Liberty fabric and my hand embroidered ‘Liberty Letters’ are synonymous with quality and a romantic, nostalgic heritage. The feminine, pretty florals of the fabrics match beautifully with my pressed flower artwork. That is why I decided to team them together by covering mounts in their flowery fabrics. The mounts will frame my liberty letters, the liberty fabrics complementing the colours and adding pattern and floral depth. Learn more about Liberty fabrics and their subtle maximalist appeal or head over to my store Contempfleury.
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Why I Have Chosen Liberty Fabric
Pretty Colours
Liberty fabrics are all stunning and work well in an interior when mixed together like patchwork. Gone are the days when bedspread, curtains, cushions and lampshades all have to be the same, maximalism is here to stay which means a mash up of lots of equally beatiful patterns. The scale of the prints on the fabrics also contrast nicely with the scale of the pressed flowers that I use in my artwork. Therefore by using Liberty fabrics I’m enriching my artwork with an extra layer of pattern, to an already beautiful handmade design. Whilst my paper embroideries have a contemporary vintage appeal, Liberty fabrics softly whisper vintage to endorse this appeal.
If you are a fan of nostalgic charming fabrics, check out our blog post Using Pretty Vintage Laura Ashley Fabric To Frame Art
Hallmark Of Quality
Tana Lawnᵗᵐ, is like the fabric world hallmark of pure quality, for which Liberty is most famous. It’s a smooth plain weave made from a ultra fine cotton with a thread count of 240. Indeed, Liberty have been refining their fabric quality for well over 100 years. The light fluidity of the fabric makes it easy to glue neatly to the mounts.
Heritage & Notalgia
Liberty fabrics are highly covetable and so iconic that they have a longevity that can be passed down through generations. They are warm and welcoming in their recogniseable classic designs, never looking out of place in romantic homes. Consequently, by adding Liberty fabrics I’m adding another piece of history and story to my artwork. The Tana Lawnᵗᵐ cotton was established as early as the 1930’s by Liberty’s cotton buyer Wiliam Hayes Dorell. It is claimed it was named after the lake in Ethiopia, Lake Tana from where fibres originated. Below is the Tana Lawnᵗᵐ I used to experiment.
Liberty Betsy Print
The Betsy fabric was created in 1933, designed by the designer with the initials D.S.. D.S is also said to be the creative genius behind other icon Liberty prints. This pretty lilac version that I chose has green, mustard, blue and coral in its repeat floral print. Having numerous hues helps it complements lots of design schemes.
Making Liberty Print Mounts
How To Make Liberty Mounts or Matts
Taking glue and scissors to beautiful fabric is always nerve wracking the first time, but Liberty fabrics are really easy to work with.
- Prepare your fabric by washing it (if needed), and giving it a good iron to get out any creases.
- Lay the fabric down flat on a table with the reverse of the fabric facing upwards.
- Spray the front of the mount with a spray glue and place it down onto the fabric, making sure you line up any repeat pattern so that the design will look straight.
- Additionally, turn it over and run your fingers over the whole mount making sure the fabric has stuck smoothly with no little air bubbles or creases.
- Next I trim around the edge leaving enough fabric to overlap on the back. I wouldn’t necessarily overlap all fabrics but tana lawn cottons are so fine they don’t create unwanted bulk that would cause an imbalance.
Liberty Fabric Print Art
The beauty of the angora mohair yarns that I embroider with is their slightly muted tones. Hence, they work perfectly with the dried hues of the pressed flowers and the pastel hues of Liberty’s fabrics.
Liberty Letters
The liberty letters have soft hues of pinks and blues and work well with so many Tana Lawn Liberty fabrics. I have listed a few other that are beautiful & complementary below.
Buying Liberty Fabrics
Etsy’s Liberty Fabrics is always a great place to start your search. C and W Supplies is also a fabulous Liberty treasure trove!
Liberty Archives
The actual Liberty print archive, housed in the iconic Liberty building isn’t open to the public. Despite this, it is a source that’s known to have been unlocked to select privilaged designers. In the hunt for inspiration, the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Mark Jacobs and Junya Watanabe have all used the prestigious library, along with Liberty’s own design team. Boasting over 50,000 print designs, how incredible would it be to spend the day, week, month there? Furthermore, imagine soaking up all of that pure history of British textiles.
However Liberty do have a different resource available to the public called Liberty Fabric. There you are able to research current fabrics according to it’s final use, choosing between ‘Apparel’, ‘Interiors’, and ‘Crafting.’
Liberty also have a fabulous Instagram hashtag called #libertycraftclub which has a wealth of inspiring images featuring Liberty fabrics.
Where You Can Purchase My Liberty Print Fabric Framed Art
Teaming vintage Liberty print fabrics with my artwork is a match I’m loving exploring. Works of art I have for sale can be found in my Contempfleury store.
History Of Liberty Timeline
1875 – The founder of Liberty, Merchant, Arthur Lasenby Liberty opened his first Regent Street store at 218a Regent Street. He did this with a family loan of just £2,000.
1885 – Arthur purchased 142–144 Regent Street and named the property Chesham House. As a result, he had put his store on the map as the most fashionable place to shop in London.
1917 – Arthur Lasenby Liberty died.
1920 – 1925 – Thus, the Great Marlborough Street shop , the iconic Liberty store as we know it today followed. Built using the timbre from three old war ships including the HMS Impregnable, and HSM Hindustan. It was built in a mock Tudor style by architects Edwin Thomas Hall and his son Edwin Stanley Hall. However, sadly it was completed after Liberty’s death.
1930s – Meanwhile, Tana Lawn cotton was born under the guidance of then Cotton Buyer, William Hayes Dorell.
1950s – Liberty set up it’s inhouse design studio.
1955 – Liberty opened department stores in other cities, first Manchester, then Bath, Brighton, Chester, York, Kingston-Upon-Thames, Exeter & Norwich.
1996 – Consequently Liberty closed 20 of its shops outside of London.
1988 – Still, Liberty sets up a subsidiary agreement in Japan.
2010 – Liberty purchased by Blue Gem Capital.
Conclusion
These iconic liberty fabric mounts enrich the hand embroidered Liberty letters and Liberty print fabric, adding another story to each piece. The classic prints still offer a familiar nostalgic layer. These can be readily mixed with other patterns and colours within an interior.
Further Reading
If fairies are your thing or your kids’ check out the post, ‘Stunning Fairy Art To Complete Your Fairycore Bedroom Decor.’
Read more about using vintage influences to style and choose colour for an interior scheme in the blog post How To Make A Vintage Colour Palette.
Discover sources for unearthing vintage treasures in the blog post The Appeal Of The Country Brocante In The Search For Art & Rare Paraphernalia.
For guidance on how to start an art collection featuring flowers check out the blog post Flower Art – Collecting & Finding The Essence Of A Great Portfolio
Or lust after our seventies style embroidered owl in the post Beautiful Owl Wall Art For A Floral Nursery.
Contempfleury
Contempfleury is an art studio run by Leah Nikolaou from her home and garden in Somerset. She works extensively with pressed flowers and luxury yarns to create her one-of-a-kind flower art and pressed flower prints.
