Tatting samples
![Tatting samples for Discover](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/65_336_8-22_img_001-770x365.jpg)
‘Tatting’ is a form of lacemaking that produces a garment more durable than crocheted lace. It particularly focuses on knots within the fabric, and is thought to derive from ancient sailors using knots to create their fishing nets. Originally, patterns were made with a series of knots and this evolved into the practice which was [...]
Tape measure
![Measuring tape image 4 for Discover](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/68_543_img_004-770x365.jpg)
Acquired from The Mount in Reading, this tape measure was used in sewing to measure different sizes of pins, tapes and buttons. Named the ‘Crescent Workbasket Treasure’, it was an early product of the Crescent Tools company, which remains a prominent hand tools manufacturer to this day. First used in the 1860s when sewing machines [...]
Thimble
![Thimble for Discover](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/76_232_img_001-770x365.jpg)
This decorative thimble was used to make and mend clothes in the early twentieth century. It would have been placed on whichever finger pushed the sewing needle, in order to protect it. Although it is usually worn on the middle finger today, it was originally invented for the thumb, thus deriving its name from ‘thumb-bell’. [...]
Lacemaking pattern
![Lacemaking pattern for Discover](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/83_76_1_img_002-770x365.jpg)
This lacemaking pattern, made from vellum and cloth, would be stuck to a lacemaking pillow and would form a template for the lace work to be carried out. Lace patterns have existed for as long as the lacemaking profession, with pattern books printed in Venice as early as the sixteenth century. Although lace was rarely [...]
Spindle
![Spindle image for Discover entry](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/2019_86_img_001-770x365.jpg)
Spindles are an essential tool for the weaving process, typically used for spinning or winding yarn, usually wool. This particular spindle was used by the donor in Shetland, and then featured in an exhibition in the South Bank Centre, London, in 2012. It formed part of a baobab tree sculpture, 15 metres tall, which consisted [...]
MERL themed scarf
![Close up of MERL scarf for Discover](https://merl.reading.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/04/2018_5_img_004-770x365.jpg)
This scarf was crafted by Caitlin Hinshlewood, a textiles designer based in London. It is a unique design, inspired by a visit to The MERL, and features a chicken, a tractor, a saw, a shovel, and a gingerbread mould figure. The arrangement is printed on silk and the edges are hand stitched. Caitlin’s work is [...]