PIECEWORK November-December 2012

This November/December 2012 issue of PieceWork turns to the stories of people from many cultures who immigrated to the United States and brought their needlework traditions with them. Veronica Patterson sums up the experiences of many of them in her article “A Beloved Part of a Life That Was Lost”: “[F]or many who came to this country as immigrants, the few pieces of cloth that they brought with them became a bridge between the old life and the new.” Here are just a few highlights: When Helen Znamierowski arrived in the United States from Poland in 1931, she brought a cutwork tablecloth that she finished after arriving; lace-knitter Hazel Carter took a more circuitous route—from England to Africa to England to Wisconsin; two pieces of crocheted lace came from Wales to what is now Oklahoma; Anna Anderson’s mother gave her all the supplies she would need to make Hardanger tablecloth when Anna left Norway for America; and one author writing in an early-1930s needlecraft magazine championed the needlework of the nation’s newcomers. Projects in this jam-packed issue include a Shetland stole to knit that tells the story of Cinderella, a crocheted lace edging, a coaster worked in Hardanger embroidery, and a traditional African banner to appliqué. Delve into the needlework your ancestors may have brought to this country in PieceWork’s November/December 2012 issue!