Warmth, Welcome, Hospitality

 

See Grandma.
See Grandma's hands.
Grandma's hands are always busy!
Grandma's hands are always helping!
Grandma is happy.
See Grandma smile.
See Grandma.

How I love my Grandma Ethel Hurst Speas. I cannot recall a harsh word ever escaping from her lips. Her hands were rarely idle, even when visiting with family or neighbors she would reach for handwork or a crochet project. Nearly each week she came to our home to help out with gardening, sewing, quilting, canning, or whatever needed to be done. Grandpa would drop her off and I remember that a crochet project was always in her hand as she walked in the door. I suspect she crocheted during the short ten mile drive to our home. If the work was done before Grandpa came to drive her home, no minutes were wasted.

I wish that she had kept a ledger of her beautiful handcrafted doilies. Surely, she created dozens and dozens for practical reasons and for special gifts for all those she loved. Each of the grandchildren received one in their favorite color.

Pineapple Crochet

The pineapple motif was prominent in most of her favorite doily patterns. Was she aware of the symbolism of the pineapple? Perhaps not, but she graciously embodied the meaning of the emblem: warmth, welcome, and hospitality.

Each of her creations was unique, due in part to the addition of tiny seed beads to her work. This greatly multiplied the effort required to finish a doily. 

• First she would string tubes of tiny seed beads onto sturdy sewing thread. 
• As she reached each pineapple motif in the pattern, she would incorporate a bead into strategic stitches to add color and texture to the doily.

This example is not one of hers, but illustrates the position of the beads.

When the doily was completely crocheted, the work was not done.

The handwork would be delicately washed and dipped in a light mixture of starch after which she would squeeze out all the excess.

She would dilute
the starch.

Stretching the finished crochet

It was important that the doilies be perfectly round and symmetrical. This was accomplished by stretching the doilies on a porous fiber board. The center, as well as the point of each pineapple and each picot on the edging was secured with a pin. 

The stretched masterpiece was left to dry, the pins were removed, and it was ready to share. 

Grandma enjoyed crochet, she enjoyed the creative process of adding beads to her work, and she enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment when her work was admired. I'm very confident, however, to say that she enjoyed sharing and giving the most.