The Handwoven Touch: Embroidered Picture Frames and Raffia Trays
There is a particular pleasure in bringing home the photograph you know you will keep. Perhaps it was taken on a summer afternoon; perhaps it is a small portrait that belongs on the bedside table, where you will see it every morning. The frame should feel like part of the memory, rather than an afterthought.
For Pam, the most inviting rooms are composed over time: a photograph beside a vase of flowers, a favorite book left open, a tray ready for the first guest to arrive. Handwoven raffia and embroidery lend those familiar details a little ceremony. Here is how to make a place for them at home.
Begin with an embroidered picture frame
A woven picture frame brings texture to a tabletop without asking the rest of the room to change. Start with the photograph, then consider the colors already around it. A small square portrait can sit quietly on a desk or bedside table, while a landscape photograph might be happier on a mantel or shelf.
The Petite Fleur Frame holds a 4 × 4-inch photograph. Its handwoven raffia border and embroidered petite flowers take their cue from a vintage tapestry Pam collected. Try it beside a stack of letters or a small dish rather than arranging every object at the same height. The little differences in scale are what make a vignette feel lived in.
For a blue-and-white room, the Mariage Bleu Frame holds a 4 × 6-inch photograph and carries an embroidered hydrangea motif. It is part of Pamela Munson’s collaboration with D. Porthault, which reimagines the house’s Mariage print across raffia frames and a tray. The Mariage Vert Frame offers the same floral idea in green for a 4 × 4-inch photograph. Choose by the photograph you want to display first; color comes second.
Give a raffia tray a role of its own
A tray changes the way a surface is used. On a coffee table it brings a vase, books and the evening’s glasses into one easy composition. On a bedside table it gives the small necessities of the day a place to rest. And when friends arrive, a woven serving tray can move from the room to the gathering without feeling purely practical.
The Zinnia Tray measures 12 × 16 inches and pairs handwoven raffia with embroidered florals. Inspired by the same vintage tapestry as Petite Fleur, it is a natural companion to the frame, whether you are serving drinks or carrying breakfast in bed. Leave some of its embroidered surface visible: an arrangement need not fill every inch.
If hydrangeas already appear in the room, the Mariage Tray brings the embroidered motif into a 12 × 16-inch raffia tray. Set it beside a Mariage frame for a gentle conversation between pieces, rather than an exacting matched set.
Let the room look collected, not arranged
There is no need to give every photograph the same frame. A floral embroidered picture frame may be loveliest beside plain wood, ceramics or a well-worn book. Likewise, a raffia tray adds warmth to a room with polished furniture or crisp linens. The contrast gives the weave room to be noticed.
Begin with one photograph that matters to you. Find it a place where you will see it. Then let the tray serve whatever that corner of the home needs: a place for flowers, for the morning’s coffee, or for something offered to a guest. These are small decisions, but they are the ones that make a room feel unmistakably yours.
Explore more for the home
Looking for another photograph to frame, or the finishing touch for a room? Follow the photographs below to browse each collection.
Shop all embroidered picture frames
Explore the Frames collection →
Shop frames, trays and keepsake pieces
