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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

9 Mar

1 - Welcome to #ThreadTalk. This week’s subject: #embroidery.

This fabric art—both fine and folk — is a world heritage art, meaning its inception goes back before recorded times.

So tonight, I’m taking you on a tour around the world.

2 - The word "embroider" comes to English by way Frankish and Proto-German & may mean “braid” or “embellishment.”

From simple decorative stitches to complex beaded patterns, embroidery is often a matter of national pride and identity, too, like this Croatian blouse.

3 - The width and breadth of the embroidery on Earth is striking in variety & beauty. It transcends class, status, and rank & has been used both as symbols of the oppressed and the oppressor.

This hand-stitched Mandarin rank badge is from the Qing Dynasty in China.

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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

2 Mar

1 - Welcome to tonight's #Treadtalk.

#Velvet may bring to mind 1970s couches, or your 90s goth stage, but that's a long way from its luxurious roots.

So let's brave the Black Plague, the cold, and questionable fashion choices together, in the name of this truly royal fabric.

2 - As with many fabrics, there is debate as to where velvet began. Some say China, others say Egypt & others point to the Middle East.

What they can agree on is that it’s a pain in the ass to make and $$$$$ AF. Original velvet was silk, too.

3 - Velvet is a pile fabric, which means it relies on lots of sharp objects & a touch of violence for production.

Yup! Velvet’s pile yarn is on the warp direction & must be cut on the loom or, in face-to-face methods--slicing down the middle to create two mirror-like textiles.

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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

27 Feb

I think my next writing piece is all about shame.

Which is something we don't talk much about, but boy howdy do we exploit.

There's internal shame, but there's also what I think of as "shame-baiting"--content that's designed specifically to invoke shame in other creatives.

Critique, advice, support, these are all connected. But they can be flavored with shame.

Shame, as an emotion, is incredibly potent. And many people turn their own internalized shame outward.

For some people it works. At least temporarily. But I don't think it's sustainable.

I've been a lifelong marketer my whole career, and click bait has warped our senses.

We're totally okay with emotional manipulation, playing to people's fears and darkest shame.

It's a dangerous game. It's damaging. It's ultimately very, very shitty.

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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

23 Feb

1 - Lace yourself, darlings. It’s about to get drafty in here. Welcome to my #ThreadTalk.

What began on the collars of Catholic clergy & adorned the pages of Frederick’s of Hollywood centuries later?

That’s right. Lace.

And #ThreadTalks go, lace is relatively modern.

2 - The word itself comes from a Vulgar Latin derivation, from the word “laceum" (a noose or a snare). And lace has ensnared many since it came upon the scene in the late 15th C.

Flemish lace, in particular, was prized for its purity, softness, & quality of the linen grown.

3 - Lace is not a fabric, per se, but what’s called a “decorate openwork web”. In this way it’s more related to crochet and knitting & arguably has its roots in net-making.

Many of these webs can be combined in a variety of designs, densities & motifs to create layers.

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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

16 Feb

1 - Damask-erade, grinning yellows spinning reds,
Damask-erade! take your fill, let the spectacle astound you

Welcome to tonight's #ThreadTalk: Damask.

This fabric goes beyond musicals, creepy Victorian wallpaper & antique furniture. Let's follow the thread across the globe.

2 - Damask is a reversible figured fabric. It's also flat, yet has complex designs: this makes it versatile & ideal for catching light.

It isn't, as the name suggests (via the French), from Damascus at all: it's from China and was originally made solely of silk.

3 - Damask rose to popularity during the Sui and Tang dynasties alongside the major explosion in silk fabric making (particularly for the ruling and aristocratic classes).

Advances in loom technology are to account the appearance of damask in the first place.

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Natania Barron

@NataniaBarron

9 Feb

1 - Welcome friends: it's TARTAN time! So plaid you're here.

This pattern probably brings to mind highlanders, private schools, & grunge music. But there's a lot more to it.

To understand tartan, we’ve got to go back further than you think. Back to Iron Age and to MUMMIES!

2 - Before mummies however, disclaimers:

I LIKE TARTAN. It makes me happy. It's beautiful.

ALSO, people have VERY STRONG FEELINGS about tartan/plaid. There is a great deal of controversy. I’m here to share what I’ve learned, and reiterate I am a fan, not an authority.

3 - Tartan is a kind of twill weave, and twill is one of the oldest woven fabrics known to man. But due to its organic nature (often plant-based), residual cloth is almost unheard of.

We knew of some examples in Halstatt people in Iron Age bogs that were tartan-like.

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