As earlier posts (here and here), can prove, I’m occasionally ensnared by the lure of vintage table linens — losing hours to various keyword searches on the topic, scrolling through websites, etc. Today it was thoughts of the perfect holiday tablecloth that did me in. Thankfully, my time consuming linen lust has lead me to this book — and with it the chance to actually learn something about a topic that’s fuzzy in my head. Here’s the publisher’s write-up:

This beautiful book is the first to exclusively present what many agree are the very best of vintage household linens, the products of the Weil & Durrs Company of New York City, from the 1920s to 1984. Their Wilendur and other brands reign above others in the collecting world for good reason. The bold and beautifully executed patterns stand out as art of the highest quality. Their inks and dyes, as well as their base fabrics, were exceptional. This book provides a brief history of the Weil and Durrs Company and descriptive text for over 250 different tablecloths in 120 printed designs…

Liz Alpert Fay is another artist creating colorful hand-hooked pieces for the wall.

I’ve just been introduced to Altoon Sultan’s wonderful hooked “ruglets”. Created as art for the wall, they’re an extension of her work as a painter and contribute to her ongoing study of nature and landscape, abstraction, and the work of artists that inspire her. Click here for her paintings and here for her ruglets.

Visit the website of Macan Tidur Textiles for a glossy, well-curated “look book” of textiles from Sumatra, Java, Bali and beyond. Above, a sarong from South Sulawesi, Indonesia.

Via Susi Johnston.

Here’s a pretty eye-opening story about the economic realities of traditional carpet weaving in Morocco.

– It seems like there must be some importer out there who would be interested in working in a beneficial way with the collective of female weavers featured in the article…

Seema Krish’s debut collection is called Bombay Bliss and includes six patterns made in a range of fibers and techniques. There are pillows and throws — and fabric by the yard is coming next.

Via Interior Desisgn magazine’s “Market Tabloid” issue, 10/31/09.

The New York Times blog “The Moment” has a post on new carpets by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby for The Rug Company. Fun and happy, but sophisticated too.

A “William Morris-inspired” wool / viscose carpet by Sanderson, sold through the British company John Lewis.

Segueing from my previous post, artist Joanne Mattera’s 10/26/09 blog entry offers an interesting commentary on the limitations and implications of defining artists within subcategories — like “fiber artist”. Her entry also includes examples of  several artists-who-happen-to-work-with-textiles-as-a-medium, including Polly Apfelbaum. A detail from her piece “Funkytown” is shown above.

Debra Smith uses vintage textiles to create compositions that are sewn and quilted to collage-like effect. By framing her pieces for the wall she also helps blur the art/craft distinction that often leaves fabrics in a lesser camp.

If you like Smith you might also appreciate the work of Leah Evans.