CHRISTMAS IN GRAVENHURST -

RE-VISITING THE HANDICRAFTS FROM THEN TO NOW - AND A WHOLE RANGE OF ARTISTIC, CREATIVE INGENUITY FROM OUR HOMES TO YOURS

I JUST MADE EYE TO ANTENNAE CONTACT WITH MY EVER-CHIRPING CRICKET FRIEND. IT'S BEEN A LODGER HERE THIS FALL SEASON, AND I'M NOT SURE IF IT'S ONE CRICKET OR A HALF DOZEN. FORTUNATELY, I ONLY HEAR ONE AT A TIME. I'M HOPING I WILL NOT BE THE AUDIENCE OF A CHRISTMAS-SEASON CHORUS THEY MIGHT HAVE PLANNED FOR THIS VENUE OF BIRCH HOLLOW. OF COURSE I'VE HAD THIS DILEMMA, ABOUT WHAT TO DO WITH THE WEE BEASTIE IF I WAS TO MOUNT A SUCCESSFUL CAPTURE. IT'S NOT THE BEST WEATHER TO BE SENDING SUCH A CREATURE OUT OF DOORS. SO I KEEP HOPING WE CAN CHUM TOGETHER WITHOUT TOO MUCH CONTACT, SO I DON'T HAVE TO ENTERTAIN SUCH AN IDEA. FOR ALL I KNOW, I COULD BE BREAKING UP A FAMILY, BY CATCHING THIS INTERLOPER.

I BETTER START MAKING THESE NOTES BEFORE HE INTERRUPTS AGAIN. I KEEP HAVING TO PAUSE. NO REAL REASON. THE SOUND JUST DISTRACTS ME LONG ENOUGH, I FORGET MY LAST RELEVANT THOUGHT. HERE GOES.

As luck would have it, I found the book mentioned in a previous blog. There it was, wedged in the middle of a hundred other books, leaning a little to the left, but easy to pull out, without the usual landslide such retrieval activities frequently cause. It is entitled simply, "Handicrafts of New England." It is a 1950's circa edition, which had its seed in early magazine work from the mid 1940's. It was written by Alan H. Eaton, and published at the time, by Bonanza Books, of New York.

It begins, "There is no wealth but life. Life, including all its powers of love, of joy, and of admiration. That country is richest which nourishes the greatest number of noble and happy human beings." John Ruskin.

Robert Henri wrote, "Art when really understood is the province of every human being. It is simply a question of doing things, anything well. It is not an outside extra thing…..He (She) does not have to be a painter or a sculptor to be an artist. He / She can work in any medium. They simply have to find the gain in the work itself, not outside it."

"A study of the handicrafts of New England might well be considered an inquiry into the place of handicrafts in our present civilization, for within her boundaries are combined all the elements which make what we call modern civilization," notes Mr. Eaton in his introduction. "Notwithstanding the great industrial and commercial developments of this region today, there is practiced within the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, perhaps the widest variety of handicrafts in any country. The spread of motivation ranges from those whose handicrafts must provide the necessities of life to others, who, although free from economic pressure, still make objects with their hands because of man's natural urge to convert materials of his environment into useful and beautiful forms.

"The word 'handicraft,' as used in this book, is a broad term including all these things which are shaped by hand either for the maker's own use or for others. The article may be fashioned entirely by hand, including the preparation of all the materials in basketmaking; or it may be part machine made, as in preparation of woods for fine cabinet-work, and the machine spinning of thread and yarn to be woven on a hand loom. But if the final product, the character of the thing itself, is shaped by hand, it is an object of handicraft. Thus the old world handicraft, as defined by Webster, is a good word,….. for it says exactly what it means."

From my own experience writing feature stories in Muskoka, and being a collector of many hand-made articles (particularly hand-made furnishings from a bygone era), from paintings to quilts, I believe Muskoka has a treasure-trove of fascinating biographies, of largely unsung craftspeople……who have never belonged to an arts and crafts movement, or been on a special tour of artists, or who have never sold anything they've created. Undoubtedly there are many artisans who simply give items away, ranging from home-made fishing lures and decoys, to hand-knit sweaters, mitts, and gloves. The book is a more thorough examination, than I can obviously offer at present, about the various guilds that were put in place, to allow these crafters to market their creations……and the many obstacles that were in the way, of establishing their work as regional industry……and creating a fair balance for the home-workers, to compete in the dog-eat-dog commercial environs of the post war period. The fascination for me, was the book's biographical work, highlighting so many different handicrafts, as it is referred, and giving readers an opportunity to know more about the cultural heritage that was in danger of disappearing…….as manufactured goods were faster to produce, cost less generally, and had the advantage of wide-scale marketing and shipping. It was tough, you bet, for a home knitter, to compete with volume and fair pricing, the parallel articles that were being manufactured by the multimillions for a bargain-conscious audience. Quality, for awhile, lost its significance. Price was becoming the bottom line. Of course, there have always been those who would gratefully choose "handmade" versus the product of a machine.

My introduction to the crafters in our region, came when I was editor of The Herald-Gazette, in Bracebridge, in the 1980's, and it was my job to edit the weekly submissions from our community correspondents. We had space reserved in the newspaper for all our small hamlets and community organizations, ranging from the Women's Institute, 4-H Clubs, Church Women's groups and many, many others. The copy was full of information about the comings and goings of local citizens, and events in these hamlets, as well as updates on fundraising projects, such as community quilts, which were to be auctioned off eventually, and the money directed at a wide array of missions, initiatives and local building projects. I read about every craft imaginable in these enlightening community columns…..that while admittedly more time consuming than most other editorial work, were particularly enjoyable because they were deep and sincere reflections of rural life and times.

I know so much more about our district because of the decade I spent working in their company. In fact, I read about my own future wife, in columns back then, written by Mrs. Bunn, under the heading "Windermere News," and in the Women's Institute and United Church reports, especially her quilt work for these same fundraisers. She was the go-to person when a quilt needed to be put together…..not so much the quilting itself…..which she can still do, but now mostly for repairs.

Suzanne is a home-knitter and she has begun selling her mitts, scarves, socks and hats at our boys music shop, and she's been getting custom orders for Christmas. And I used to get annoyed by the ticky-tacking sound of needles connecting……which at first seemed a whole lot like a dripping faucet. Now that she's turned it into a business, well sir, I can take my mind off the ticking, and be overjoyed by her newfound success. What began from youth, being taught by her mother Harriett, in Windermere, and was refined by suggestions and tricks of the trade by many family crafters over the decades, has always been a part of our Birch Hollow hubbub here…….she has made sweaters for family members for decades, and our boys had a lot of knitwear as kids. Robert now proudly wears his mom's handmade socks, and mitts, and begs her to fix any wear holes…….because he refuses to discard them for new.

I hope you don't perceive this to be a shameless info-mercial for my wife's knitting. But how many highly skilled knitters and quilters, afghan crafters, candlestick makers are out there, doing their thing, with nary a headline or a brief biographic notice. They are important to know about…..even if they aren't selling their wares. Low and behold, they are the fabric of our community, and our hometown. You'd be surprised to know how many of these kindly crafts folk, do their work for charity……mitts and baby knitwear are sent to hospitals and to missions around the globe, to help the less fortunate……a generosity that goes back to the war years and earlier, when those on the home front, made knit items, to send to the soldier's on the battlefront. It's still a benevolent act, being done in one form or other today…..and tomorrow, and unfortunately, we know so little about it all!

Over the centuries, we have had some amazing talents in this region, in a large and diverse field of handicrafts. Some we know about. Many we travel to see on studio tours, and at special art exhibits. Many of us have homes and offices decorated with these well executed, hand crafted pieces, from tea sets, to the most amazing glass creations, paintings and sculptures of international acclaim. And then we have the home-sewers and quilters, who have done the most exquisite work, without nary a fuss being made…….until it is either given as a gift or offered as an auction item in a local fundraiser…….the generosity that repeats many times each year throughout our district.

Excuse me for being aggravated sometimes, when I read the community press, and find the pre-occupation of doom and gloom consuming most of the ink. It used to be that newspapers serving this region, believed in the relevance of outreach and a strong connectedness to the rural areas….the hamlets and villages that still thrive in the beautiful countryside of this amazing region of Canada. Without the weight of BIA debates and the preponderance of politics at every turn, economics oppressing us, like carrying around barbells, the country accounts might serve quite refreshing today……as they always did during my editorial tenure. I found out Muskoka is much more than political posturing, grip and grin ribbon cuttings, and economic belly-aching to get a headline. There was a richness to harvest out there, that was and is still important, to our overall well being as a district…..and as a hometown. We have forgotten that our town isn't defined by the main street, the Wharf, South End developments, or the new recreation centre…….or even the ruckus at town hall. It's the bigger picture we often minimize because that's what the media, the business community, and the politicians reflect as being most important. How many times a year does a hamlet conundrum make a headline in our paper, unless there is some calamity. Maybe there aren't enough reporters to look at our rural climes. More likely, they don't appreciate the social /cultural importance, of including them in our town reporting…..as frequently as once in our mutual history. Gravenhurst is a tad bigger than most of us might believe, from the balance of reporting. There are a lot of great human interest stories out there……but who cares? Right? How many subscriptions and newsstand sales are going to increase because of a feature story on Barkway or Housey's Rapids? I'd read it! Heck I'd write it, if they'd print it!

It's time we got our poop together, and realized that our hometown, our home region, is much more diverse and exciting than most of us know…….and the folks who still rurally, for the love of open spaces, are just as important a consideration, as anything else we are trying to nurture and promote in Muskoka. While handicrafters don't only live in the rural areas of our municipality, it is where you will find many art studios……as the countryside is still the same inspiring locale, as it was in the beginning of our history here. I have a great deal of respect for those who craft anything at all. Alas, I'm only a writer, dependent on my wife to keep me clothed in the finest Muskoka knits. Now that's shameful advertising.

ON ANOTHER NOTE, PLEASE COME OUT TO OUR "NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS" FUNDRAISER, FOR THE SALVATION ARMY FOOD BANK, ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10TH, BEGINNING AT 7 P.M., AT THE GRAVENHURST OPERA HOUSE. ADMISSION IS BY DONATION. FOOD DONATIONS WILL ALSO BE COLLECTED. IF YOU FIND YOURSELVES WITHOUT COIN IN HAND, PLEASE COME ANYWAY AS OUR GUEST. WE SHOULD BE TOGETHER AT CHRISTMAS. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU.