Monday, January 12, 2015

The Wedding Hankie... and Missing Out


We all know what it's like to get "sucked in" to doing something we don't really have time to do... don't really have interest in doing... don't really need to do...


So it was with the Linen Seminar I recently attended... There was only one other lady and me... And, the little lady teaching was so nice... You see how it happened, don't you?


If I had not given in and done it, I would have missed out on this beautiful piece of art...


EVERY stitch is done by hand... in the Appenzell style (see I learned something).  It is simply exquisite in a way I cannot begin to capture... You need to touch it to really "see" it.  My mind spins imagining the time and artistry that went in to this piece.


The linen is so fine... almost translucent... light as a feather...

Makes me wonder about the bride, too... and her wedding... her life...


I couldn't resist this small pink and gray table cloth and four plain napkins... Though it is simple in comparison to the wedding handkerchief, its stitching is pure perfection as well.


Nor could I resist the vintage "Vera" kitchen towels.  I learned that Vera was a designer in the late 1950s and used her Ladybug Signature on all of her designs through the mid 1960s.  I just loved the colors!!  No handwork on these... but, I was captured by color again!  Ha!


I was told that Vera gave a young designer one of his first jobs... his name was Ralph Lauren.

Sometimes good things come of doing things you'd rather not... ;)

Sometimes, you just need to say, "No, thank you."  ;)

blessings ~ tanna

27 comments:

Tricia Buice said...

What a lovely post! I carried an old handkerchief at my wedding that had been handed down for years and it looks so much like this. I treasure it and gaze at it from time to time in wonder. I do wish our lives weren't so full sometimes - like in the old days when there was an art to visiting neighbors or creative projects. Somehow we got in such a hurry. Thanks Tanna!

Amy at love made my home said...

Saying yes seems to have worked out well for you this time! The pieces you showed are so beautiful aren't they, wonderfully creative and beautifully made. I don't think that people do things like this now. It is good to know that good things can come from something that you were not sure about! xx

Dana said...

Beautiful! I love old hankies. Amanda gave me a hankie with my wedding date stitched in blue for my wedding. Love it. It sits on my dresser in the closet. Hoping to pass it along to a DIL one day with her wedding date on it.

From the Kitchen said...

Your stitchery treasures are a feast for the eyes. Lovely!

Best,
Bonnie

LauraLillyLaura said...

I love the wedding hankie but my favorite is the Vera!! It is so cheery and I adore that she signed them all with ladybugs!! Oh my that is so much fun!! Glad you went that is such a treasure!

podso said...

Oh the beautiful linens of yesterday. You have some real beauties there. I too have a wedding handkerchief I carried on my wedding day--it must have been an old tradition or something that I was following.

Shug said...

amazing beauty! I can not even begin to imagine the tedious detailed work that took place here. Glad that you didn't miss out...but you are right, we do need to learn to say NO. I'm speaking to myself right here. I so enjoy linings...as my mother always did.

Sharon Lee Smith said...

Exquisite treasures. I love the Vera story. Isn't that fun?

Stitchy Mc Floss said...

Wow, this is awesome. What a true treasure to be handed down through the generations. :) I love the last line in your post. :) Blessings always sweet friend.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

this is a lovely post and that hanky is exquisite. Some times it is hard to say no and then there are other times we just give in and in your case this time, it worked out so well

Linda said...

Hi Tanna...
So glad you went...
You got a few beautiful things...
My great Aunt did cut-work..
I have a tablecloth and napkins...somewhere!...hmmm...now I MUST find them!
Enjoy your week...
Cheers!
Linda :o)

TexWisGirl said...

they really are beautiful. i cannot imagine working on that hanky!

Anonymous said...

Looks like a good thing that you said "yes, please". That hankie is amazing.

Love the Vera towel too. Very retro.

Judy S. said...

Beautiful hankie! How could we ever think of replacing these with Kleenex? And thanks for bringing back memories of Vera days! Her stuff was great.

Jocelyn said...

What beautiful stitching!! It certainly is a lost art.

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

Lovely stiching... sometimes it is worth it in the end!

Cheryl @ TFD said...

Such exquisite work on that hanky! I can't imagine how much time it took to finish, it must have been a labor of love for the bride. Your treasures are all so beautiful. I love the Vera piece.

Handmade in Israel said...

Such beautiful items! I am rather taken with the kitchen towels actually!

steph said...

i have my wedding hankie framed.....it looks very similar to this one; my grand-mother-in-law brought it back from China shortly after China was 'opened' to the tourist trade. You are so right....The handwork is truly something that must be felt as well as seen.....

Such lovely linens. I'm a real sucker for old linens, too. (but, I bet you knew that!!!)

karen said...

I marvel at the amount of time it takes to stitch such lovely hankies that are used hopefully for a lovely accessory!!

Lynne said...

And I benefit too . . .
Beautiful . . .

Marissa said...

Beautiful wedding hankie.. God always puts us where we need to be.. I strongly believe that.

Nonna Rose said...

You are truly a blessing to me!

The handkerchief is beautiful and needs to be put in a safe place with a note for your granddaughter's wedding day as something old. What a treasure.

Mereknits said...

Those pieces are so stunning. Just lovely.
Hugs,
Meredith

Pondside said...

Such beautiful pieces, each in its own way.
I'm getting good T saying 'no' but still tend to say 'yes' because of the opportunities that have come from that little word.

Catherine said...

Simply beautiful hankie. My mom would always make sure I had a hankie in my purse. As a young girl my grandma would by me such pretty ones.
The table cloth and napkins are pretty as well.
xo Catherine

Sherry said...

Tanna, I have been infatuated with
Vera for a very long time. Whenever I find any of her vintage designs I usually can't resist adding to my small but growing collection. My latest purchase was a linen poinsettia table cloth I found at Canton. Love her color combinations and who could resist those ladybugs?!!!

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