Skip to main content

The #JacobinDay Quilt Block Swap (#JDQBS)

 


It all started with a Tweet...


Well, maybe it all started in 1793, when the new French government introduced a new calendar, one that was stripped of royal and religious influences, used a decimal system, and celebrated the ordinary, everyday passing of the seasons within nature, agriculture and gardening.

According to our friend Wikipedia the months were given new names based on Parisian weather patterns:

  • Autumn:
    • Vendémiaire (from French vendange, derived from Latin vindemia, "vintage"), starting 22, 23, or 24 September
    • Brumaire (from French brume, "mist"), starting 22, 23, or 24 October
    • Frimaire (From French frimas, "frost"), starting 21, 22, or 23 November
  • Winter:
    • Nivôse (from Latin nivosus, "snowy"), starting 21, 22, or 23 December
    • Pluviôse (from French pluvieux, derived from Latin pluvius, "rainy"), starting 20, 21, or 22 January
    • Ventôse (from French venteux, derived from Latin ventosus, "windy"), starting 19, 20, or 21 February
  • Spring:
    • Germinal (from French germination), starting 20 or 21 March
    • Floréal (from French fleur, derived from Latin flos, "flower"), starting 20 or 21 April
    • Prairial (from French prairie, "meadow"), starting 20 or 21 May
  • Summer:
    • Messidor (from Latin messis, "harvest"), starting 19 or 20 June
    • Thermidor (or Fervidor*) (from Greek thermon, "summer heat"), starting 19 or 20 July
    • Fructidor (from Latin fructus, "fruit"), starting 18 or 19 August

Within each month, every day has a different dedication, for example the 25th to 30th of Ventôse (15th-20th March) celebrate Tuna, Dandelion, Wood Anemone, Maidenhair Fern, Ash tree, and Dibbers. The whole calendar with all dedications can be read at the aforementioned Wiki page.

A contemporary French illustration of Messidor (June-July)

OK, this is all fascinating, but what ON EARTH does it have to do with crafting during lockdown?!?

Well, @melindahaunton got interested in the Revolutionary Calendar, and started a daily photo challenge to post an image of that day's dedication on Twitter, using the hashtag #JacobinDay (Jacobin being a nickname for the French Revolutionaries). The challenge soon attracted a community of devotees and became a delightful distraction during lockdown.


The challenge expanded from offering a simple photo of the item in question to puns, anagrams, artworks, gifs and sideways thinking. There were poetry reading and prizes for some months! The Twitterati who participate in #JacobinDay have significant cross-over with those who also do #ConfinedCrafting...

So when @LouiseARay posted a beautiful chard-themed fabric design for 6 Germinal (March 27) and @toastteacake suggested the making of a #JacobinDay quilt ... there were quite a few enthusiastic people willing to make that happen!

I'll explain more about how we intend to make the quilt(s) in my next #JDQBS post...

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Eco-friendly Upcycled Face Wipes

 I recently ran up some eco-friendly face wipes for a friend. These are designed to replace cotton pads or face wipes, and are washable. To increase their green credentials I made the pad section from an old towel. I had some charm squares spare, so used those as the backing fabric. I cut the towel into squares that were slightly smaller than the charm square, and wrapped the fabric over the towel piece to form a small border.  I then sewed the top fabric down with a zigzag stitch. This meant I was mainly sewing on the fabric, as my machine can't sew through towel (unless I haven't found the right setting or needle of course)! Very very simple, but pretty and functional! There are lots of tutorials for other ways to make these face wipes, such as:  https://www.arosetintedworld.co.uk/how-to-make-reusable-make-up-remover-pads/ It seems to be even more simple with an overlocker:  http://juliawithanh.com/sewing/23-reusable-face-pads You can even crochet some! https://dab...
Post a Comment
Read more

Musings of a Beginner Dress-maker: #historybounding

 I've always wanted to learn to make my own clothes, but it's not something I've had time or felt confident enough to try until recently. I am ENTIRELY a beginner - I didn't have a single sewing lesson at school and until I bought my first one had not so much as touched a sewing machine. I wrote in my Sewing Resolutions post about being plus-size and how I see dressmaking as a way to make clothes that fit me well. But that's not the whole story, and I've recently found a community of sewers who express exactly what I would like to achieve: #historybounding The term #historybounding was coined by Morgan Donner in this video: It refers to those of us who want to incorporate some historical elements to our daily style, whether that is going full-on vintage or using shapes, silhouettes and accessories that 'feel' historical. There's a strong overlap between "history bounders" and #costubers - those people who have YouTube channels where they f...
Post a Comment
Read more

New Year Resolutions 2022

 Happy New Year! It's 2022 already... The #ConfinedCrafting blog is now a year old. Which brings me to my first resolution: update the blog more often ! I haven't been a regular blogger and I would really like to make a good go of regular updates here. My new sewing assistant is even more disruptive than the cats! Meet Rudolph the Spanador (Cocker Spaniel-Labrador mix). Spot my stolen tape-measure... My second resolution involves following projects through to the end before getting distracted planning a new project! I really enjoy the process of planning, choosing a pattern, assembling the kit, even cutting out the fabric, and often at that point I start to sew then run out of time to finish in one go, then just ... Never pick it up again. Even if I really want the thing I am making! Hence the resolution to focus and finish on a project before starting another. I still haven't hemmed this circle skirt that I made in May 2021... My third resolution is to keep my sewing area...
Post a Comment
Read more