Summer table settings!

I love nothing better than to play with colour and texture when setting a table in the garden. Our summers are so brief and unreliable that it is great to make an effort when the sun does shine!

Recently I have acquired a couple of lovely white cutwork table cloths and runners and have had fun playing with them to add a touch of freshness to a cerise Revived Damask tablecloth.

With the addition of some Wisteria coloured Rainbow Damask napkins I was ready to have a friend round for a cup of coffee in the sunshine. The good china mustn't linger in the cupboard so I mix some of Mum's collection of Royal Crown Derby with a couple of mugs from Zara!

A couple of days later a few friends popped in for a cool drink and some fresh summer berries on their way through London. I had just enough time to throw the cloth back on the table and hey presto, great clashing colours of orange and pink were ready to welcome them.

I heard there was going to be a prosecco shortage, so I am doing my bit to indulge while it is still available! Who needs an excuse to have some bubbles on a sunny Sunday evening?!

A lovely hand embroidered runner and some pretty whitework napkins complete the table. My neighbours must think I am very odd, running around with a camera when waiting for guests to arrive! But it's good to capture the moment and hopefully inspire you to use your linens, not leave them folded in the cupboard.

And if you'd like to buy these very pieces then they can be found on the website. Not the pink cloth tho', I've kept that for me!!

www.mcburneyandblack.com

Latest Madeira linen finds!

Recent acquisitions have included some really stunning pieces, mainly Madeira work. I never cease to be amazed by the needlework skills of the ladies who produced the cloths and mats.

One really unusual set of mats had me full of admiration. A 13 piece luncheon set of round Irish Linen mats, a large centre piece and then 6 mats and 6 coasters with the most wonderful scalloped embroidery pattern to the outer edges, almost resembling fish scales.

The cutwork was done with such precision and there was no damage at all, even after all these years. In an inner row to the edge of the linen were tiny works of art. The tiniest of flower heads worked in French Knots in gorgeous shades of blue, purple, yellow and pink, with teeny green leaves to each side.

I really want to bring these right up to date by teaming them with freshly dyed Rainbow Damask napkins - it would make for such a colourful table.

I am often asked how I can bear to part with the linens I find and I have to admit on one or 2 occasions recently I have succumbed and decided not to sell some pieces. The set of Madeira napkins below is one of those! I washed and ironed them, photographed them and even got around to putting them on the website - but the following morning I saw them sitting on the shelf in my office and I knew I couldn't let them go! 

Aren't they just fabulous?! So unusual and quite irresistible! I am hoping to set a table mixing cranberry and peridot glasses on a plain cream cloth and then let these beauties speak for themselves!

And finally a quite breathtaking piece of Madeira work - a huge square tablecloth with the most stunning embroidery and cutwork. Quite a masterpiece!

Some say that Madeira work is not fashionable at the moment, but I disagree. With a little clever mixing and matching I think it can be just fabulous. Whether by mixing with brightly coloured accessories or layering a masterpiece  such as this over a darker cloth, I believe they can be brought right up to date and be enjoyed and admired.

New Limited Edition Rainbow Damask

 Happy New Year to everyone!

I've had a wonderful response to my Revived Damask vintage napkins and tablecloths. It isn't always easy to find vintage pieces that are suitable or appropriate for dyeing. Just a few weeks ago I came across a quantity of new damask napkins in the Chrysanthemum pattern and I decided to have a go at transforming them with bright and fresh colourswith Spring and Summer in mind. Nothing like planning ahead!

The sky was so cloudlessly blue at the weekend that I gave up thoughts of shopping in the London sales, and decided instead to get busy taking photos of the 6 new colours. Natural light, even at this time of year, is just perfect and I am lucky that my studio space faces South and gets a good couple of hours before the sun dips beneath the roof of the houses behind.

Here we have them, Fuchsia, Periwinkle, Wisteria, Orange Sorbet, Turquoise and Pistachio.

 I have added them to my shop on Etsy in sets of 4 of a colour so you can mix and match if you like, or choose just one colour if you prefer. I think in all I will have around 8 sets of each colour, so it is very much a Limited Edition.

I can't decide between these 2 colours to go with my pretty 1930s tea set! I suspect it'll be the Orange Sorbet, it just makes the colours pop!

So New Year's resolutions here I come, make cakes, have tea parties, search for linens, I know I will definitely be able to keep the last one. Not so sure about the cakes.....I'm hardly Mary Berry!