This summer while at Grand Portage for their yearly reenactment, my daughters were involved in a “Round Robin” trading session. From this, Noelle (our oldest) got an old blanket for some beads, a “broken earring,” and a thimble. She has been so proud of herself since. She got the best trade in the world (thank you beyond words, Pete Avery) and has wrapped herself in it every night since. It is really fun seeing the girls have such a great time at a historic event like this. Being that it is something I enjoy so much, it is fun seeing them also enjoy it. I also love the experiences they are getting and the knowledge and skills they acquire.
The blanket is a nice little thin white blanket with some striping at the ends. It is rather worn and patched (with white cotton fabric). It now is bearing the start of new holes and I told her we could patch it more. As a child that is just learning sewing, she thinks this sounds great. The soon to be “Frankenblanket” (reference to the burned, ripped, and patched blankets of a couple friends) reminded me of Louise Erdrich’s book The Birchbark House, in which a character named “Old Tallow” has a coat that is patches upon patches of random fabrics, hides, etc. I told Noelle the story of this coat and showed her a picture from the book. She was elated and can not wait to have her own blanket with such character! I am soon to be finding some wool, linen, and cotton fabrics of various colors and prints that she can patch away with. And a final note… if you have not read The Birchbark House or the following three books in the series, they are great fun! They are “children’s” books although I just reread the first few last winter and the most recent book this summer. The are set in the 19th century and center around a young Ojibwe girl and her life. Check them out.
Hello – very nice blog and I’m glad I found it. We have some overlapping interests. I am very interested in the Creole settlements of Wisconsin. Please join us, if you’re on Facebook, on a new discussion forum, Great Lakes French Canadians: https://www.facebook.com/groups/FCCAGL/
Best Regards,
James LaForest