I've been fascinated with the music and lifestyle of the 1940's since sometime in High School -- I mean I HAD read the American Girls books early on (Molly was from 1944) however my discovery of a big band show on the local NPR station on a random Friday night in my room (we lived in the country, that station was one of the few that we got easily and the episode on Jelly Roll Morton absolutely caught my attention, and then I heard Benny Goodman for the first time -- as a music obsessed clarinetist it was over) and the Sunday Afternoon old time Radio hour on the same station where I discovered Jack Benny propelled me into being as obsessed as a teen with ADHD/Autism could be. My uncle also was into the same things and he started handing me cassettes that he'd taped of The Shadow, Fibber McGee and Molly, Burns and Allen, I Love a Mystery and others. The whole family got involved with listening to it. It was to the point that when someone needed a Billie Holiday recording for a project my band director SENT HER TO ME. (he said he figured 1940's music obssessed me... He was not wrong) So I feel like this part of the project is bringing me back to that part of my life and feeling engrossed in my interests and never made to feel weird about it.
So once more I'm on a rewatch of Wartime Farm - because this "quilt" has been on a to do list in my head along with several of Ruth's aprons, among other things. In Episode 3 of Wartime Farm, the larger project is preparing for evacuees that had been bombed out of the larger city during the war. The boys are working on tiles to repair the roofs of the outbuildings on the property and Ruth is making beds and quilts. The quilt/coverlet that she makes is a series of stuffed pockets stitched together. To me, this was intriguing as while I do have a yo yo quilt going that will probably take me the next twenty plus years to finish (ADHD and it's a lot of small pieces), this felt both practical and more doable overall.
The book that Ruth references in this and the previous episode is the Women's Institute's book Thrift Crafts -- she uses this for both the quilt and the feather duster. She uses ticking and feathers to make the quilt. I am choosing instead of buying new fabric to start working through some of my absolute large quantity of fabric stash. The pockets being around 20x24 inches, it's a prime opportunity to use up some of those one or two yard pieces that I've thrifted over the years to make something new (and if it works well I'll make more!). I also feel like buying new fabric is against the spirit of the "make do and mend" spirit of World War 2. I like the concept of making quilts as ways of making something useful of scraps. The book (on page 24) also says to use 9 of these pouches, I am planning on 16 to give a bit extra coverage that will hopefully allow me to use it with a cat trying to sleep on one corner. (Goose (the cat) is gonna be Goose and he knows no law of staying out of the bed, in fact he feels like the new quilt needs to start with cat hair) I lack the extra wool and feathers so I'm going to use fiberfill which is more available and honestly I've managed to thrift multiple containers of it so it's not going to waste.
Currently I'm cutting the pieces out of varied shades of blue and green fabrics that I had lying around -- and although the sizes are written, the pouches feel bigger once you get them out. When I'm done I'll get the machine out to start stitching them together. The authors of the book did mention using "faggotting" stitches to get them together and I may explore that further. That stitch (also called herringbone) has always been difficult for me. So that's all so far.
Learning history by doing projects from the BBC Farms series.
Monday, January 1, 2024
Saturday, December 30, 2023
Who, What, Why and How: An Introduction to the Project
So I guess I should ramble on to why I'm starting this project specifically for
2024. I am hoping to have a collection of projects and lessons learned by the
end of the year but I don't know how well that's going to work out in the long
term.
Who:
So who am I? I'm a 44 year old disabled woman with multiple chronic illnesses. (Rheumatoid Arthritis, POTS and Fibromyalgia to name a few) In addition I'm a late diagnosed Autistic with ADHD (two for one special). My hyperfixations and special interests usually revolve around history and crafting.
What:
My goal is to work on a series of historic projects that are both pulled directly from the BBC historic farm series: Tales from the Green Valley, Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm and Tudor Monastary Farm are the ones currently out. (I would actually reccomend finding these and others on either Amazon Prime or on Absolute History Channel on youtube.
Why:
I have been an avid reenactor since I was 15 more or less but since the start of the pandemic, I have not been able to get out as much. I do hope to return to eventing eventually but with multiple food allergies and chronic fatigue it gets rather difficult. I have enjoyed passionately the history of every day people and the smaller things. Food, clothing, etc are all affected by history and all affect history. So with that the farm series has become a comfort series. It's comforting to consider what has been done over and over again, that no matter what else goes on around us some things are constant.
This is not to say that I romanticize the past. I am well aware that attitudes have changed for the better. I'm VERY grateful for modern medicine and its place in my life. So I don't want to fully recreate the past nor do I think I'd be better off there. That being said, there is much to learn in terms of things like sustainability and thrift from our ancestors. And that is the lesson I want to see if I can learn this year. Whether it is the apron to protect a nice dress, a quilt made of scrap fabric or making pottage of whatever is currently in season, I think these lessons are good ones to learn. The Make do and Mend from WOrld War 2 and the ration recipes (some sound better than others) or the ways in which women kept house in the Edwardian age are all giving us valuable lessons.
This is not to sound preachy whatsoever, a lot of this is for my own lesson learning and I hope that in sharing these things maybe I can inspire others. I lost my mother last July and in many ways my creative processes and research into history have felt somewhat stifled -- partially because my mother was my cheerleader and example in these projects. She taught me needlework and often helped me with project supplies etc. So with this, I'm hoping to do honor to her memory and to the memory of other women in my family.
How:
First and foremost some of these projects will not be direct reproductions of things used in history. Some might and I will document which is which. I plan on doing and documenting as much as possible, whether it's a sewing project, a knitting project inspired by that point in history or a meal. There will be large and small projects and hopefully I will somehow inspire you to start your own such projects.
Who:
So who am I? I'm a 44 year old disabled woman with multiple chronic illnesses. (Rheumatoid Arthritis, POTS and Fibromyalgia to name a few) In addition I'm a late diagnosed Autistic with ADHD (two for one special). My hyperfixations and special interests usually revolve around history and crafting.
What:
My goal is to work on a series of historic projects that are both pulled directly from the BBC historic farm series: Tales from the Green Valley, Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm and Tudor Monastary Farm are the ones currently out. (I would actually reccomend finding these and others on either Amazon Prime or on Absolute History Channel on youtube.
Why:
I have been an avid reenactor since I was 15 more or less but since the start of the pandemic, I have not been able to get out as much. I do hope to return to eventing eventually but with multiple food allergies and chronic fatigue it gets rather difficult. I have enjoyed passionately the history of every day people and the smaller things. Food, clothing, etc are all affected by history and all affect history. So with that the farm series has become a comfort series. It's comforting to consider what has been done over and over again, that no matter what else goes on around us some things are constant.
This is not to say that I romanticize the past. I am well aware that attitudes have changed for the better. I'm VERY grateful for modern medicine and its place in my life. So I don't want to fully recreate the past nor do I think I'd be better off there. That being said, there is much to learn in terms of things like sustainability and thrift from our ancestors. And that is the lesson I want to see if I can learn this year. Whether it is the apron to protect a nice dress, a quilt made of scrap fabric or making pottage of whatever is currently in season, I think these lessons are good ones to learn. The Make do and Mend from WOrld War 2 and the ration recipes (some sound better than others) or the ways in which women kept house in the Edwardian age are all giving us valuable lessons.
This is not to sound preachy whatsoever, a lot of this is for my own lesson learning and I hope that in sharing these things maybe I can inspire others. I lost my mother last July and in many ways my creative processes and research into history have felt somewhat stifled -- partially because my mother was my cheerleader and example in these projects. She taught me needlework and often helped me with project supplies etc. So with this, I'm hoping to do honor to her memory and to the memory of other women in my family.
How:
First and foremost some of these projects will not be direct reproductions of things used in history. Some might and I will document which is which. I plan on doing and documenting as much as possible, whether it's a sewing project, a knitting project inspired by that point in history or a meal. There will be large and small projects and hopefully I will somehow inspire you to start your own such projects.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)