Vintage View Sunday: Patterns and Barkcloth

Happy Sunday to everyone!

So sorry to post this late, but I've had to push through a migraine since Wednesday!  Ugh!  

All better this morning and ready to show you what vintage things 

have inspired me and my party goers this week! I've been HOOKED on patterns 

since I got a whole bag at a thrift shop a few weeks ago for 4.00:

Diane from Vintage Zest is also hooked on patterns, 

especially when they're free--lucky lady!

And Lisa from Helen's Legacy found a living model of 

50s vintage patterns in Taylor Swift. Check out Lisa's blog to see more of 

the adorable vintage clothes that Taylor wears:

But if you aren't sewing right now or wearing vintage clothing, what do you  do with 

all those patterns?  My solution-- buy pattern styled supplies! 

I bought clear stamp pattern ladies and wood block pattern girls, 

and pulled out items in my current favorite color scheme:

Wanting to do something with the pattern tissue, I tried punching it with a flower punch.  

Not too difficult, and I really like the resulting flower:

I can see these clustered on a wreath or package, which now that I'm feeling better I will put together and show you soon.  I will continue to play and post my creations.

Moving from patterns, I want to share with you about barkcloth. I didn't know anything about this wondeful fabric, except that I LOVED it, and it was the fabric covering so much of my grandmother's furniture.  It was just a faint memory until Michelle from The Day before This Day posted a shoulder bag she made from barkcloth:

A Wikipedia entry on barkcloth indicates that it originated in Asia and Africa and was made from beating damp fibrous bark strands from the Moraceae family of trees into sheets that are then made into different items. In the past, clothes made of barkcloth were often called "paper clothing." In the 30s through 50s, a soft, dense woven fabric that resembled barkcloth became popular in home decor for slipcovers, upholstery, and drapery. The prints were exotic: tropical flowers, scenes of Asia, and many others. This is the barkcloth I so fondly remember at my grandmother's house. 

It must have provided a small escape from the daily sameness of farm living 

year after year in the landlocked Midwest.

You can find a lot of examples on Pinterest:

and Google Images:

And there are a few books published by Schiffer on barkcloth, available at Amazon:

Thank you Michelle, Lisa, and Diane for this wonderful inspiration 

on this Vintage View Sunday! 

Laura 

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please grab my button from my left side bar and post on your blog.

 Now for the Next Vintage View Sunday Party!

I'm going to change the party theme just a little bit.  I am always inspired by the past and will continue to write a main post about vintage and antique items that are part of my life, but I realize that not everyone posts vintage things. 

I would like to open the party to what inspires you.  Please feel free to link up any of your creations or decor that has been inspired by something or someone--esp from the past--and that you think would inspired us.  

Let's get inspirational!

If you are linking up, please link back to my blog. 

And I would love for you to become a follower!  :-)