25/07/2025
Passementrie: Imagine the stories these garments could tell from 165 years ago. This week I had the most wonderful peak at some of the Passementrie that is included on the fashion collection items at the Australian Centre for Gold Rush Collections ( ). To be able to see these examples so closely, gives me a unique insight into Australian examples of Passementerie and how they were made . No longer is it just fringe or a button…but a series of patterns of weaving, lengths, colours, tensions, numbers and application techniques to be decoded. A puzzle and a story all in one-my idea of bliss.
This research work comes in preparation for my Mason Family Trust Fellowship trip to the UK and France in September. I will be researching historical examples alongside learning the hands on traditional techniques from the last remaining handful of Passementerie makers.