Tapestries & Wallpaper

I spent the bank holiday at the lovely Stirling Castle. Currently the palace is being restored and a series of seven medieval tapesties commisioned to adorn the palace. The tapestries are to be replicas of The Hunt of the Unicorn. The weaving is being split between West Dean Studios and a purpose built building within the castle grounds. I would certainly recommend a visit to see the weaving in action. Especially at 1pm, as the weavers stop to talk about the project (you are not allowed to disturb them at other times!). This is a fascinating process, and watching the pace of the weaving really makes you appreciate the dedication and the enormous quanitity of hours needed to create such works. This visit has spurred me on to sign up to a tapestry course later in the year... so watch this space!

I have just finished reading (and admiring the gorgeous pictures) Off the Wall - Wonderful Wall Coverings of the Twentieth Century by Lena Lencek & Gideon Bosker. There are great variety of wallpaper designs covered here - kistch, quirky, abstract - all with a generous side serving of Americana. As someone who lives in a wallpaper-free home, this made me crave some vintage wallpaper. Although the tales of creepy crawlies feeding off homemade wheat flour wallpaper paste gives me the heebie jeebies!