Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction

1. The Role of the Silkwoman 1320-1550
2. The Role of the Silkman 1550-1660
3. Baroque Exuberance 1660-1690
4. Baroque Embellishment 1690-1715
5. Palladian Restraint 1715-1760
6. Neoclassical Interlude 1760-1790
7. Regency Excess 1790-1830
8. Victorian Extravagance 1830-1880
9. Retrospection and Restraint 1880-1970

Glossary
Relative value of the pound 1450–1950
Notes
Picture credits
Select bibliography
Index

Promotional Information

This lavishly illustrated book, the first of its kind, traces the history of trimmings in Britain and Ireland from 1320 to 1970, examining the design and usage of tassels, fringe, braid (woven lace), gimp and cord and their dependence on French fashion.

About the Author

Annabel Westman is Executive Director of The Attingham Trust for the study of historic houses and collections and has a distinguished reputation as an independent textile historian and consultant. Since 1980, she has specialised in the reinstallation of historic interiors for heritage bodies, such as the National Trust, English Heritage and Historic Royal Palaces, private houses and museums, carrying out extensive archival research and advising on numerous projects through to completion. Schemes have included the restoration of beds, window curtains, wall hangings and carpets on which she has published and lectured widely. She is a trustee of Stowe House Preservation Trust and was appointed a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1997.

Reviews

an extraordinary work of dedicated scholarship … this book is an essential one for the library of anyone with a serious interest in country-house decoration.
*Country Life*

Lavishly illustrated, with fascinating tales … [Westman] paints a vivid picture of how trimmings evolved throughout different ages and styles.
*The English Home*

…a triumph of research, textual and visual, with a sustained attention to detail. Richly illustrated and packed with information, it looks set to become the standard text in its field.
*House & Garden*

…simultaneously highly erudite and richly luxurious…
*The Victorian*

This is a sumptuous book, which traces the history of trimmings for furnishing and interior decoration in Britain and Ireland, … lavishly illustrated with new colour photography and impregnated with sound scholarship from the leading expert in the field.
*The Furniture History Society*

The book is a physical and beautifully visual distillation of Westman’s knowledge, with lavish illustrations, frequently extending over two pages...a glorious, detailed and readable study… an invaluable tool to rediscover lost decoration.
*The Georgian*

An immediate clue to the subject matter of this teasingly titled book is its beautiful presentation: what might be considered a niche topic is here revealed as an essential aspect of interior decoration and for long periods by far the most glamorous and conspicuously expensive… No scholar could be better placed than Annabel Westman to write this book, which is informed by forty years’ experience of researching and implementing reinstallations of historic upholstery schemes. It will prove invaluable to a wide readership, including economic and social historians, historians of taste and interior decoration (not only of furniture and upholstery), curators and those engaged in historic reconstructions, as well as designers and decorators seeking inspiration. The book will not be superseded.
*The Burlington*