• Skip to main content

HAWTHORNE & HEANEY

Embroidery Specialists

  • ABOUT
  • OUR SERVICES
    • HAND EMBROIDERY
    • DIGITAL EMBROIDERY
    • MONOGRAMS & LOGOS
    • POP-UP EVENTS
    • CLASSES
  • CLASSES
    • LONDON EMBROIDERY SCHOOL
  • BLOG
  • SHOP
    • MASONS MILITARY BADGE & BUTTON SHOP
    • LONDON EMBROIDERY SCHOOL
  • JOBS
  • CONTACT

traditional

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week – 3rd – 7th May 2017

May 5, 2017 by Hasina Akther

London Craft Week opens London’s studios and shops giving you an insight into the amazing industries around the city. By inviting you to see what amazing crafts happen, often behind the scenes with demonstrations and viewings and showing you skills and techniques traditional and recent. Hawthorne & Heaney have been very busy soaking up all that London has to offer this week, so far we have visited:

Nest design at Blacks Club- Soho.

This is an extraordinary interior company, with delightful staff explaining the fabric origins, methods of designing and previous client projects. Nest have an amazing collection of fabrics from all over the world; linens, velvet, silks, lace as well as dyed materials such as shibori and Tussar silk.

If you love fabrics and a variety of them it’s definitely worth heading over to Nest at Blacks to talk about the collection of beautiful samples as well as the great projects they have made.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Example of a client project in Spring Restaurant, Somerset House (photo taken from Nest design.co.uk) Beautiful lines of stitch, layering and vintage lace are highlighted as well as different opacities of linens.

Christian Louboutin -Mayfair

The Christian Louboutin shop was demonstrating leather tassel making which is part of their personalisation service of the shoe. The construction of these leather tassels was amazing to watch, the demonstrator did not speak English however the skill he had constructing the leather strips into delicate but fun tassels was a great process to watch and learn. It inspires you to have a go at making such decoration as he made it look so easy. (definitely isn’t easy!)

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Example of the hand made leather tassels on a boat style shoe.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Frette boutique

As you approached Fretta the window display was a wall of work of art with a painter part way through painting a full size design of flowers and leafs

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

The experience in Fretta was a treat with very helpful staff showing you around the shop, explaining fabrics, as well as browsing the beautiful luxury fabrics.

I spoke to Lucia Surace (CRM & Marketing Manager) who was able to show me through the personalisation of the collection and previous examples of embroidered items. The quality of fabrics they have there are so lovely, these including, bed linens made from egyptian cotton, throws and blankets made from cashmere, wool and silk, as well as table linens and towels.

Clients for the embroidery personalisation are often for mass for example for cruise ship towels.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above right: example of embroidered towels, part of their personalisation service.

Above left: table linens with the popular lace hole boarder.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above: photo of Fetta’s embroidered table linen.

I found Fretta well worth a visit to see the style and quality that they produce and to learn from the staff there.

The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles – At Temple Gallery

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above image: Example of traditional Thai embroidery on garments in at Temple Gallery

The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles was founded by Her Majesty Queen Sirikit within the Grand Palace grounds in Bangkok and officially opened in 2012. This will be the museum’s first London visit, celebrating the Khon, Thailand’s oldest narrative dance forms. This exhibit is placed in the most beautiful building, Temple Gallery, located just a short walk from Temple Station. On display at the exhibit is a wonderful array of various examples of the skill which has been used to make such magnificent garments, passed down through generations, to even make garments suitable to be worn by people now.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Images above: Examples of the traditional Thai garments on display, as well as a close up of the lavish accessories

In this exhibit, we see cultures come together. There were embroidery techniques that have been apparent in our own culture for centuries, examples of this we see in our heritage museums. What a treat it was to see them on traditional Thai garments in such a wonderful building, and just like us, the skill of all of this has been lovingly passed on through generations, person to person.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Images above: examples of Goldwork on a traditional Thai collar

The Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles was founded on Her Majesty’s efforts to ensure the preservation of Thailand’s textile arts for future generations. In 1976 the museum was established with the objective to help people in rural areas to gain supplementary income and in doing this, Her Majesty realised just how wonderful and truly unique the hand woven silk by villagers is.

Making A Mackintosh – At Mackintosh

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: Equipment used by Mackintosh

Glasgow has always been known for its work ethic and producing hand made goods and of course its tireless war efforts. Hard working Glaswegians have been producing Mackintosh coats since 1824!

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: Demonstration of the rubber glue being applied to pattern pieces

On entering, I was warmly welcomed by the lovely Factory and Production Managers of the Mackintosh factory in Glasgow, Scott Sheridan and John McGuire who have worked for the Mackintosh factory for 40 years. They gave me a fantastic demonstration on how the pattern pieces are glued, attached and arranged to ensure that they are functional and waterproof.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Images: Glue being applied to the button-fly of the coat, then the piece is folded over and a heavy rolling tool is applied to ensure the two pieces have stuck with no air bubbles

The demonstration was very engaging, it was so informative seeing how much time and care goes into one coat. On a basic coat, there is 25 pattern pieces, and each one is passed through different departments in the Glasgow factory before completion. I watched on as they applied glue to the pattern pieces with their index fingers, using a lot of force and pressure to get the technique correct, using the same tools and glue that the people who did it before them would have used.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: Example of the pocket patterns, tin of glue and traditional rolling tool

It is very obvious on going to this exhibit to see that Mackintosh is a company of tradition and efficiency. It was a treat for me to be able to see this tradition which has carried on through different generations and also have explained to me how the company has expanded to keep up with popular demands, cultural and even climate changes through the years. Such as detachable collars/hoods, varying fabrics and changes in the way we use our coats and what for. The traditional Mackintosh coats are still made in Glasgow, with the same glue and the same equipment as they always have been.

Shoe Making at Edward Green

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above images: Left: Demonstration of Andy Peach sewing the two front pieces that make the shoe. Right image: See front seam for example of what Andy is currently working on

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: Close up of stitching on shoe, done with boar hair

Northampton has always been closely associated with shoemaking and that became very apparent to me upon entering this exhibit at Edward Green and seeing the demonstration. Andy Peach, a fantastic hand sewer who has worked making shoes for Edward Green for over 30 years gave me and a small audience a fantastic demonstration. He was very honest about his work and the methods which he uses. I was able to see him begin the sewing of the two front parts of the shoe together. He carefully inserts a sharp tool into half of the leather, which is the best calf’s leather which has been cut by hand. He then threads Chinese boar hair into that hole to attach the two pieces. He says that they use boar’s hair as over time cotton would rot and these shoes are made to last a lifetime!

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: Example of the “stirrup” and Andy wearing the shoes pictured above which he is also making

The stirrup is used traditionally to keep everything attached to the knee where most of the work is happening, effectively working like an elastic band, keeping both hands free to focus on the stitching. He works on this piece for 15-20 minutes and tells me that this one small area of the shoe can take up to 2 hours to be completed, which it then it goes on to other departments to be finished and finalised by the staff at the factory in Northampton. The handwork that must go into one pair of shoes was exquisite to see.

Emblem by Rose At St James Pavilion

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Image: The screen printing equipment Rose works with

Emblem by Rose is a beautiful independent, up and coming screen printing company. Everything Emblem states to do, is done by Rose entirely on her own, and speaking with her on Thursday made that evident to me. Visitors were even able to commission their own ties if they should wish to. This alone made me feel like Rose is very passionate about what she does and communicates what Emblem as a small independent company is all about.

Hawthorne and Heaney explore London Craft Week - 3rd - 7th May 2017 London Hand Embroidery

Above Images: Rose Demonstrating the printing process with screen and also squeegee

Sadly I didn’t get to this exhibit in time to see any demonstrations, but Rose was wonderful to speak with. She really engaged with her audience and spoke honestly about her work and why she is so passionate about making bespoke designs for her clients. She spoke of how she is always trying out new techniques with mixed media and programs such as Photoshop and Illustrator to make her work more efficient and durable for the client. All imagery is designed and drawn by Rose, before being transferred into a screen to be printed onto silk scarves. Despite not having any demonstration, Rose was very good at explaining the printing process to me, she was a delight to speak with.

London Craft Week will be finishes on Sunday 7th May so see what you can before it is all over this year, click here to go to the website for full listings. We can not wait to see what next year will bring!

Written by Phillipa Lloyd & Amelia Beaumont-Dodd 

 

Filed Under: Art, Embroidery, London Tagged With: Collection, craft, embroidery, fabrics, London Craft Week, Nest at Blacks, technique, traditional, variety

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery

January 12, 2017 by Hasina Akther

Central Saint Martins graduate and one of London’s newest emerging designers, Molly Goddard, is holding a new, interactive exhibition at Greenwich’s NOW Gallery where you are invited to sit and embroider one of her floor to ceiling tulle dresses for free. When an opportunity like this comes up we just had to go and check it out for ourselves!

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

In one large, sunlit room, the six colourful oversized dresses hang from the ceiling on pulleys so that the whole length of the dress can eventually be covered. You are encouraged to sit on one of the chairs around the dresses and embroider absolutely anything you like on them.

For Molly, the exhibition is about people ‘enjoying doing something with their hands’ and she hopes that people from all walks of life will come and make their mark on one of her dresses.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

Around the room are simple and clear instructions for basic embroidery stitches, meaning anyone from an absolute beginner to an embroidery artist can come and express their creativity on the dresses. This is such a lovely way for everyone to experience embroidery and is a fun way to introduce people to the traditional craft. The whole exhibition is also very child friendly with blunt, plastic needles and scissors attached to a chain in the centre, making it an excellent activity for the whole family to take part in.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

Collecting a oversized needle and some thread from the central podium, I chose a blank space and began to stitch directly onto the tulle. The whole experience was very relaxing and there was no pressure on what you did with the thread so you could just experiment and let your imagination run wild!

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

Each little stitch helps the dresses to grow and evolve and it was very exciting to be able to add my own personal mark amongst all the others in what feels like a huge community project.

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

The exhibition only opened and already the bottom of the dresses are filling up with an array of interesting designs and colour from a variety of different people. I can’t wait to see what they will look in February when the exhibition closes and one of the dresses will be auctioned off for charity.

 

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

Hawthorne & Heaney Visits Molly Goddard’s ‘What I Like’ Exhibition at the NOW Gallery London Hand Embroidery

 

Don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of this very unique interactive art installation!

The exhibition runs from 4 November 2016 to 19 February 2017

Monday to Friday 10am – 7pm

Saturday and Sunday 11am – 4pm

Closed for Christmas 24 December – 2nd January

 

NOW Gallery

The Gateway Pavilions

Peninsula Square

London

SE10 0SQ

By Jessica Eykel

Filed Under: Embroidery, Fashion, London, London Embroidery Tagged With: craft, creativity, event, exhibition, hand embroidery, Hawthorne, Heaney, individual, molly goddard, personal, stitching, textiles, traditional, what i like

Hawthorne & Heaney and Goldwork by the London Embroidery School

May 29, 2015 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Hawthorne & Heaney and Goldwork by the London Embroidery School London Hand EmbroideryDo you find yourself amazed at some of the traditional goldwork techniques still being used today as they have been for hundreds if years and wish you knew how to create those kind of effects? Well, you may be in luck as the London Embroidery School is offering new Beginners Level and Intermediate 5 Day Goldwork courses.

Hawthorne & Heaney and Goldwork by the London Embroidery School London Hand EmbroideryIn these courses, they will be teaching some of the techniques you can see in these images of ours, such as passing, cutwork, raising as well as many others.

Hawthorne & Heaney and Goldwork by the London Embroidery School London Hand EmbroideryThe Courses will be taught by their practising embroiderers with time for you to both watch the demonstrations as well as practise under their watchful eyes.

Hawthorne & Heaney and Goldwork by the London Embroidery School London Hand Embroidery

If you would like more information or to book you place in these very select classes please click here. The Courses will be taking place 8th-12th June during the day in our Islington Studio.

 

Filed Under: Embroidery, Embroidery, Fashion, London, London Embroidery Tagged With: Classes, courses, embellishment, embroidery, goldwork, Hawthorne & Heaney, june, learning, London, London Embroidery School, military, summer, traditional

Hawthorne & Heaney for London Embroidery School

January 30, 2015 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Hawthorne & Heaney for London Embroidery School London Hand EmbroideryHawthorne & Heaney like most advocates of an ancient art feels the need to make sure that we pass the skills needed to make these beautiful pieces onto the next generation in order to try and preserve the skills. Therefore, from April, The London Embroidery School will be moving into the Hawthorne & Heaney office in Mayfair on the weekends.

Hawthorne & Heaney for London Embroidery School London Hand Embroidery

There is a range of the most popular classes that capture the essence of the work that we create available for the public to book and parcipate in. Couture Tambour beading, traditional military Goldwork and the much coveted and widely admired Lace Group are now available. So if you would like to dip your toe into Hawthorne & Heaney’s world, workshops from the London Embroidery School can be booked here. Hawthorne & Heaney for London Embroidery School London Hand Embroidery

Filed Under: Art, Embroidery, Fashion, London, London Embroidery Tagged With: couture, gold work, Hawthorne & Heaney, lace, learning, London Embroidery School, military, tambour, traditional, weekends, workshops

Antico Setificio Fiorentino

July 3, 2014 by Natasha Searls-Punter

Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery

Anytime we come across a brand or a maker who shares an ethos with us we like to share them with you and Antico Setificio Fiorentino is one such brand. They make beautiful, traditional silks on handwoven looms in the San Frediano in Florentine tradition as they have since 1786. Their website and literature is a veritable what’s what of silk, explaining the differences in the silks and their corresponding patterns in exceptional detail. From Erminsino to Filaticcio, Broccatello to Lampasso even a textiles enthusiast feels like they have learned something from visiting their world.

Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery

Their website is definitely worth a visit with lots of striking images and hypnotic video clips of the looms. It gives a great sense of the scale of time it must take to make a batch of made to measure cloth. The delicate threads and fibres weave seamlessly through the looms, some of which date back to the 18th century and are based on the original designs of Leonardo Di Vinci. Antico Setificio Fiorentino go to great efforts to share with the public the art of weaving, as they recently exhibited the Di Vinci warping machine in Milan in April. They also have an ongoing project with the State Archives of Florence to restore and digitise ancient volumes of the Art of Silk and the Art of Wool in order to preserve this rare insight into weaving of the past.

Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery

It’s lovely to see such passion and enthusiasm for an ancient craft and that it still has a place and desirability in current textile production. However with such an eye for detail and quality as is seen here, it is no surprise that they continue to thrive.

Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery

Antico Setificio Fiorentino London Hand Embroidery

Filed Under: Art, Embroidery, Fashion Tagged With: Antico Setificio Fiorentino, fabric, fashion, florence, Hawthorne & Heaney, interiors, Italy, looms, luxury, Milan, Silk, textiles, traditional, warping, weaving

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • +44 (0)20 7886 8574

© Copyright 2018