Clutch purse

Title

Clutch purse

Year/Period

c.1970

Region

Singapore

Object Type

clutch bags, pouches, mirrors, wrappers (containers)

Material

glass (material), cotton (textile), leather, paper (fiber product)

Technique

embroidering, leatherworking, beading (process), forming (physical activity)

Dimension

Object size: 15.0 x 22.4 x 3.3 cm

Accession No.

2024-00027

Collection of

Peranakan Museum

Alice Choo (1926-2019) depicted a pastoral landscape with a dog and dragonfly on one side of the purse; and a camel and elephant under coconut trees on the other. They were worked in glass seed beads in petit-point stitch. Also known as tent stitch or half-cross stitch, this technique involved sewing each bead diagonally over intersections of the needlepoint canvas’s warp and weft threads. She completed the main design before executing the background using one needle to stitch and a larger needle to push the beads into place. Like most nyonyas, Choo was taught to bead and embroider at home.