Filed under: Feedsacks, Inspirations | Tags: cleveland, feed sack, feedsack, Tennessee
My latest eBay feedsack find. Check out where it’s from! A little something from my home state of Tennessee brightening the studio.
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Feedsacks, Inspirations | Tags: Baum Textiles, feed sack, Feedsacks, Windham Fabrics, yellow
Got another great package from my Granny Lou the other day … she has been collecting feedsacks since well before I was born. She added a little more to my history of feedsack fabrics research that I have been working on and also sent a jar full of real pearl buttons …{tangent}… she made this great “house dress” for me way back when, and I still wear it every chance I get. So, continuing on the trend from yesterday with the discovery of reproduction feedsack fabrics and the day before with yellow … I found a yellow version of the fabric in my feedsack dress shown above, and then i found a yellow version of the one i used on my bird dog messenger bag. Both reproductions were from Baum Textile Mills/Windham Fabrics who now apparently produce all of these listed feedsack reproduction collections: V, c. 1930, Feedsack, II, and III c. 1930, so where’s IV?
Happy Feedsack Friday everyone, if you love vintage fabrics, go get some of these repoductions! Available here or maybe even at your local fabric store.
Filed under: Feedsacks, Handmade Revolution | Tags: alphabet, fabric, feed sack, Feedsacks, Purl Bee, Purl Soho
So, how do you teach your little ones about the alphabet? Purl Bee has an idea with fabric magnet letters. I’ve seen many a project to achieve this very same lesson in varying ways, but none that drew me in like this one because I spy a feedsack fabric here! and when I checked the list of fabrics they used, it turns out that maybe some companies are reproducing feedsack designs again? Need to investigate more, but I’m really excited. Funny they don’t mention the “N” being a feedsack pattern, but I have it in a pink/black/grey colorscheme! Another thing to investigate. Purl Bee is the online journal for Purl, an amazing place to get fabric, knitting and other crafty supplies.
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Feedsacks, Handmade Revolution, Inspirations, Life | Tags: Bozeman, family, feed sack, Feedsacks, genealogy, Georgia, Montana, Sweet Pea Festival, Tennessee
IMG_5171.JPG, originally uploaded by theHandmaiden.
Earlier this month, I finally did something that I had on my to-do list for years. Enter the Sweet Pea Festival poster design contest. I have a connection to Bozeman, Montana. First of all, it is an incredibly scenic place and a really cool town, but it was also named for an ancestral cousin – John Merin Bozeman. In short, the Bozeman family {aside from being Dutch} hailed from North Georgia near Ellijay {one son eventually moving his family to East Tennessee where I am from}. This John Merin character went on a wild west trip and ended up leading wagon trains, eventually getting himself killed by the Blackfeet tribe. I could break out the family tree to prove it, but you’ll just have to take my word for it this time.
Alas, I didn’t win, but I did receive an honorable mention. I have more ideas already for next year, including some covered wagon paintings that I did back in my college days at the University of Tennessee.
My poster was created with layers of letterpress patterns and vintage sweet pea illustrations, feedsack fabrics and machine stitching. I printed panels on my hand-fed C&P using patterns derived from my feedsack collection and antique wood type to print the words Sweet Pea ‘09 and Bozeman, Montana. Cut swatches of feedsacks to create the fabric flower and then stitched it all together on my sewing machine. It was a satisfying process and I love the combination of these tools and techniques, I will continue to develop this way of working. More photos from my Flickr Set here.
ps. it seems as though Oh So Beautiful Paper had her eye on our poster today too! Thx. Nole!
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Craft Biz, Feedsacks, Handmade Revolution | Tags: BirdDog Press, feed sack, Feedsacks, National Stationery Show, NSS, NYC, sewing
Here is my BirdDog messenger bag made with chocolate canvas and feedsack fabric to carry at the National Stationery Show. I didn’t get the feed sack wrap skirt done in time, I may have to enlist my mom’s help with that project when I get home.
I’m leaving on a plane in the morning for NYC! If you are attending NSS, look for the bird dog bag and stop me and say hello!!
ps. i am not a seamstress
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Feedsacks, Green, Inspirations | Tags: Depression, earth week, feed sack, Feedsacks, Library of Congress, packaging, recycle, reduce, reuse, upcycle
At the Vermont state fair, Rutland (LOC), originally uploaded by The Library of Congress.
Topping the week of with one of my very favorite things in the world : Feed Sacks. I love them for their patterns, obviously. I love them for their stories, their history, their perseverance.
Most known for the depression era, people were poor and quite resourceful. They used EVERYTHING at least thrice. Animal feed came in reusable cloth sacks so families could feed the farm, and then make clothes and linens, hence the feed sack moniker “chicken linen”. Upcycling is a buzz word today – the cool and responsible thing to do, back then it was absolutely necessary. In this photo, you can see three of the sisters have a dress of the same pattern. Women would collect and trade feed sacks in order to get enough of one pattern to complete their projects.
All of this and sheer brilliance in packaging. Packaging today needs to become this smart once again. I’d love to know the percentage of packaging that contributes to our landfills. I’m sure it’s staggering. Recession got you down? Innovate.
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Feedsacks, Inspirations, Letterpress | Tags: birthday, feed sack, Feedsack of the Month, FoM, vintage fabric
Last month I sent packages out early, and this month I’m running a little late. I’m telling myself that this balances out. All of you lovely ladies who have joined the Feedsack of the Month Club can rest assured your mailbox will not be neglected. Here is a little sneak preview of the original digital sketch based on a square of my granny’s ever-inspiring quilt for April’s installation. Of course, only members get the luscious letterpress version, plus a little surprise.
Happy Friday and Happy Spring {although we are supposed to be getting a monster snowstorm here in Colorado – surprise!}
Over and Out!
ps. speaking of surprises, today is my husband’s birthday and i’m pretty sure he doesn’t read my blog, so psst. i’m making him a cheesecake! happy birthday, B!
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Feedsacks, Friends, Inspirations, Life | Tags: aprons, birthday, Etsy, feed sack, Feedsacks, sewinggeek
I rarely cook anymore, which is funny because I love food and I really like to cook. My wonderful other half – Ben – does 99% of the cooking around this house. Still, on my southern pilgrimage, I went back to my Granny’s cabin in South Carolina, and you know what that means – feed sacks! This time, in the form of aprons. I am going to hang them in my studio and use them for printing aprons instead of cooking aprons.
And wouldn’t ya know it, when I returned home, there was a wonderful birthday box waiting for me at the post office just filled with goodies from my dear friend Jenny. She scored a fabulously orange feed sack apron on Etsy from sewinggeek and sent it to me! LOVE it!!
Filed under: BirdDog Press, Design, Inspirations | Tags: desktop, desktop wallpaper, feed sack, free download, spring, wifi
Argh. Technology. So I finally arrived back in Lyons on Thursday and thought all would be back to normal, but no such luck. If you’ve been reading my tweets while I was away, you would know of my WiFi frustrations, and wouldn’t ya know it … we came home to our own problems and had to call Qwest in to fix it yesterday afternoon. Yay Spring!
So, Happy Birthday to Me and happy new desktop wallpaper for you! Inspired by a feed sack, of course. Download your resolution below.
1920 x 1200
1680 x 1050 (iMac)
1600 x 1024
1440 x 900
1280 x 800
1024 x 768
320 x 480 (iPhone)
