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Quilt barn at historic Yancey Tavern on Hwy. 126, Sullivan County [image from here]

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dances with wools says ” The distinctive two-coloured patterned knitting which is widely known as ‘Sanquhar knitting’ … Today, there are about a dozen known, named, traditional patterns with as many variations of cuff patterns. Some of these have interesting historical anecdotes as to their origins” … the dedicated knitters at the Japanese website tata-tatao-to have developed a pattern based upon the research they completed on an original glove”

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A huge portion of women’s history is being eaten by moths. … A huge portion of women’s history is disregarded, not through malice, but through ignorance. … Research the heirloom quilt you keep secreted away and share the info via the web. Ask your grandmother about the embroidered sampler she keeps tucked away in her ceder chest.Similar Posts:

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I can’t begin to tell you how many times my enthusiasm for any new endeavor has become much, much more than I originally anticipated. My husband even calls me Whim Woman, a reflection on my willingness to follow whatever adventure appears in my path.

So when my friend Casey asked me to repair some of the quilts her Aunt Dot had stitched so many decades ago, I instantly agreed. I’m a Spastic Crafter who has dabbled in nearly every media available. The stacks of barely used Sculpey and dusty scrapbook paper vie for studio space with my other active obsessions. Hand quilting an heirloom? Sure I’ll try!

I am currently in the midst of a passionate love affair with fabric. I love to fondle it as I pass by in a fabric store. Or (much to my family’s horror) accost people who have bags or skirts with material that I fantasize … cutting. Yes, I stand before you to admit that I often imagine fabric in a form other than as it is presented to me. A skirt on a passerby at the local minor league baseball game transforms into the cutest pillow cases for my bedroom. A pair of vintage café curtains turn into a set of matching aprons. A sheet at the Goodwill outlet becomes a pair of pants for my daughter.

It’s no wonder, I guess, that quilting appeals to me. I just can’t resist the idea of taking scraps of previously used bits and renovating them into something New and Improved. The allure of depression-era quilts, then, is an undying fantasy for me. Imagine! A scrap of feedsack combined with Uncle Bub’s overalls becomes … a quilt!

I love the idea of using scraps to quilt. Making something from nothing, spending little to gain a lot. But really, I love the idea of a woman sitting down, needle-thread-fabric in hand, and creating. Pouring her heart into each stitch. I believe that each stitch of a handcrafted creation contains fragments of the creator. The stitches are imbued with the goings on of the creator’s life, with her thoughts and emotions, and, tangibly, with the scraps of her life.

So when Casey called and asked me to repair one of Aunt Dot’s quilts, I leapt at the chance to help preserve a tattered and extremely well loved piece of family history. As Casey said, Sunbonnet Sue had seen better days. Her bonnets were hanging by threads, her clothes worn thin. I sat down with this quilt of scraps (many of which Casey could identify as being clothing leftovers from various family members). As I held the quilt close and began to inspect my project, I realized that where the stitches had come loose I could still see Aunt Dot’s original needlework. As I re-created the quilt, I passed my stitches through the very same holes. As I worked, I became captivated. I wondered who had lain underneath this quilt. I wondered why Aunt Dot selected this pattern, why she chose these particular scraps.

As I worked, I became compelled to learn more. I checked out quilting books from the library. I trolled the Internet for vintage fabric care. Slowly, I learned about the patterns, the fabrics, the history of this quilt. I stumbled upon Jennifer Chiaverini’s series of books and devoured each one in sequence. I read historical pieces about women who sewed quilts by hand in addition to the fictional accounts of quilting.

As my obsession has grown, I have taken to haunting antique shops for hand-stitched creations. Upon encountering a quilt top, I immediately thrust it to my face and inspect the stitching to verify that it was done by hand. I then, for some oddly compulsive reason, flip the work over and look at the back. For some reason I am fascinated with the hidden, secret parts of a quilt. The knots that were never meant to be seen, the underside of the public stitches.

I then return home to continue work on my current quilting restoration project, filled with an eager intensity to work. My fingers are now callused from the hours spent stitching, while my hands so quickly recall the rocking motion of each quilting stitch.

About the author: Courtney Havenwood (redcanoe.etsy.com) is a multitasking maven. While homeschooling her kids and enjoying the wonders of Austin, she sets aside plenty of time to create. Her favorite thing this week is stitching anything that will hold still. She enjoys quilting, embroidering, knitting, crocheting. Check out her latest adventures at her blog woodland school.

Strangely enough fly fishing is one of the things about those days that I miss the most. I enjoy the skill that is involved, the science and the detail, the artistic element combined with the practical useful side of it, and deep down I like to think of myself as a hunter. Taking the time to prepare the bait, waiting and watching and being one with nature. There is something primal about it – it speaks to my inner man and connects me with my ancestors.

There are many elements to fly fishing – location and gear and patience and skill but one of the main aspects is the art of fly tying. A highly skilled ancient craft that has developed over hundreds of years. The Basic Manual of Fly-Tying: Fundamentals of Imitation by Paul N. Fling and Donald L. Puterbaugh, published by Sterling; 3 edition (August 1, 2007), is a book that makes me long for a quiet afternoon alone where I can fiddle with feathers and hooks and dream of a river somewhere.

My wife (Kathreen) asked me to review this book and seeing as I was drooling over it I readily agreed. What is so good about it? Well for a start the diagrams are amazing and the process is extremely detailed. But first what is fly-tying? It is basically decorating the fishing hook to make it look like an insect, in any of its life cycles – sometimes as an adult and sometimes in its juvenile state or in its emerging or hatching state. It is the art of imitation. I have to say more about the illustrations – they are so detailed, really describing well what you are trying to make and giving good entomology drawings. The fly patterns are shown next to their real life counterparts – and the process drawings and step-by-step instructions are the next best thing to having someone actually show you how to make these.

There is a large section in the book on tools and I really appreciate that it gives you the whole range of tools but then breaks it down to the essentials and the extras for the gadget guys. I can understand that many might think the art of fly tying is not nice – especially when they learn about the materials that are used – but as I said before – it is a primal sport, not for the feint hearted. Materials used are rarely synthetic they are the real thing and are quite expensive. Cocks are specially bred for their long tail feathers and turkey feathers are also popular as are pheasant feathers and peacock herl. Also used is hair and fur, such as muskrat and elk hair, rabbit whiskers and squirrel tail. There is a big section on the various materials that are required for different types of flys. There is also a really good section on the insect life cycle. It is important to know about the aquatic insects life cycle as this is what will attract the fish – and the difference here between a wet and dry fly.

Anyway too much detail – its a good book and a great sport.

About the author: Rob Shugg is an inventor and self confessed nerd. He is married to another nerd/artist and together they have two children.

Over the next few weeks I will be posting on quilts with attitude, many of these are fun and contemporary dealing with social issues and metaphors, but there are also lots of political artist quilts coming to my attention. I am not surprised about this, artists are often at the front of the line when it comes to political protest and speaking up about their social beliefs. And women in particular have a long history of protesting against the government through quilts. Yes, political quilts have a long history.

This quilt is by Carolyn L. Mazloomi, and is titled “strange fruit” she says My quilts are visual stories layered with historical, political and social conditions that call attention to the circumstances of people around the world, especially women. My intention is to invite the viewer into contemplation, raise awareness and feel the spirit of the cloth.

As long as quilt making has been around, women have used this traditional craft to tell stories, to capture life’s joys and sorrows, and often part of this means to express their political convictions. Many generations of women weren’t allowed to express their thoughts in print, in public, or in the voting booth, but they could express them through cloth, they used their needle to tell the world what they thought. Just imagine those genteel gatherings of Victorian ladies stitching over a cup of tea, while really they were plotting strategy for the suffrage movement.

Gwendolyn Magee, is another artist whose work is a dramatic narrative telling the story of the African American experience. This work is from her ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing series’. The image of a chained woman being cruelly whipped even though her womb is heavy with child graphically illustrates the dehumanization of slaves.

Today political quilts or quilts with a social conscience are not that common, much of today’s quilting revolves around beautiful fabrics and interesting patterns – however there are many artists who use the quilt medium to express their thoughts on todays big issues.

Marion Coleman creates work that addresses family, history, nature, culture traditions and social themes. These pieces utilize color and figurative imagery to educate, entertain, inspire and stimulate ideas and discussion. this quilt is titled ‘Angry Young Men’ and is a social commentary on violence, criminal justice system, community ambivalence to the loss of a generation of young adults.

You may have noticed that many of these quilts mentioned are by African-American quilters. While I was searching for political and narrative quilts, I kept coming across the African-American story being told in quilt making. I think that because their story/history has been a struggle for survival, they are perhaps more aware of the struggle of others, while many African American quilt artists work deals with their own history, there is also a large proportion who are moved by others stories too, that of the homeless, youth, immigrants and the aged. Looking into the history of African American quilting I found that their quilt making traditions are long and serve as visual records of patterns of migration and settlement and are linked to textile traditions found in West Africa. Quilts are also used to document family history, and relationships and events.

Penny Sisto, Immigrant Series 2007 :: THEY CAME BY SEA, The images, the beings on my work haunt and whisper to me as I make them live. I learn sometimes things that only they can tell, as I sew the edges of their world.

online article resources

(full article).
(full article here)
black threads

related:

Be sure to go and see (if you can) Will the Circle Be Unbroken August 11, 2007 – November 25, 2007 at Brattleboro Museum & Art CenterFour Generations of African-American Quiltmakers Improvisational quilts made by four generations of African-American women in one Texas family—Gladys Henry, Laverne Brackens, Sherry Byrd, and Bara Byrd.

Something Pertaining to God: The Patchwork Art of Rosie Lee Tompkins May 20 – October 28, 2007 20 Shelburne Museumquilts and several smaller quilted pieces are exhibited in this first solo museum exhibition for the acclaimed quiltmaker Rosie Lee Tompkins.