Tapestry - Parham House

I love working at Parham House in the winter; to be left alone in those quiet rooms containing so much history is an enriching experience. It was a long job, couching so many loose weft threads to the original backing fabric, so I employed former Royal School of Needlework teacher, Flo Collingwood, to help me out.

https://www.parhaminsussex.co.uk/parham-tapestry-restoration/?fbclid=IwAR0WDDkVCDpC-r3d1jEaTlfIKCitp_m-7EbAALLFXG5bifEQf90UxfpcqqA

Below: detail of male figure

Below: example of previous darning undertaken in the early to mid twentieth century was left as it was, and couched down invisibly to the backing for support.

Below: 1 of the 30 or more splits that were carefully repaired.

Below: tiny stab stitches were sewn over the bare weft areas to stabilise and prevent further damage. The couching stitches were sewn through to the linen backing for support.

Above: example of large area where work was undertaken. We placed a pin in each area representing 1cmsq so we knew where we'd worked. At the end we took almost 200 pins out.

Above: Flo Collingwood working in the Great Hall - the tapestry was placed concertina style on a large table, we worked section by section (row by row).