In my last post I mentioned how I am always amazed by all of the sewing women had to do in the nineteenth century. With all this hand sewing going on, a needle case was a necessity. A pretty one to carry your supplies sure helps make your hand sewing adventures more enjoyable.
Every quilter needs a pretty needle case. The pattern for this "huswife" needle case is in my Adelia book. These are quick and easy to stitch up and make great gifts for sewing friends. Or, you can omit the bottom pockets and measure to make it a little longer and wider to fit an electronic device so you have a pretty case for your tablet or Kindle. (If you prefer, add interfacing between the layers to make it a little stiffer.)
A girl can never have too many needle cases! Don't you agree? (Mine are beginning to multiply like pincushions . . . .) You can even keep one in your purse and store gift cards in them. I sort of enjoy the funny looks I get when I'm out shopping and I pull out this seriously old-fashioned (but oh so cute!) case and have to untie the ribbon before I dig out my card . . . . Time stops still for a minute.
* * *
Don't forget - There's still time to make a little quilt for our small quilt group challenge. The revealing of all the little red & white quilts begins on Tuesday, Dec 15. I'll post pictures of some of them here after next week. Hope you can still find time to join us.
I'm working on hand quilting a few small quilts. It's very enjoyable for me but the going is slow and I was reminded of the exhibit on Civil War dresses I saw last summer. When I pick up my needle, I cannot help but think about the amount of hand sewing that went on during that era. How in the world did they do so much of it?
Most of the dresses on display were sewn with exquisite stitches. By hand. Including the fancy trim, piping, pleating.
Look at those pleats!
By the mid-nineteenth century, some households had treadle sewing machines, but not all families could afford one. In my book Remembering Adelia, Adelia Thomas noted in her 1861 diary that her family was lucky enough to have a treadle machine. At times. some of the local women would come over for the day to sew on it.
Oops - couldn't find a photo of several women sewing on a treadle. If the machine was busy I guess they'd go into the kitchen and "baste" a chicken while they waited their turn . . . .
* * *
Here are a few more entries from Adelia's diary -
July 29, 1861
The anniversary of my nineteenth birthday!
Worked all the day till three o'clock then sewed on my basque—seems as though I
should never get it done. [A basque was a form-fitting jacket or bodice perhaps worn over a hoop skirt. Some references I found say it was a corset. Imagine having to make your own corset!]
Aug 5, 1861
Emma's seventeenth
birthday. Anna and I did quite a large washing. Mother helped to wash the
colored clothes. Cut the little girls some purple calico dresses.
Aug 8, 1861
Washed three calico
dresses for myself and one for Em. Got dinner and after the work was done sewed
on some embroidery. Finished the girls' dresses and cut out two night dresses
for Mother and myself.
Aug 20
Sewed on Mother's dress.
Aug 24
Slept until eight o'clock then sewed on Mother's
dress and almost finished it.
You can see that sewing was pretty much a daily chore among all the other household chores that needed to be finished. My goodness. How lucky we are today. The little bit of hand sewing I do is so pleasurable. I would be very stressed if I had to make clothes for myself and the family too - wouldn't you?
It's difficult to watch the news these days. My heart goes out to everyone in San Bernardino, along with prayers.
August 24, 1861
"August 24, 1861 - I should have been cheerful in my solitude had it not been for my irrepressible anxiety about public affairs. I made, and quilted on my lap, the prettiest little crib quilt you ever saw. . . I sent it to my dear friend Mrs S., in honor of her first granddaughter. It was really a relief to my mind to be doing something for an innocent little baby in these dreadful times."
I love this quote on page 34 of my book The Civil War Sewing Circle. Hard to believe it was not written today. I don't know anyone who is not feeling anxious these days. Yes, so many years later, these are still dreadful times. Thank goodness for quilting - it does help keep one focused and calm at times.
I don't feel much like Christmas shopping anymore. We're getting our Christmas tree tomorrow and I will decorate it this weekend. put up the lights to help dispel some of the darkness and find joy and hope as we begin to celebrate the season.
When the kids were young we'd drive by a certain neighborhood in Chicago to see the houses decorated with lights. I think it might be fun to do that again this year.
Yep, it's definitely winter. This may have been a horrible, horrible day for some but not for me. It snowed overnight. My husband woke me up before he left for work at 6:30 a.m. with the good news. At first I thought he was waking me because he was eager to tell me it snowed! Perhaps he's learned to love it as much as I do! But, no, he was just afraid I might need more time getting myself going this morning because of it. Such a worrier. Wasn't that nice of him? So I woke up a little earlier than I needed to since I already had my alarm set for 7:00 a.m. Thanks, dear . . . . More early morning minutes to spend outside playing with the dog.
I still had to go out early but the roads really were not too bad. Everyone else seemed to be driving around in a crabby mood even though it was only a sprinkling of snow but I still had a stupid grin on my face. Even the tiniest bit of snow does that to me.
I like showing you my little corner of the world . . . .
It's so pretty. What I really wanted to do was go Christmas shopping! But I was on my way to a doctor's appointment instead. Ugh.
On the way back home I drove past the park to see if the path looked icy. Decided it might be a little too slippery (for me) to walk the dog today.
So we stayed inside and sewed instead. The little Christmas tree block below was for last year's challenge in the Yahoo Small Quilt group and if you don't remember you can find it in the group files for 2014. I think mine's going to turn into a coaster soon.
* * *
Yahoo and Facebook group people - If you're still thinking of participating in the red & white small quilt challenge, do not delay. Time's a wasting. The showing of little quilts in the groups will be on December 15. You still have almost two weeks to make something. Let's see your red & white quilts! I honestly almost wasn't going to make one because of all the things I have to do instead but the Christmas spirit got the better of me. Last night I picked out a pattern and then sewed up the top this snowy morning. Took me all of 2 hours. Sure, it's small and needs to be quilted but I think I'll be able to finish it by Dec 15. Hope to see some of yours too. If I can do it, you can too. It really does not take that long to make something small and, come the holidays, you'll be so glad you made even a little something.
Now that that top's done maybe I'll also have time to make a couple of cross-stitched pretties. Never did get around to making that Christmas Village from oh so many years ago . . . . That pattern's got to be 20 years old by now.
One of my favorite places to visit every year on Black Friday is my friend Karen's primitive craft sale at her home in Elgin, Illinois. Today also happens to be Small Business Saturday. A perfect day to support your local quilter and crafter.
Tons of great gift items. They make everything they sell.
I know I'm a little late with this info but there's still time to get over there if you live in the Chicago area. The sale is on today (Saturday) from 10 - 4:00.
Bill & Karen Schultz' Primitive and Holiday Sale
November 28
1024 Duncan Ave.
Elgin IL
+ + +
There's also a link on my website for info on buying Bill and Karen's doll beds and cradles.
The Sentimental Quilter LOVES Thanksgiving. It's a great opportunity to show my sentimental side and reflect on all of the things I have to be grateful for this past year. (Not to say I don't do that every day anyway . . . . ) Instead of focusing on those negative things that have disrupted life and made it a little more difficult, I really try to remind myself of all of the abundance surrounding me.
I'll be making the pumpkin pie today and getting a head start on some other dishes for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.
Last night I watched a wonderful documentary on PBS - The Pilgrims. Produced by Ric Burns (the brother of Ken Burns of "The Civil War" fame), the film focuses on some of the dark truths surrounding the first Thanksgiving and the pilgrims' Mayflower voyage. It's not exactly your Charlie Brown Thanksgiving special but worth watching.
"From childhood on Americans are taught to think of the voyage of the Mayflower and the coming of the Pilgrims as the true founding moment of America,” said Burns, “and we honor them as such every year on Thanksgiving – even though they came thirteen years after the founding of Jamestown in 1607. The real story of the Pilgrims — who they were, what drove them on, what happened to them in the new world, how they succeeded and how they failed and why we remember them as we do – is far more gripping, poignant, harrowing and strange – and far more revealing – than the Thanksgiving myth we think we know.”
Not a happy story but one that should be told. I think it's being repeated tonight and/or tomorrow but check your local station for times. Read more here or watch the trailer if this interests you at all.
This year, like most, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law are cooking the turkey and bringing it over. All I have to do is make all the sides. It's a feast. And yeah, sometimes I go a little nuts with those sides because I love having so many Thanksgiving leftovers for the following weekend so I don't have to cook much. And there's always a lot to give away. We'll have Turkey, stuffing (2 kinds), green beans, roasted cauliflower & carrots, corn pudding, creamed spinach, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry/cream cheese/walnut "trifle salad"* (but also jellied cranberry sauce for those who need the canned version), pumpkin pie. Did I leave anything out? Oh yeah, in honor of my mom - her sweet & sour cabbage, which I never ate while she was alive LOL but now love, go figure. And, my sister's bringing a chocolate chip cheesecake. So many carbs and calories. Too decadent. I'd better get started . . . .
I am feeling so blessed in so many ways that I could go on and on . . .
I hope all of you in the U.S. have a wonderful holiday surrounded by family and loved ones. Don't forget to count your blessings. Is there anything you're especially grateful for this Thanksgiving? Take a minute to reflect on those things. If nothing else, I'll bet most of you should probably be grateful for having more fabric than you will ever EVER need, haha.
+ + + +
* Here's the recipe for the cranberry cream cheese "trifle". I use walnuts instead of pecans and don't mix them into the cream cheese mixture as in the recipe - I just layer them on top so those who don't like nuts in my family can easily pick them off : ) It's like having dessert with the meal.
I'm a quilt designer and author of seven quilting books. I love making quilts with an antique look and find inspiration in quilts from the past and the women who made them.
