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National Wool Museum
Quilt, Cross Currents
Expressions 2004 Quilt PrizeWeaving consisting of four panels sewn together to form the quilt. Consists of gradations of green to blue colours containing flecks of multicoloured wool through the weft. Weaving forms raised zigzag pattern running left to right through quilt. Three woven blue panels are sewn to the front of the quilt with dyed dark blue zigzags. The quilt is hung on a cardboard roll at the top. Satin square containing the artist's name and address sewn onto the back of the quilt in the right hand corner.'Cross Currents', Jean Inglis, 13 Park Street, Geelong, 52295131weaving, inglis, jean - geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc. -
National Wool Museum
Wall Hanging
The wall hanging was handwoven by Lilian Joyce Mann from hand spun fleece, natural coloured wool and vegetable dyed wool. Ms Mann owned a shop in Jacob Street which sold handmade soft toys and hand woven items. She was a founding and life member of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild. She died on the 17th July 2007 in her 92nd year.W7220 W7220 handwritten labelL.J.Mann Hand spun fleece Natural coloured wool + Vegetable Dyed wool L.J.Mannhandicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., weaving, mann, ms lilian joyce, geelong, victoria -
National Wool Museum
Wall Hanging, Lilian Joyce Mann
The hanging was handwoven by Lilian Joyce Mann. Ms Mann owned a shop in Jacob Street which sold handmade soft toys and hand woven items. She was a gounding and life member of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild. She died on the 17th July 2007 in her 92nd year.A tightly woven brown wall handing with a geometric design of rectangles and squares and a bamboo rod at each end. There is a length of undyed wool on each rod to hand the piece, but on one end it had been cut and hangs loose.handicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., weaving, mann, ms lilian joyce, geelong, victoria -
National Wool Museum
Wall Hanging
The hanging was handwoven by Lilian Joyce Mann. Ms Mann owned a shop in Jacob Street which sold handmade soft toys and hand woven items. She was a founding and life member of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild. She died in the 17th July 2007 in her 92nd year.W7222handicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., weaving, mann, ms lilian joyce -
National Wool Museum
Wall Hanging
The hanging was handwoven by Lilian Joyce Mann. Ms Mann owned a shop in Jacob Street which sold handmade soft toys and hand woven items. She was a founding and life member of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild. She died on the 17th July 2007 in her 92nd year.W7223handicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., weaving, mann, ms lilian joyce -
National Wool Museum
Wall Hanging
The hanging was handwoven by Lilian Joyce Mann. Ms Mann owned a shop in Jacob Street which sold handmade soft toys and hand woven items. She was a founding and life member of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild. She died on the 17th July 2007 in her 92nd year.W7224Khandicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., weaving, jehne, ms roslyn francine -
National Wool Museum
Booklet, Hattersley Hand Loom Spare Part Catalogue; plain and circular box, also dobby
... -and-the-bellarine-peninsula "Hattersley Hand Loom Spare Part Catalogue ..."Hattersley Hand Loom Spare Part Catalogue; plain and circular box, also dobby" - Geo. Hattersley & Sons Ltd, Keighley, c.1930.weaving, george hattersley and sons ltd, weaving machinery -
National Wool Museum
Letter
... of Technology The Myer Woollen Mills Pty Ltd Dyeing Weaving Looms Hand ...Letter, on "The Myer Woollen Mills Pty Ltd" letterhead, printed black, dated 19th June, 1941 from H Lewis, Designer, to W R Lang offering to gift shade cards of yarn.wool - research textile design textile research, gordon institute of technology the myer woollen mills pty ltd, dyeing, weaving looms, hand spinning, lang, dr w. roy lewis, h - the myer woollen mills pty ltd, wool - research, textile design, textile research -
National Wool Museum
Ribbon, Australian Sheep and Wool Show, Woolcraft Competition
... and Spinners Guild Inc. Felting Hand spinning Hand Knitting Weaving ..."Federaton Flora" was created by 13 members of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild Inc for the centenary of Federation in Australia. It won 1st prize in the Australian Sheep and Wool Show, Bendigo, 2000.Australian Sheep and Wool Show, Woolcraft Competitionhandicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., felting, hand spinning, hand knitting, weaving -
National Wool Museum
Book, Hand books of the textile industry, vol 2: manufacture of narrow woven fabrics
"Hand books of the textile industry, vol 2: manufacture of narrow woven fabrics" - E A PosseltK M Chisholm/ Denholm/ Bowenfelstextile calculations textile industry weaving textile industry - education, weaving, weaving looms, yarn - woollen, yarn - worsted, ribbon, textile calculations, textile industry, textile industry - education -
National Wool Museum
Textile Handcraft, The Afternoon Tea Party: Celebration Cake
... and Spinners Guild Inc. Spinning - hand Felting Weaving Ingeme Mrs Val ...The Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild Inc. entered "The Afternoon Tea Party", designed by Val Ingeme, into the "Five Articles" Section of the Melbourne Sheep and Woolcraft Show c.1992. To qualify, the entry needed to form a group and be able to demonstrate a number of wool crafts in at least five different items. The covering of the cake was woven by Anneli Rickards, the plate woven by Jean Inglis, Mary Donnan and Val Ingeme made and assembled the floral trimmingsagricultural shows handicrafts textile art knitting weaving, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., spinning - hand, felting, weaving, ingeme, mrs val inglis, jean - geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc. rickards, anneli - geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc. donnan, mary - geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., melbourne, victoria, agricultural shows, handicrafts, textile art, knitting -
National Wool Museum
Doll, Federation Flora
... and Spinners Guild Inc. Felting Hand spinning Hand Knitting Weaving ..."Federaton Flora" created by 13 members of the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild Inc for the centenary of Federation in Australia. It won 1st prize in the Australian Sheep and Wool Show, Bendigo, 2000."Federation Flora" "Federation Flora" "Federation Flora" "Federation Flora" "Federation Flora" "Federation Flora" "Federation Flora"handicrafts, geelong handweavers and spinners guild inc., felting, hand spinning, hand knitting, weaving -
National Wool Museum
Photograph
Photograph probably for promotional purposes, of part of a "Raffael Bros High Speed Hand Loom". Photograph was with other photographs from Yarra Falls Mill.Photograph, black and white, of a "Raffael Bros High Speed Hand Loom", with bicycle type foot pedals and chain.textile machinery weaving, yarra falls mill raffael bros, weaving looms, weaving machinery, textile machinery, weaving -
National Wool Museum
Machine - Wrap Reel
Wrap reel manufactured at Valley Worsted Mill and possibly used in the laboratory. "Wrap reels were used to check the yarn count in a spinning mill. A set length of yarn was wound off several test bobbins and weighed, if the weight was not the correct amount expected the spinning machines draft could be re calculated and the machine draft wheel ( cog ) changed to achieve the required count". - Greg AldridgeA small hand operated wrap reel. The reel is on a wooden base, the winding mechanism is metal and turned by a wooden handle. There is a metal plaque on the base inscribed MAKERS VWM. A wood and metal yarn feeder has broken off its mount.MAKERS/ VWMtextile machinery textile production weaving, valley worsted mill valley worsted mill, warping machinery, textile machinery, textile production, weaving, wrap reel, skein winder -
National Wool Museum
Textile - Onkaparinga Blanket, Waffle Collection, Unknown
Onkaparinga started in South Australia in 1869. Migrating from Germany, two brothers, Heinrich and Edward Kramm, both weavers, purchased and brought with them some machinery and established themselves in Hahndorf in a mud hut. Their original plant consisted of one carding machine, one spinning mule of 30 spools and 2 hand looms. The spinning mule was horse driven, the others all hand operated. The wool was washed by hand and dried in the sun then teased by hand. Now 145 years later the brand name Onkaparinga, is known all over the world, the products reflect the experience, passion and ingenuity of over a century's tradition in providing luxurious home wares. Donated to the National Wool Museum by Joyce GrayLight orange waffle weave woolen blanket, with nylon trimming. Product tag included with plastic case. On product tag - The better way to sleep. Onkaparinga onkaparinga, blanket, wool, kramm -
National Wool Museum
Clothing - Dress, 1979
... weaving hand spun corriedale Long black dress stretching from ...This dress was created by Jean Inglis for a competition of garments hosted by the Geelong Handweavers and Spinners Guild at a ski weekend in 1979. It was entered in the ‘evening wear’ category of hand spun and knitted garments. The Warp was commercially brought 2/24 wool. The Weft was hand spun black Corriedale wool. This wool was brought at a sale in Geelong and was hand dyed and spun by Jean. The patter is a ‘Ripple’ variation of a ‘Crackle’ weave completed on Jean’s own Dobby Loom (pictured). Long black dress stretching from the feet, reaching up to a hood at the neckline and down to the hands in the sleeve. The dress is black with a glossy silver pattern in the form of a band around the hood, hands and feet of the garment. In these bands is a wavy pattern of silver and black lines. There are multiple thick and thin lines of both the silver and black colours mirroring each other as the pattern stretches around the garment. wool, weaving, hand spun, corriedale -
National Wool Museum
Clothing - Suit, 1987
Hand spun, hand dyed, hand woven and hand sewn suit which won best garment in the 1987 Geelong show. Size 12 in a design by Chanel. It was spun with variegated natural greys on a Sheridan horizontal spinning wheel. It was then dyed pink using natural dyes. The jacket had commercially brought warp and hand spun weft in twill on a 24” loom. All spinning, dyeing and weaving was by Jean Inglis of Geelong. The suit was sewn by Caroline Mogic of Geelong, with iron on interfacing, commercially brought trim. It was worn only once in the parade at the Geelong show. The pink suit jacket has four pockets with gold buttons on front, size 12. The jacket has a checker-plate pattern in which the predominate pink is always present and is accompanied in areas which have grey or white showing through the pink. This checker plate pattern continues down the sleeves of the jacket. The edge of the jacket has a lighter pink trim. A pink skirt accompanies the suit jacket. It has horizontal lines with pink as the predominate colour and areas of grey and white showing through in sections. geelong show, hand spun, hand dyed, hand woven, hand sewn, channel -
National Wool Museum
Clothing - Jacket, Mrs Jean Inglis, 1988
... brought wool & a weft of hand spun Corriedale. It is completed ...This jacket is by the prolific spinner and weaver Jean Inglis. It has been woven with a warp of commercially brought wool & a weft of hand spun Corriedale. It is completed in a Swedish lace style of weaving. The highlight of the jacket is the blue section of fabric on the top left shoulder of the wearer, which works down to the bottom right hip. This pattern looks like long thin individual separate sections of fabric stitched to the jacket; however, only one section of fabric has been added. A dying technique has been utilised to give the appearance of multiple sections. This Japanese dyeing technique is called Shibori, “to wring, squeeze or press". It is a manual tie-dyeing technique, which produces several different patterns on fabric. The specific pattern on this fabric is known as Kumo Shibori. It utilises bound resistance. This technique involves folding sections of the cloth very finely and evenly. Then the cloth is bound in very close sections. The result is a very specific spider-like design. This design requires very precise technique. Specific to this jacket, the fabric for the dyed section was made with the same fabric as the rest of the jacket. A section of the excess fabric was concertina wrapped around a 100mm pipe and tied up before dying. This gives the consistent straight blue lines, with no bleed from the dye. The sections were then sewed into the jacket with the occasional sequin added for additional decoration and glamour. The jacket won 1st prize at the 1988 Geelong Show. Jean was assisted by the dress maker Ruth Randell with some of the design and sewing. Jean always found sewing “a bit of a bore”. The jacket also has an attached swing tag. It was added to provide information to the judges at the Melbourne Show on how the jacket was created. It comes complete with Jean’s self-proclaimed terrible handwriting. It was donated to the National Wool Museum in 2021.Cream singled breasted jacket with no overlap. The jacket has no column of buttons for fastening, or lapels. It is designed to be plain, to not draw attention. The jacket is highlighted by the Shibori dyed waves on the top left shoulder of the wearer, which works down to the bottom right hip. This blue dyed section of fabric is dotted with the occasional blue sequin. Internally, the jacket features a white silk lining for comfort. The jacket ends in a straight cut hem, including at the cuffs. The jacket has an attached swing tag. The swing tag is cream with a printed thin black boarder. Within the boarder, handwriting in black ink is found. It has a hole punch in the top left corner of the swing tag for attaching to the jacket.hand spun, hand weaving, textile design, textile production, shibori, kumo shibori -
National Wool Museum
Book, Craftmanship in Wool Throughout the Ages
"Craftmanship in Wool Throughout the Ages: British Wool Cloth Leads the World" - National Wool Textile Export Corporation, 1951. Provides an overview of hand and machine techniques in wool processing.wool processing weaving, national wool textile export corporation, wool processing, weaving -
National Wool Museum
Machine - Loom, George Hattersley and Sons Ltd, 1920 - 1925
Weaving is the interlacing of two yarns, one at right angles to the other. Yarns that run the length of the fabric are called the warp. Yarns that run across the fabric are called the weft. Most woven fabrics are produced on a loom. The warp yarns are raised to form an opening - the shed. The weft carrier, usually the shuttle, shoots through the shed. Then the warp yarns change position up and down. Finally, the weft is pushed tight against the previous yarns, gradually building up the fabric. Hattersley treadle loom (revolving box hand loom). Beam of loom was removed and sent to Foster Valley Mill in 1989 to be returned via Tom Crocker. The National Wool Museum gratefully acknowledges the contribution of Mr Fred Murgatroyd & Mr Bernard Tolan in making this Hattersley Loom Operational. Green painted Hattersley treadle loom (revolving box hand loom).weaving, george hattersley and sons ltd, weaving machinery, wool processing, loom, restoration -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Domestic object - Place Mat
... HANDCRAFTS Weaving Cream cotton hand woven place mat. Slightly open ...Till CollectionCream cotton hand woven place mat. Slightly open weave.domestic items, table setting, handcrafts, weaving -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Domestic object - Place Matchbox 85
Till collectionTHE TILL COLLECTION SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT|The significance of the Alwyn Till Collection is that Alwyn was born in Mitcham in 1921. He attended Mitcham Primary School and Box Hill Boys High School. He served his Community mainly through his activities within the Christ Church Anglican Church Mitcham. He joined the Royal Australian Airforce in World War II in September 1939. He trained as a Pilot in Australia and Canada, was posted to England and saw action in Europe. He was shot down over France and rescued by and then joined the French Resistance and while fighting with them was fatally shot. A Baron fighting with him wrote to his mother to inform her of his death.|Alwyn's parents were Evaleen Victoria Till (nee Maggs) and Sydney Norman Till who first lived in Creek Road Mitcham, before moving to 573 Whitehorse Road Mitcham. His father served in World War I where his eyesight was damaged and he was taught by the then Blind Institute in suitcase making of which we have two examples in this collection. He died in 1931. Alwyn took over responsibility for his mother and sister Alison. We can understand how devastated his mother and sister would have been at the news of Alwyn's feeling that he must serve his country in World War 11.|His letters home were so precious to them that they carefully kept all his correspondence, notices of death and condolences from friends. After Alison's death in 2007 her relation Joan Walker transcribed each of Alwyn's letters home into two bound volumes. The executors, Joan Walker and Anne Drew deposited the original letters with the Whitehorse Historical Society. Due to their significance as historical documents of one serviceman's complete correspondence with his family the Whitehorse Historical Society Committee after consultation with the donors deposited the original letters with the State Library of Victoria. The Whitehorse Historical Society retains the copies.|Alison and her mother kept many family memorabilia and personal items which make up this significant collection as they show how people lived, worked and served in the local community and municipality.|This collection represents the love and devotion of the women to their families during the course of two world wars. The father was disabled as a result of World War 1 and died an early death and a son who thereafter took on the responsibility as head of the family at an early age. This young handsome charismatic son served his community in peace time and gave his life in World War 11. This mother and sister were devoted to his memory.Blue and cream cotton hand woven place mat. Cream fringing on two ends.domestic items, food & drink consumption, handcrafts, weaving -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Domestic object - Place Mat
... Consumption HANDCRAFTS Weaving Cream hand woven with self embroidery ...From the Till collectionTHE TILL COLLECTION SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT|The significance of the Alwyn Till Collection is that Alwyn was born in Mitcham in 1921. He attended Mitcham Primary School and Box Hill Boys High School. He served his Community mainly through his activities within the Christ Church Anglican Church Mitcham. He joined the Royal Australian Airforce in World War II in September 1939. He trained as a Pilot in Australia and Canada, was posted to England and saw action in Europe. He was shot down over France and rescued by and then joined the French Resistance and while fighting with them was fatally shot. A Baron fighting with him wrote to his mother to inform her of his death.|Alwyn's parents were Evaleen Victoria Till (nee Maggs) and Sydney Norman Till who first lived in Creek Road Mitcham, before moving to 573 Whitehorse Road Mitcham. His father served in World War I where his eyesight was damaged and he was taught by the then Blind Institute in suitcase making of which we have two examples in this collection. He died in 1931. Alwyn took over responsibility for his mother and sister Alison. We can understand how devastated his mother and sister would have been at the news of Alwyn's feeling that he must serve his country in World War 11.|His letters home were so precious to them that they carefully kept all his correspondence, notices of death and condolences from friends. After Alison's death in 2007 her relation Joan Walker transcribed each of Alwyn's letters home into two bound volumes. The executors, Joan Walker and Anne Drew deposited the original letters with the Whitehorse Historical Society. Due to their significance as historical documents of one serviceman's complete correspondence with his family the Whitehorse Historical Society Committee after consultation with the donors deposited the original letters with the State Library of Victoria. The Whitehorse Historical Society retains the copies.|Alison and her mother kept many family memorabilia and personal items which make up this significant collection as they show how people lived, worked and served in the local community and municipality.|This collection represents the love and devotion of the women to their families during the course of two world wars. The father was disabled as a result of World War 1 and died an early death and a son who thereafter took on the responsibility as head of the family at an early age. This young handsome charismatic son served his community in peace time and gave his life in World War 11. This mother and sister were devoted to his memory.Cream hand woven with self embroidery at each end and fringe.domestic items, food & drink consumption, handcrafts, weaving -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Domestic object - Place Mat
... HANDCRAFTS Weaving Cream cotton hand woven place mat with shades ...Till collectionTHE TILL COLLECTION SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT|The significance of the Alwyn Till Collection is that Alwyn was born in Mitcham in 1921. He attended Mitcham Primary School and Box Hill Boys High School. He served his Community mainly through his activities within the Christ Church Anglican Church Mitcham. He joined the Royal Australian Airforce in World War II in September 1939. He trained as a Pilot in Australia and Canada, was posted to England and saw action in Europe. He was shot down over France and rescued by and then joined the French Resistance and while fighting with them was fatally shot. A Baron fighting with him wrote to his mother to inform her of his death.|Alwyn's parents were Evaleen Victoria Till (nee Maggs) and Sydney Norman Till who first lived in Creek Road Mitcham, before moving to 573 Whitehorse Road Mitcham. His father served in World War I where his eyesight was damaged and he was taught by the then Blind Institute in suitcase making of which we have two examples in this collection. He died in 1931. Alwyn took over responsibility for his mother and sister Alison. We can understand how devastated his mother and sister would have been at the news of Alwyn's feeling that he must serve his country in World War 11.|His letters home were so precious to them that they carefully kept all his correspondence, notices of death and condolences from friends. After Alison's death in 2007 her relation Joan Walker transcribed each of Alwyn's letters home into two bound volumes. The executors, Joan Walker and Anne Drew deposited the original letters with the Whitehorse Historical Society. Due to their significance as historical documents of one serviceman's complete correspondence with his family the Whitehorse Historical Society Committee after consultation with the donors deposited the original letters with the State Library of Victoria. The Whitehorse Historical Society retains the copies.|Alison and her mother kept many family memorabilia and personal items which make up this significant collection as they show how people lived, worked and served in the local community and municipality.|This collection represents the love and devotion of the women to their families during the course of two world wars. The father was disabled as a result of World War 1 and died an early death and a son who thereafter took on the responsibility as head of the family at an early age. This young handsome charismatic son served his community in peace time and gave his life in World War 11. This mother and sister were devoted to his memory.Cream cotton hand woven place mat with shades of orange patterns fringing on long sides.domestic items, table setting, handcrafts, weaving -
Whitehorse Historical Society Inc.
Photograph, Dick Best
Richard Best was an Australian Textile industry agent and Businessman. While travelling in Belgium he contacted the de Stoop family, textile manufacturers, whose business had been closed down by German occupation after the 2nd World War. They took up Dick Best's offer to relocate and join with him to set up a textile factory in Australia. Land was purchased in Blackburn North and when the de Stoop and Best Aust P/L traded, Dick best was in charge of marketing their products.2 Black and white photograph of the head and shoulders of Richard Best. He has a pair of glasses in his right hand(on smaller photocopy) Mr Dick Bestbest, richard, weaving mills, de stoop and best aust, p/l -
Bialik College
Photograph (Item) - Tapestry photographs, 1997 Tapestry unveiling photographs
In 1997, Bialik College students of Grades 4, 5 and 6 co-designed with a weaver, Cresside Collette, a large tapestry depicting Bialik students holding hands and the school motto 'Step forth with courage'. Images of this important message and community moment are held by the Bialik archive. If you have materials or stories about Bialik life and culture that you wish to please contact us at [email protected]. weaving, artwork, bialik college, judaism, jewish school, primary school -
Kew Historical Society Inc
Clothing - North Indian wool scarf, embroidered with a needle, 1880 -1900
The embroidered scarf was donated to the Kew Historical Society by Janet Gibson.The shawl is an outstanding example of North Indian weaving and needlework. North Indian scarf [or girdle], probably made in Delhi, hand-loomed of fine wool and heavily embroidered by needle at the ends and sides with multicoloured silk thread surrounding the central rectangular black field. The highly detailed embroidery includes stylised images of foliage and flowers. There is old damage to parts of the textile. women's clothing, shawls, indian embroidery, scarfs -
Kew Historical Society Inc
Equipment - Hand drum carder, Ertoel Wheels, 1980s
Ertoel Wheels made a wide range of looms, chairs, drum and hand carders, and spinning and weaving accessories. Small drum carder, designed to be used on a table and operated by hand to card wool and or other fibres in preparing them for spinning or felting. This wooden carder has two cylindrical drums covered with coarse or fine metal “tines” designed to rake through and comb the natural fibre. The manufacturer's name 'Ertoel Wheels' is glued at one end"Ertoel Wheels"wool carding, drum carders, carding equipment -
National Wool Museum
Textile - Men's Coat, c1940s
Franco Liburti was wearing this coat when he farewelled his wife Assunta in Naples, Italy in 1957, the day she departed for Australia. Tina Knitwear was a successful made to order knitwear business in Brighton from the mid-1960s to around 2010, run by Assunta and Franco Liburti. Daughter Melissa Persi writes: Our parents Assunta (Mum) and Franco (Dad) Liburti ran a successful made to order knitwear business in Brighton from the mid-1960s to around 2010. Assunta was affectionately known to her family as Assuntina, therefore the business was named "Tina Knitwear" after her. Assunta and Franco were born in the beautiful seaside town of Terracina in Italy in 1933 and 1930 respectively. As was so common in Italy in the 1950s, Assunta who was in her late teens and early twenties learnt the intricate skills of machine knitting, dressmaking and pattern making. Franco on the other hand, learnt the building trade with his 2 brothers and specialised in bricklaying and tiling. As was so common after the war, Assunta and Franco yearned for a better life so they decided that they would get engaged and then migrate to Australia to be married and raise their family in Australia, a land of much opportunity which they no longer felt their beloved Italy held for them. Assunta migrated to Australia first in 1957 and later Franco joined her in 1958 where they were married. For the first few years, Franco (also known as Frank) worked as bricklayer /tiler on buildings such as the Robert Menzies building at Monash University in Clayton and various buildings in the Melbourne CBD. Assunta on the other hand put her machine knitting skills to use working in factories doing piece machine knitting for various knitwear companies. The hours were long, the conditions were difficult, and travel was onerous without a car. After their 2 older children were born, it was decided that dad would leave the building trade and they would start their own made to order knitwear business. That way they could work from home and raise their family together. Mum taught dad everything he needed to know so he could operate the knitwear machinery. They purchased COPPO knitting machines from Italy and a Linking machine from Germany. Initially they had a knitwear shopfront in Bay Street Brighton where a store assistant would take the orders and client’s measurements and Assunta would then make the garments from a small workshop in their home. Unfortunately, the assistants were not skilled dressmakers and often measurements and orders were incorrectly taken. Assunta being the perfectionist and highly skilled machinist that she was, decided that she needed to oversee the entire process from meeting the client, to taking their order, right thru to the fittings and completion of the garment. It therefore made sense that they should close the shop front and run their business from their own home in Brighton and hence “Tina Knitwear” was born. Together, for more than 40 years they ran their very respected and successful business and were well known in the Bayside area. They specialised in made to order knitwear for both men and women using mainly pure wool (from Patons, Wangaratta Mills, Japan and Italy) but also lurex and estacel. Over those years, many of their clients became their close friends. It wasn't unusual for clients to come to order garments and then end up in the kitchen chatting over a cup of Italian espresso coffee and homemade biscuits. Some of their clients were especially memorable and became lifelong friends. Mrs Connell was a dear friend of mum’s, each year she would buy tickets for the “Gown of the Year” fashion show. She would insist on taking Assunta and her 2 daughters so that we could see the latest fashions. Then there was their dear friend Ms Griffiths. She had been a Matron nurse at the Queen Victoria Hospital when she met my parents in the 1970s. She returned to live in New Zealand in the 1980s but came back to Melbourne every year to stay for 2 weeks with the sole purpose of visiting my parents (she adored them) and order garments. For those 2 solid weeks, mum and dad would only knit for Ms Griffiths and she would go back to New Zealand with at least 5 or 6 new outfits. I actually think she enjoyed mum’s homemade pasta almost as much as her new clothes! Over the years, my parents learnt to speak English very well given that majority of their clients were not Italian speaking. Their oldest child John born in 1960 learnt to speak English with the help of those clients who were such a big part of our childhood. Mum and dad always went above and beyond to ensure their clients were satisfied. Mum was an absolute perfectionist and it showed in her attention to detail and the quality of their beautiful work. You only need to look at the garments that have stood the test of time or speak to their clients to know that this is true. Their clients would always comment on how well their clothes would last and much of their clients came via word of mouth and recommendations. Occasionally there would be disagreements because mum had found an error in dad's knitting (either a wrong stitch or a sizing mistake mainly) and would ask him to redo a piece, he would argue back saying that it was fine, but we always knew who would win the argument and that the piece would get remade! Similarly, we recall discussions where mum would ask dad to find a particular colour of wool in the garage where the stock was kept. He would try to convince her that they were out of stock of that colour and that the client should choose a different colour. She would insist they had it and then after hours of searching, he would return into the house sheepishly holding the wool! Our childhood is full of beautiful memories of mum and dad always being present, clients coming and going, mum humming her favourite songs as she worked often late into the night and sometimes, we even fell asleep to the hum of the machinery. They put their heart and soul into "Tina Knitwear" and took pride in providing only the best quality garments for their clients. In Italian there is a saying “lei ha le mani d’oro” which literally translated means “she has hands of gold”. Franco enjoyed his work but for Assunta, it was more than just work and there is no better way to describe her skills, passion and dedication to her machine knitting… she truly did have “hands of gold”. We will forever be grateful that our parents’ life journey gave us the opportunity to live in a home filled with creativity, dedication and passion, amazing work ethic and mutual respect, lifelong friendships and a lifetime of love. Men's coat featuring a charcoal herringbone weave, with three buttons down the front and on each sleeve cuff.knitwear, clothing, italy, migrants, brighton, knitting machine, linking machine, garments, business, family, community, naples -
National Wool Museum
Card - Packaging – The Look of Berber, c.1980s
Modern industrialized Berber carpets are distinguished by a loop pile construction type that gives a similar appearance to the distinct knot of traditionally woven Berber carpets. The modern carpets usually contain small flecks of dark colour on lighter shades of background colours resembling a natural undyed version of the traditional carpets. Berber is known for being one of the oldest and most durable kinds of carpet. Traditionally, Berber carpets are carpets hand-woven by the Berber people in North Africa and the Sahara. The carpets come in traditional and modern designs, which are distinguished by different knotting patterns, dyes and fabric textures. The origin of carpet weaving by the Berber populations dates back several millennia. The hand-spun cloth they created was named after the individual tribe, and they used natural fibres to create cloaks, rugs and other fabrics. Card showing printed text and graphic featuring an image of a sheep in tones of orange, brown and cream. Printed: PURE NEW WOOL / THE / LOOK OF / BERBERcollins bros mill pty ltd, manufacturing, geelong, wool, berber