Description

THE STORY OF LUCY FAULKNER ~ THE LOST SISTER

Based on the Red House in Bexley Heath at the time when Willliam Morris – artist, designer, poet, novelist and social activist lived there in the mid 1800s.

Morris wanted the house to look like a jewel box. It was painted and adorned by his companions including Webb, Rossetti and Burne-Jones. He wrote – have nothing in the house ‘which you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful’. On the second floor, the living room fireplace is painted with the motto, Ars Longa, Vita Brevis: “Life is short, art is forever.”

William Morris visited Macclesfield (where Frances Nutt London scarves are printed) to learn more about natural dyes from local silk manufacturer Thomas Wardle and gave a lecture at the School of Art in 1889 about the Arts and Crafts movement.

“Morris was one of a formal group of people in the mid-19th Century who grew increasingly concerned about the far-reaching effects of the Industrial Revolution…critics in the vein of John Ruskin felt that modern manufacturing processes deprived workers of the satisfaction of handcrafting, and that consumers were surrounding themselves with soulless products…the home should serve as a spiritual and moral respite from the chaos of the cities, a philosophy termed the “Cult of Domesticity.” The perceived solution was a revival of the medieval “Guild” mode of production, in which craftsmen were directly involved in the entire manufacturing process.” (Archdaily.com)

I was curious about Lucy Faulkner one of two sisters who worked as part of “The Firm” started by their brother Charles Faulkner and William Morris. Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Company produced mural decoration, stained glass, metal work and furniture.

Lucy Faulkner created fairy tale illustrations on ceramic tiles, embroideries and engravings including for Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market. The sisters Lucy and Kate Faulkner began as amateurs and developed into professional crafts women contributing to many items produced by the firm.

My design is called ‘The Lost Sister’. Lucy married an engraver and bookbinder called Harvey Orrinsmith and with the change of name became lost in history much of her work was misattributed to her sister Kate and only lately rediscovered with her initials LF or LJF. She continued to work for her husband making wood engravings for Smith and Linton in Hatton Garden. As Mrs OrrinSmith she wrote, illustrated and published a book called The Drawing Room: Its Decorations and Furniture (1878). This includes a discussion on colour theory.

The design combines an etching style illustration of the bear from LJF’s tile painting of the “Beauty and the Beast” and botanical drawings of “Sleeping Beauty’s” red roses. The lines in the image represent the wood engraving marks carved by her hand and the background pattern is created from details in Lucy’s book on interior design and from the architecture of the Red House.

Frances Nutt London works in accordance with the tradition of useful decoration combined with artifice and charm to consciously beautify our environment.

Light and warm especially useful and decorative in-between seasons.
Printed and handmade with care in Britain.
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Frances Nutt London accessories ~ Scarves and large squares can be commissioned with a choice of bespoke pattern and colour, and fashioned into the size and style you desire.

Choose your unique combination of the elements you prefer from the Fabric Archive.

You can request any background colour of your choice on any design if you send a colour reference that we can match to.

Lead time 6-8 weeks.

FABRIC & SIZES

Fabric: Silk Twill or Silk Chiffon,
Tubular scarves can be backed with black wool cashmere mix (70% wool, 30% cashmere)
Handknotted fringing optional
Scarf and square maximum width 135cms, length unlimited!!!

PRICES
Minimum bespoke order £100.
Prices are the same by size as the accessories already on the site plus a courtesy bespoke fee of £30 (+ postage and packing).
Bespoke size costs are based in proportion to the regular sizes.
Please contact me via the contact page to commission your luxury accessory made uniquely for your bespoke requirements.