African Influence with a Pucci Color Palette

Thank you Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) for this terrific show on textiles from the Dutch company Vlisco.

Elise

Plaid Reincarnation!

What an interesting combination here, the neutral ground with these traditional plaids/tartans.  The piece is subdued and unexpected. The use of cream keeps it moving.

Thank you Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute for having such a wonderful collection of all things textile.
http://metmuseum.org/about-the-met/curatorial-departments/the-costume-institute

Elise

Classic Madras with a bustle!

So madras did have a life before the madras shirt and short.

Elise

Young Women in Plaid.

These beautiful young ladies, in their plaids and print, so lovely. I love that they held the moment in these photos.

Elise

Plaids and Portrait

The colors and patterns in Madras Plaids are beautifully varied, probably my favorite type of plaid fabric.  But just to be clear, I do love all plaids.

Seeing this portrait, of another time and place but with such a familiar pattern, makes me happy! 

 This Daguereotype was taken 1854-60 by William Hardy Kent. It is from the Met archives.
http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/291781

This young woman is so lovely in her plaid.

Elise

They started here

I like the old photo's and watercolors of Chennai India (the old Madras). Its a complicated layered country, which makes it all the more lovable.

These colors made me think of the stacks and books of patterns we used to go through to design new patterns and recolor old ones.

Elise

Summertime

 Sometimes they are on trend and sometimes they are not. I've been seeing nice plaids on the street and in windows.  Not overkill, but enough to keep me happy.

Here's a fun map of where it all comes from, or at least some of it.

Elise

Love for Madras

As a textile designer and developer, I have spent a lot of time working on men's plaids.  Now, every time I see this on the street (or something similar) --

 I remember scenes similar to this 

and to these.

To say the least, it changed how I see fabric. I love plaids and never find them tiresome. There are endless possibilities. They should get more respect.

Elise

Mexico City Flower Market

Buckets and buckets of flowers and various plants.

Resting Roses

Elise

2 color Mosaic, definitely not understated.

This was a spectacular and huge wall inside a church in Mexico City. I'm a sucker for mosaics, so of course loved this.

Elise

Startling and Lovely Hand Embroidery Mexico City

These 2 pieces are in the Museo Nacional de Antropología  in Mexico City. 

Elise

Monochromatic

These first 2 photos are from a show at the FIT gallery. I just like the monochromatic feeling they have, especially this brown and yellow and pink number below. The red combo, speaks to me because I was taught to treat red with caution in men's wear and here, obviously they don't. The last photo is a wall installation from a museum in Mexico that was made out of sisal-all types, colors and weave.

Elise

More Tiles

Just some more beautiful geometric tiles.

Elise

Amazing Needlework

 I was in Mexico City recently and saw this piece in a museum. So intricate and complicated. I love how colorful it is.

Elise

FIT Show

This outfit was in the FIT show a number of months ago, Global Fashion Capitals, representing Mumbai. It was really spectacular. Beautiful weaving, embroidery, print, and such bright happy colors. Everything is happening on this dress.

Elise

Viney Ferny Floral

 This is a lovely swatch that my friend Jane shared with me. It have a little of a furry feeling to it. Its old and is a little dingy, but I like it anyway. The pattern is so fluid and evocative.

Elise

Changing Stripe

This piece of fabric is a simple stripe woven out of linen/cotton (I think) and then changes to a silk. Its quite interesting and a lovely variety of redish browns and golds.

Elise

Swampy Flowers from the FIT Fairy Tale Fashion Show

The show at the FIT gallery Fairy Tale Fashion had this dress in it, which I loved. Its so over the top great and a little creepy.

Elise

Some Favorite Men's Dress Shirtings

Men's Dress shirts can be so secretive, sometimes you can't see what is going on unless you look up close and feel them.  These fabrics all have  understated complicated ideas going on. The top fabric has a little Leno weave in it. The middle Tattersall pattern is an uneven herringbone twill and the bottom one is corded.

Elise

Great Subway Plaid

Just really liked this. It reminded me of all those great over shirts, CPO's we wore in high school.

Elise

French Church Colors

Obviously not a fabric but a lovely color palette. An old church in Northern France.

Elise

More Scrolls

The iron work seems to be endless and everywhere.

Elise

V & A Paisley from The Fabric of India show

The show at the V & A, The Fabric of India, has now closed. They really explained a lot of the textile process so unique to that country. The shop had a range of very interesting textiles. This paisley below was interesting to me as its classic and modern. But mostly I love the  floral movement and the busy intensity.

Elise

Bicycle Chandelier Ai Weiwei

We went to see the Ai Weiwei show at the Royal Academy in London. I loved this piece and how glittery and over the top it was.  Even if you don't like his work, what he has to say is important, go see it if you are in London.

Elise