Featured Vintage pincushion -- home-made or commercial? Era?

The cute little lady looks very clean and dust-free. Maybe she was in a drawer all her life, but I'd expect sun-fading and a layer of dust if she'd been languishing for long on any surface at my place. All the old prints are back again with patchworking, so I'd hazard she's newer. But she is very sweet ...

 

It seems like such an obvious idea, must have been done. Anyone ever see a voodoo pin cushion?

 

Check out some of the older Russian peasant tea cozies.....

 

Thanks... I think she's cute, too.

I would have thought she was more recent, too, except I inherited her from my mother in 2000, and my mother hadn't been buying things for quite a while at that point. The pincushion was tucked away safe and sound, which probably accounts for it's condition.

My mother had things packed away that she'd had even from the '30s through '60s that I'd never seen and had no idea existed. She was a collector and packrat, but a neat one, using every bit of every drawer, closet, and box to store things. So it's a bit of a treasure hunt + detective story going through them.

 

I think the idea gives me the creeps!

 

Thanks, Judy. Last night I did more googling and did find some Russian tea cozies and other items that had somewhat the same feel. I assume my lady was either Russian or Russia-inspired.

Both my grandmothers were born in or near Russia, but a century earlier than when I think this pincushion would have been created. I don't think it belonged to either of them.

My mother lived in an area of NYC that was very multi-cultural, and some of the things she picked up locally reflect that. Makes for a very diverse collection...

 

I don't think your pincushion is terribly old either, but the style of her face and head scarf are fashioned after the much older tea cozies. Perhaps she represents a certain province in Russia.

A multicultural neighborhood has much to offer.

 

Yes, indeed, it does have much to offer.

Thanks everyone for the replies!

 

I've seen that red sprigged fabric recently at Joanne's so I don't think it's really old. As someone said - either a craft project or something from a boutique shop or craft show. I'd be more likely to say craft show because the ones around here have stuff like this. It's too well done to be just a mass produced item.

 

I keep thinking the kind of church fund raiser where they sell things like this & toilet paper roll covers & baked goods made by congregants, mostly to one another.

 

I certainly don't know for sure, but when I first viewed it looked like it has a Russian vibe to it. Reminds me a bit of the Russian nesting dolls in appearance.

 

Maybe it was a Russian Orthodox church..

 

Bev, it's at least as old as the 1990s since I inherited it in 2000.

In the '90s my mother did go to flea markets sometimes to buy antiques. It's possible she picked the pin cushion up at one of these flea markets as a new item from someone selling this type of handcraft.

 

I could picture that, too, although that's not the kind of event my mother generally went to.

 

Yup, for sure it seems to be Russian-style.

 

If she didn't use it & not the kind of thing she would have bought, maybe a small gift, possibly from the person who made it? Know my mother wouldn't have made or bought, but if it had been a gift, she would have felt honor bound not to give it away or throw it out.

 

I think it's most likely that my mom bought the pin cushion.

Her eclectic collection included two types of things... aesthetically pleasing items (she was an artist) and quirky items with personality that fit her sometimes offbeat sense of humor. I have no doubt that the look on Mrs. Pin Cushion's face drew my mother in and led to her buying it!

My mom was also a packrat, so once she bought something, she didn't readily part with it unless she purchased it to give as a gift in the first place. Once she had it, it was hers for life!

 

Now that I think of it, maybe it reminded my mother of her Russian immigrant maternal grandparents who she spent time with when she was young? So maybe a nostalgic purchase on her part.

 

The closest I've found is googling: babushka pin cushion

No cigar, but the best search terms I've found.

edit: oh, and I agree with @Debora on the era... dating fabrics is not my specialty, but the strawberry fabric... it definitely seems early 70s to me.

 

Thanks, Jivvy. My mother did a lot of collecting in the '70s, so that fits.