Hi - I have just delivered an interesting commission to a care home in Bristol. It is a funeral pall, to be kept at the home, and used when the family come to visit the person who has just died. I hadn't realised (never even thought about it I suppose) but when someone dies in a care home, the body isn't put into a coffin but into a bodybag and is wheeled out, like that, on a trolley. I was impressed that the care home want the visit for family members to be a positive one, so commissioned me to create a pall that would be used to cover the bodybag and trolley. Hope this isn't too much information!
We discussed their requirements (like you do!) - and I produced sketches and an almost-fullsize paper mockup with alternative colourways for staff to consider.
They wanted a fresh design, which was great to hear, but posed quite a challenge when they subsequently chose a rich grass-green velvet as the background fabric. It made sense though, for something that is planned to be used a number of times over the years.
The flowers in this mockup (yellows, orange and browns) were considered by the client to be too strong >>>
A good meeting yesterday with a workshop beginning to think about using woollen fabrics from the tailors shop. We don't do enough of this getting together to try out ideas. Jan's talking about 'upcycled' clothes and bound buttonholes got me thinking about the days when I made altered and mended clothes and the skills used in plain sewing. Some of the fabric from the tailors shop had been attacked by moths. 'Eureka' lets mend it!