Memory Dress. Dress in lambswool, disolvable yarn (solvron), knitting wire. Techniques used include knitting, felting, embroidery

Opening Date: 2006-Nov-17
Closing Date: 2007-Jan-28
I was intrigued by the idea of creating a more contemporary and diverse version of the traditional Belgian bobbin lace technique. The competition specified that final pieces should be 'inspired by lace' although not necessarily made from lace.
I began sampling and wanted to create a more contemporary high-tech fabric from machine knitting hand lace transfer techniques. I was able to work from my research and drawings of antique lace and also from my own personal family collection, which included an heirloom-christening gown, which was made by my great great grandmother in 1858.
This garment had always fascinated me as a child since it held a lot of family memories and had taken over a year to make. It had been worn by several generations of my family including my mother, my daughter and of course myself. It remains in immaculate condition and each stitch was produced by hand.I used this piece as direct reference for the 'Memory Dress', which I machine knitted in lambs wool with dissolvable yarn used in areas to create the openwork lace effects. I used black wire to create panels of hand transfer lace, which represented the intricate hand smocking used on the bodice of the original christening gown. It was designed as a wedding dress and modelled and photographed by my daughter Sarah who had worn it at her christening. This garment led me into in depth research into yarns and fibres and new techniques in producing openwork fabrics, as well as enabling research into the relationship between textile objects and memory.