I was on the road yesterday 11.5 hours driving from CO. to Phx. AZ & there were way too many delays from road repair work.
My Great Granny, who died in 1944 in her late 90's[98 I think] was a talented hand worker in all the typical lady-like pursuits such as embroidery & sewing. However by age 90 she had lost most of her sight & was virtually blind so she could no longer sew & do fine embroidery. Because she was not content to do nothing with her hands she resorted to plain knitting which did not require good vision. I was a toddler when Susannah Brooker died so I have no memory of this industrious lady but I do have a four generation photo taken with her.
Below are two of the blankets she knitted that I rescued from my Grandma's house in 1968 when no one else wanted them-the story of my life's accumulation of memorabilia I think, LOL- I could not bear to see them thrown in the garbage or given to charity so great is my sentimental attachment to all this "old stuff".
It is almost impossible to match these colors with 100% wool in a similar ply these days & these blankets have taken a few hits from moths -the damage has been mended mostly not very expertly & probably by yours truly. My Mum would call it "cobbling" rather than mending, I'm a quilter remember?!
I was told that Grandma actually sewed all Grt. Granny's squares together for her, not sure who did the crocheted edging but most likely Grandma I suspect.Now they reside in my cedar chest so no more moth damage but I would really like to have a glass cabinet or chest to store them in to be able to enjoy their sweet & colorful vintage memories.
I learned to knit by the time I went to school but never learned to crochet until my first son was born in 1966.
The "lovely" granny blanket above is my first & only significant effort to crochet! I made it for oldest DS & it was always folded on the end of his bed until he grew too old for it to be "cool".This adorable crocheted granny squares sweater was made by my own Mother-she made it for our youngest DS, isn't it an adorable hippie throwback?
I have photos of JW wearing it age 3-5 yrs. & there is a matching knitted beanie. We called it his "Joseph Coat" as in the Biblical Joseph's "Coat of Many Colors".Now that JW has a little boy of his own I wonder if baby Matthew will ever be allowed to wear it?
