| Our kids are grown up now, so we don’t have any starry-eyed kiddos (or sugar-hyped ankle-biters) being tucked in on Christmas Eve. The price of a real Christmas tree has gone up so much that we resorted to a synthetic tree years ago. The boxes of ornaments lovingly collected over the decades, have been tucked in the basement for the last few years. I buy a fresh wreath and hang it near where we used to set up the tree, so we can still enjoy the pine fragrance. We have 3 rescue cats (including one dangerously curious young’un) so I’ve rationalized that a decorated tree these days would be a disaster. The hyper kitty knocks things on the floor and then one of our dogs chews them up. Not a good partnership. But on Christmas Eve I have to get out my ancient copy of “Jolly Old Santa Claus” (from my own childhood) and read through in a whisper, with moist eyes. The illustrator of this classic book had a huge influence on me as a young artist, although it took awhile for me to realize this. I adored this book, studied the pictures and memorized all the details. (Like finding the cat in every scene.) The day that I realized they were all works of art – illustrations – paintings! – was a huge ephiphany. Wow! I wanted to learn how to make images like that! I wanted to be an artist! I remember it very clearly. Artist George Hinke came from Germany, to live in Wisconsin, in 1923. He died in Milwaukee in 1953, 5 years before I was born in that town. The reason I bring him up is because so many beautiful Santa Claus illustrations have been inspired by Hinke’s work, and have been reproduced on fabric over the years. There have been so many generations of Hinke-inspired Santas that his original artwork has been obscured. But I remember. I see that twinkle that he put in Santa’s eye, in many contemporary illustrations. If you keep an eye out, you’ll see it too. There’s even a Black Santa with a twinkle! I always felt that George captured the spirit of Christmas perfectly. The scenes in “Jolly Old Santa Claus” (author Alice Leedy Mason) capture the joy of creating something beautiful that is meant to be given as a loving gift to someone special. That is something that all of us quilters, crafters and makers can relate to. We are all on Santa’s team this time of year, no matter what our faith, because the urge to make and give handmade gifts as we gather with loved ones, is a universal sentiment shared by all who stitch, paint, design and create. Whether you make for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, Las Posadas, Omisoka, or New Years…we are celebrating that creative energy that is the source of love and life. May all of our creative angels bless us with inspiration and ambition as we finish our holiday projects! Sharing your love of fabric, Luana and Paul Travel/Quilt Calendar: Nov 30 – Dec 3 – Clinton Presidential Library – Artist Reception & Women’s Rights Conference Feb 22-25 – QuiltCon – GOLD SPONSOR – Atlanta April 18-26 – Pour l’Amour du Fil – Nantes, France Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas. |
