SelvedgeSelvedge
Daze of twine & roses!
Ok, so they’re camomile fl owers, not roses, but you
get our drift! Back to the serious matter of upcycling,
we stuck with the basics here, using string and
simple crochet to embellish glass vessels – with the
aim of showing off your crafty creativity, rather than
an exercise in pure functionality. You can use any
of your favourite crochet stitches to do what you
will with these string decorations – for lip, neck or
hip embellishments on old glass bottles – then put
them to use as household vases or decorative items.Get the sack – in a good way
We’d like to help lift the image of underrated hessian
by showing you just one of its decorative uses.
Verandah or terrace cushions can be made in no time
from old burlap bags. Cut up the bags to the desired
size and use your favourite template to stencil what
will be the front and back. Stitch the cushion
together on three sides. After fi lling, fi nish the seam
on the fourth side or sew in a zipper. To emphasise
the rustic effect, run lines of stitching up the sides,
weaving the thread roughly through the cloth.DESIGNER EDGE
Selvedge story by Susan Hurley
LINDSAY TAYLOR
Here’s the path to perfect design happiness for the fashion-conscious
art-lover – the wondrous 3D embroidered works of Lindsay Taylor. Have you
ever seen such a seamless marriage of couturier style and cosy craft? And
Lindsay’s sidekick photographer, Julie Yeo, drives the blissful union home with
her moody images, which highlight the warmth and texture of the embroidery
by modelling the pieces on cool, chiselled beauty set on pitch-black
backgrounds. The synergy is breathtaking.
This wearable art comes direct from a chic studio in Paris or a cutting-edge
New York warehouse, right? Wrong! From a small garden studio on the Isle
of Wight. “I’m lucky enough to live next to a large forest in a rural part of the
island – a beautiful place for any artist to be inspired,” Lindsay says. “I work
from my studio at the bottom of my garden. There’s no internet, no phones- nothing but me and my dog, Noodle.”
From that gentle location, Lindsay lovingly
crafts her internationally acclaimed wares, which
include jewellery, wall-mounted art, wrapped
furniture, hats and bags, all crafted from thread
and silk (“It has to be silk ... it’s such a beautiful
fabric; it dyes so well, is strong and fine but has
a wonderful shimmer without being too bling-y”).
As you can see from the photographs, the
pieces are intricate and can take anywhere from
two of hours to make a small ring up to a couple
of months for one of her large sculptures – hence
their desirability as artworks.
“I have been lucky enough to be invited to
exhibit abroad, which is always exciting,” says
Lindsay. “But it took me a long time to consider
myself an artist. I felt like a fraud, not having
gone to art school. Calling myself a textile
artists always sits easier with me.”
To see more of her work, visit Lindsay Taylor’s
gallery of craft-art masterpieces by clicking
through to her website, http://www.lindsay-taylor.co.uk.Homespun 29