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gold

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi

April 7, 2020 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi London Hand EmbroideryThe Saatchi Gallery is currently home to the artefacts of Ancient Egypt as they play host to the travelling exhibition ‘Tutankhamum: Treasures of the Golden Pharaoh‘. We went to visit while the opportunity presents’s itself and because who doesn’t love gold on gold, on gold?!

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi London Hand Embroidery

 

The exhibition features over 150 artefacts from Tutankhamum’s tomb, ranging from large to very small, like this amulet above which can only have been about 3-4cm high.

The pieces on show really make you appreciate the craftsmanship of the makers in ancient egypt. These pieces are here for us to enjoy because they have been preserved so well, but they are beautiful because they were made beautifully in the first place.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi London Hand Embroidery

It has very hard to try to wrap your head around how old all these things are. Looking at items in a museum from the Victorian era for example, look old and when you try and think about the people who might have owned them, they feel so far removed from us. But those items are not even babies by comparison to the pieces you see at this exhibition.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi London Hand Embroidery

The pieces themselves are well displayed and fairly succinctly explained in the accompanying descriptions through the main body of the downstairs of the exhibition. Upstairs is more about how the excavation was made in the 1920’s, discussing the process and pitfalls they endured. 

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Tutankhamun at the Saatchi London Hand Embroidery

At £28 per ticket, this is a bit of a pricey exhibition to visit and while there lots to see, that is a lot for a exhibition. That being said if you are looking for an opportunity to see something different, this might very well be the place for you to go.

Filed Under: ceremonial, Embroidery, London Tagged With: ancient egypt, artefacts, exhibition, gold, London, pharaoh, saatchi gallery, tutankhamun

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes

January 16, 2020 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery2019 was a very busy Christmas period for us, because along with all the Ugg events we were doing, amongst other brands, we also did a series of event for Dior Perfumes.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand EmbroideryDuring this machine embroidery event, we were offering personalisation of the gift bags that came with the perfume purchase. Guest could choose from 3 designs or lettering onto their bags.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand EmbroideryThe bees proved to be particulally popular as you can see!

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand EmbroideryAll in gold, of course to match the stunning stands we were house in.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Dior Perfumes London Hand Embroidery

If you have an event in mind that you would like to get us involved with, drop us an email to info@embroidery.london to discuss what we can do for you.

Filed Under: Embroidery, Fashion, Logos, London, London Embroidery, Monograms Tagged With: 2019. christmas, digital embroidery, dior, embroidery, events, gold, jadore, machine embroidery, purfume

Hawthorne & Heaney on Embroidery Repairs

August 23, 2018 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Embroidery repairs is a topic we keep coming back to but we thought we would share another project with you where embroidery was used to breath new life into a damaged garment.

Hawthorne & Heaney on Embroidery Repairs London Hand EmbroideryIt is so pleasing when we are able to use a method that is usually about decoration only but also allow an item that would have otherwise have lost its use, to be beautiful and useful again.

Hawthorne & Heaney on Embroidery Repairs London Hand Embroidery

Damaged area before embroidery

This jacket was made of a very rough grain tweed which through rubbing and wear had got damaged and started to ray over a large area of about 15 cm. The embroidery that was designed for the area was inspired by the Japanese practise of Kintsukuroi (golden repair) where broken pottery is fixed using gold laquer.  It ties in with the philosophy of wabi-sabi, embracing of the flawed or imperfect which felt appropriate for this project given that we knew that the damage would still be to come extent visible but making the repair in an asthetically pleasing way makes the object becomes more beautiful for having been broken and fixed.

Hawthorne & Heaney on Embroidery Repairs London Hand Embroidery

We used 4 shades of blue to reflect the different thread colours in the weave which are all in satin stitch to help to hold the damaged area together. Then there is a layer of gold metallic thread added over raisings to give it that laquered effect that is so significant to this technique and ties in with the metal details of the jacket. After the embroidery there were still a few threads to pulled through to tidy as can be seen and to reattach the hem, but we were very please with the end result.

Filed Under: Embroidery, Fashion, London Tagged With: detail, embroidery, gold, Hawthorne and Heaney, jacket, kintsukuroi, London, machine embroidery, reapir, stitching, wabi-sabi

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue!

March 28, 2018 by Eleanor Rowlands

There is nothing worse when a beloved item of clothing becomes damaged! whether it be a tear or a pesky moth has taken a bite.

While this may feel like the end of an item. Fear not, with a bit of embroidery we can bring your garment back to life!

With some tricks up our sleeves and a creative eye. We brought new life to this cashmere coat with some Goldwork bees!

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

Even though there were only a few holes we added more bees to make them a feature of the coat. 

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

We have also come to the aid of split seams! this beautiful tartan jacket came to us. One of our very talented embroiderer, designed this stunning humming bird with blues and yellows.

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

One Bird just want enough!

Hawthorne & Heaney to the Rescue! London Hand Embroidery

Let us know your thoughts! 

Filed Under: Embroidery, Embroidery, Fashion, London, London Embroidery, Tailoring Tagged With: art, bee, bespoke, bespoke embroidery, blue, bullion, cad, coat, construction, custom, embellishment, embroidery, fashion, Fashion Embroidery, garmen, gold, goldwork, hand embroidery, Hawthorne & Heaney, individual, jacket, London, machine embroidery, metal, moth hole, Personalised, print, Tailoring, yellow

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia

February 8, 2018 by Natasha Searls-Punter

We like to keep our interests broad here at Hawthorne & Heaney so The British Museum’s current exhibition, Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia, looked appealing to us. On from the 14th September 2017 to the 14th January 2018 it looks at the nomadic tribes who flourished between 800 and 200 BC, displaying various examples of their gold jewellery, clothing, weapons and living equipment.

The exhibition is spread across 4 large rooms, with carefully illustrated videos and child friendly sections of signage. Whilst walking round there is a subtle soundtrack of wind blowing playing in all the room to really add effect the the visuals you see.

 

It starts off with a little introduction about the Scythians, which was a collective name for different tribes that spoke Iranian, and shared a similar lifestyle and dress. Little has been previously known about these people who controlled a vast region of northern China all the way to the Black sea, as they had no written language, but since burial sites have been found and the permafrost preserved most objects scientist and historians have started to piece together a look into their life.

They were sophisticated crafts people and fearsome warriors who lived in tents and herded sheep, tradition was a focal point around whatever they did, as they used to bury the dead with all they needed for the afterlife. They had a strong bond with their own horses and often they were buried along with the owners as they believed the bond carried through to the afterlife.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery
Scythians with horses under a tree. Gold belt plaque. Siberia, 4th–3rd century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin.

 

The jewellry on display was stunning gold that was usually either hammered and polished by hand or cast using a technique using cloth and clay. Gold was associated with the sun and power and most of the scenes buckles and decorative horse saddles depicted were scenes of mythical animals killing ordinary animals, this was believed to symbolise concern over preservation of world order. The items are remarkably well preserved and some still contain their original turquoise or blue glass inlays.

 

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery
Deer-shaped gold plaque. Barrow 1, Kostromskaya, Kuban region. Second half of the 7th century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin.

 

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery
Gold plaque with hare hunt. Kul’ Oba, northern Black Sea region, first half of the 4th century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin.

 

Opposite these there is a bit of information about Tsar Peter the first, who sent exhibitions to southern Siberia and found the burial sites. After this he ordered anything gold found around there was to be sent to him,where he documented and recorded and stored all the items. Some of the watercolours used to document the items are also on display.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery
Woman’s shoe. Leather, textile, tin, pyrite crystals, gold foil, glass beads. Burial mound 2, Pazyryk, Altai mountains, southern Siberia, late 4th–early 3rd century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin

 

What I found most interesting was the clothing and textiles that were displayed. One of the burial sites that was found contained what they believed to be a Chief and his wife. The clothing was elaborately decorated with punched, gold crouching panther pieces and a lot of the fur that they wore, a variety of squirrel, leopard, and other animals, was dyed using traditional natural dyes such as indigo and cochineal. Other items of particular interest were the highly decorated shoes, head gear and the fake beards the men were buried with.

Hawthorne & Heaney visits Scythians: Warriors of ancient Siberia London Hand Embroidery
False beard. Mound 2, Pazyryk, Altai mountains, southern Siberia, late 4th–early 3rd century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin.
Man’s headgear and illustration showing how it may have been worn. Burial mound 2, Pazyryk, Altai mountains, southern Siberia. Late 4th–early 3rd century BC. © The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2017. Photo: V Terebenin. Reconstruction drawing by E V Stepanova.

The beards were of particular speculation because scans and the preservation of the mummified bodies showed that they were often clean shaven and both men and women were heavily tattooed. Applique onto woolen items were heavily featured as well although these didn’t survived as well as others.

What tribes they couldn’t make and produce themselves they traded and stole from other tribes. The most highly prized item was Chinese patterned silk, some of these fragments have survived. The exhibition also touches on the weapons and armour that was used, the bond with their horses and the influences from other cultures such as the Greeks, and Persians. Eventually they were superseded by other nationalities and tribes as new traditions got introduced the old ones vanished and formed what we know as the mongol tribes and others.

 

Over all the exhibition is really informative and covers a wide variety of interests and is running till the 14th January 2018 at The British Museum.

All photos are from The British Museum Blog.

Filed Under: Art, Embroidery, London Tagged With: ancient cultures, art, british museum, exhibitions, gold, history, London, synthians, texttiles

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy

September 19, 2017 by Eleanor Rowlands

Fashion week is here! We have had the absolute pleasure of working with the one the only Joshua Kane for his Spring Summer 2018 Collection ‘Fantasy’. It is always a delight to see our work come to life on the catwalk, and out there for the world to see!

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery

A close up to show the 3D effect of the tailor,

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery
We are loving the attention to detail, The Tailor on the shoes

 

View this post on Instagram

PREVIEW… with a little over 24 hours until the curtain raises on my #jkfantasy collection. The '3 tailors' brought to life from film to embellishment. #jkfantasy #lfw #runway #details

A post shared by Joshua Kane (@joshuakanebespoke) on Sep 14, 2017 at 7:59am PDT

 

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery

 

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery

 

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery

My personal favourite is this incredible leather jacket! Raised embroidered sleeves. This really is a dream!

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane Fantasy London Hand Embroidery

It is safe to say that we are living the fantasy here at Hawthorne and Heaney

 

Check out the whole collection here Follow Joshua Kane on Instagram, we cannot wait to see what he comes up with next season!

 

Filed Under: Embroidery, Fashion, London, London Embroidery, Tailoring Tagged With: bespoke, blaclk, butterfly, embroidery, fantasy, fashion, gold, horse, joshua Kane, kane, leather, London, red, Tailoring

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event

June 22, 2017 by Hasina Akther

Hawthorne & Heaney have been back to our favourite, Liberty of London to celebrate Fathers Day. As usual we were offering our classic monogram onto silk pyjamas.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Along with us, there was a number other demonstrations happening in which customers could purchase engraved gifts for their fathers!

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Engraving on to mens wallets.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

Engraved ‘DAD’ onto an umbrella tie.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Liberty of London Event London Hand Embroidery

We thought this was a fantastic event run by Liberty and it was such a pleasure to be part it!

Filed Under: Embroidery, Embroidery, Fashion, London Tagged With: all over print, colours, engraving, event, Fathers Day, gold, Hawthorne & Heaney, intials, letters, Liberty, liberty of london, monogramming, personalisation, silver

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017

February 22, 2017 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

On Friday night, Hawthorne & Heaney were a few of the audience members to watch the the fashion show of Joshua Kane’s A/W 2017 collection. Held at the London Palladium, it was a grand affair with 2250 people eagerly watching as Kane wanted to be able to share the experience with his fans as well as the high fashion crowd. Therefore, tickets were available for anyone to buy, attend and enjoy.

Entitled, ‘Journey’ the brand did not disappoint with an amazing set of intricate lattice work depicting a early 20th century tube station, newly built and creating a social microcosm of it’s own as the classes mingle. On this we were introduced to the narative with a couple of models interacting briefly before the main body of the show got started.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand EmbroideryHawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

The shows itself was crisp, sharp and well polished as is only fitting for a Joshua Kane collection. Not only was this show unusual to be shared with the wider audience in this way, but was also Kane’s first show that was an equal split of mens and womenswear. The line up finished with the three looks which Hawthorne & Heaney produced embroidered pieces for, in the form of a horse head, with chess board, military and heraldic influences.

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

View this post on Instagram

Gold work embroidery horses… the horse represents the #joshuakanejourney we are on. Featured on my AW17 Runway production at the London Palladium. Special thanks to @hawthorneheaney

A post shared by Joshua Kane (@joshuakanebespoke) on Feb 20, 2017 at 12:09pm PST

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney for Joshua Kane A/W 2017 London Hand Embroidery

View this post on Instagram

Great to see some of our embroidery on the runway this evening @hawthorneheaney #joshuakanejourney #embroidery #lfw

A post shared by Tasha Searls-Punter (@tashasearlspunter) on Feb 17, 2017 at 1:39pm PST

The show finished with a moving performance by the two models/dancers that we were introduced to at the start.

View this post on Instagram

A beautiful presentation of tailoring from last nights fashion show #joshuakanejourney #ballet #suits

A post shared by Tasha Searls-Punter (@tashasearlspunter) on Feb 18, 2017 at 4:20am PST

As always it was lovely to be involved in an exciting project like this, particulally with such as beautiful outcome and was wonderful to see them on their debut in person. If you would like to seemore of the collection follow the link here. We are looking forward to what they produce for next season already!

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Embroidery, Fashion, Film, TV & Theatre, London, Tailoring Tagged With: autumn winter 2017, aw17, bespoke, custom, embellishment, embroidery, equine, fashion, gold, Hawthorne & Heaney, horse, joshua Kane, machine embroidery, menswear, palladium, show, stitching, Tailoring, womenswear

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