It's a bodkin

What's a bodkin?

Well, besides being the name of a rock group (for real), the little silver tool I couldn't for the life of me identify - or even imagine its use - is called a bodkin.

Yep, I have it on good authority.

First, my sister, Edie, called.  "I think what you have there is a bodkin," says she, a long-time needleworker with an online sampler business, McIntosh Samplers, specializing in counted cross-stitch reproduction antique samplers, books on historical needlework, and quality needlework accessories. http://www.mcintoshsamplers.com/

I should have known to consult her first.

"Okay," I replied. "But what does one do with a bodkin?"

She suggested I Google it to learn more, but added she's pretty sure that's what it is and that a bodkin is a centuries-old tool, used primarily for drawstrings, and that there are very fancy decorative ones made of wood, ivory, and so forth.

In addition to a stitching tool, according to Wikipedia, they were used as personal adornments. In the 1600s, artist Wenzel Hollar (1607-1677), did a famous etching of a woman with a bodkin in her hair.

In my example, the one from my mother's collection of stitching tools, the bodkin has two "eyes" - one at each end. But more commonly, they have only one eye and the opposite end is finished, rounded, or sometimes embellished with decorative carvings or jewels.

I took my little tool to The Attic, my favorite needlework store in Mesa. It's actually the only needlework store in Mesa, but that's beside the point. Needlework stores are a dying breed and are closing left and right. So sad.

Anyway...I asked needlework expert, Sandy, if she knew what this tool is.

"Of course," she replied instantly. "It's a bodkin."

She described its use, saying you would need one mainly to make drawstring bags or purses. You would, she explained,  thread one end with ribbon or cording, insert it into the opening, and draw it through to the other end, moving it along as you go.

"Most needleworkers would have one," she continued.

Hmmm, I thought. Not sure when I would actually use a bodkin.

But isn't it great to know I have one?

Hardanger

My mother first learned the art of Hardanger embroidery when she was almost 50 years old. The daughter of immigrants from Scandinavia, she had long admired it and wanted to learn.

But until then, she was raising six children and sewing some of our clothes, leaving precious little time to pursue needleart.

She started by buying a book and following written instructions. Then she saw that a class was being offered at the International Institute in St. Paul. There she not only learned the art, but her teacher, Mona, became a best friend and "daughter" to her. Mona has since moved back to her home country of Norway, but is still a part of our family's lives.

So today I thought you might enjoy seeing a few pieces of my mother's exquisite stitching. If a piece is done correctly, you can scarcely tell the right side from the wrong side. As I was photographing these pieces, I had to be very careful to portray the correct side.

At almost 88, her days are filled with creating lovely pieces like these.

Her hands are shaky now, her stitches a bit slower and more deliberate, and she often needs to correct a mistake or two.

But she is happiest with the day ahead of her with her Hardanger embroidery on her lap.

Still putting her heart into making her works of intricate needleart. ©

The great Minnesota get-together

The end of summer brings the start of the Minnesota State Fair.

Though I confess I haven't been to many state fairs, I have heard Minnesota's beats them all.

My husband and I went today, the second day of the ten-day event. We have our routine: he goes to the horse barns and Machinery Hill. I go straight to the Creative Activities Building.

A minimum of two hours elapses before we meet up again to eat our way through the rest of the fair together. So much food, so little time. Pronto Pups, Sweet Martha's cookies, cheese curds, Tom Thumb donuts, roasted corn on the cob. Not the place to find foods of the healthy variety, I'm afraid. But, hey, it's only once a year.

The Creative Activities Building emcompasses creative arts of all kinds from all over the state. The talent represented in one building is overwhelming. Busy hands worked all year on fiber arts: exquisite quilts, knit pieces, crochet, Hardanger, counted cross stitch, fillet crochet, weaving.

Then there is bead work, porcelain painting, wood work, scrapbooking, post card collecting. And baked goods: cookies, cakes, pies, breads. Canned goods: pickles, preserves, jams.

The items displayed command respect and admiration for the skills represented in the beautiful displays from artists all over the state.

Almost every year, I enter a counted cross stitch piece in the competition, mainly to just see it displayed and inspire others, as the handwork I see there inspires me.

This year, I entered three pieces: The Storyteller, a small Aztec design, and a Victorian tea room with "Welcome" stitched across it. Very simple pieces, none seeming worthy of a winning a ribbon.

Imagine my surprise to see a pink third premium ribbon hanging from the Welcome piece. I stitched this piece while spending a month in Tucson, Arizona, last winter. I have won two other third premium ribbons in past years, but for pieces much more difficult than this one.


In any case, it is exciting to be rewarded and recognized for your work.

As we were leaving, the daily parade was underway.


We're told the fair had a record-breaking crowd yesterday on opening day, and I believe, judging from the crowds, they had to come close today.



So another year passes for the Minnesota State Fair. The great Minnesota get-together.