 2014

Various pot-shots are seen on the façade to the right

While exploring the narrow cobbled streets of Corfu Town, we walked into an exhibition of Asian artefacts in the Palace of SS Michael & George. It was a stunning collection with a huge photo of my favourite building, the Taj Mahal. This was also an instant reminder of how much we were missing home. 

We moved through the exhibition halls and watched a young local lad absorbed in photographing everything in the museum, curtains and fireplaces included.  He’s either a budding Nat Geo photographer or a very cool cat burglar!.  Included in the display were a couple of very fine Uzbeki silk ikat coats and some small, hand-woven carpets.

Another hall held some delightful drawings of Corfu from the 1800’s.  Particularly interesting were the drawn versions of today’s panoramic photographs.  The artists' take on perspective was inspiring to say the least.  (Sadly, no photos were allowed.)  The building itself is being restored and the grandeur, both internally and externally of the Venetian building is evident.  At the front though, it is possible to see the damage done from cannon and rifle fire during turbulent times.   Its setting between the fort and town with a wonderful green park to the front allow us some understanding of how life must have been for those fortunate to be Corfu nobility.

Blue & White Heaven

Arimatsu Shibori: Heritage Dyes

Our trip to visit Arimatsu of course came with many pleasures.  One was another ride on the Shinkansen to Nagoya (1 hour) before hopping on a local train to Arimatsu, blue & white heaven.

On the road again....

Arimatsu is a small former post town on the Tokaido, the old trade route connecting Tokyo and Kyoto.  Settled as early as 1608 by order of the Owari (a samurai clan), it was the 42^nd station; one of the government sanctioned stops between the two cities.  Hiroshige made a number of prints of this famous town.  Takeda Shokuro pioneered the craft of shibori as way for the small town to make an income from the many travellers. 

The main street of the old quarter has glimpses of its celebrated past.  Lined with dark timber houses typical of its Edo era beginnings, the area is most worthy of its cultural heritage endorsements. Fine preserved merchant houses accommodate a museum, kimono stores and fabric shops, including a Japanese patchwork shop.  We visited as many as we could, starting with the Arimatsu Narumi Shibori Kaikan.

This was a streetscape scene

Arimatsu is celebrated as a centre for shibori, a tie dye (resist) technique perfected to a fine art over many years of practice. Fabrics are folded, wrapped, tied, stitched and twisted to make amazing patterns.  Traditionally indigo (blue) was used but now it is not unusual to see many colours.   The process involves a number of steps, traditionally divided into male and female tasks.  Designs are prepared, templates cut and then carefully printed onto cotton cloth. 

Generally, a kimono piece is a narrow 14” wide
by 13 yards (12m) as shown 

These patterns are then tied – a process that can take up to several months.  Once ready for dyeing, the fabrics are dunked into vats of dye. Then the process of undoing all those knots – another 3 to 4 days of work in some cases, reveals beautiful patterns. Some special pieces are submitted to a number of dye baths to produce subtle yet stunning pieces. 

I found an interesting web site, ohmyhandmade with links that explain the process of shibori and offer tutorials.  Hmm, well, I’ll just add that to the “Things to Do List” for Ron (much later ron!). 

Of course, our obsessive fabric shopping did not stop with Arimatsu.  We backtracked to Nagoya to hit a few contemporary fabric stores.  Sadly our budget had been blown and a tempting large department store would only take cash.  We were nearly out of money!  So, after returning to Kyoto on late train and in order to preserve our dwindling funds for any unexpected treasures in the two tour days we had remaining, we had soup and rolls for dinner.  Very noble indeed!

Rare Fibres

Blue Heaven

Like all things new, we found bus procedure a challenge at first.  We entered through the rear door and exited via the front door, dropping our coins into a clever machine near the driver as we left.  It even gave out change.  Our destination was the Nishijin Precinct and we looked forward to exploring this heritage textile district, said to be as old as the city itself.

First stop was the amazing Aizenkobo Workshop of Master Indigo Dyer, Kenichi Utsuki.  He has a particularly attractive white noren curtain hanging over his front door.  This would be our first hands on experience of a real dyeing workshop using real indigo; great vats of the stuff bubbling away, sending out interesting wafts and staining everything it touched.  Mmmmm, can’t wait!  

Kyoto shibori is known as kyo-kanoko, another of Kyoto’s lovingly handmade textiles.  I chose a pre-tied shibori scarf (no-one could wait for me to tie it myself – a few years would be needed!) for this indigo tie dying experience.  We were surrounded by artisans and apprentices – just to be sure we got it right. 

Afterwards. Mr Kenichi Utsuki showcased his tsutsugaki collection as we sat transfixed on tatami mats in his traditional kyo-machiya (wooden townhouse). The wow factor was big that day and we learned so much about traditional Japanese textiles.  Of course, we all wanted to rush home and decorate in the rustic Japanese farmhouse style with lots of indigo fabrics and tatami mats.                                

Just around the corner from the Aizenkobo studio is Nishijin Textile Centre famous for its kimono, obi, weaving displays and craft sales.  In the basement were exhibitions, demonstrations and sales of Kyoto handicrafts.  We were treated to fashion parade of stunning costumes and admired kyo-yuzen, Kyoto’s local silk dyeing before spending big….as you must whilst on holidays!

Next was the studio of commercial hand weavers to see intricate silk weaving of an obi or kimono.  The OrinasukanMuseum (a collection of hand-made textiles) was housed in a weaving factory in the Nishijin precinct.  Nishi-jin ori is a special weaving technique for silk and this textile is only made in Kyoto. The Orinasukan Museum was set up to promote and preserve Kyoto’s handmade fabrics and support original thread dyeing techniques. 

On our way back to the hotel we discovered a local market in progress and nosed our way in to see if there was anything of interest. I’m not entirely sure but can assume it was the Myoren-ji Temple, which has a market on the 12th of each month.

Go Really Wild for Textiles

Maison Tiskiwin Collection

Embroidery: Traditionally women embroidered their own clothes and household linens.  They preferred to work in silk threads and could incorporate fine metal threads, tassels, fringing and sequins.  Gold thread embroidery (a speciality of Meknes) and leather work was left to men. Distinctive embroidery motifs and techniques varied from town to town.  Some of the better known work comes from Fes, Rabat, Tetouan, Chefchaouen, Meknes and Sale.

Weaver at work in his small studio Chefchaouen

Carpets:  Weaving and knotting techniques, designs and symbols vary from region to region.  On the whole, carpets are referred to by their place of origin (city carpets) or tribal area (Berber carpets), such as the Zenmour, Haouz and Beni M’Guild.  Learning about carpets, particularly antique carpets is a demanding study so it would be wise to seek advice before sealing a deal. 

Ingredients & Implements for Dyeing, Berber Museum Ksar El Khorbat 

Natural Dyes:  Vegetables and minerals provide the basis of the process; indigo for blue, madder for red; pomegranate or walnut for black, saffron for yellow.  Synthetic dyes have largely replaced natural dyes despite a growing call for them.  Check with an expert if it’s important to you.

Maison Tiskiwin Collection

Costumes:  Clothing is not usually sumptuously decorated. (So they say in the texts until you see the wild colours & decoration in Maison Tiskiwin!) Thus accessories such as belts, silk buttons, tassels and braiding feature fine embroidery.  Further ornamentation is added with head-dress and jewellery. The Oudaias Museum in Rabat has a very fine and comprehensive display of jewellery by region.

Kasbar Museum, Chefchaouen

Go Wild for Textiles

Embroidery in Chefchaouen Kasbah Museum

Somehow we managed to catch only glimpses of traditional textiles on our recent trip to Morocco.  More than anything we saw though, textiles highlighted the Arab-Berber cultural mix and strongly showcased folk traditions.  It is too easy to underestimate the importance placed on textiles in the lives of Moroccan people and it is inspiring to have resources such as Jardin Marjorelle and Bert Flint’s collection available.

Wool ready for dyeing in the souk Fes

Wool appears to be the most used fibre, particularly in the home-crafted carpet industry, still competing strongly against charmless machine woven rugs.  Carpets, blankets, cushions and clothing are all still woven on domestic looms.  Hearing the clack of looms as you walk through the old medina streets is quite a moving experience.

Weaver at work Kasbar Myriem, Midelt

Traditionally, women produced domestic items whilst those offered for sale were worked by men. That is not to say that women don’t sell but I imagine it must be emotionally difficult to sell family heirlooms in tough times. Aside from usual woollen items, men wove exotic silk fabrics such as the fine brocades produced in Fes.

Try to stop at one!  Moutwatering carpets at Kashar Myriem, Midlet

Information: A quick search revealed a couple of interesting resources.

• Amazigh Textiles in Morocco (which in turn points to a number of interesting references)
• Harris, Jennifer (Ed).  5000 years of Textiles British. London: Museum Press, 1993
• Kasbar Myriem is a woman's cooperative for local Berber women supported by Franciscan Nuns.  The quality of their work is amazing. Some basic info here

Tanneries in Fes

Invest in Tradition

Traditional motifs – bright geometric patterns, natural dyes, symbols with meaning

Essaouira

Traditional crafts – pottery, woodcarving (thuya wood), lanterns, carpets, tents, rugs & slippers, medicinal herbs & treatments

Cracking nuts for argan oil

Traditional architecture - Walls, arches, towers, windows, doors, door knobs, signs, mud bricks (pise), shutters

Marrakesh

Casablanca

In Any Language

Still in the Azores....

A few traditional textile terms that I came across in the Azores which needed further exploration were:

Green Fields above the Harbour in Horta, Fiail

Manta de Retalhos.  This term is often used when describing a landscape of green fields, likening the scene to a “patchwork quilt”.  The term translates loosely as “motley” although I suspect we would think in terms of scrap or charm quilts.  Inner Blooming has a photo of her interpretation on the subject of traditional mantas or quilts, which is more to the point.  Featured are reds, blacks and whites – traditional colours. This was the closest reference I could find.

Woad, a souce of blue dye.

Colchas de Ponto Alto.  Weaving typical of Sao Jorge.  Handloomed quilts described as “high points” or webs of St George. 

Tolha de mesa (Terciera) Tablecloth

Manta de Farrapos are made on wooden looms with left over strips of colourful fabrics.  Fabrics are torn or cut into strips, joined end to end and then rolled into balls of “yarn”.  These strips are handloomed into colourful rag rugs.

Colcha (Terciera) Quilt

Cobertores are blankets and I’m presuming woollen ones at that. Pano de terra woven on Terciera were also made of wool.

Dyes grown on the islands included woad (blue), cudbear (purple) and dragon tree fruit (red). 

Pano de cozinha (Terciera) Kitchen Cloth

Cloth was typically woven from flax, linen, tow (a course linen), rags or wool on horizontal looms. 

Don’t for one minute think this was easy to put together.  What a tangled mess with too few examples (on line) and too little information, so do feel free to expand this list of traditional Portuguese weaving and quiltmaking terminology.  I am also wondering too if there isn’t some mix in the translation between blankets & quilts and woven (loomed) and stitched.  Unfortunately it’s too late now.  What is not lost however is the meaning attributed to these traditional handcrafts.  Weaving has been practised for centuries and the practice of re-use, now fashionable in our throw-away society, essential.  Patterns were traditional and most likely varied from village to village.  If you want to see some brilliant modern day interpretations though, try these by Joao Burno Videira.