The rickrack caught my attention first.
Then I noticed the delicate crocheted stitches surrounding it. They were slightly uneven and therefore almost certainly made by hand.
It had been placed to the side, as if unworthy of being in a prime location. It had been covered with some other things as if to camouflage what was perceived as a flaw.
I excitedly moved everything to pick it up. I reached to turn it over and check the hem. It’s then that I spotted the best part…
… yes, faded printing – probably once black, now a soft, faded gray.
I wondered if it was from Hudson Cream, a local flour company, because I can make out “cream” clearly. However, the other letters do not fit.
All I do know for sure is that it’s a treasure – not every day brings one into your life, but today was a lucky day for me, for this beauty is now in my home.
For a mere fifty cents I have a reminder of another time. A time when fabric was so scarce, and beauty so desired, that a woman used a flour sack, a piece of rickrack and some thread to create something special. Whoever’s hands created this may be laid to rest now, but this little bit of what they left behind is living on with me, and its value is far beyond monetary. It’s a testament to how we all long for beauty, and find ways to fulfill that need in even the most dire of circumstances.
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