Some military embroidery on show at the Hand & Lock exhibition. The jacket to the right is the TRC's Bethlehem jacket from Palestine, based on a British military uniform. It dates to the 1920s.I have just been to the Hand & Lock "250 Years of Embroidery" exhibition at the Bishopsgate's Institute (230 Bishopsgate) in London. It is only on for two days, so if you have the chance to see it tomorrow (13th July) then please make the effort, it is worth it.

It is a small, intense and thought provoking exhibition that includes a wide range of embroideries from various collections, including the Hand & Lock archives. There are some amazing examples of gold thread embroidery for military and general use, as well as beaded haute couture dress and jumpers, and letters and designs associated with the famous of the fashion and film world. There is, for example, a series of handbags made by Hand & Lock and designed by people such as Vivienne Westward. The handbags will be auctioned later in the year at Sotheby's with the process going to various charities (if only we had €20000 .....).

The exibition includes various themes, such as the history of craftsmanship and working with designers. It includes items from the following, very diverse sources: the Hand & Lock archives, the Diana Springall Collection, the Bishopgate Institute archives, the Lightfoot archive, as well as 'our' TRC Collection (lotus shoes from China, and the 'Bethlehem jacket' with imitation British military decoration; see illustration). The exhibition accompanies a one-day conference (13th July) at the same address about the history of embroidery, past, present and future.

For more information, click here.

Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, 11th July 2017.