I
woke up to a beautiful overcast day, only to have the sun shining by 9. Argh.
I would like to start out today by sharing something I ran across
while clearing things up:
This
is a fiberglass drapery panel, cream colored with brown silk screened Joshua
trees. Along with this panel, there is a
note typed up by my Aunt Frances (copied exactly as she typed it)-
FROM:
article in the Review- Journal Newspaper, Las Vegas, Nevada
Sunday,
March 11, 1956 page 30
HOSPITAL
PROGRESS TOLD MEMBERS OF AUXILIARY
pix
of Mrs. Laura Dodd, left, displays her winning Joshua tree design for draperies
in the new wing of Southern Nevada Memorial Hospital to hospital executive
housekeeper, Mrs. Constance Cannon, and administrator, Russell Tucker. Director
esXX estimate a saving of more than $1,000 by use of the
exclusive design. Review-Journal photo
head line reads: WINNING DRAPERY PAINTING
Dr.
Ralph Hemington, chief of staff at Southern Nevada Memorial Hospital was guest
speaker for the Women’s Hospital Auxiliary meeting held Wednesday morning in
the recreation room of the hospital.
Dr. Hemington stressed the progress
made....... etc. on hospital....
....
rest of the info on hospital, etc.
Southern
Nevada Memorial Hospital is now known as University Medical Center (UMC). Mrs. Laura Dodd was my maternal grandmother
that I was named after. You can see that
my desire to be creative is inherited; I just wish I was as talented. She painted some lovely things and in the future
I will try to add a picture here and there of some of it. This drapery panel has been stored in a
plastic grocery bag for a couple of years – I thought I should give it a more fitting
place in an archival storage box.
Someday, I will get to the library and try to get a copy of the actual
article with the picture.
Back
to current events - I was so anxious to get back to sewing, I decided to take
out anything that was not in its final resting place in the room, with the
exception of the desk I can’t get out until my fantastic son-in-law returns
from California to take it apart for me – and bring Athena back in and sew
something! Besides the UFO’s, I have a
few things to do. In addition to the
last 2 change purses, I need to make 3 sewing machine covers – get rid of those
crappy plastic things – and use that beautiful celestial material I posted a
pic of yesterday to make a laptop cover.
Since that lovely material was staring me in the face, I needed to make
the laptop cover first!
This
is what I had done a while back with this-
I
had cut it in 2 pieces so when sewn together, they would both be face up.
This
is the fabric I chose for the lining:
So
I got out some interfacing – I used the fusible fleece on the lining,
and just a medium weight on the outside fabric.
Right off the bat, the medium weight didn’t want to stick to the
celestial fabric. I pulled it off and
used a lighter weight, which stuck just fine.
Then,
I found a long dark blue plastic zipper that matched the outside fabric
perfectly. I tested it to make sure it
was going to work. I put it in perfectly. I tried to close it- and it split. Putting on my close cheaters, I took the
blasted thing out. Looking for another
zipper, all I had was another exactly like the first. I tested it several times before deciding
that the first one was just defective, fingers crossed.
It
worked! Perhaps a small victory, but a
victory nonetheless. So I got the sides
sewn up, and turned and pressed it- and it came out really nice.
I
grabbed my little laptop to put into it- and it doesn’t fit - just the tiniest bit
too small. <sigh> So downstairs I went, to show it to Mom. She said she liked it – I asked if her tablet
would fit into it. It does – so it is
hers. Good thing I have some of this
fabric left to try again.
It
was so nice to sew again today. However,
as I walked through the hallway, where everything that needs to be put away is
sitting temporarily, my joy is short lived, knowing I still have to take care of that. <sigh>
I'm so glad you showed your Grandmothers Drapery panel. She must have loved Joshua trees too. It makes me wonder if those Draperys were hanging when my mother would drag me to that hospital to visit some friend or other of hers in the 60s.
ReplyDeleteI saw more of your Grandmother than your Grandfather but I remember them both well and fondly.
Thanks, Rebecca! I'm glad you remember them that way, too!:-) My grandmother loved everything about the desert - she had a lot of cactus growing in pots in the backyard. I have often wondered what happened to those drapes - this one has a lot of fraying going on, so I can imagine the ones being used probably wore out pretty quick. I think it is great that she held onto it for so long, then passed it to my aunt. She was such a temperamental artist - did I ever tell you that in the late 60's, because she was feeling unloved as an artist, she started a bonfire in the backyard with a lot of her really good stuff? Very sad!
DeleteThose drapes are amazing and beautiful
ReplyDeleteThanks, Chrystal! I love the design, but I can really see why fiberglass drapes are not as popular now. My hands itch every time I touch it!
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