Creating herbal sachets from vintage handkerchiefs - a great little gift!

As I make my way through the cluttered rooms at estate sales, I always look carefully for vintage handkerchiefs. It may come as a surprise to the "Kleenex Generation", but there was a time, not so long ago, when a lady would never be caught without her gloves, hat, stockings, and a clutch purse containing 'mad money' and a sweet little hankie.

 

 

I can't resist the beauty, color, fabric and handwork in a gorgeous vintage handkerchief. Fortunately, my customers like them also, and I generally find buyers for the many Madeira, Swiss, US and Japanese printed hankies that I come across. Ironing and packaging theses vintage beauties is so much fun for me.

These beauties tend to be fragile, however, and I sometimes find upon close examination a small flaw - a pinhole, ink spot, or unraveling hem. What to do with these? Repurpose them, of course!

One good use is to make a herbal sachet - these smell so great in a clothing dresser drawer, a stored evening purse, even in your car. I made these with lavender buds, but you could also do this with any aromatic herb, cedar clippings, rose petals... And they are easy to make, as you will see.....

 

First, lay out your vintage handkerchief flat on a tabletop and top it with one ply of a facial tissue. This will be thin, but strong enough to contain the herbs without a problem.

Next, place a few drops of aromatic oil on a cotton ball or something similar and place on top of the tissue. I used these cosmetic puffs, which are circular and work well in the puffy shape of the sachet. I used this organic lavender oil for my sachets - and this small bottle will be enough to make at least a thousand of them.

 

Next, add two to three tablespoons of the herb you have chosen. I spooned these lavender buds into the center of the handkerchief on top of the cosmetic puff.

Finally, tie the hankie up with ribbon (odds and ends work well for this) or lace and you are done!

And the best part of this is - you can open the sachet back up and replenish the aromatic oil when it starts to wear out. Or take the whole thing apart if you chose, and the handkerchief can be used for another purpose - like these sweet window treatments.

I made a few dozen of these sachets for a promotion at Stone House, and offered one free to each customer who purchased my linens. The top row was made with vintage tea napkins that were imperfect; the bottom layer was made with vintage handkerchiefs. They were gone in a matter of days, but in the mean time, the shop smelled GREAT.

 

 





Back Home from the Paris Markets!

Last week I received a special treat. Husband Michael had been working in France and Holland and I flew over to meet him in Paris for a long weekend. We stayed at a wonderful small hotel in the Rue Cler area. I could tell you the name of the hotel, but then I'd have to kill you - it's that special.  Needless to say, hopefully I'll be back.

On our first day, I was pretty jet lagged from the overnight flight, and we hung out within a few blocks of our hotel.

Of course, those few blocks included some amazing places.

Michael and I spent most of the following day at Montmartre, walking the hill (or, actually, a butte, according to geologists). It was amazingly uncrowded and we quickly ditched the few tourists that we found there, seeking out the homes and studios of artists including Picasso, Van Gogh, Modigliani, Erik Satie, and others. Prior to the Moulin Rouge and Pigalle, one of our first stops was the Basilica Sacre-Coeur. Here is a part of the view from the front steps:

Montmartre was wonderful.  But some of our best times on this trip (besides toasting Jim Morrison at his grave site - another story for perhaps another blog) were at the Paris flea markets - the marche au puces. We started at the biggest flea market - the Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen - best known as Clignancourt (pronounced “Clee-nyahn-cour”). We like to use the metro in Paris and it was a long way to the 18th arrondissement from Rue Cler with two train changes. Along the way we discovered that Clignancourt station was closed and we had to transfer to a bus the final mile or so.... which took up valuable time and even more on the way back. Here is my partner in crime, who valiantly trained, bussed, and walked miles with me that day:

 Here I am striking a pose after scoring some great vintage textiles at Clignancourt.



The following day, because too much is never enough, we followed up with a visit to the market at Port de Vanves.



This market was not only closer but also a fraction of the size of Clignancourt - perhaps a good thing. Overall, it was much more manageable and the vendors seemed more friendly and ready to deal. I was able to find a number of beautiful French linen sheets, in addition to more tea towels. 

Once again, Michael valiantly walked the aisles at Vanves and held my bags. He was looking hard for an antique lever corkscrew but wasn't able to find exactly what he was looking for.





Now back in the States with my finds, some of these linens will find their way into the shop at Stone House Antiques within the next week or so. These red and green towels will look wonderful for the holidays. I can't wait to share them with you!

 

 

Dear Damask.....

Yes, damask is dear to the heart of all antique textile collectors and dealers. It is the backbone textile most frequently used in household linens, such as tablecloths, napkins, towels, and bedcovers.


Fairchild's "Dictionary of Textiles" describe damask as:
       ....a broad range of jacquard-woven fabrics with elaborate floral or geometric patterns, made of linen, cotton, wool, worsted, silk, rayon, acetate, and other manufactured fibers.  The pattern is distinguished from the ground by contrasting luster and is reversible....

     ...Single damask is made with a five-harness satin weave; the true (double) damask is woven with an eight harness satin weave and has a firm hand.

Early 20th Century double damask pattern of stylized poppies

 

As a gardener, I find the floral damask patterns to be the most lovely. Undoubtedly the most popular are the rose patterns.




























Close behind are tablecloths destined for fall with chrysanthemums.

Here are some napkins I have on hand with a pattern of iris.

There is no doubt that this napkin is of Irish linen, with a Irish wolfhound, clovers, and other Irish symbols woven into the damask.

 The shop recently hosted a double damask set of large napkins with images of wild game. Each napkin was centered by a large stag, with quail, partridge, and rabbits woven into the pattern, but they were purchased before I could get a photo taken.

Laurel wreaths are often woven into damask towels, and the wreaths are often embroidered with the owner's monogram.  Although this damask towel is white, I have also have Victorian era green and turkey red damask at the Stone Cottage Workshop.

With the advent of rayon in the 1920's, rayon damask became quite popular by mid century due to its shimmer, ability to take dye, and ease of ironing. I often find rayon damask with original labels from Belgium, Czechoslovakia, and Japan. This tablecloth and 12 napkin set currently at the shop has a wonderful golden glimmer and would look beautiful under candle light at Thanksgiving.

This set has a subtle floral damask pattern behind the border plaid - perfect for fall dinners.

Emily Post hawked linen damask in the 1920's ....

 

Martha Stewart currently uses damask in products for every part of the home....

Damask has been with us for a thousand years. And hopefully a thousand more.

It's Time to Get Started...

And better late than never. After spending a lifetime in varied random pursuits (bioengineering, consulting, parenting), I'm at a crossroads. The second and final child has flown the coop and is newly ensconced in Brooklyn. Son #1 has graduated and is working as a baby financial consultant in Manhattan. Husband is grinding away for a few more years prior to pseudo-retirement (I'm convinced he will never, ever completely quit his consulting practice until it is pried from his cold, dead hands). For the past few years, I have been working the home office, volunteering in municipal government (I am the mayor of my small rural NJ township), and getting those kids ready to fledge the nest. But there is more...

I have been holding onto a dirty little secret. I am a junker. I spend my spare minutes rehabbing, scrubbing, soaking, and decrusting lost causes.  I have an obsession with salvaging sorry looking rags and wrecks. I rummage through mildew and mouse poop in search of strange treasure.  I have been known to hang out near roadside 'free' piles. Yes, I embarrass my family, friends are mystified, but I don't care. It's what I do for fun. And it's time to fess up, admit it, and move on.



Yes, this is a typical view of the back of my truck.



Secret number two - hidden in the garbage bags and boxes stashed in the closets of my home is the #1 most addictive item I seek - not morphine, nor cocaine - ANTIQUE and VINTAGE TEXTILES. That is where this blog is heading. I know that there are others like me out there. You get all of the good stuff five minutes before me at the sales. I'd like to utilize this blog to help us find each other and help each other. How to clean this? Is it Marghab? What the heck was this used for? So many questions. Hoping those of you how share my addiction passion will join me.

And here's the last secret I'm letting you in on today - I am working to make the addiction pay its own way. I've been selling on eBay for years (a subject for future posts), but have made the decision to quit hiding behind my monitor and set up brick and mortar shop space. After scouring the area, I chose an antique cooperative in Bucks County, Stone House Antique Center. They blogged about me at Stone House too..



 This is my space at Stone House Antiques Center in Mechanicsville, PA.

 I call my shop (and my eBay store) the Stone Cottage Workshop. If you identify as another of the crazies addicted to antique textiles, with occasional side dishes of painted furniture and disparaging remarks on random topics, I would be so pleased if you would join me on the journey. I love company.

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