Tea at Trianon: The Poetry of Scarves

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, December 5, 2016

The Poetry of Scarves

From Victoria:

The Anatolian mountains of Armenia are vast repositories for alum, a resource that is valuable as a binding agent, or mordant, holding colors fast to fabric. Plant dyers, such as Jane’s Porter’s maternal ancestors, understand its properties well, as do weavers, such as those in her father’s line who produced woven brocades in their silk mill, located in what is now central Turkey. “Textiles are in my DNA,” Jane says.

Her grandmother initiated her education in textiles by taking her to fabric shops in New York City, where the 4-year-old Jane experienced a brilliant world of textures and colors that instilled in her an appreciation of well-made fabrics and clothing, and over time, helped her to develop an eye for beautifully crafted pieces. “Together,” she says of she and her grandmother, “we designed and sewed all of my dance and prom dresses.”

In what seems a natural progression, her inaugural line of dresses made their debut in the boutiques of Philadelphia in 1968. Jane credits the Philadelphia Guild of Handweavers for contributing to her mastery of weaving, spinning, and dyeing. Inspired by this knowledge, she opened a fiber arts school in Chadds Ford. When she added screen-printing to her cache of abilities in textiles, using natural dyes, of course, the result was a clothing line with nationwide distribution—hand-screened and made with custom-woven wool, cotton, and silk—designed for professional urban women. (Read more.)