When I saw the theme for the heirloom challenge I immediately thought, "heirloom tomatoes" just like Susan Freund did. Then I went to search my fabric bins for tomato colors, rich reds, oranges, yellow and greens.
In one of the bins, not at all where it belongs, was this vintage hankie. This is not a family heirloom, I have never been lucky enough to have any precious heirlooms handed down to me by my ancestors. I bought it at the Sturbridge textile show when I went last year with Donna Hopkins. But it did make me think that it was someone's family heirloom once. Maybe the person who bought it didn't have a daughter or granddaughter that would appreciate such a lovely textile. So am glad I rescued it, and gave it new life as a table topper. I want to get a beautiful Tiffany lamp to put in the center of the topper, and place it on a square antique table. This beautiful vignette that I am dreaming of reminds me of my grandmother's house.
If any of my ancestors had thought ahead, they would have left me these precious family heirlooms! I guess I will have to shop antique stores and create my own heirlooms and stories to go with them! With my luck, my daughter won't appreciate the topper, the lamp or the table. I hope they don't end up at an antique store when I am gone!
