Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

HAND EMBROIDERED

Date Range From

1945

Date Range To

1955

Materials

LINEN, THREAD

No. Pieces

1

Height

0.25

Length

78

Width

52

Description

WHITE LINEN PILLOWCASE, HAND EMBROIDERED WITH BUTTERFLY DESIGN IN BLUE, YELLOW, BLACK, WHITE AND GREEN ALONG FRONT OPEN EDGE. OPEN EDGE HAS WHITE CROCHETED BORDER IN SCALLOPED DESIGN. GENERAL CREASING.

Subjects

BEDDING

Historical Association

DOMESTIC

History

THIS PILLOWCASE WAS EMBROIDERED BY THE MOTHER OF THE DONOR, JUNE MANCHAK. ON JUNE 12, 2013, GALT MUSEUM COLLECTIONS TECH KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED MANCHAK ABOUT THIS PILLOWCASE, AS WELL AS ANOTHER (P2013009001-GA) AND A DECORATIVE CUSHION TOP (P20130009003-GA), AND HER FAMILY’S LIFE IN CARDSTON. MANCHAK SAID: “I WAS GIVEN THESE OBJECTS BACK TO ME, OR SOME OF THEM, ANYWAY, BACK TO ME AFTER MY SISTER, MERLIN, PASSED AWAY. HER DAUGHTER RETURNED THEM TO ME… I HAD MADE… DONE THE EMBROIDERY ON THESE TWO SETS OF PILLOWCASES, BUT I WAS UNABLE TO CROCHET AT THE TIME, AND SO MY MOTHER DID THE CROCHETING ON THEM AT THAT TIME… ALL THESE PRETTY LITTLE BUTTERFLIES. AND THESE TWO SETS OF PILLOWCASES WENT, TRAVELLED QUITE A BIT. THEY WENT TO WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON, AND THEN, WHEN MY SISTER DIED, HER DAUGHTER TOOK THEM BACK TO LAS VEGAS, AND WHEN SHE DECIDED THAT PROBABLY THEY SHOULD BE RETURNED TO ME, SO THEY WERE. AND WHEN ONE OF HER DAUGHTERS MARRIED, I GAVE ONE PAIR TO THAT DAUGHTER. AND SO THEY RETURNED FROM PHOENIX, THEN TO LAS VEGAS, AND NOW THEY ARE SITTING HERE IN LETHBRIDGE… WE MADE THEM FOR A WEDDING GIFT OR MY WEDDING GIFT FOR MY SISTER WHEN SHE GOT MARRIED… IT JUST CAME NATURALLY, I DON’T KNOW, MAKING DOLL CLOTHES… YOU WENT TO THE RAG DRAWER AND GOT OUT WHATEVER WAS AVAILABLE IN MATERIAL, AND GOT SOME THREAD, AND YOU MADE DOLL CLOTHES, AND THEN IT PROGRESSED… AND I ALWAYS LIKED WORKING WITH MY HANDS… I THINK THAT EVERYONE DID A LOT OF NEEDLWORK AND THINGS BACK THEN. IT WAS A GOOD WAY TO FILL YOUR TIME. YOU LISTENED TO THE RADIO AND YOU WORKED WITH YOUR HANDS… YOU DON’T REALLY LEARN. I MEAN YOU LEARN THROUGH DOING. AND, AH, LIKE ALMOST ANY OTHER SKILL, THE MORE YOU WORK AT IT, THE BETTER YOU GET… YOU ALWAYS DID IT IN THE EVENINGS WHEN YOU WERE BABYSITTING… JUST WHEN YOU HAD TIME... I LEFT HOME AT EIGHTEEN, WHEN I WENT TO CALGARY TO THE BUSINESS COLLEGE THERE. AND THEN I MARRIED, WHEN I WAS NINETEEN, AND STARTED RAISING A FAMILY WHEN I WAS TWENTY… I STILL DID A LOT OF NEEDLEWORK AND WORKED WITH MY HANDS, BUT I DID A LOT OF SEWING, AND I WAS MAKING MY OWN CLOTHES WHEN I WAS TWELVE, FOURTEEN, SIXTEEN. MADE MY OWN GRADUATION DRESS; MADE MY OWN WEDDING DRESS… I NEEDED A PAIR OF SHORTS TO GO TO BEEHIVE CAMP AND SO MY ELDEST SISTER BROUGHT HOME A PATTERN AND SOME MATERIAL, AND SHE SAYS, “HERE YOU ARE, JUNE.” AND SO I GOT OUT THE INSTRUCTIONS AND LEARNED.” MANCHAK SAID THE FOLLOWING OF HER MOTHER: "MY MOTHER TAUGHT HERSELF TO CROCHET BY LOOKING AT OTHER CROCHETING. I TAUGHT MYSELF EVENTUALLY TO CROCHET FROM AN INSTRUCTION BOOK… [THE EMBROIDERED LINEN] IS PART OF MY MOTHER. AND SHE ALWAYS LOVED PRETTY, BEAUTIFUL THINGS. AND BEING A PIONEER MOTHER, RAISING ELEVEN CHILDREN, SHE DID NOT HAVE VERY MUCH. AND SO, EVERY LITTLE THING SHE CHERISHED… WHERE I USED THREE THREADS AT THE BORDER, WHICH WAS DIVIDING IT IN HALF, MY MOTHER USED… DIVIDED IT IN THIRDS, TO SAVE ON THE THREAD… [MY MOTHER] WAS EXCITED ABOUT EVERYTHING IN LIFE. I MEAN THE LITTLE BIT OF TRAVELLING SHE WAS ABLE TO DO, AND SO APPRECIATIVE OF EVERYTHING… [MY MOTHER] WAS BORN IN BUTTE, MONTANA, AND SHE CAME UP HERE WITH HER PARENTS… HER DAD WAS A COAL MINER… BUT HE DIDN’T LIKE IT, BECAUSE IT WAS SUCH DIRTY WORK… AND HE AND HIS WIFE CAME UP WITH THEIR YOUNGEST DAUGHTER, WHICH WAS MY MOTHER. AND STARTED A RANCH OUT BY BEAZER... [AND] I’M THE BABY OF ELEVEN." FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW, SEE PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20130009002

Acquisition Date

2013-06

Collection

Museum

Less detail