Museum of Lace and Textiles

TRIP ~ DAY 5

In Berkeley, the most fantastic treasure-trove.
2982 Adeline St. at Ashby St, across from the Ashby BART station.  Click on the links for more info &  photos.
Visit the LACIS Museum website

 The shop.
Items also available online here.

Look Up!

Those are not lampshades, they are hoop skirts!

A display of Bridal treasures.

I fell in love with this blouse!

 The Museum.

Their current exhibit is EMBROIDERY.

Pocket detail from men's westkit.

 

Embroidered piece for pockets & collar.

 Homey piece from the 1930's or 40's.
Cotton dyed and embroidered.
Grandma made many pieces like this!

 Throughout the store they have these displays (like Target uses to hold posters) showing the most amazing lace, linen, glittery bits, et al.  I spent about an hour in the shop/museum, but I could have spent 5 and taken hundreds of pictures.  Everything filled me with wonder!

 Handerchiefs with handmade lace.

Crochet Lace.

 

Filet Crochet, with Satin Stitch embroidered over.

I love the combination of techniques!

Rather out of focus, :-(

Still I wanted to include this photo for the amazing depth of their displays.

 

Monogram Linens

Yesterday over at Attic Charm, Laura's post was all about The Beauty of The Upper Case. She wrote about her love of monograms and said she didn't have examples of the elaborate entwined letters so often on vintage linens. I thought I would share some photos from my linen collection.

I'm particularly fond of the intertwining M and A in the center.
I bought a collection of monogram linens at an estate sale some years ago. When I look at them now, they remind me of my Silver Bella swap partner. They might be her daughter's initials if R is her middle name.

I like this one, but what are those letters?

I actually believe this is E and T.
One really needs magical powers to decipher it!


Is this a monogram where the last initial is largest in the middle?


Can you see initials in this? I can't!
But it's the most wonderful heavy-weight linen towel, large enough to dry a person after a bath.

Hope you have enjoyed these.
Now back to ironing more linens for the shop!

I Stand Here Ironing

I had no idea I had amassed so many *Victorian to 50's-fabulous* pieces of vintage clothing.
If these clothes were in my own closet I'd leave the wrinkles in.

But presenting them for sale is another matter. I think that's why a lot of the items currently in my shop get ironed. The linens. The fabric yardage. The vintage clothes and lingerie.

I wanted a place in the shop to iron but my ironing board is not pretty or decorative.

This is my solution.

Under that very cool patchwork of fabric is my ironing board. With that fabric over it, even the shape is disguised! The fabric goes all the way to the floor, so I can hide the iron, spray bottles of water & starch, pressing cloths, etc.

My view as I iron.

I'm not very good at doing nothing. When I sit I can stay put if I read. I don't think I have ever watched tv without a magazine to look at, or a game of spider solitaire on my laptop! About a month ago I discovered the value of ironing in the shop. It allows me to do nothing, or at least stand still for a bit. It's really soothing and I don't feel guilty. It's an easy project to drop when customers arrive. And it really doesn't make much of a mess. This is excellent; I am way too good at making messes!

When I iron, I often think of Tillie Olsen's short story, "I Stand Here Ironing" from her book, Tell Me A Riddle. I read it in college when feminist literature was just finding its feet. The story, about a mother's estrangement from her daughter is told from the mother's perspective as she irons her family's clothes. The story was written in the 1930's, tho it wasn't published for 30+ years. My mom taught me to iron in elementary school and I know the reflectiveness that comes upon moving the iron across a shirt or dress. It's a poignant story, sad even, but real, and I love the title!

Obsessions

I have never thought of myself as obsessive. Tho if you were to ask my best friends or my husband, I imagine you would get a different answer. My husband would say it in such a sweet and gentle way, as tho being obsessive was the most endearing quality I have. He's nice that way!

Baby Pillows

I claimed to have no cravings while pregnant. My husband suggested, in the kindest way possible that perhaps, just maybe, eating an entire jar of Vlasic Kosher Dill pickles - at one sitting - possibly, might constitute a craving. As I said, he's nice that way. But I digress.


I have just moved boxes and tubs of linens out of the shop. They need to be cleaned and/or ironed and are in the way. Sadly, the ones in the shop are only about a tenth of the whole!



It was this moving experience which prompted me to muse on the topic of obsessions. Because, no matter how you look at it, the number of linens I have amassed over the last 10 years constitutes an obsession! I can no longer just make the comment, "I like linens." Yes, I do like linens, but I think it has gone beyond just liking them! Today I considered the obsessive element to my collecting!




Luckily this obsession does not include hoarding! I am happily anticipating selling every one. Not so happily anticipating washing, line drying, ironing and pricing them all. But then I think I might just be a bit lazy! And it's a really big job!