The TRC recently accepted two large donations of traditional clothing and other forms of textiles, which originate from central Europe (especially from various groups living in Albania, Hungary and Romania), as well as many other places around the globe, including a beautiful set of American quilts.

They were collected by experts in Paris and in Arizona, and were recently transported to the TRC. Are you puzzled how the the TRC is processing, cataloguing, photographing, and storing these items? Would you like to see some examples? Please join us at the TRC along the Hogewoerd for an informal meeting on Sunday afternoon, 24 April, from 13.00.

Woman's blouse from the Suceava region, Romania, made from handwoven cloth, and with hand embroidered decoration, 20th century (TRC 2022.0600).

The TRC was recently informed that the Encyclopedia of Embroidery from Central Asia, the Iranian Plateau and the Indian Subcontinent, edited by Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood and Willem Vogelsang in close cooperation with the TRC in Leiden, and published by Bloomsbury in London in 2021, can now be ordered by friends and followers of the TRC directly from the publishers with a discount of 40% (£200.00 / £120.00).

Please open the attached flyer for more information about the book and how to order the encyclopedia with a considerable discount.

A few months ago we published a blog about Kazna Asker, a British-Yemeni fashion student from Sheffield, who some time ago did part of her training as an intern at the TRC in Leiden. One of her T-shirts is now in the TRC Collection (TRC 2021.2654). Kazna has sent an update about her final collection that has just been viewed during the London Fashion Week. She is doing well! …… Here is her report, with some exciting photographs:

Two models showing part of Kazna Asker's collection during London Fashion Week (18-22 February).

On Sunday, I presented my final collection to conclude my MA Fashion at Central Saint Martins, London, during the London Fashion Week. I presented the first hijabi collection they ever had! I used my experience to combine traditional woven textiles, in this case from Middle Eastern carpets and furniture such as a majlis, with technical outerwear fabrics and details such as nylons, fleece and sportswear tracksuits!

Two models showing part of Kazna Asker's collection during London Fashion Week (18-22 February).

My collection focuses on community and challenges the narrative and stereotypes associated with Muslim men and women – to show that we are actually cool people! I combined my British upbringing of tracksuits and outerwear with my Yemeni heritage and Islamic garments. I specifically designed in pairs, to create matching looks to show the brother and sisterhood of our community and that we are all watered by one water.

I got my friends and community to model and wear their own shoes to show the beauty of our sincerity, despite circumstances. The Sheffield community and charity work have always been important to me and bearing in mind that Yemen is facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, I have always felt responsible to showcase the beauty of my culture and the selflessness of my people.

Two models showing part of Kazna Asker's collection during London Fashion Week (18-22 February).

I also asked my local community in Sheffield three questions: what does community mean to you, who inspires you today and what are you fighting for? I printed their answers on the back of the garments throughout my collection, as I knew I wanted this collection to be as interactive as possible in order to showcase the voices of my community.

I have attached some fitting pictures and the final runway pictures!

Hope you like them, Kazna, 24 February 2022

We have been waiting for this moment for some time and yesterday afternoon it finally arrived, namely the Amsel Collection from Paris. The collection was made by Prof. George Amsel and his wife Monique during most of their married life.

Equally as remarkable as the items themselves are the detailed and fascinating stories that Monique is sharing with us about the people and crafts they had encountered collecting all of it.

A small part of the Amsel collection, being prepared for cataloguing and photographing at the TRC, 21 February 2022. Photograph: Augusta de Gunzbourg.

Packed and prepared by TRC volunteer Augusta de Gunzbourg and the owner Monique Amsel for the past few weeks, the items were then transported from Paris to Leiden over the weekend by two other TRC volunteers, Rebecca and David Hix. In it, there are over 700 textiles and garments, mainly from Hungary and Romania.

Waistcoats and coat from the Amsel collection, 21 February 2022. Photograph: Augusta de Gunzbourg.Among other miscellaneous items in this wonderful collection: pieces from China, Central Asia, India, Thailand, as well as a group of hitherto unprovenanced textiles.  So far, we have handled a lovely early 19th century hand embroidered Kashmir shawl with numerous buteh (paisley) motifs, and various examples of mola from Panama that complement the mini-exhibition on the same subject that we are currently preparing (they will be on display from March in the TRC Gallery). There are even some raffia embroideries from the Congo.

Blouses from the Amsel collection, 21 February 2022. Photograph: Augusta de Gunzbourg.A group of volunteers led by Augusta spent today starting to sort out the various groups of textiles and clothing, by tagging, numbering and hanging related items on clothing racks prior to them being fully catalogued, photographed and eventually put in the new deep freezer to prevent insect damage. A job that will take weeks to complete.

From the 1960s and '70s onwards, the Amsels regularly travelled to various regions of Hungary and Romania and deliberately collected regional costumes - from various groups such as the Csangos or Hutsuls - that reflect the diversity of Hungarian costume and its diaspora in neighbouring countries. Embroidery is certainly one of the main features of these items: numerous embroidered and beaded dresses, blouses, as well as fleece waistcoats or even belts both for men and women are all represented.

Dresses from the Amsel collection, 21 February 2022, together with one of the TRC volunteers. Photograph: Augusta de Gunzbourg.We are in contact with various groups in Hungary about this collection, such as Dr Maxim Mordovin from the Eötvös Loránd University and historian Orsolya Zay, in order to gain a deeper understanding of these items. There will be certainly be numerous embroidery charts being worked out in the following months,

One of the long-term plans is to make an online (and real-life eventually) exhibition about the Hungarian items, as well as a complete catalogue of the Hungarian pieces that will be written in conjunction with Monique Amsel. We would need about 6000 euros to make such a catalogue so if you know of a funding body that is interested in Hungarian culture, please let us know!

Over the next few months there will be a regular blog about this collection, reflecting a range of techniques, designs and functions, related to individual items or groups of objects.

Augusta de Gunzbourg and Gillian Vogelsang, 21 February 2022.

RC director interviewed for Turkish press agency, 7 February 2022Knowledge about the TRC Leiden and its many textile activities is spreading! A week ago Inge Bosman of the Nederlandse Kostuumvereniging came to see what the TRC Leiden actually does (people often think they understand from the website, but when they actually see us it generally is a ‘Ahhh now I really understand’) and interviewed various members of the TRC.

Her article will appear in the next bulletin of the society. She will be stressing the role of the TRC as a ‘Textile Ark’ and a place where knowledge about textile technology and crafts, as well as dress and identity can be studied at various levels. The need for such an Ark (some might call it a textile museum) in the Netherlands is becoming very apparent as more and more people are discovering textiles and want to learn more.

We have also been talking with Polly Leonard from the international textile journal Selvedge (London) about bringing the TRC to the attention of a much wider and global public. Polly is very active in the world of textiles and has many (active) ideas.

In addition, in January Selman Aksünger, who is based in Amsterdam, but works for the Turkish Anadolu News Agency in Ankara, came to the TRC to see what we are doing. He was particularly interested in what the TRC has with respect to the various Turkish communities throughout the world, literally from Turkey itself, to Central Asia (Turkmenistan, Turkmen communities in Iran, etc) and of course, the diaspora in Europe, including Leiden.

I had to admit we are ‘short’ on Turkish regional dress and would love to find a patron willing to help build up this historic aspect of Middle Eastern and indeed Southeast European (think Ottoman Empire) textiles and dress, so that everyone here can share in this rich heritage. This is becoming even more important as we are about to receive two large collections of southeastern European textiles and dress, and understanding dress and textile traditions from this part of the world is becoming more significant.

So I am very pleased to announce that Selman Aksünger's article (in Turkish) and short film have been published and have already been translated into Arabic. It will also shortly appear in other languages.

Please click here for the link to the article and click here for the YouTube film.

Gillian Vogelsang, Director TRC, 7 February 2022

From 26 January 2022, the TRC is open to the public on Monday to Thursday from 10.00 - 15.00.  Currently there are no exhibitions on display. The gallery will shortly be used for the processing of two large collections that will soon arrive in Leiden. Along the walls however, special textiles and garments are being shown. By the late summer we will mount a large exhibition on ikat worldwide.

First workshop of 2022 at the TRC, Wednesday 19 January. For the first few months of 2022, workshops and courses will be given in the TRC gallery. The walls are decorated with specific items from the collection.

For all visitors the protocol applies that is given below. 

We want to make sure that all our staff and all our visitors will remain healthy and not affected by the corona virus. We are following Dutch governmental guidelines, and according to the so-called 3G system, and we ask our visitors to heed the following rules:

Round doily in handmade guipure bobbin lace made in three levels (TRC 2007.0582).Guipure lace is a form of bobbin lace, whereby the patterns are connected with bars or plaits, and not with a mesh or net. The patterns, placed closely together, may be outlined with a thicker thread (gimp) and they may have an almost three-dimensional, raised appearance. It is nowadays also known as Venetian lace.

The traditional lace from Genoa (Genoese lace) was a guipure lace, and hence it was allegedly introduced to Malta, leading to the development of Maltese lace. From Malta this type of lace was taken to England, where it influenced the development of Bedfordshire (Maltese) lace. Another type of guipure lace is Cluny lace and Hollands (Dutch) lace from the early 20th century.

The course is given by Gon Homburg. She learned to make lace from her mother and from 1983 she has been officially registered as a bobbin lace teacher. She teaches enthusiasts and gives workshops to various art schools.

We are tidying up at the TRC Leiden in anticipation of various large donations that will shortly be coming to Leiden. As a result we came across some first-day covers and postage stamps in the collection, all with a textile theme, and this led to another look at these small, but sometimes very interesting objects. We already discussed the subject of stamps and textiles in an entry for TRC Needles, but we acquired new items since writing and, let's face it, there is nothing wrong with reminding people of yet another aspect of textile studies.

Sheet of six stamps depicting types of lace and tools (Spain, 1989). The lace dates from the XVth-XVIIIth century and come from the regions of Catalonia, Estremadura, Castilla la Mancha, Andalusia, Canary Islands and Galicia (TRC 2016.0284).