Do you like scandals? Do you like quilts? Do you like quilt scandals??
If you answered “yes” to one or more of those questions, you are going to love the latest Quilt Scout. Check out my latest Quilt Scout column on the Sears & Roebuck Quilt Contest at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. You can click right here and you will get a fascinating education.
While you’re doing that, I’m going to pack for TV taping and go to bed for Lord’s sake.
Nancy Schallner
FASCINATING history! My grandmother, father (who was 12) and two other family members traveled from Oklahoma to this Worlds Fair. I have the postcards and other memorabilia that they brought back as well as her diary detailing their travels. She noted that the “Century of Progress” title belonged to the bathroom lines as they were very, very long. Thank you for sharing the links and inspiration!
Kathryn Darnell
So just imagine that you were one of the hired ladies who were paid “pittance” for all their hard work and couldn’t tell a soul. Now that would definitely put a bee under my bonnet.
Linda Duff
Have fun back here in Iowa with your Mom! We had our IQM BOD meeting last night, and she said she’ll be taping with you! (and she kinda seemed happy about it!) 🙂 🙂
Hope you got some sleep!
cindy
I too am fascinated by this little tidbit of quilt history…..I am thinking one (some) of the winning quilts disappeared????
Got to re-read the whole story….just snagged the book on Amazon! I had not heard of that one before…..
Footnote: if you like Worlds Fair mysteries, check out the book “Devil in the White City”, story of the 1st serial killer who found his prey at the 1893 Worlds Fair.
HelenMarie
I remember the story of a man throwing bleach which splashed on a quilt or two, and I believe it was in Houston.
Mary O.
The story is a chapter in ‘Quilty as Charged’ by Spike Gillespie, 2007 University of Texas Press. I found an excerpt on Google Books and I now need to go find a copy of this book so that I can read the rest of the story.
Martha P
I found this Houston Chronicle article on the bleach incident: http://m.chron.com/lavoz/houston-texas/article/Defendant-pleads-guilty-to-defacing-Elvis-quilt-2122468.php
You may have a contact for more info 😉
Mary
AWESOME!!!! I have been looking for info on that!! Thanks, M!
Summer
In the Quilt Scout article, you mention that Ralph Lauren cut up quilts in the 1980s for his collection. I was intrigued, and a few minutes of google searching found this enlightening thesis by Rebecca McCormick of George Mason University: http://digilib.gmu.edu/jspui/bitstream/handle/1920/8665/McCormick_thesis_2013.pdf?sequence=1 – called “The Cutter Quilt Fad, 1980 to Present: A Case Study in Value-Making in American Quilts” which on page 11 says it was RL’s 1982 fall collection that had the quilts in them. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any actual pictures of what the designs looked like, although there is one hint in this article from Ralph Lauren Magazine: http://origin-sp.global.ralphlauren.com/en-us/rlmagazine/editorial/holiday13/Pages/patchwork.aspx? – showing a patchwork scarf? apron? tied around a prairie girl’s waist. Anyway, REALLY interesting how quilting inspires artists in other mediums!
Summer
Heh,heh (sheepish smile), just figured out that there ARE some pics of the RL clothes in the thesis! Log cabin skirt anyone?