Modern homemakers are taking their cues from 16th century abodes. In the medieval age, when straw was spread on the ground to trap the dirt and mud, tapestries were considered too fine to fine to stay on the floor and they were hung on walls and in doorways to help insulate drafty stone buildings. Today, hanging rugs and tapestries are popping up on walls as beautiful works of art.
This method of decorating is a great way to add a worldly and bohemian look to a space. It's also a wonderful way to add a focal point to a room, or back a piece of furniture, such as a bed.
If you're interested in trying this trend in your own home, a great place to start is checking out antique stores or flea markets for rugs and tapestries, or even using some pretty fabric or printed burlap, as is shown in the last image.
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That dulcimer caught my eye. My 18th birthday present was one just like that. Jim Trantham has had decades of experience since then and from just checking his website, is still at it.
Does anyone have a good way to hang a tapestry so that it doesn't pull and damage it? I have a gorgeous one my sister brought me from Spain that is very heavy, and I can't figure out how to hang it so as to not do damage.
If you attach a fabric sleeve along the top, at the back of the tapestry, you can hand it by inserting a rod through the sleeve.
oops I mean "hang" not hand
meghan_g
hand stitch a long, narrow piece of fabric at the top edge of the back side of the tapestry to make a rod pocket, run a curtain rod through it and hang it on the wall using curtain rod brackets.
That first one is gorgeous. Magazine/house tour source?
I once hung an antique quilt on the wall. (Made by my great great grandmother.) It was starting to fray so the overall condition was in question. I got an all cotton white sheet and basted the quilt onto it, using the existing wide top hem of the sheet as a rod pocket. Basting the quilt (loose hand stitiches in cotton thread from bottom to top of the quilt, mostly on the back side with only little bits of thread on the top) helped support the not-insignificant weight of the quilt so it didn't continue to ravel. (Never hung in direct sunlight, to reduce UV damage to the fibers.)
This is an adaptation of a museum curator's technique. Good for any fragile textile you may want to hang. New, sturdy stuff only needs even support from the top: rod pocket, velcro, or quilt clamp.