Cellar Discovery - *****UPDATE*****

Cellar Discovery, originally uploaded by fotofacade.

From Gill Saunders at the V&A (many thanks)

The wallpaper is a 'sanitary' wallpaper, so-called because it was designed to be washable (printed with oil-based pigments rather than the water-soluble tempera pigments previously used in wallpaper manufacture, and often varnished after it was hung to further water-proof the surface). Typically, sanitary papers are printed in tones of brown or dark green. They were usually chosen for those areas of the house which were most likely to get dirty quickly or repeatedly - such as halls, stairwells, kitchens and sculleries.

From the colouring and the pattern I think your wallpaper probably dates from the 1880s or 1890s, but I am afraid there is nothing distinctive about this paper which would enable me to identify the designer or the manufacturer. There were hundreds of wallpaper manafuacturers working in the later 19th century, each issuing thousands of new patterns every year, most designed anonymously




For a mindcrunchingly detailed look at the wallpaper click here

Whilst looking for something down in my cellar, I managed to fall over a few boxes and found myself in the deep recesses of a dark corner. Slowly, as my eyes got used to the light I saw upon the underside of the floorboards what looked like a floral pattern. After hooking up a light I came across this wonderful remnant of wallpaper. The house was built in the late 1870's. My question is: does anybody know what date this might be from? I think it is Victorian, but it could be Edwardian?

BTW my daughter is going to copy the design into an artwork and then we can provide some continuity from the past in the house.

Hammerbeam View

Hammerbeam View, originally uploaded by fotofacade.

If you are ever lucky enough to visit the church - look up from this angle at the hammerbeam roof - it is spectacular.

Saint Edmund's, Falinge near Rochdale - is a real tour-de-force. Built in the 1870's for £28,000 (when a good church cost £4000). It is a Masonic Church and Pevsner says that it has symbolism to rival the Da Vinci Code Rosslyn Chapel. I am photographing the interior because it is due to close this month.

Christ in macro

Christ in macro, originally uploaded by fotofacade.

Macro image of the face of Christ on the altar crucifix at Saint Edmund's

Saint Edmund's, Falinge near Rochdale - is a real tour-de-force. Built in the 1870's for £28,000 (when a good church cost £4000). It is a Masonic Church and Pevsner says that it has symbolism to rival the Da Vinci Code Rosslyn Chapel. I am photographing the interior because it is due to close this month.

Cellar Discovery

Cellar Discovery, originally uploaded by fotofacade.

For a mindcrunchingly detailed look at the wallpaper click here

Whilst looking for something down in my cellar, I managed to fall over a few boxes and found myself in the deep recesses of a dark corner. Slowly, as my eyes got used to the light I saw upon the underside of the floorboards what looked like a floral pattern. After hooking up a light I came across this wonderful remnant of wallpaper. The house was built in the late 1870's. My question is: does anybody know what date this might be from? I think it is Victorian, but it could be Edwardian?

BTW my daughter is going to copy the design into an artwork and then we can provide some continuity from the past in the house.

Period Glass

Mobile blog

I've just taken this with my phone as a reminder of the wonderful eclectic and multidisciplinary creativity of the Victorians.One such example is their use of glass. Back in the 1890's the ubiquitous technique of embossing a molten piece of rolled or cast glass superseded the use of etched glass. Apparently, my vestibule door (above) has some of the most popular patterns. I'll raise a glass to that!