Before fashion acquires a silhouette, it exists as possibility: a length of ribbon, a spool of thread, a button waiting for its coat.
Robert Harper's haberdashery collection contains 78 unique photographs across 368 frames. Wool, ribbon, thread, buttons, thimbles, pincushions and toggles form a compact archive of the tools and details from which clothes and domestic textiles are made.
The intimacy of making
Harper spent decades photographing finished fashion for magazines including Elle and The Telegraph Magazine. Haberdashery turns the story inside out. It brings attention to construction, repair and the handwork hidden behind a polished garment.
These small objects reward his still-life precision. Thread introduces line and colour. Buttons become miniature design histories. Needles and thimbles combine usefulness with the visual elegance of finely made tools.
The collection connects fashion to craft and interiors, offering material for costume history, textile research, publishing and period production.