A Simply Wonderful Find......

I found this hair memento album at a show a few weeks ago, and have been thoroughly captivated by the charming collection of "locks and tresses" lovingly collected by the owner. Unfortunately, I do not have the name of the girl who endeavored to, it appears, catalogue keepsakes of ribbon-adorned locks of hair of family members and friends.
The album itself, is French in origin and simply beautiful to behold with an applied medallion of gilded and embossed flowers and vines surrounding the central figure on its very colorful calico paper front cover.




Inside, we are captivated by the family record contained within. On the first page, and continuing on to the second are (I would venture to guess) the locks that represent the maker's family for we have listed "Father, Mother, Walter, Emma, Abbie, Nellie, Georgie, John & Lizzie.


Continuing on we find the locks of Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, cousins and friends. There is even a white lock labeled "Mrs. Andrews, 100 years old", as well as a lock from a visiting friend from Germany.

The origin of preserving the hair of loved ones is centuries old, and was usually done as a way to honor and remember the dead. This was mostly done by placing it in a specially crafted piece of jewelry.

Such jewelry was also fashioned into love tokens given by the living to a paramour who may be going off to battle, on a long trip or just as a reminder to be kept close to the heart.

In the 19th C it became a form of fancy work that was done by schoolgirls and young women as keepsakes and mementos of friendship. The pieces that we find today are as varied as their makers: friendship albums filled with finely worked hair pieces as well as water-color art;single leaves of paper fashioned into hands holding hearts entwined with tresses; verse-filled albums;beautifully documented family pieces; as well as those simply filled with locks of hair.

They are a glimpse into the maker's life, a document of her family and friends to be passed through generations to give the viewer a small window into that life and, in that instant, she is as real to the world again as if she were standing beside them.

I've yet to decide what I will be doing this piece, although I am adding a new page to the website called "Ephemera, Books and Interesting Paper" so I just might save it for sale there.

In the meantime, if you have not already done so, I recommend that you read "On Women and Friendship: A Collection of Victorian Keepsakes and Traditions" by Starr Ockenga. Not only is it well written, but it contains beautiful photographs of all manner of charming keepsakes, including hair mementos.

The "Heart of the Valley" Antiques Show

As many of you know, I manage a small 25 dealer country antique show called The "Heart of the Valley" in Bethlehem, PA that benefits our local NPR affilliate, WDIY 88.1FM. We have put it to bed for this year, and I would like to thank those of you who made it a point to attend. For those who could not due to time and distance, I've posted these photos for your perusal...I wonder whose this booth might be......This show is a small but mighty show according to the reviews it gets from both its loyal customers, dealers and trade papers.....We have great volunteers who make it a pleasure to do and attend. My husband, Tom Kort, provides the soundtrack that keeps people's toes tapping all day long! It's hard to believe that next year will be our tenth anniversary!

Isn't she just asimply fabulous cloth doll? This year we even had docents from Historic Bethlehem Inc. who were dressed in period costume at the show waiting to take patrons on guided walks of the historic district in which the show is situated, as well as preview shows in the local museums as they were being hung!

The show itself is held in a large 19th C stone, brick and board Ice House situated on the banks of the Lehigh River. It is an absolutely perfect venue for an antique show. We get comments on it all the time.

As you can see by these photos, the show is simply filled with great American Country pieces of all types. The dealers who do the show are skilled at the art of display and transform the building into a country lover's paradise!

Isn't the costume in this photo simply to die for! It was offered sale at the show and there are still pieces available. This is another photo of my booth, so just contact me if you are interested in finding out more about any of these pieces.

This is just a smattering of what was offered......I'm getting ready to leave to do a show in the Shenandoah Valley which opens on Friday, so I'll have more to post upon my return. But speaking of postings......I've posted a small update to my website www.TheCatLadyAntiques.com

on the Cloth Dolls and Animals Page. You might be tempted to "adopt" one of the beasties I'm offering.

In the meantime, have a glorious week!

Anne

Pru Goodchurch and Flora wish you a most Happy & Pleasant Easter!

Flora, adored and pampered kitty that she is, has even donned her Easter bonnet and scarf.

I've put our 9th Annual "Heart of the Valley" Antiques Show to bed for this year. Thanks to all of you who were able to attend.

Now, I can get to the business of updating both my website and blog.

I'll be updating soon.

In the meantime, HAVE A GLORIOUS EASTER DAY!

Happy Valentine's Day from "The Goode Ladyes" of Ackermanville......

(From left)

Miss Magnolia Mae Murray, Arabella, Precious and Phoebe, Miss Eliza Baldwin and last, but never least, Pru Goodchurch and Flora

would like to wish you all a "Very Happy Valentine's Day!"

The verb "I love" I learnt in school,

"Thou lovest" follows next in rule,

"We love" let us say together,

Proving thus we love each other.

(found written on a scrap of paper with a ribbon adorned lock of hair, dated 1878)

May you have the good fortune to find love wherever you roam, today and every day!

Rachel (and her bunnie) would like to wish you all......

A Very Happy & Prosperous New Year!

I'm Dreaming of ...an off-white Christmas!

Just as much as I love reds and browns at Christmas (or anytime of year for that matter), there is something about the subtlety and softness of shades of white and naturals that give my home a sense of peace and serenity amidst the holiday hustle and bustle. The look above was used as a display at a show but ended up in my master bedroom. Homespun tow grainbags are among my favorites for creating this look and the socks (both wool and cotton) add a nice simple contrast in form to the linear look of the bags. The linen child's dress completes the vignette.

The lowly tow grain bag is one of my favorite utilitarian textiles. It was used in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries as a way to bring grain home from the mill. In a time when the production of cloth was an arduous task, all cloth was considered valuable. A farmer would often mark his bag with his name by stencil, or bag stamp. Some farmers would use a decorative symbol such as an eagle, or a horse, or sheep as a very distinctive identifying mark on his bag. These bags and carved wooden bag stamps are highly prized and much sought after today. The farmer would then drop the bag at the mill on his way to town and pick it up on his return, and the miller would know exactly whose bag it was he just filled.

In addition to looking great on a peg rack, they also make great bolster pillow covers. I just can't get enough of them. Like all remnants of Pennsylvania homespun culture they are becoming harder and harder to find.

Christmas in the Heartland!

I just got back from doing the Heartland Show in Richmond, Indiana. This wonderful country show is known primarily for its summer edition when it fills all of the buildings at the Wayne County Fairgrounds. The November show is still pretty much a well kept secret as the attendance is not near the numbers for the summer, and the vendors utilize only one building. That having been said, it is just as nice a show to do and attend as the summer version. There is much country to see and much of it is very affordable.

I always look forward to seeing customers who I only see at that show, many of whom I've met through my website. I enjoy visiting with them whether or not they make a purchase. There are a few dealers, as well, that I see only when I do that show. We've come to look forward to seeing one another, catching up on our life stories and, often, purchasing some treasure from a booth or two. (And did I purchase several cloth treasures this trip! As a matter of fact, I've purchased quite a few these past few weeks just raring to go on the website on the next update.)

While the show looked fabulous, there were mixed outcomes for the dealers with quite a few not doing any business at all. I didn't do as well as I normally do there, but was surprised that I did better than expected in this terrible recession that our country is going through right now.

As you can see, I "decked my halls" in reds! That's the beauty of decorating with textiles: you can add two red petticoats or a combination of socks and petticoats, dresses, shawls, etc to a pegrack or doorpeg and..voila! you've decorated a room for Christmas without much effort. You can lay a red blanket at the bottom of a bed, or a pair of red socks on a hearth and, once again, the spirit of Christmas has entered the house. One year I even had enough red and white striped children's stockings to do an entire 8 foot tree. What a sight that was.

Many of these items will be offered in my next update of my website, The Cat Lady Antiques, in the beginning of December. If you would like to be added to my mailing list, just click on the link to my site and email me. Or if you have any questions about them now, just ask.

It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Some rare and beautiful early Pennsylvania homespun linen.....

Whenever I do a show, I always bring lots of early Pennsylvania textiles - especially homespun linen. I am always asked if I have any "onionskin" (copperas) and natural in a larger check. I do indeed, and always sell those pieces instantly but I always wonder why people are so obsessed with that particular color scheme for they are (actually) missing out on the rarer colored pieces for their collections such as the ones pictured here. Consider the top piece: true indigo, bittersweet and natural......what a fabulous and breathtaking runner this is! And the color combination is not very easy to

find. The second piece is a sweet chocolate and natural check cut long ago from a bed tick and made into a tablecloth. This piece was found on the oldest farmstead in Bethlehem Township, PA. The third is actually the prize and the earliest: a bittersweet (or copperas) and natural striped bed case from Northampton County, PA. When looms became more sophisticated, stripes were abandoned as checks provided more variety and color for decorating the bed.

I acknowledge that there is a color-scheme that people tend to use in early homes and the onionskin (copperas) pieces fit that decor so well. But I also advise collectors not to overlook truly rare pieces that will enhance one's collection. Adding just a slight bit of color, or a different pattern may actually give one's collection a reinvigorated look as well as make each piece in the pile look a little less like "just a pile" of monochromatic textiles that all start to blend together in the eye of the (untrained) beholder. Don't get me wrong. I absolutely adore that look. I just wanted to call your attention to the fact that there is more in the world of brown homespun linen than just "onionskin" (copperas) to collect and enhance your collection. These pieces are vital to a truly well-rounded collection of Pennsylvania homespun culture.