Archive for September, 2009

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Postcard Quilt

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Here is an image of a postcard quilt sent to me by my friend, Tamara Shpolyanska, a certified Master Quilter and quilt teacher from Ukraine. She sent this to me, in two pieces that I needed to assemble to have a finished project. I just got “a round tuit,” and completed it this week.

She has sent me four other postcard quilts, one of which needs an edge binding. I see I have my work cut out for me. Perhaps a skinny piece of left over binding would do just fine. Yes, very skinny!

I love Tamara’s artistic vision. Her quilts, large and small, are all wonderful! I am blessed to have some very special friends and she is certainly one of them. Here is the scan of the postcard. The back of the quilt features her personal stamp/ and her name in Ukrainian, as well as a personal message to me, her signature, and the date.

Postcard quilt from Tamara

This small piece features a pansy and fancy fibers. It looks very elegant, in person! She sent it as a gift for St. Patrick’s Day, in 2006.

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

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Michael Moore Takes on Capitalism in His Latest Film

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Fortune magazine online has published a most interesting article about Michael Moore’s latest film that is ironically called, “Capitalism: A Love Story.” The 55 year old film director reaches into his own lessons from the past, learned at the feet of the Catholic educational system. He seems to have concluded, in part, that Capitalism is “anti-Jesus.”

I hope you will read this article including explanations of the Ponzi schemes and select financial bailouts. Many people, I fear, have not been paying attention, which is not to say that the effects of what happened will not mean that they will be immune from paying with their own money. That appears to be how it is in this country. The rich stay rich and “understand” each other, and the poor struggle to even maintain the most meager of jobs.

In thinking about this topic today, I opened the Bible and turned to Matthew 25: 31-40.

Under subtitle of “The Son of Man Will Judge the Nations,” beginning with verse 31, Matthew quotes Jesus. On the Last Day, men will be separated like goats and sheep. The sheep will be welcomed into the Kingdom that was prepared for them from the “foundation of the world.”

The “Good Shepherd” will say to his “flock”: For when I was hungry, you gave me food. When I was thirsty, you gave me to drink. When I was in prison, you came to me. The righteous will answer, “When did we do this, Lord?” To that, He will reply, “Assuredly, I say this to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”

The Good Shepherd

The image above, “El Buen Pastor” (“The Good Shepherd”) represents Christ and one of his flock. It is a painting by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-1682) whose work I studied at a university in Spain in the early 1970s.

In America today, we seem to be overlooking and casting aside the least of our Brethren. After killing off the majority of Native Americans, for the convenience of taking over their lands for our own expansion, we now pick on a new set of people to denigrate: the day laborers who are here to do hard work.

They reap no benefits other than a meager paycheck, for work that Americans themselves are unwilling to do. It seems to be a protective measure to all who are here, to afford them the same health care insurance available to any of us, lest we come down with some preventable pandemic brought in from another country.

What remains to be seriously considered and dealt with is the health and welfare of our migrant brothers and sisters, legal or “illegal.” (Does God make “illegal” people?)

These individuals pick our crops and serve in other dangerous and nasty work such as asbestos removal, jobs that hardly anyone would even consider. In the name of Capitalism (legally making a buck), some individuals have forgotten the compassion that is at the very root of Christianity, a major religion in this country.

The question on the table remains: “Is Democracy political or economic?” You will have to answer that for yourself, but I think you will enjoy Michael Moore’s fresh perspective on this topic. I would add another question, “Are the terms Capitalism and Democracy synonyms? If so, why, or why not?” Comments welcome.

Finally, a link to an American folk song by Woody Guthrie, “Pastures of Plenty,” as sung by me.

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

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Doyle New York Offers Special Quilt at Auction on October 7, 2009

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

Doyle New York, located at 175 East 87th St., New York City, is offering 460 lots of furniture, decorations, paintings, costume designs, memorabilia and more, that belonged to the late opera singer, Beverly Sills (1929-2007).

Included is a quilt that was given to her by the San Diego Opera Guild on May 26, 1979. The fifteen quilt block feature images of women, dressed in various gowns, who represent operatic roles performed by Sills over the span of her career. The quilt measures 7′ 6″ x 4′ 2 1/2″. The back is inscribed with friendly notations and member signatures and was presented in honor of her birthday.

Beverly Sills quilt - sold by Doyle New York

The following image was sent by a representative of Doyle New York. You can see that the quilt was actually “quilted.” Lovely tribute!

back of Sills' quilt with signatures

The press release distributed by the company contains the following contact information, as well as a wonderful biography:

Auction

Wednesday, Oct 7 at 10am

Exhibition

Friday, Oct 2, 10am-5pm
Saturday, Oct 3, 10am-5pm
Sunday, Oct 4, Noon-5pm
Monday, Oct 5, 10am-6pm
Tuesday, Oct 6, 10am-2pm

Catalogue

View the catalogue and bid online: DoyleNewYork.com/title/title09BS01.htm

Souvenir auction catalogue: $35
212-427-4141, ext 203
Subscriptions@DoyleNewYork.com

View Press Release / Highlights

DoyleNewYork.com/pr/BeverlySills

Contact

Client Services Department
Tel: 212-427-4141, ext 207 or 242
Fax: 212-427-7526
Client.Services@DoyleNewYork.com

This announcement is brought to you courtesy of Quilter’s Muse Publications. Happy bidding!

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Schoolgirl Sampler Commands Top Dollar

Monday, September 28th, 2009

An 18th century schoolgirl Sampler came up for auction in Maine and has commanded the highest price of any Sampler sold: $465,750, according to Antiques and the Arts Online. A photo of the piece, which was expected to sell for much less, appears on their website:

Be patient. The remote site takes a long time to load.

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Sensible Money

Monday, September 28th, 2009

The words that come to mind this morning are those of “Wimpy,” a cartoon character in the Popeye series, who said, “I’ll give you 5 cents tomorrow for a hamburger today.” That request appears to sum up the state of private finances and general economy in the U.S. today. For some time now, Americans have relied on borrowed money and borrowed time, and truly have not been in charge of their financial destiny.

Not so long ago, things were different. Imagine an age without electronic gadgets, when people actually engaged with the people with whom they were keeping present company and were not plugged into a communication device.

During World War II, most every family had a radio and it was around that radio that the family gathered to hear the latest news, music, and theatrical-like presentations. The radio probably crackled, buzzed and whistled with all kinds of static. However, it was a major conveyance of news.

Jump ahead to today. As soon as I publish this message, it will be read in places I will never visit in my lifetime. I know this is true, if only because of all of the SPAM that shows up, from distant places. We have more ways to communicate than ever before. Yet, we are becoming a society that is dismally unaware of how to manage money and that hurts all of us.

ration stamps

Ration Stamps from World War II

The 1940s seem to have been a decade of beginning awareness of the importance of financial stability. The government encouraged recycling by its messages on the back of every ration stamp booklet.

When you have used your ration, salvage the TIN CANS and WASTE FATS. They are needed to make munitions for our fighting men. Cooperate with your local Salvage Committee.

Everyone pitched in to turn “junk” into weapons in an age that published the song, “Junk Ain’t Junk No More.”

Mothers were now in the workplace and every dime counted. A popular song of the era was “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” A dime would, after all, at least buy a cup of coffee to warm a person’s innards, if only temporarily. A song of the 1920s reveals the thoughts of someone down on his luck: “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out.”

Another admonition on the Food Rations Booklet was, “If you don’t need it, DON’T BUY IT.”

Today, we are a people entrapped by credit like prey in a spider’s web. Yet, our own selfish needs are to have it all and do that … now! “We’ll just charge it,” has become the mantra of the younger generation, a group who is finding it increasingly difficult to pay even the interest on their credit cards, as they go up, up and out of sight.

In 1945, my father founded a Credit Union, the first of 17 that he would ultimately start. His idea was to help others by way of financial education. “Save for a rainy day,” “A hand up, not a hand out,” were slogans I heard him repeat when I was a child. By 16 years old, encouraged by Dad, I had started my own account to have a place to save babysitting money and “watch it grow.”

My father left it up to bankers to consider ways to fleece the public and get rich. My father was never rich. Toward the end of his life, when he was still well enough, my parents had a Ford truck with a camper and took little trips from NH to Maine. That was the extent of his travel. Yet, he was rich in other ways. He read books and National Geographic and U.S. News and World Report. He was informed about the world, and in his own way, assisted in improving the world and making it just a little better because of his 63 years here.

To his credit and his sound management, the Granite State Credit Union, that John E. Grace (1911-1974) founded in 1945, then called Utility Workers Credit Union, is thriving and has branch offices all over the state of New Hampshire, as well as a main branch in Manchester, where it originated.

When I think of money, I can’t help but recall the example my father set. Like him, I am not rich, not in dollars. Yet, I am rich in experiences, in friends, and in knowledge that I continue to seek daily. The greatest freedom is in “owing no man.” We have $0. credit card debt. There is nothing that I have gone without that I don’t miss. Teach your children in the way you’d want them to grow … before the material goods of the world turn their heads.

Patricia Cummings

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Education

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

These remarks are both general and specific, based on my own experiences. I will begin some flashbacks of my own.

When I was in school, I remember being terribly bored at times because I “got it” the first time around – the lesson, that is – yet, I had to listen to the teacher as he or she repeated himself/herself. I specifically remember that being true of high school Chemistry, and an Anthropology class I took at the university.

In the United States, we seem to think that a child is being hurt, if he or she does not attend college. “In my day,” everything was sorted out nicely on the basis of grades and test scores. If a male child seemed a little bit “dim,” by high school, he was shuffled off to take Industrial Arts classes in high school and spent a minimum of time in other classes (which he barely passed). If a high school girl was slow on the uptake, she was shifted off into Home Economics where she learned how to sew, cook, take care of a baby, and learn to keep a budget.

Now, there is nothing wrong with either Industrial Arts or Home Economics. You certainly would not want some untrained person tinkering with your car, and to be a viable society whose focus is safe haven in the home, it is not a bad idea to train both young men and women in the basic skills of planning and making nutritious meals, and maintaining relationships for the long term.

Somewhere along the line, “going to college” seemed like the better option to many folks, presumably an instant ticket to success. At the time I was going to high school, English teachers were at a premium and so many fellow students wanted to help fill that void … eventually. Today, you will find many out-of-work English teachers from that era, or people who decided to chose a different profession altogether.

The college education idea as a birth-given right in America is wrong. The kind of society that we have requires all kinds of workers, and many of the potential positions that will be and are currently available will have little to do with whether or not someone has a four-year or longer college education.

In schools, we have dropped our standards.

Teachers resent “teaching to the test.” Most of us who are or have been educators went into the field of education because of a certain passion we have for teaching others about our particular discipline, whatever that may be. Many of us have become disenchanted with Education, although still impassioned about our favorite subjects of study.

It is hard to envision a young person thinking about college, when it is difficult for that individual to even make change without reliance on a cash register. It’s like asking a Zebra to change its stripes.

In today’s society, only the most dedicated parents spend time asking their children about their school work or how they are doing socially or otherwise. Kids get into trouble, with a capital T, when they continuously go unsupervised.

I know of one child who shot himself in the neck and was D.O.A. He was 14 or 16 (?) at the time of his death, and for a long time had been involved with a Satanic group and in doing evil things. That is the worst case scenario, of course. We don’t expect our the misbehavior of children to result in death. We all want our children to live and thrive and assume that will be the case.

The questions of Education: how the school year should be arranged, who should pay for what, what the role of parents should take, and whether every child should be expected to go to college, are all complex.

I hope that the president will think long and hard about college as being an entitled state. I do not agree. The students who don’t belong there are disruptive in the classroom, impeding the progress of other students. Furthermore, they get into trouble on campus, oftentimes, and seem to be in attendance for the parties, the drinking, and the illicit sex that often accompanies their careers.

College attendance does not have to be an elite issue. Whether or not a youngster attends should depend on scholastic ability and clear cut reasons that are associated with a career goal. College is a privilege and should be regarded as such. Attendance should depend on how hard a student is willing to work.

Patricia Cummings

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How Doctors Think – The Book

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Recently, while visiting a bookstore in a university town, I picked up a book with an intriguing name: How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman, M.D. This book, that has been on the New York Times Bestseller list, explores doctor/patient interactions and the medical school model of assessing a patient based on algorithms and clinical data.

This book reveals that language is the first and foremost tool in interacting with patients and assessing them correctly. The author states that if a doctor will only listen to what a patient says, he will have his diagnosis. He does admit that physicians are “under the influence” of pharmaceutical companies and seems to accept that as one way to advance medicine.

With forty years of clinical practice behind him, when he wrote this book, Dr. Groopman does his colleagues a service by asking them to communicate more effectively with patients and to consider everything stated by the patient, not just looking at previously-compiled material as Gospel, but reaching conclusions based on their own judgment and experience.

Open-ended questions serve well; closed-end questions that require “yes” or “no” answers do not open any new doors very often.

From a personal standpoint, I have run into obstacles in communication due to language barriers, the prejudice of some doctors for older people, and prejudice of physicians against people with certain disabilities.

Sometimes, communication is too vague to be effective at all. For example, if a doctor tells me not to drink orange juice, but does not explain herself, and I can find no reason not to do so, I will continue to drink orange juice. General statements do not fit all patients.

If I’d been given a compelling reason not to do so, I would have modified my behavior. In fact, I did try to give up orange juice and shortly thereafter, came down with a new problem that drinking orange juice could have helped to avoid. That further undermined my faith in that particular doctor.

I have only read about 1/3 of How Doctors Think but am finding it insightful. I can see how this book would be helpful to both patient and doctor. Sometimes, doctors ask questions that are not germaine to one’s health problem. I hope to learn more as I continue reading this important volume that provides many examples of health-care interactions and outcomes.

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The Farmer’s Wife Sampler Quilt

Saturday, September 26th, 2009

Laurie Aaron Hird, author of The Farmer’s Wife Sampler Quilt (Cincinnati, Ohio: Krause Publications, 2009) created a quilt inspired by contest letters in January 1922 to The Farmer’s Wife: A Magazine for Farm Women. Women were asked to respond as to whether or not they would want their daughter to marry a farmer. The consensus was in the affirmative.

In this new book, Laurie offers up a dose of farm wife sentiments via reprinted letters from that contest. She has included photos of quilt blocks throughout the book, and on a separate CD, she provides templates that can be printed out, one to a page.

The book features clear diagrams that demonstrate how blocks can be put together, one block per page, with a colorful thumbnail view of the block in the upper left hand corner.

The letters are charming and are truly a piece of United States History. The blocks utilize reproduction fabrics from the 19th century and that may confuse a few people if they expected the hues to coincide with 1920s colors. If we use our imaginations, we might think of this quilt as one that used left-over scraps from the former century. Laurie hand-pieced the entire quilt, but “farmed it out” to be longarm machine-quilted.

Some of the letters writers had strong opinions. One woman from Cheshire County, New Hampshire ended her letter with:

When someone offers my daughter love, marriage and a home, I would much rather it would be a clear-eyed, clean-hearted, penniless farmer than a city man with a white-collar position and a large salary.

This book is worth collecting, if only to read the letters from farm women and see all of the 111 quilt blocks they inspired. If one is ambitious, one can choose from different sizes of quilts to re-create Hird’s vision and make a quilt of their own. The Bonus CD offers 106 templates for piecing. It is abundantly clear that this book was a lot of work to create!

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

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John Perrault to Perform in Portsmouth on October 4

Saturday, September 26th, 2009

Press Release

JEFFERSON’S DREAM at Discover Portsmouth Center

Sunday, 4 October at 2 p.m. – Portsmouth Historical Society presents JEFFERSON’S DREAM, a concert and reading presented by former Portsmouth Poet Laureate, John Perrault.

Based on Perrault’s new book, Jefferson’s Dream, and CD of the same title, just published by Hobblebush Books, the program focuses on eight great Americans—both women and men—who carried the values of the Declaration forward into our lives. Through the medium of ballads, John traces Jefferson’s vision as it dramatically broadens with Lincoln’s reading, and gives impetus to abolitionism and women’s rights. He will be joined by popular Seacoast musicians, Barbara London and Mike Rogers.

John Perrault

John Perrault in 2009. Photo by James Cummings

The program is part of the Sunday Salon Series at the Portsmouth Historical Society’s Discover Portsmouth Center. The DPC is located at the corner of Middle and Islington Street in downtown Portsmouth, NH. Tickets are $10 ($7 for PHS Members) and may be purchased at the door.

For information contact the Portsmouth Historical Society:
info@portsmouthhistory.org
603-436-8420.

For those who live outside of New Hampshire, especially if you teach history, you may be interested in John’s book, as offered on amazon:

This notice is brought to you as a public service announcement by Quilter’s Muse Publications.

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“How Are You?”

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

asters

“How Are You?”

a poem by Patricia Cummings, Sept. 24, 2009

A simple question – “How are you?” -
Do we really want to know?
“Fine, thank you,” – that will do
and will avoid recited woes.

The older we become
with ease we do succumb
to complain away the livelong day
all the ailments we can portray.

“My head it aches; my heart it breaks;
My knees don’t work; I’ll go beserk!
My legs are stiff, I’ve lost my grip,
Hanging on by a thread; I’ll take to my bed.”

“How are you?” “Doing fine,
knitting booties, making chimes,
singing songs no one will hear,
Hoping for a better year.”

“How are you?” Who wants to know?
Do you care? Life’s a bear!”
“How are you?” “I’m just dandy,
but please keep the Kleenex handy!”

Life’s a play that’s never the same.
The rules keep changing in mid-game,
We hurry here and hasten there,
seemingly, without a care.

The question comes, “How are you?”
We pause and ponder what is true,
Then, lying, go along our way.
“I am fine. How are you?”

Related file: Seventeenth Century Nun’s Prayer

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Textile Talks To Be Featured at the “Big E”

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

Press Release from Eastern States Exposition

“Woolgathering Through the Millennia” – 3:00 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, 2009

Elizabeth Wayland Barber – CA

Spinning and weaving are older than metalworking or even pottery, but it took millennia to develop usable woolly sheep. In this colorfully illustrated talk, Dr Elizabeth Barber traces the early history of the fiber crafts, showing how the place of sheep, wool, and patterned woolen textiles changed repeatedly as innovations in technology and changes in the sheep themselves took place.

Dr. Elizabeth Barber is the author of many popular books on the history of textiles, including Women’s Work: the First 20,000 Years.

“Cotswolds Through the Ages” – 3:00 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009

Rob Harvey Long, UK

Home of The Big E From the start of my career I had a great interest in Oriental Carpets and rugs. I studied them in great detail. I was keen to know everything there was to know about them and particularly the wool used, and my interest in wool really stems from my early study of these beautiful hand made items.

Since joining The Cotswold Sheep Society, and reading about the fleeces being called “The Golden Fleece,” I have been wondering how this came about. My search has led me to some fascinating discoveries which I will be sharing with you.

I will also be talking about the Medieval wool trade in The Cotswolds and the Italian connection, and finally discussing the Cotswold Sheep Society in the 21st century and what the future may hold for us.

We look forward to seeing you!

The Big E runs Sept. 18 – Oct. 4, 2009. Both of the talks described above will be presented in the Moses Auditorium.

This public announcement is brought to you by Quilter’s Muse Publications.

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Cow Talk (plus Cow Quilt)

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

First of all, I’ll briefly say that we traveled out of town to hear a presenter give a talk titled, “How the Lovely Bovine Has Nurtured New Hampshire.” This presentation was co-sponsored by the Bradford Historical Society and the NH Humanities Council. The room was filled to capacity and we all waited patiently for the speaker who never showed up. Eventually, someone stood in front of the group and told us that there would be no meeting. Amazing!

If I had been more brave, I could have offered up a few cow stories of my own. You see, the brother who was seven years older than me loved cows. He went to a high school that offered a program in agriculture and he learned how to nurture calves and all the other things dairy farmers do. Now, we are talking about a “city boy” who grew up in Manchester, NH. Well, the upshot was that Steve loved cows so much, he majored in agriculture at the University of NH and earned a teaching degree.

Trouble was, his first teaching assignment was at a school who thought that the Ag teacher should be the babysitter for all the misfits and juvenile delinquents that acted out. Disturbed by the attitude of the principal, Steve’s teaching career was short-lived. He wanted to teach, not be a jailer. Instead, he became a herdsman on two different dairy farms in the western part of the state.

Not long ago, a niece told me that her Uncle Steve used to tell the kids, including her, (when she was visiting overnight), to go outside and stand by the barn to “sing the cows to sleep.” I wonder what songs they sang. The story is part of Steve’s legacy. He passed away in 1994 at age 50.

Steve Grace as a kid

Photo of my brother, Steve Grace, when he was a “kid.” He had red hair and blue eyes, and lots of freckles when he was young! This is a favorite photo of him!

Steve was 5 lbs. at birth, and was a frail child with a heart murmur, and a stuttering problem that no doctor could seem to remedy. Determined to succeed in overcoming this obstacle to communication, Steve used mind over matter. When he was in high school, he joined the Future Farmers of America. He was an officer in the group and was encouraged to write speeches. He won a tri-state contest for public speaking with a speech he wrote that compared farming in Communist Russia to that of the United States, at the time. He won a trip to Kansas City, as a result.

On a farm in Deerfield, NH, where the family moved in 1964, I had two horses, bantam hens, a rabbit, two roosters, cats, and a dog, while Steve raised three heifers. As the heifers grew and thrived, they used to like to try to escape the barbed-wire/electric fence enclosed 3 acre pasture on one side of the farm. On the other side of the fence was a path down into the neighbor’s woods, an old logging road bordered by a stone fence.

One day, the three heifers escaped led by the biggest one. My brother and I saw this event happening and couldn’t believe they had broken through all those layers of protection. We went after them. I will never again doubt the wisdom of the saying, “Waiting for the cows to come home.” They certainly were having a gay old time, jogging along the path, and did not miss home at all! Hours were spent, rounding them up.

cow quilt sent to Gloria

Quilt made from a Piecemaker’s pattern design and sent to my friend who also loves cows!

You see, I had a few cow stories of my own! Here is a photo of a “cow” quilt, made from a pattern by Piecemakers and sent to my friend in Argentina who loves cows and anything “country.”

There are more photos of cows throughout my online postings.

P.S. We sincerely hope we can hear the scheduled talk that did not happen tonight, at a later date!

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications

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QUILTERS OF GEE’S BEND & WINDHAM FABRICS ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Four Quilt Kits and 19 Solid Fabrics Available at Retailers Worldwide in November 2009

GEE’S BEND, AL – (September 23, 2009) – Just in time for the holiday season Gee’s Bend and Baum Textiles/Windham Fabrics announce a partnership to present four quilt kits and 19 Gee’s Bend solids. The kits and solids will be shipping to quilt stores worldwide in November 2009. The quilt kits include instructions, fabric for the quilt tops and binding; batting, backing; thread, needles, and thimble are additional. The suggested retail price for the quilt kits is $60 to $70 and the suggested retail price for Gee’s Bend Solids is $9/yard. For a full list of colors, kits and retailers please visit Baum Textile or Windham Fabrics.

Windham quilt kit bag

Based on designs by acclaimed Gee’s Bend Quilters, Mary Lee Bendolph, Mary L. Bennett, Qunnie Pettway and Rita Mae Pettway, Windham Fabrics encourages “every quilter to be inspired by the vision and courage of these modern quilting pioneers.” The four quilters will share a percentage of the royalties with The Gee’s Bend Quilters Collective and The Gee’s Bend Foundation.

According to Windham, “We have recreated the genius that this group of quilters in rural Alabama has made famous. Every bit of the distinctive style that has made these remarkable quilts come alive is now available in a kit from Windham Fabrics.”

quilt 1

The Strips and Strings quilt kit is based on Mary Lee Bendolph’s design of that name. The manufacturer’s style is #30552 and the final quilt measures 75” x 50”. Mrs. Bendolph (b. 1935), the 7th of 17 children, descends from generations of accomplished quilt makers. She learned to quilt from her mother, Aolar Mosely and a network of aunts and female in-laws. She worked in the Alabama fields and attended school intermittently until she was 14, when she began her own family. Bendolph was one of many Gee’s Benders who accompanied Martin Luther King Jr. in his march at Camden, AL in 1965. Her quilt making style marries a flair for improvisation to traditional construction techniques that emphasize rectangles and squares. Her minimalist patches, small compositions of cloth, build to create intricate overall compositions that contain humorous touches and autobiographical references.

quilt 2

Housetop 4-Block Variation is 57” x 65” and styled after the work by the same name by Mary L. Bennett – manufacturers style #30550. Mrs. Bennett (b. 1942), granddaughter of Delia Bennett (1892-1976) ancestor of many quilt makers in Gee’s Bend. Mary L. Bennett pieces primarily “Housetop” and “Bricklayer” compositions and imaginative variations on them.

“I was born down here in Brown Quarters and got raised by my grandmother. I started out working in the fields for my uncle Stalling Bennett. I didn’t get no schooling – every now and then a day here and there. Didn’t nobody teach me to make quilts. I just learned it by myself, about 12 or 13. I was seeing my grandmama piecing it up, and then I start. I just taken me some pieces and put it together, piece them up till they look like I want them to look. That’s all,” states Mary L. Bennett.

quilt 3

Lazy Gal Variation, based on the design of the same name by Qunnie Pettway measures 52 “x 62” – manufacturers style #30549. Mrs. Pettway (b. 1943) is the great-granddaughter of Dinah Miller who is said to have arrived in the United States aboard a slave ship from Africa, the “Clotilde” that docked in Mobile Bay, Alabama prior to the Civil War. Qunnie learned to quilt House Tops under the tutelage of her mother, Candis Pettway. After she married in 1960, she found her unique artistic voice and began making patterned quilts including Wedding Ring, (which she learned from her sister), Chestnut Bud, Bear Paw and Crazy Z. Qunnie’s daughter, Loretta P. Bennett is one of the youngest quilters actively creating extraordinary quilts today.

quilt 4

Housetop, measuring 52” x 64” is based on the same titled design by Rita Mae Pettway – manufacturer’s style #30551. Mrs. Pettway (b. 1941) made her first quilt at the age of 14. She was raised by her grandmother, quiltmaker Annie E. Pettway, and still lives in the house that her grandfather built for the family in the 1940s.

Rita Mae says, “Onliest thing we did after everything else was done, we sit by the fireplace in the wintertime and piece up quilts. Me and my grandmama Annie. She didn’t have no pattern to go by; she just cut them by the way she know how to make them.”

Piecing quilts, according to Rita Mae, was done individually but quilting “we all did together.” Rita Mae, along with her ancestors and her daughter, renowned quilter Louisiana Bendolph share a penchant for creating strip quilts in concentric squares resulting in Housetops or Hog Pens, each artist though has a unique style and variation on the theme.

About the Gee’s Bend Quilters

Gee’s Bend, a miniscule rural community, is nestled into a curve in the Alabama River southwest of Selma, Alabama. Founded in antebellum times on the site of cotton plantations owned by Joseph Gee, the town’s women developed a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style with a geometric simplicity reminiscent of Modern Art. The women of Gee’s Bend passed their skills and aesthetic down through multiple generations to the present and in 2002, an exhibition of 70 quilt masterpieces from the Bend, organized by Tinwood Alliance of Atlanta, Georgia, premiered at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. Since then, “The Quilts of Gee’s Bend” exhibition has been presented at more than a dozen major museums, including the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. Newsweek, NPR, CBS News Sunday Morning, House and Garden, and Oprah’s “O” Magazine are just a few of the hundreds of print and broadcast media organizations that have celebrated the quilts and history of this unique town. Art critics worldwide have compared the quilts to the works of important modern artists, such as Henri Matisse, and the New York Times called the quilts “some of the most miraculous works of modern art America has produced.” For more information, visit www.quiltsofgeesbend.com.

About the Manufacturer

A family run business since 1955, Baum Textile Mills, Inc. has produced the finest quality WinterFleece™, flannel and Flurr™ fabrics for the home sewing industry. In 1995, after recognizing a need for more quality quilting and crafting fabrics, Baum began to add beautiful cotton sheetings to its collections and saw the popularity of these lines grow rapidly. In response to this growing market, Baum decided to focus its efforts on the needs of the independent quilt shops and introduced a new division, Windham Fabrics. Working extensively with quilt historians, industry experts, an in-house design studio, and well-known designers from all around the world, Windham Fabrics has become a leader in the marketplace. Known for its authentic reproductions of antique fabrics, Windham also offers florals, textures, retro and many other fabric collections exclusively for quilt shops only.

This press release, sent by Dindy Yokel, is provided as a courtesy of Quilter’s Muse Publications

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Indian Designs of the Southwest

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

By now, I hope that you have seen my blog post of last night with the beautiful example of a quilt made by Linda Laird, based on Mayan symbols. The art of primitive man is fascinating and often limited in the color palette used. Of course, man had to adapt to color pigments available to him from the earth and from the blood of animals. The urge for creative expression appears to be as old as mankind.

After seeing the designs by Linda, I recalled a book that was a gift in 1994 from my brother, Jack. The name of it is simply Indian Designs and it reflects collected designs from the Southwest – Four Corners Area – where he visited, at that time.

I can’t help but notice the similarities in themes to the Mayan Indian symbols. Stylistic birds, faces, deer, fish, and an iguana, cricket, and buffalo plus other motifs, as well as abstract depictions of various spirits, are represented in the black and white drawings. An Egyptian “Banu Bird” is a symbol of immortality, according to this book. The authors of the book recommend their designs for quilting, needlepoint, appliqué, and other artistic applications. Many of the motifs are taken from extant clay pottery.

This week seems to be one in which we have seen or talked about symbols, if only mentioning them in passing. There is always so much to know, and short blogs can’t cover gigantic topics. I always like to leave you with ideas for a couple of books that will aid you in looking into any subject a little further. Many of the books I recommend, I own and have enjoyed in my own library. Others, “look good” and seem as though they would elucidate a subject. I love books, as is readily apparent.

In peaceful pursuit of creativity, wherever I find it!

Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications and Virtual Museum

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How Much Do You Know About Honduras?

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

Janet Gold, a professor of Spanish at the University of New Hampshire, since 1995, has just written a book titled, “Culture and Customs of Honduras.” I have ordered it because as far as I can remember, I know very little about this subject except that Honduras is located in Central America. The book is published by Greenwood Press (2009), and is available through amazon:

Patricia Cummings

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