My great grandma (and my namesake) made two matching afghans for my mom and my aunt as children. She was far from the only fiber crafter in my family. Her mom, my great-great grandma, crocheted with thread. She worked so quickly that she kept talcum powder in her project bag. (It dries the hands to reduce drag.) I’ve heard that serious pool and billiards players do the same, of course I’d never imply that she was a hustler…we’re all dignified, god-fearing, intelligent, and sassy women.
When I was growing up, I had one of those afghans on my bed. It felt extra special knowing that such a special woman (all Almas are special, by the way…and yes I’ll fight you on that) had made this blanket.
My dad’s mom was also prolific with crafts of all kinds – she painted, worked in ceramics, did woodwork, leatherwork, metalwork, sewed, crochetted, and knit…I know I’m leaving some off of the list. When I was in middle school, I made a blanket based on a pattern she talked about during a visit.
So my great grandma Alma taught my mom to crochet. My mom taught me when I was little and I used a lot of vintage tools and materials (Speed-Cro-Sheen was a favorite).
My mom’s dad (my grandpa) loved a good rummage sale (that’s a yard/garage sale for the non-midwesterners) and always picked up yarn, needles or hooks when he saw them. Last summer, I received three tubs of vintage thread that my grandpa had collected throughout the 1990s. As I reviewed, sorted, and cataloged it all, I found thread that matched that familiar afghan pretty closely.
I was instantly inspired…and instantly intimidated. I had never worked with anything as fine as this 30 weight thread. The recommended hook size for this is a whole one millimeter in diameter. So, I moved several lamps and I got to work!
This is the first micro memento. An afghan made by my great grandma, which kept my mom warm, made in miniature by me, using thread collected by my grandpa. My grandma loves it!
