Pillow Art

There was a time when I was nuts for embroidery. There was even a brief nano-second when I was so crazed for authentic 40s-era fabric that I was spend an embarrassing amount of time on eBay trolling for the stuff. Now I'm stuck with at least one unfinished, hand-stitched baby blanket that was supposed to be a gift for my sister's baby. That child is now two years old. Oops.
I also have quite the treasure trove of World War II fabrics that were going to be made up into playsuits and culotte dresses for swing-dancing. I'm still lindy-hopping, but those fabrics (especially one incredible tiger-lily rayon) are still sitting in boxes waiting for some ACTION.
Despite those unused acquisitions, I cannot resist eBay if only to look. So you can imagine this hat-themed pillow caught my eye because I love vintage chapeaux. At first I though it was an antique, but it's not. The artist used a Vogart-type pattern and hand-tinted the color; she must have dived into her quilting remnants for the applique. If I ever get around to finishing up the Depression-Era "Daisies Never Tell" pillow case I bought at an estate sale a couple of years ago, I swear I'll make my own pillow covering. First, I'd enlarge an image from a Dover Book on 1930s fashion. Then I'd ink the picture onto paper with a special transfer pen and iron that drawing onto linen. I'd unearth an old floral print from my stash, cut out a piece and adhere it to the textile with Steam-A-Seam.
Still with me? Then I'd scribble away with my Pentel Fabricfun Pastel Dye Sticks. I'd finish up on a Viking embroidery machine. If you ever do this, let me know!