The Linen Closet at Erve Brooks
The picture above is of the linen closet at Erve Brooks. The owners kindly allowed me to see this treasure. The cupboard itself was made of oak and dated from the eighteenth century and its shelves were loaded with the linen of the household- all neatly arranged in categoried bundles. The ornaments on the shelf signify the married couple and also held leather bound family bibles. This was the layout an impending bride was expected to make before her wedding. The rolls of linen you see are the actual bleached linen from which the layouts were made- in a sense it signified your wealth . They are rolled in a special way and required two people to roll them. The linen arrived in an unbleached state and was then bleached by the women and then rolled, and assembled into pillows, sheets, towels etc as needed. Heaven knows what the women would think of my linen closet!
The pictures below are of more hand painted fabrics I made last week. If it were warmer I would love to make some more today, but there was a frost last night- and I am feeling the cold and I am getting a cold! At the moment it is hard to imagine doing anything, but I need to get working again.
I have also booked my next trip to Europe from 14 September to 10 October 2005- if anyone is interested in my coming to teach please contact me and i can send out a list of workshops I teach.
2 comments:
I will be in Europe during exactly the same time period! I'm going to Madrid, Salamance, Paris & London.
Loved the linen closet photo. They are so neatly arranged. Such a glimpse into the past.
OMG ! all that linen, some sewn, other rolls quite virginal so to speak, no pun intended re bride's responsibility to accumulate linen. My linen cupboard is both minimal and unruly; even my mother's was reasonably well ordered, bless her hopeless-at-housekeeping-soul, RIP. At one time I had a friend who told me that every payday until she married she bought something for her 'box' as we call it in Aus, and so diligent was she apparently, that after 3 sons and 15 years of marriage she STILL had unopened cellophane-wrapped packages of sheets towels pillowcases and hand towels, fresh from the local drapery heavens' knows how many years before her marriage...seeing that pic of yours brought her to mind.
Post a Comment