Today's Feature- My New Listings

Burr its a cold one today, well -5c isn't that cold but after this weekend it sure does seem cold.  It definitely felt cold yesterday when it started to snow when I was on the lookout for new listings. Lately, I have been on the hunt for crochet blankets or throws that feature the Granny Square pattern.  What is a Granny Square, you ask?  

A Granny Square is a blanket that comprises of squares that resemble course lace. The crafter starts in the center and works outwards, usually using many different colours.  Many times these Granny Square projects are made from the crafters scrap yarn, meaning that the crafter is using up the leftover yarn ends from previous projects.  This almost always results in a very colourful, artistic piece of work. I find that I can stare at these pieces of art for hours, always finding new colours, patterns and stitches to admire. I would say their are 2 different styles of Granny Square blankets.  One is where the crafter creates multiple small squares, called motifs, then assembles them together to make one larger object such as clothing, or blankets. The other style of Granny Square is when the crafter again starts in the middle and then keeps working their way out until they create on large square. Yesterday, at a local antique store, I found some amazing Granny Square throws, featuring both styles. Today I'm going to share those finds with you. 

I found 4 Granny Square style throws, I am quite certain that these 4 throws where created by the same artist.  Seeing all 4 are matching throws, featuring the same types and colors of yarn but with different designs. Back in the 1970's, when this style of crocheting was very popular people did not throw anything away, resulting in creations of many colours. Granny Squares are often multicoloured because it is an effective way to use up small amounts of yarn.  (Not like todays world where everything, even cars, are considered throw away.) Whoever created these beauties was a very creative, resourceful, and talented artist. I call them, the creators of quilts and crocheted items, artist because I feel they more then deserve that title.  For example, take a good look at this first creation. 

Ganny Square throw 1

Did you notice how the creator kept the same colour palette throughout? By using pinks, greens, and browns. Now I feel that takes a very artistic creator to be able to create a piece of art that is aesthetically pleasing to ones eye. Imagine if the artist would have thrown in a bright all red square, and how that would of thrown off the whole aesthetics of the piece.

Did you notice that very retro mustard orange colour? (One of my favorite colours, by the way.) This mustard orange coloured yarn is what makes these 4 throws match and leaves me to believe that they where created by the same artist. As you can see from this second creation that the artist used some of the same yarn as the first creation. 

Granny Square Throw 2

As you can see from the picture above that throw 2 is the second style of granny square that I mentioned earlier. Where the creator made one large square.  If you look closely you can see how the yarn randomly changes colours throughout the expansion from the middle square.

Although it is similar to throw 1 with similar colours of yarn, the design is quite different.  The artist even added a different medium to this throw.  The smaller orange, green, brown and yellow, squares comprising of the border are actually knitted, not crocheted.  These knitted squares also add another element to this throw. Being of a different medium, knit, they are heavier than the regular crochet square. This results in the border being almost like a collard frill, like a ruff clowns collar.

Again the artist created a very pleasing colour pallet throughout the throw.

Throw 3, features the smaller Granny Squares like throw 1.  This time the artist kept to a mint green and purple theme.  Just like the first 2 throws the creator has brought it all together with the mustard orange yarn. 

Granny square throw 3

I normally am a person who is attracted to pattern. For example if I was creating a Granny Square throw I would have to have a pattern to it, corners would be solid, flanked with a multi-coloured flower square, then solid. The second row would have to be opposite; flower, solid, flower, and so on. The artist that created these blankets must not of had my level of OCD, lol. I admire that the artist was able to create a totally random yet pleasing pattern.

With throw 4 we return to the one large Granny square technique. This time the border consists of small Granny Squares that are more similar to the small Granny squares in throws 1 and 3. This time the creator satisfies my OCD by creating a pattern amongst the smaller Granny squares in the border.  Do you see it?

granny Square throw 4

I really admire the different colors in this artist's creation. My favorite part is the middle where the creator used multicoloured yarn, it almost creates a vortex effect as if your going to get sucked into the blanket.

I would have to say that the Granny square pattern of crocheting is my favorite style of crochet. Currently, am trying to teach myself how to crochet, but I can't seem to get past the first row. I have known how to knit since I was a young girl, my Grandma Rhoda taught me when I was very young.  By the time I became a teen I had forgotten the teaching of my grandmother. Surprisingly enough my dad was able to teach me how to knit again, and this time it stuck. I was very fortunate to find these beautiful creations. They have inspired me to stick to learning how to crochet so I can create my own master pieces.  If you would like for these master pieces to revisit your home, click on one of the links that will take you to my Poshmark page.  Bundle all 4 throws for a special price.

https://poshmark.ca/closet/patchesoftime

Credit to 2nd Chance Antiques & Collectables where I found these beautiful throws and the very helpful owners. Check out their facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1262660453762936

Today Feature: Vintage Vests

Remember when vest where a thing? My mother was a banker, in the 80s and 90s she had all of the trendest clothes, big hair and even bigger sholder pads. Oh how I love sholder pads, eventhough I shouldn't with having a bigger upper body. My mother had this one outfit, that I wish I had today. It was a canary yellow oversized blazer with massive sholder pads. Yes, I loved that blazer and the yellow pumps she had to go with it. 🤩 She also had this outfit, pumps included, in purple. I tried to convince her to wear one purple shoe and one yellow but she did not go for it, lol. Being a business woman, my mother also rocked the odd vest. When my sister and I got older, we even got to wear some her vest at horse shows and other special occasions.

This Vintage Boho Leather Vest is just like the one my mother wouldn't let me wear.

Vintage Boho Leather Vest

Vintage Ivon Clay 100% caramel brown leather vest, garment is sized large. This tuxedo cut vest has working pockets, great spot to keep your lip gloss.

Oh vest where all the rage back in those days, it's funny how styles come back around. Never in a million years would I think that the mullets would come back and now I find myself wanting one. For right now I will settle with my shag until I get up enough nerve for the mullet. Speaking of flash backs, check out this...

80s jean crop vest

This vest is hand crafted jean vest, salvaged from a jean skirt. The inside is a soft pink plaid flannel. The vest has hand stitched diamonds matching the plaid flannel inlay and hand sewn multicolored buttons detail.

I remember my favorite vest, I got my grade 5 school picture taken in it, even rocking a perm! I was super excited when I found this Vintage Boho Navajo print crop denim vest it instantly reminded me of my elementary school favorite. 

Vintage Bobo Navajo Printed Crop Vest

Omg, this vest has everything I love! Its vintage, bobo, and Navajo print, plus it denim. I would also consider this vest to be a crop vest, it is very short. Being a Medium it is just too small for me. Darn it, my loss your gain!

Well that's all of the vest I currently have in my closet. Today at the thrift store you'll never guess what I found!

Vintage Oversize White Blazer

My very own oversized blazer complete with the big sholder pads, now all I have to do is find some white pumps!! 

Todays Feature Vintage Patchwork Quilt

 I am still trying to figure out how I'm going to make a blog out of Vintage textiles that anybody would ever want to read. If nobody does, it is still a good way to get my thoughts out of my head.  Working in heath care during a pandemic is tough, it is physically, mentally and emotionally draining. I do get that right now is hard for everyone, but at least others get to go get dressed for work, you know put on that outfit that makes you feel good. We wear scrubs, we have to change before and after work, so most of the times I wear my pjs to work, then when I get home I can go straight to bed, lol.  Heath care workers laugh at that little joke, because it is true.  Right now we are so exhausted when we get home that's all we want to do.  Due to Covid, the heath region has added a bunch of restrictions and extra precautions to keep out residents safe. But at what cost? They have restrictions of how many, if any, visitors a resident can have, I get it, I understand that this is for their safety.  Its hard to watch residents succumb to their disease such a dementia without their loved ones their to capture their last lucid moments.  Situations like this make long-term care hard, I can even imagine how the staff in the hospitals are managing with the increase work load that they have endured. Today I had enough, I have started to do little things to try and get me out of my funk, to divert my focus away from the stresses of Covid.  

Today I worked out, did my hair and got dressed! Now the last time I did this my youngest daughter did not recognize me when I went to pick her up after school. Kudos for her for not getting into the car with a stranger, haha. I decided to wear a vintage button up blouse that I recently thrifted.  I have listed it on my poshmark closet, but I might take it down.  I really enjoy the yellow, green, brown and orange striped pattern, mostly because it is so random.  The shirt also has these grey watermark flowers printed over the stripes, it makes me feel like I'm ready for summer. If it ever comes, it snowed again last night. Ignore my resting b!tch face.

While I was getting dressed and dusting on my Mary Kay eyeshadow (I always try to support other women with their small businesses), I came up with the idea to feature an item that I have for sale on days that I have time to post.  Seeing to day is my day off, I'm going to feature This Vintage Patchwork Quilt.

https://poshmark.ca/listing/Vintage-Patchwork-Quilt-Full-60428b26e2c432c8a8ced857

This quilt screams 70's with its colorful polyester squares.  The squares are salvaged from scrap material. Most likely from the artist favorite dresses. When you look close up on the squares you can see that some of them have seams, some of them are textured with a pattern.  When I hold this quilt and let my mind wander to what outfits these little squares might have been. I think about a mom with a black beehive in a teal green fitted dress that come to just above the knee. Of course she would have a matching head band placed precisely infront of her beehive bump.  She is dressed up, at a cocktail party with her friends holding a martini. 

Each of these little 4 inch squares has been quilted to the golden yellow backing also in polyester.  The backing is a bright and cheerful yellow, golden almost a orange.  My old Samsung phone does not capture the beauty of that color.  Hopefully when this snow melts I can go outside to get a better picture of the back that captures it's true colours.

Now it is time for me to go pick my kids up for lunch, here's hoping that the little ones recognize me this time, lol.  I will leave a few more pictures of this quilt to be admired. 

Welcome

What, who is Patches In Time Revisited? Well I am many things, I wear many hats during the day.  First off I am a mother of 2, a step-mother of 2 and a wife. I also have a career in heath care, I am a Continuing Care Aide working in Long-term Care.  I also have many passions, besides being a mother and a care giver. I enjoy painting, gardening, cooking, basically anything that I can create myself I enjoy doing.  Today I actually had time to start my own bedding plants for my garden. Every year I try to grow something different and unusual, this year's mini project is Peanuts. I am sure that I will be giving updates on how my peanuts are doing, although peanuts have nothing to do with why I am starting this blog.

I am actually starting this blog because I have decided to try my hand in repurposing vintage textiles, such as quilts, blanks, clothing, by selling them on sale platforms, like poshmark.  In hopes to make some extra income.  Since covid has started my husband is not making the same amount of income as he was before the pandemic. My husband is a dream husband who is beyond supportive and the best partner I could have ever hoped for. We co-everything, like parenting, cooking, housework, gardening, you name it we do it as a team. He is also the best father I could ever ask for to help parent our children.  My husband is working hard to come up with extra income as well, he is even considering a career change, to something less physical. 

So why do I want to repurpose vintage textiles? I have a couple of reasons, one being that I find them super cool. Especially the hand crafted item like the quilts and crochet blanket, these items where crafted with care and love. Quilts many times where made with the scraps of old clothing and materials. Quilting also provided ladies with social time, one quilt was usually made by many ladies sitting around a huge quilting board chatting it up while they perfected their craft. A past time that is no longer the norm, but maybe should be. Many of the crocheted blankets, that grandma and great aunties crafted by hand, are being donated to animal shelters. Now don't get me wrong, these donations are important to the shelters, but how about we enjoy these beautiful pieces of art first by allowing them to revisit our home?

 

I also have been giving a lot of thought to my environmental footprint. I'm not going to toss out a bunch of numbers to impose quilt about possibly ruining the environment, because that can be found on google.  What I am trying to do is everything I can.  Now when you live in a small rural town in Saskatchewan, the thought trying to reduce your environmental footprint is overwhelming. For example we do not have public transportation, our town has a population just over 600 people, we literally have to drive everywhere. But little by little I have been doing my best to factor in the environment into my daily life. Recently I rehomed an old bike, so now I will bike to work; that is if this snow will ever goes away. I also compost everything I can. A good friend of mine gave me composting worms (I'm sure I will be talking about these way too much as well), not only do they compost my organics they make me dirt! Decided to thrift quality items, with the goal for them to revisit a new home where they can be enjoyed once more, is just another way I am trying to do my part.

 Please visit my closet on Poshmark Canada by clicking here https://posh.mk/wijNEyJjFeb