Paisley Shawls & Embroidered Slipper-fronts

I am always thrilled when I come across unused Victorian embroidered slipper fronts, they remind me of 'The Elves and the Shoemakers', a favourite tale from my childhood. Embroidered on canvas from a pattern and turned into house slippers, I love the slightly clumsy, two dimensional shape that only comes into its own when transformed into comfy slippers. The two floral pairs here are English Victorian and date to about 1860-80. The goldwork and silk floss pair on brown wool have most likely been imported from India during the late 19th century.

These two paisley shawls are interesting, the more typically coloured red-toned shawl is an example of quite a late shawl, It is a double weave square shawl in wool, possibly with some silk in the weave. It is reversible and dates to about 1880, the condition is excellent apart from a tiny patch of thinning. The other shawl is a bit of a puzzle, the colours are quite unusual, green, cream & pink; it is much smaller than the usual fairly standard sizes. It is a wool woven shawl with interesting elongated 'boteh' or paisley motifs, self fringed. Both came from France but could have originated elsewhere.

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