Analogue Chic

Mmmm, indexing

Oooh, lucky me!!!  I’ve inherited/rescued from incineration my Grandma’s collection of back issues of Creative Quilting and Workbasket magazines from the 80′s into the 90′s and 00′s.  From what I have found in my research, both of these magazines are now out of print.  CQ‘s theme is obvious, but it’s not just bedspreads and wallhangings, there are some cute and/or interesting projects with the potential for updating and re-interpreting.

Such as:

Chicken of the Sea purse

I plan to update this kind of tacky bag into something a little classier, but still cheeky enough for the rockabilly/roller derby/neo-pinup girls.

And if and when I plan to really get down with my stitching roots, I might make a quilt in this gorgeous Hawaiian pattern, using naturally died organic cotton or hemp fabric:

Workbasket is a more general needlework and craft project digest, with a little of everything.

The plan is to index all the issues, and hopefully scan and PDF the photos and instructions and make them available on the web.  As a crafter, and a feminist, I feel a sense of obligation to archive and preserve these projects, articles and other tidbits, because clearly a lot of work went into designing them and producing these magazines for 20-odd years, and it’s a lengthy record of Women’s Work in a continuous line from the past…. in spite of their propensity to use cheezy pre-printed quilt patterns and come up with RIDICULOUS outfits like these:

Is that woman wearing a quilt?!

Because in the end, I’m just indulging my obsession with organizing, indexing and archiving.  Crazy quilt-vomit craft projects are just icing on the cake.

I’ve already started indexing CQ, so if you’re crafty and on the hunt for new, wacky projects, or just classic quilt patterns, stay tuned here for updates.