tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21595195080991493002011-11-25T04:59:35.345-08:00Adventures of ethnic, contemporary and antique textile encountersAnne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.comBlogger351100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-79372061674690481332011-04-23T20:37:00.000-07:002011-04-23T20:39:42.249-07:00

I always love it when I find a treasure that bears someone's name - even a first name only as is the case with this lovely Sashiko indigo work apron. Charlene did a masterful job of creating this Sashiko sampler, and very appropriately selected something indigo to work on. Likely we will never know who this lady Charlene is, and it is only my guess that she is from somewhere here in Southern

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-52573770874164849572011-03-25T22:51:00.000-07:002011-03-25T22:51:08.648-07:00

I, along with many other people, have always loved embroidered samplers. Even today the antique samplers are still in demand, and command high prices. In 1975, Levi Brand held a denim contest. That was, after all, still a time when hippies still were going strong.  I decided to enter the contest, so I designed this sampler on the back of a Levi shirt I had.  I based my design on different

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-31503876055422188492011-03-13T21:15:00.000-07:002011-03-13T21:15:56.945-07:00

As I look at my charming little needle case, I often wonder how it is that such utilitarian items come to have such interesting artwork. Today's needles are very sterile by comparison. Was it that people in previous times honored these utilitarian objects to the point of creating art of it? The earliest sewing needles, found in southwestern France and dating back to 28,000 BC, did not have an

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-13171507159586183432011-03-07T15:00:00.000-08:002011-03-07T15:00:57.614-08:00

I have had these two beautiful framed Chinese embroidery pieces for many years, a present from my cousin, Gail Bowers Irons. I think she purchased them for me at an antique store somewhere in Texas. You can always click on images to see them in a larger version. Someone took the time to meticulously cut the embroidery (which must have taken forever) away from the background. If you will notice,

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-35548494200680556712011-03-02T13:35:00.000-08:002011-03-02T13:39:04.685-08:00

Today I am sharing with you a Safflower and Gromwell Root Dyed Juban: Kyokechi with permission of my friend, Stephen Szczepanek, www.srithreads.com. This to-die-for piece is mid to late nineteenth century, and measures 58" x 46". I learn so much by visiting this site regularly, and I also see such beautiful things as I am certain I would not see outside a museum somewhere far away. Isn't

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-62471182437297857012011-02-27T19:30:00.000-08:002011-02-27T19:31:56.032-08:00

As we approach the month of March tomorrow, I am reminded of the saying, "March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb." In celebration of the month of March, I am sharing a poem I like very much by Robert Lewis Stevenson from Child's Garden of Verses. I saw you toss the kites on high And blow the birds about the sky; And all around I heard you pass, Like Ladies' skirts across the grass --

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-18990661046560389322011-02-26T18:32:00.000-08:002011-02-26T18:41:07.549-08:00

  I got this piece of inked leather last year at a nice antique shop down on the circle in Orange, CA.  I was initially fascinated by it because I had not seen anything like it before. Despite its overall beauty and being an unique piece, I paid only $10 for it, so it is practically as inexpensive as some of my thrift store finds. Something about it makes me sense that it was done during the

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-49879082034395687002011-02-24T10:43:00.000-08:002011-02-24T10:43:20.021-08:00

This day is one of quiet contemplation for me. Recently I have lost the friendship of two people I have known for years, not because we have had an argument, but because of my standing in integrity for what is right for me and acting when I believe it is essential to take action (or not). The realization for me is that we can never really fully know what is in the mind and heart of another

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-88384583374973376662011-02-23T14:33:00.000-08:002011-02-23T14:33:42.449-08:00

I have long been interested in holistic health - not just the day to day contemporary things I and others do to help keep our bodies healthy in a natural way, but I am also very interested in the history of holistic medicine. It is incredible to me that so much knowledge about the human body and the things that can interact with it in a positive way such as acupuncture, have been around for such

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-49988323359157505212011-02-21T23:16:00.000-08:002011-02-21T23:17:27.760-08:00

OK, I have this aquarium, and I have goldfish in it and live plants that are making it clean and beautiful. I went to a Southern CA Aquascapers meeting, (www.socaaquascapers.com) meeting recently and it was wonderful. Got some new plants to add to the aquarium, and boy did they ever clean up the water. Looking at one of my now huge goldfish, I noticed that he now has four legs!  Wow, Did I do

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-62273024213893502182011-02-18T23:36:00.000-08:002011-02-18T23:51:27.425-08:00

There is something wonderful and magical about finding a quilt that presents a number of mysteries and then researching to see what we can learn about its history. Whoever would have thought when I went to view this quilt for a possible appraisal for it to be donated to a museum that it would have led to such a fantastic adventure for all of those involved, and also that I would have made four

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-21125347040308469552010-11-25T22:58:00.000-08:002011-02-18T23:48:20.934-08:00

I received a gift for my birthday of some wonderful textiles from China. My friend Di brought them for me from my friend Evelyn Hatch. Evelyn also sent me a1974 Catalog of Winners for Levi's Denim Art Contest.  I had intended to enter that contest with a denim sampler I designed and was finishing up, but I was completing my degree in Archeology, and I had finals that week. I missed the date by

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-56460827307587967262010-10-02T23:57:00.000-07:002011-02-18T23:44:13.638-08:00

When we talk about antique or vintage quilts, we have certain obvious things we think about - how old is it?  Where did it come from?  What is the name of the pattern or the style of the quilt? Was it made by machine or by hand?  How much is it worth? These are the most frequent kinds of inquiries I get with quilts? But like the amazing story of the simple little pencil, there is so much more

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-9433288880750234572010-09-21T18:59:00.000-07:002011-02-18T23:41:51.461-08:00

I've become immensely interested in hand dyeing of cloth - from the natural dyeing done historically and even today in some parts of the world to the present dyes that can be used to make beautiful cloth in designs so lovely they look painted. So when I came across the notice of some mud cloth for sale by a private person, my heart began to beat rapidly in anticipation of the soon-to-be

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-1285136465639068732010-09-05T19:55:00.000-07:002011-02-18T23:38:28.465-08:00

OK, This is one of my summer finds. Seeing it made me wonder what country it represented. I have seen these before, and the front makes me think China, but someone suggested that it might be made in the Philippines. At any rate, the front is appliquéd and finished in what seems to me a very Chinese style and with Chinese motifs.  But the back is totally different with these three dimensional

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-26588913911602705912010-08-25T23:21:00.000-07:002011-02-18T23:07:53.848-08:00

Although it is still August, September is just around the corner.  I don't know about you, but almost every year, sometime during the summer, I suddenly have a feeling of the fall in the air. I have always wondered it it really is what I am experiencing, or simply wishful thinking on my part since I love the autumn so much. Every time I go into a store now, i have noted that all the fall fabrics,

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-28998750498714275872010-08-09T23:46:00.000-07:002011-02-18T23:06:27.211-08:00

I actually have some new fun pieces that are not pretinted to show you, but I will finish showing the pretinted pieces first so that you have some continuity. I have seen lots of these cute little animals dressed in military uniforms. As you can see, this one is unfinished, and was intended to be a pillow top.  This one I do think was done with crayons, and ca. 1941. It came stamped, and the

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-65227283119229581432010-08-04T14:21:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:54:57.519-08:00

One of my areas of specialization is kit quilts and other household textile item kits. A sub-category of those household textile items is the pretinted pieces that were prolific in the 20's through the 40's. Around the 1950's we began to see the little paint tubes that were offered to color stamped pieces.  I remember how they had home parties, and the paint tubes were sold in large tin

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-78480204798751499862010-08-04T12:24:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:49:09.970-08:00

I found these two rabbit skins not so long ago at the local thrift store. I couldn't bear to leave them there. Although the rabbits (I am pretty sure they were rabbit skins) are long gone, something of them remained for me as I looked at those skins, and so I decided to rescue them. I think the two of them were under $2. I believe these were used in trade as they had marks on the back sides (

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-13219188317443981562010-01-29T11:39:00.000-08:002011-02-18T22:47:34.855-08:00

And then there were eight . . .OK, we all know how I go to thrift stores and find ethnic textiles or other funky textile items.  It is a hoot because you never know what you will find, so you can't have any agendas when you go looking.  You just look, recognize something that speaks to you as being an ethnic textile or some other fun textile thing, and then you say to yourself, hey, it is just a

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-45668407768475665022009-12-27T09:01:00.000-08:002011-02-18T22:44:31.958-08:00

It's amazing how I can get a feeling that I should do something, and I always listen to the little voice telling me to get out and go.  This particular day, I had no intention of going to the thrift store, but something told me to get out there and go.  And so I found this wonderful Amish type import quilt.  I have realized there are different qualities of import quilts and I certainly have some

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-51747277360906193622009-12-22T20:40:00.000-08:002011-02-18T22:43:04.706-08:00

I haven't posted for awhile due to illness, but am glad to be able to come back and share some of my fun finds with you. It's funny how I seem to find these beautiful ethnic textile items - these small works of art - when I am not really looking for them.  This one looks like it might be from India, though I can't really be sure. And there was only one of them and it doesn't seem to have

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-73966986672981230652009-08-16T08:26:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:40:24.485-08:00

If you have come to this site, it is likely because you are interested in textiles and the history of the textiles. For anyone who is new to textiles and textile history, My friend, Patricia Lynne Grace Cummings, is one of the most highly respected quilt historians in the quilt world. With some 8 published books and countless published articles on quilt history and other subjects, Patricia is

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-74126419427228150222009-07-29T20:58:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:38:37.076-08:00

I found this piece at a thrift store where I have found a number of my great pieces. I love thrift stores - such stories and treasures await the person who is persistent and loves to dig around. What I think is great about these pieces I find is that they are not only beautiful, but they have stories to tell if we are just willing to listen. This piece has a strong sense of romance and lyrical

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-11625305065189862212009-07-23T23:30:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:34:33.819-08:00

Sometimes the textiles we acquire seem to have a mystery about them as was the case with that piece I talked about earlier in an earlier post - that one that might have been from Laos, my best guess. This one is an antique block - 18" in red, green and chromium orange, ca. 1860. My sense of it is that it is from Pennsylvania or Ohio, though it is just a strong guess. Something happened to this

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-5066588830462434252009-07-21T20:36:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:27:54.781-08:00

Here is a Cboniganit healing mola that is really lovely, and although the colors are bright, there is a sense of restfulness about them. Notice how the human figure is surrounded by three major creatures, and two lesser creatures, all of which seem to be eating some part of the human figure they are holding. And there are two more creatures as well that have no bodies that they are eating. There

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-43100714244412484302009-07-20T18:33:00.000-07:002011-02-18T22:23:01.994-08:00

Some days we can just appreciate the texture of something. This photo is clearly not a textile, but sure is an inspiration for making one. I think my all-time favorite art quilt is one I made with waterlilies and koi swimming around below. We can enjoy these beautiful koi swimming peacefully around the pond both the real ones and the ones on the quilt. I made the border from a fantastic textured

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-87522011649958044562009-07-13T01:38:00.000-07:002011-02-18T21:03:25.159-08:00

Sometimes the things that are connected with fabric - needles, scissors, rulers, and other tools - can be as interesting and artistic as the fabrics themselves. This needle case is a good example. I love the vintage utilitarian items, for they all seem to have an aesthetic aspect. And this isn't just artistic. Social values are presented through the title of the needle book, and the ladies

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-9791947702930182162009-07-04T19:09:00.000-07:002011-02-18T21:05:03.336-08:00

Most of the time the textiles I collect are just pretty and interesting, but there is no clear story to them. Oh I can weave a story from what I see, but seldom is there an actual story on the textile itself. But here is one that is really different. My inner feeling (not based on anything more than that currently) is that it is likely Laotian and the story it is telling is very interesting.

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-12125127330787012462009-07-01T17:27:00.000-07:002011-02-18T20:55:17.571-08:00

I love this piece I rescued from a thrift store. It is approximately 36" long and about 22" high. Somehow it seems like perhaps a Scandinavian piece to me. It is apparently meant to hang from some kind of round metal rod. I just love this embroidery which seems so reminiscent of the early 70s. It is actually very well done and a handsome piece, and the price - $1.91 - is certainly right. I

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-53135944560024218702009-06-29T14:53:00.000-07:002011-02-18T20:50:18.131-08:00

The good molas generally have some sort of foundation under them and reverse appliqué is used. There are several layers. But I am finding on many of the smaller molas that are clearly made for the tourist trade, there is no foundation, and the work is just appliquéd on, sometimes with some embroidery stitching, but it definitely is not the same. Here is a good example of one I have. I think if

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-64414136969690815842009-06-27T18:20:00.000-07:002011-02-18T20:47:33.549-08:00

Sometimes it is good to go from the regular path and surprise the reader/viewer. I have another love besides textiles, and that is my garden. And I have some plants that seem pretty unique to me. They are all rescued, and it seems that once rescued and in the ground, they must be very thankful because things get huge in my yard! Here is my Bird of Paradise I literally rescued from a garbage bin

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-33838188659279223502009-06-27T08:38:00.001-07:002011-02-18T20:42:24.063-08:00

This mola seems to be older than my others, and I am honestly not sure of the age of it, but the fabrics seem older than some of my other ones. The style as well leads me to believe it is older. I think it is interesting that it incorporates themes from Victorian times - the highly stylized vase with stylized flowers and birds in it. I often wonder about the influences that affected these people

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-37408942351654346912009-06-25T19:45:00.000-07:002011-02-18T20:46:00.124-08:00

A friend just sent me this mola and it appears to be perhaps something from the 2nd quarter of the 20th century. It is an octopus, but note how instead of eight arms, it seems to have only seven arms, and two of them are somewhat different from the others. The arms are different sizes as well, and different shapes. There is an overall lack of symmetry in the piece, but that makes it more

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2159519508099149300.post-38984942151128211622009-06-15T20:20:00.000-07:002011-02-18T20:21:38.202-08:00

This is not the sky. It is a mobile home nextdoor to mine. Now some people would think that this home was really ugly because it is such a bright blue. But I wonder if you would get such a good photo as this if it were a washed out color.Keep your sense of proportion by regularly, preferably daily, visiting the natural world.

Anne Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04309658732555565381noreply@blogger.com0