In October I will be leading a week long residential workshop titled
Re-Inventing Vintage French Textiles at the spectacular
Chateau Dumas in South West France.
Inspired by Homemade, (which now has an American publication date November 2010)
I have adapted ideas and created lots of new projects mostly using the Chatelaine's wonderful collection of vintage French fabrics, lace, labels and buttons.
There will also be a trip to a local market, visits to brocantes and a day spent in a wooded glade in the grounds dyeing fabric using the traditional method of woad dyeing
If you are interested in the course or indeed any of the
courses run at Chateau Dumas, email
enquiries@chateaudumas.net or visit the website.
Meanwhile......
A few strange things happened while I was there which made me think that my wonderful friend
Elspeth Thompson was with me in spirit.
On my first evening I noticed 2 old copies of Interiors magazine in the library. I picked one up at random, (July 2008) and it fell open on the page showing a feature on Elspeth's railway carriage home.
Then later that day while wandering around the chateau I saw a vintage book 'The Week-end Book' published by Nonesuch press in 1928 ,a forerunner to Elspeth's own book 'The wonderful weekend book'.
How I wish I could ask her if she knew about this book or if it was the inspiration.
Adieu....
In October I will be leading a week long residential workshop titled
Re-Inventing Vintage French Textiles at the spectacular Chateau Dumas in South West France.
Inspired by Homemade, (which now has an American publication date November 2010)
I have adapted ideas and created lots of new projects mostly using the Chatelaine's wonderful collection of vintage French fabrics, lace, labels and buttons.
There will also be a trip to a local market, visits to brocantes and a day spent in a wooded glade in the grounds dyeing fabric using the traditional method of woad dyeing
If you are interested in the course or indeed any of the courses run at Chateau Dumas, email
enquiries@chateaudumas.net or visit the website.
Meanwhile......
A few strange things happened while I was there which made me think that my wonderful friend Elspeth Thompson was with me in spirit.
On my first evening I noticed 2 old copies of Interiors magazine in the library. I picked one up at random, (July 2008) and it fell open on the page showing a feature on Elspeth's railway carriage home.
Then later that day while wandering around the chateau I saw a vintage book 'The Week-end Book' published by Nonesuch press in 1928 ,a forerunner to Elspeth's own book 'The wonderful weekend book'.
How I wish I could ask her if she knew about this book or if it was the inspiration.
Adieu....
