Doilies

More doilies
Originally uploaded by Tera in the Isles

It's back to this is it? I have picked up doily making again. Once I start making colorful, kitschy doilies I can't stop. My favorite color combination is pink, red and turquoise. Those colors remind me of my Grandmother in Del Rio. They are the colors of her life: turquoise kitchen, pink bathroom, red tablecloths,red-pink and turquoise tiles, Formica, metal table, chairs, curtains. She loves to wear pink and wears various shade of it very well. These are the colors of her hair curlers, colors of her vintage knick-knacks, of her dishes and her carnations. She used to work at a flower shop and make corsages and bouquets and she always mentions the pink, turquoise and red ribbons used.

Primary colors remind me of Mexican curios. Those are things that I never seem to tire of looking at. I constantly draw inspiration being around Mexican curios. I could browse aisles and aisles of curios and still want to see more. In fact, I would love to see some soon.

I enjoy crocheting these so much and become so addicted, it's easy to create a stack before too long. But what do you do with doilies? They are definitely a useless item these days. Back when everything a person owned was important and not a throw away, doilies were a way to protect your things from each other. Why scratch up your wonderful, cherry bureau with your cute, ceramic poodle vase when you could insert a doily between the two and protect them both. That white, unglazed, ceramic rim under the case would not darken or chip if placed on some cute doily. They were placed on chairs and sofa's where the most wear would occur so the furniture could stay nice longer. In the kitchen they covered rolls or tortillas that were set on the table to keep them warm in a pretty way. In the bath one was placed over the extra roll of toilet paper that sat behind the toilet. They were placed in baskets to fancy them up for gift giving and could be re-used for any of the above.

Have doilies always been kitschy? I don't think so. I have seen works of art made of the thinnest gauged thread and with the tiniest of hooks that sit on bureaus and nothing sits on them because nothing should. useless or not, they are being made non-stop and would be 24/7 if I didn't have to work, sleep or tend to chickens, kitties, herb gardens etc....