Textile Treasures

Tiny reverse applique baby collar

A beautiful little collar salvaged from the back of a babys jacket from the H'mong hilltribe of northern Thailand.

Tiny, tiny stitches and reverse applique. A miracle of fine stitchwork!

Size: 9 x 6 cms

H'mong baby collar

A lovely little lovingly hand stitched collar for the back of a tradional baby's jacket. With reverse applique and cross stitching.

H'mong people of Northern Thailand

Size: 8 x 10 cms

Miao sequinned jacket piece

The bottom section of the back of a Miao woman's jacket from Guizhou province in southwestern China.

Very fine metallic thread work with sequins and backed with fabulous burnished indigo cotton.

Size: 31 x 41 cms.

To read more about the wonderful indigo and embellished textiles of Guizhou, have a look at my blog "Indigo Central!"

Laos brocade wallhanging

A beautiful 100% silk finely woven brocade with blue, red and white silk threads on a pale yellow silk background.

This piece was woven in Laos to be worn over the shoulder, although it has been cut across the middle to make a wall hanging

Size: 47 x 108 cms (with a black strip at the top to hang it from)

Gold thread square

An old and rather tatty silk square with a supplementary weft of gold metallic thread. But what fabulous faded glory!

Probably from South Sumatra

Size: 75 x 75 cms

Embroidered Bai baby carrier

An old and very worn baby carrier with some fine hand stitched embroidery panels of fish and birds and folded patchwork squares. Made by a woman of the Bai Minority in south western China's Yunnan Province.

Old hand made baby carriers have now been almost universally replaced by modern machine made versions.

Size: 70 x  72 cms  

Padded baby carrier

An old  padded embroidered and appliqued baby carrier from the Flowerbelt Yi group in Yunnan Province, southwestern China. In soft velvet and corduroy fabrics with motifs of fish, peonies and water lilies.

Rather damaged but still very attractive.

Size: 67 x 80 cms 

Miao batiked baby carrier cover

An indigo dyed hand drawn batik from Guizhou, southwestern China.

A cotton cloth like this is used as the outside part of a baby carrier. It is then lined with a blanket.

Good condition with a little discolouration.

Size: 54 cms x 66 cms

Sumatran ship cloth

 Supplementary weft weaving from southern Sumatra. A weaving which tells the story of migrations by boat.

The design is naturally dyed deep reds and dark blue on natural pale brown cotton background

Size: 75 x 83 cms.

Sumatran gold songket

Exquisite hand woven piece from Sumatra. Deep maroon red with pale gold thread woven in intricate detail. Weavings like this are known as "songkets" and are famous in western Sumatra where they are used in ceremonies as expressions of family prosperity.

Edged at both ends with fine lace work trim in gold thread

Size 31 x 86 cms (including edgings)

Black H'mong embroidered fringed sash

A wonderful intact piece of two very finely embroidered panels on a deep dark indigo cotton base.. The work is finely kotted and stitched in floss silk yarn.

The whole sash is worn around the waist by a woman from the Black H'mong tribal group, living in northern Vietnam. 

The whole piece measures 20 cms x 1.85 m excluding very long finely twisted tassels (30 cms long) The two panels of embroidery measure 20 x 43 cms