November 18, 2013

Two Books

#1 - Old book


My friend Gloria visited yesterday, and shared this amazing book with me.  It was published in 1916, revised from the original 1907 publication.  The title is:

Henley's Twentieth Century Formulas, Recipes and Processes
Containing ten thousand selected household and workshop formulas, recipes, processs and money-saving methods for the practical use of manufacturers, mechanics, housekeepers and home workers.

Here is the cotton entry, covering bleaching by "steaming", with calcium sulphite, and with hydrogen peroxide.

And here is the silk entry, covering artificial rubbered silk(?), artificial aging of silk fabric, bleaching silk, and washing of light silk goods.

The range of entries is huge - no table of contents, just in alphabetical order. "Silk" is preceded by "Sign letters - to remove black letters from white enameled signs", then "Sign letter cements - see Adhesives", and "Signs, to repair enameled - see Enamels."  After silk comes "Silk sensitizers for photographic purposes - see Photography" and followed by "Silver."

The number of ingredients and supplies that are unheard of today (or known by different names maybe) is amazing.

The use of dangerous chemicals is scary.  We may get fussy about how over-the-top safety precautions are these days, but honestly, seeing these recipes without any mention of danger is kind of freaky.

#2 - New book


Here's my book, making its debut at the Fine Art of Fiber show last weekend.  I am officially a published author now - how amazing!  I am learning how to sign the title page like authors do.

I've been working hard to get all the logistics set up to actually open up for on-line sales and shipping.  Hopefully all will be ready in a week or so!









November 9, 2013

What the Birds See

"What the Birds See"


This is my latest quilt in the Something from Nothing series.  The series is based on a pile of decorator fabric samples.  Part of the challenge I have given myself is to make the design of the quilt related in some way to the design on the fabrics.  You can read more about the series here.

For this quilt, my goal was to use lots of the large floral prints and make a happy garden quilt.  I was wondering about what to use or make up for a garden design, and my friend Julie suggested that I reproduce a part of the Chicago Botanic Garden, and have the quilt ready to display at the big Fine Art of Fiber show that is held there every fall.  Perfect!  Thanks, Julie!

November 4, 2013

Luxurious Vintage Lace Jabot


One of the best things about repairing vintage clothing is getting to examine the items so closely and learn from them.  In this case, I took notes all long, and now have a pattern for making a really cool accessory that isn't exactly common these days. 

November 1, 2013

Coming Soon !!!

I am taking a big step forward.  I am publishing a book!


Preserving Our Quilt Legacy: Giving Antique Quilts the Special Care They Deserve


The book will be available soon, during November.

106 pages, with step-by-step diagrams and 16 color plates

The book includes information for both quilt owners and quilt collectors.

Topics covered include:
The philosophy of quilt repair
Supplies and techniques for Restoration and Conservation
Cleaning
Storage
Display

October 15, 2013

1960s American Eagle

Here's an heirloom quilt that came to me for a bit of repair.  It had one small hole and quite a bit of missing quilting.  Also, the owner asked that I put a sleeve on the back for hanging.

He told me that his mother made this quilt for him in the 1960s, after he got out of the service.  She also made a quilt for each of her other three children.

October 9, 2013

Cigarette Girl Costume


My friend Julia of Basya Berkman Vintage Fashions learned through the grapevine about a woman with a stash of vintage clothing.  This is one of the amazing items that Julia acquired.

The woman said that her mother had been a performer in her early life.  It's likely that several of her vintage things, like this outfit, were costumes worn during her mother's career before her marriage.  Her mother was most likely dancing in the 1920s.  A real find!

October 3, 2013

Spools and Bugs

You are probably wondering about the title of this post.  Here's the spools part - a quilt made in 1965. It had quite a bit of wear in the squares along one edge, and several open seams.  (This photo was taken post-repair.)

Here's the bugs part - a fabric with chartreuse and turquoise bugs on a grey background.  The color combo is pretty much a marker for the 1950s.  Pictorial prints were popular then, but why the large bugs?  Hardly a print to appeal to the stereotypical perfect housewife of the era! And to me, they look rather dead, what with those curled up legs and all.  Huh.  Not appealing in the least.  Maybe the fabric is meant to illustrate the maxim, "The only good bug is a dead bug."  Maybe.

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