The Girls' Grand Day Out

On Saturday, while Bob and my bro worked on the kitchen, and Jon was cycling, I took Liz and the girls out to Blickling Hall [having been there a couple of days before with Julian]  We did the 2 mile round trip walk to see the Pyramid Mausoleum, then ate our picnic lunch before visiting the bookshop. Both girls found books, and I found a book I had heard about, but never actually read. Liz kindly bought it for me [for £2.50]. We had cake and coffee, and the girls had ice creams. All good fun, and although it clouded over, we escaped the rain.

The book was "The Norwich Shawl" by Pamela Clabburn. Back in 2016, there was an exhibition in the Hostry, at Norwich Cathedral, called "Past Glories, Present Inspiration" - I posted about this , and was thrilled that my artwork was chosen to be part of the event. At the time, the leading expert on the shawls was Helen Hoyte, then aged 92 - who had worked very closely with Pamela  - her great friend having died two years before. Pamela had founded the Costume and Textiles Association. I knew that Helen had written a brief history of the shawls [pub 2010] , but PC wrote the original history,[pub 1995] which also catalogued the shawl collection held in the Strangers' Hall Museum in Norwich. Pamela had been awarded the MBE in 1999

And here in the NT bookshop was that very book for just £2.50. It is beautifully written book, full of illustrations - line drawings, paintings, and photographs - explaining the development of this very special garment, popular between about 1780 and 1860. Full of useful definitions and explanations.

That motif often referred to as Paisley came from India and was called boteh - but in
Norwich it was referred to as pine because it looked like a cone [Norwich made these shawls long before they got to Scotland!] Queen Victoria had 4 of the shawls - she fell in love with them when visiting the Great Exhibition in 1851, and that made them very fashionable.

The glorious red shawls featured in famous paintings of the time, like Holman Hunt's "Awakening Conscience"

It is going to take me a while to read this book and absorb all the information, whilst marvelling at the techniques of dyeing, weaving, printing and finishing.

I just have to include this picture from the book, painted by Belgian artist Alfred Stevens. He titled it "Departing for the Promenade:1859. But when it was exported to the USA a few years later, it was renamed "Will you go out with me, Fido?"

And I just know I am going to love reading it. But what has blown my mind even further - Liz paid just £2.50 for the book, and after we got home I looked it up on line. Not that many copies were printed - it was a Norwich Museums/ HMSO publication, originally retailing at £12.50 Now it is advertised in various places on line, at prices between £85-£95!! 

What a fabulous find - thank you so much, Liz!!