Notes From a Thimble Psycho

How to make Thimble Soup (Yüksük Çorbası)

2010-08-19T17:50:00.000-07:00

Thimble Soup from Zerrin Gunaydin on Vimeo.

For recipe and informative information, see Give Recipe.

Maybe it's because thimbles are so small...

2010-06-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Hello! I have to take some of the posts I have made offline because somebody somewhere has posted MANY "comments" about the pharmaceuticals they sell. I will not mention the purpose of the aforementioned pharmaceuticals because I don't want to even more comments on the this not-thimble topic. I will re-post the posts (sorry about the awkward diction) once I have deleted the myriad comments.

Thimble of Knowledge

2010-01-02T15:26:00.000-08:00

Click on image to go to larger image at Dilbert.com.

Russian Niello Thimbles

2009-12-13T16:46:00.000-08:00

There seems to be a lot of Russian niello thimbles on eBay and elsewhere lately, generally coming out of Yerevan, Armenia. Some of them have an all-over niello design while some are predominantly bas-relief or filigree with niello accents. I haven't handled one yet but the online photos are all fairly detailed and they seem to be genuine. I have seen one advertisement for a "Russian" thimble, also out of Yerevan, that looked more Iranian to me, but in that particular instance there would not have been a difference in the thimble's value.

Piercy's Patent

2009-12-10T13:25:00.000-08:00

This Piercy's Patent thimble was recently (Nov 27th through Dec 7th) put up for auction by one of my favorite eBay sellers, Elegant Arts Antiques. The thimble has a sterling silver top with a tortoiseshell body decorated with a yellow gold floral design and cartouche and rose gold rim. I don't really care for the Piercy's Patent thimble one usually sees, which has sort of a slanted shield on its face, but I do rather like this design. It is still too expensive for me, though. The starting bid on the auction was US$50.00, with the ending price at US$1,176.79, which still did not meet the reserve price. It will be interesting to see what it will eventually sell for.

Cartier gold thimble from Simons Bros.

2009-12-03T06:14:00.000-08:00

14K gold thimble from Simons Bros., size 9, marked Cartier, with crocheted hat thimble cozy.
US$70.99; 2 bids, starting at US$69.00.

29 Nov 2009.

Recipe: White Chocolate Chunk Thimble Cookies

2009-12-02T15:46:00.000-08:00

White Chocolate Chunk Thimble Cookies
2 c. sugar
1 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tbsp. grated lemon zest
3¼ c. flour
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. baking soda
2 c. Nob Hill Trading Co. White Chocolate Chunks
1 c. raspberry jam

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cream together sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat in eggs and lemon zest.
Add flour, salt and baking soda, stirring until just combined.
Stir in white chocolate chunks.
Place heaping tablespoon-size balls on ungreased baking sheets; bake 10 minutes or until slightly soft in the center.
Remove from oven and make a thumb-size indentation in the center of each cookie; fill with about 1 tsp. jam.
Bake 5 minutes more or until cookies are lightly browned around edges.
Let cool on baking sheets for about 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool.

Nutrition per cookie: 230 calories, 2 g protein, 10 g fat (6 g sat., 0 g trans), 34 g carbohydrate, 0 g fiber, 30 mg cholesterol, 130 mg sodium, 4 points.
Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 15 minutes
Yield: about 36 cookies.

From: http://www.raleys.com

The Silver Thimble

2009-11-24T07:11:00.000-08:00

By Samuel Taylor Coleridge

THE PRODUCTION OF A YOUNG LADY, ADDRESSED TO THE AUTHOR OF THE POEMS ALLUDED TO IN THE PRECEDING EPISTLE

She had lost her silver thimble, and her complaint being accidentally overheard by him, her friend, he immediately sent her four others to take her choice of.

As oft mine eye with careless glance
Has gallop'd through some old romance,
Of speaking birds and steeds with wings,
Giants and dwarfs, and fiends and kings ;
Beyond the rest with more attentive care
I've loved to read of elfin-favoured fair
How if she long'd for aught beneath the sky
And suffer'd to escape one votive sigh,
Wafted along on viewless pinions aery
It laid itself obsequious at her feet:
Such things, I thought, one might not hope to meet
Save in the dear delicious land of Faery !
But now (by proof I know it well)
There's still some peril in free wishing——
Politeness is a licensed spell,
And you, dear sir ! the arch-magician.

You much perplex'd me by the various set:
They were indeed an elegant quartette !
My mind went to and fro, and wavered long ;
At length I've chosen (Samuel thinks me wrong)
That, around whose azure rim
Silver figures seem to swim,
Like fleece-white clouds, that on the skyey blue,
Waked by no breeze, the selfsame shapes retain ;
Or ocean-nymphs with limbs of snowy hue
Slow-floating o'er the calm cerulean plain.

Just such a one, mon cher ami,
(The finger shield of industry)
Th' inventive gods, I deem, to Pallas gave
What time the vain Arachne, madly brave,
Challenged the blue-eyed virgin of the sky
A duel in embroidered work to try.
And hence the thimbled finger of grave Pallas
To th' erring needle's point was more than callous.
But ah the poor Arachne ! She unarmed
Blundering through hasty eagerness, alarmed
With all a rival's hopes, a mortal's fears,
Still miss'd the stitch, and stain'd the web with tears.
Unnumber'd punctures small yet sore
Full fretfully the maiden bore,
Till she her lily finger found
Crimson'd with many a tiny wound ;
And to her eyes, suffused with watery woe,
Her flowei-embroider'd web danced dim, I wist,
Like blossom'd shrubs in a quick-moving mist:
Till vanquish'd the despairing maid sunk low.

O bard! whom sure no common muse inspires,
1 heard your verse that glows with vestal firas !
And I from unwatch'd needle's erring point
Had surely suffer'd on each finger joint
Those wounds, which erst did poor Arachne meet;
While he, the much-loved object of my choice
(My bosom thrilling with enthusiast heat),
Pour'd on mine ear with deep impressive voice,
How the great Prophet of the desert stood
And preach'd of penitence by Jordan's flood;
On war; or else the legendary lays
In simplest measures hymned to Alla's praise ;
Or what the bard from his heart's inmost stores
O'er his friend's grave in loftier numbers pours:
Yes, bard polite ! you but obey'd the laws
Of justice, when the thimble you had sent;
What wounds your thought-bewildering muse might
cause Tis well your finger-shielding gifts prevent.

[From: The poems of Samuel Taylor Coleridge.]

Recipe: Thimbleberry Jam

2009-11-22T18:32:00.000-08:00

Thimbleberry Jam

2 c. thimbleberries
2 c. sugar
3 half-pint jars with lids, sterilized.

In a heavy saucepan, bring berries & sugar to a boil over medium heat.
Cook for 5 minutes.
Pour into jars and seal.

At auction at Bonhams

2009-11-18T17:26:00.000-08:00

BRITISH & CONTINENTAL SILVER
& OBJECTS OF VERTU
Sale 16887
Bonhams, London, Knightbridge
2 Dec 2009

Lot 43: A 19th century gold thimble, unmarked, retailed by Shearo, Oxford, decorated with a strap and buckle motif, cased, length 2.4cm, diameter 1.6cm, weight 5.4gms.

Estimate: £200 - 250 (about US$334-418).

Update: Sold for £216 (about US$360) inclusive of Buyer's Premium.

Thimble Facts or Fiction?

2009-11-01T11:33:00.000-08:00

The Atchison (KS) Daily Globe,
31 May 1889; Issue 4,583; col G.

One hears of this Queen of Siam thimble, but one never sees the darned thing. Hmm. . .
The other thimbles referenced I have not heard of before. Which means nothing.
That thimbles had been unknown in England two hundred years before the article was published (1889) is wrong. Shakespeare (1564-1616) mentioned them.

The Washington Elm legend has been debunked, though a thimble from the tree might have existed.

The Dentists' Enemy!

2009-10-27T15:35:00.000-07:00

The Frankfort (KY) Roundabout,
11 March 1899, page 3.
Please click on image to enlarge.

Mrs. Smith gets around...

2009-10-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

New-York Daily Tribune, 2 January 1910, page 2.
(Click on picture to enlarge.)

Text of accompanying article:
CURIOUS THIMBLE
Unique Examples Collected in Many Countries.
Even the women who do not like to sew and men who do not have to, would surely be Interested in examining the collection of thimbles owned by Mrs. J. H. Smith, of Ann Arbor, Mich. From all parts of the world they come, these thimbles, some from far countries like Egypt. Japan and Ceylon, some from shops right here in New York.
Perhaps the prize of the lot is an exquisite thimble of gunmetal with a heavy border of colored gold, bearing the motto, "There is none great but Allah." This was made In Toledo, Spain, though the owner picked it up in France. Some of the prettiest ones, showing by their smallness that they were designed for slender fingers, are the five or six made in France. From Orleans comes one showing the "lily of France" and other symbolic designs. Chartres furnishes a plain silver thimble with a gold border, and a quaint tortoise shell finger shield is a memento of Bourges. A heavy metal thimble with a deep scalloped border was purchased at Nimes. From Mentone, in Southern France, come two— one of them a tiny thing, used, no doubt, by some French child In making her doll's clothes. The French gilt thimble with turquoise setting is manifestly of Venetian workmanship. From Bellagio come two—a massive round-topped one of olive wood and a fragile bit of tortoise shell.
Probably the most ancient specimen in the collection is a bronze thumb ring, meant for use In sewing, which was taken from an old Etruscan tomb near Perugia, Italy. Very characteristic of Naples is a little gilt trifle set with corals, and equally eloquent of Athens Is one with a colored Grecian border. Not pretty, but very interesting, is a big, rough thimble such as Sicilian women use.
The grandmother of the collection is a handsome thimble with a carved flower design. It isn't as old as the thumb ring taken from the Etruscan tomb, but Mrs. Smith purchased it in a little shop in Granada long before she thought of collecting thimbles, and has kept it ever since.
A heavy affair of gold and silver was purchased in Cairo, Egypt. Florence is represented by an odd red agate thimble, and Rome by one bearing a view of St. Peter's in colored enamel. A plain little silver thimble is a souvenir of Mrs. Smith's stay In San Marino, the smallest republic in the world. Perhaps the queerest looking specimen of all is the one Mrs. Smith bought right off the finger of an old peasant woman in Ravenna, Italy.
Then there is a big silver thimble from Gibraltar: a much more artistic silver one from the island of Malta, set with a garland of flowers in gold and a jade ornament at the top. From Colombo, Ceylon, she brought a native thimble, a queer, square looking affair. Then there is a trophy from Singapore, an odd little white bone thimble from Manila, and one of ivory from Hong Kong.
The only thing Mrs. Smith could find in Japan that would fit into a thimble collection was a thumb ring with deep perforations. Heidelberg is represented by a tiny thimble nestling in a little stein; Holland by a beautiful specimen of silver showing a Dutch scene in Delft blue; Innsbruch and Munich by two thimbles bearing the coats-of-arms of those cities, and Interlaken by the most artistic one adorned with green stones.
There are American thimbles in the collection, too, among them being an old one from Salem, with three witches engraved on it.

Prince William's girlfriend Kate joins the thimble set.

2009-09-05T20:15:00.000-07:00

From: The (London) Daily Telegraph
The face of Prince William's girlfriend, Kate Middleton, has been chosen to feature on a set of china thimbles.
Designers at Birchcroft China are so convinced that Miss Middleton will become a permanent addition to the royal household they are producing the ornaments.
Miss Middleton, 26, has been the subject of constant speculation that she will marry Prince William, with bookmakers continually offering low odds on a future marriage.
Woolworths offered a range of souvenirs in 2006 to mark the couple's expected engagement but when no date was forthcoming the company had to drop them. The thimbles cost pounds 4.40 a set and three show Miss Middleton wearing a hat.
In May, Peter Jones produced the first piece of royal memorabilia bearing Miss Middleton's image - a mug to celebrate the Prince's passing out from RAF Cranwell.

Another free thimble I missed. . .

2009-09-01T09:05:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles Daily Times,

17 June 1885; Issue 160; col E.

A thimble for humility, again.

2009-08-06T07:19:00.000-07:00

Please click on image to enlarge.

I have, sadly, lost the reference to where I got this article. I had mentioned this Lord Weatherill in an earlier posting, his having just passed away at the time.

From: American notes and queries

2009-07-31T19:59:00.000-07:00

From: Walsh, William Shepard, American notes and queries, vol. 5 (W.S. and H.C. Walsh, 1890), p. 14:
THIMBLES.
(vol. IV, p. 233.)
Some months ago there was a brief discussion in Notes and Queries (English) about the invention of the thimble, based upon an item similar to that printed in these columns. Mr. Skeat objected to the popular derivation from thumb-bell, because it is not consistent with the early spelling of the word. There was, he said, an Anglo-Saxon thymel, a Middle English thimbil, and the spelling thymbyl occurs in 1440. By other contributors the fact that thimbles were made at Islington by the Loftings, in 1695, was confirmed, and, on the whole, there seemed to be little dissent to the received opinion that this was the date of the introduction of thimbles into general use in England, though not of their invention.
It seems to me that this can be disproved. It chanced, not long ago, that I looked through some plays dated before the middle of the seventeenth century, with the special purpose of learning what light they threw upon the customs of that time, and among my notes, I find allusions to thimbles implying a common use of this implement in England long before 1695. Other readers may perhaps be able to adduce other and earlier instances in point.
Before giving these, it may be said that Prof. Skeat's reference to the year 1440 probably pertains to the "Promptorium Parvulorum," the English and Latin dictionary compiled at that date by a Dominican of Lynne, where the word is found with the synonym, theca; but it also occurs in a bit of ancient popular poetry of unknown authorship, thought by some to be of still earlier date, " The Debate of the Carpenter's Tools," to be found in Hazlitt's " Early Popular Poetry," Vol. i :

" Seyd the wymbylle [,'. e., gimlet]
I ame als round as a thymbvíl " (p. 80).

The comparison implies a familiar thing, but the "thymbyll " may not have been like those of our inquiry.
Shakespeare's references to thimbles are familiar. Although in "The Taming of the Shrew," when Petruchio calls the tailor, "Thou Thimble !" and Grumio would face him down " though [his] little finger be armed in a thimble," it is a man's implement that is in question, and apparently not worn like our own, yet in "King John," v, 2, it is ladies who, in the war-like time,

"Their thimbles into gaunt'lets change, Their needles to lances."

Sir William D'Avenant's "The Wits" was first played in 1634, and printed two years later. I quote from an edition with modernized spelling. Pert, a soldier employed in the Low Countries, but now in England, says (Act i, Sc. 1) in reply to the question of a companion, that it is

"Not a brass thimble to me, but honour!"

whether a Spanish Don or a Dutch " fritter-seller of Bombell " conquers in that contest.
Brass thimbles, then, were sufficiently common to be of small value in Pert's estimation, much like a "brass farthing," or a "Sou Marqué" (see Vol. iv, p. 247) nowadays. If any one argues that this is the speech of a soldier who had been much out of England and had caught up the saying elsewhere, there is not lacking better proof for our case.
In the same play, Mrs. Snore is a constable's wife, a coarse woman who distinctly belongs to "the million," and in railing against her neighbor, an equally unrefined woman eager after gain, she declares:

" She took my silver thimble To pawn when I w¡is a maid ; I paid her A penny a month use."
(Act iii, Sc. i.)

"Good News from Plymouth," by the same author, was licensed for acting in 1635, although not printed until 1673.
In this play, a spendthrift's silver seal, engraved with " the lover's scutcheon, a bleeding heart," is missing from his wrist, where the fashion of the day kept seals dangling, and a bantering companion avers that it has

" Gone long since to adorn
His mistress' court cupboard ; [and] on a cloth
Of network, edged with a ten-penny lace,
Stands now between her thimble and her bodkin,
Objects of state, believ't, and ornament."
(Act. i, Sc. I.)

These thimbles must have been to all intents like those of to-day; they were made of brass and of silver, were for women's use, and while they had a considerable money value, judging from the pawn-broker's rate, and were set forth for display as we should place a cherished piece of china, yet they were.owned by the common classes, and could certainly not have been very rare. This was sixty years before Lofting made thimbles at Islington.
Several silver bodkins, like the one with which the thimble shared the honors of the "court cupboard," are in existence; tome have even recently been found, and whether any early thimbles of known date are still preserved would be an interesting inquiry.

From: The Friend

2009-07-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

From: The Friend, published by The Friend, 1904. vol. 77. p. 182:

How Thimbles Are Made.—A silver thimble is a very small thing, but it takes more than twenty men, besides a good deal of costly machinery, to make one. In the first place, the silver, which comes to the factory in bars, is passed through great steel rollers, which rolls it into sheets so thin that it would take twenty of them to make an inch high. The sheets are cut into strips about two inches wide, that look like silver ribbons, and out of them another machine punches round pieces, about as large as a silver half dollar. These round pieces, or blanks, as they are called, are next fed one by one to a machine which turns up the edge all around to make the rim, and are then put into a press, where a steel die comes down with a smash, and gives the thimble its proper form all at once. It is now of the right shape, but it is smooth, and has no dents in its top. To make these, the thimble is put into a lathe, and while it is whirling round, a workman, who sits in front of the lathe with a tool shaped like a hammer, puts a dent in the middle of the top, then a ring of dents round it, then another ring, and so on until all the dents are in. The thimble is then polished, has a number marked on it, and has the border of leaves or figures, usually seen on thimbles, engraved or stamped round its base.

Gold thimbles are made of steel, and have only a thin coating of gold on them. They are made in much the same way, as are also brass and steel thimbles;but brass and steel thimbles are sometimes made without any tops. Thimbles are also made out of hard India rubber, and sometimes even out of ivory and china, Thimbles have been in use only about two hundred years. It is not known who first made them, though some think they came from Holland.— Selected.

2009-07-07T09:28:00.000-07:00

Thank Heaven for industrious dames. . .

2009-06-20T08:55:00.000-07:00

Boston Investigator, 10 Dec 1873;
pg. 3; Issue 33; col E.

An Armour-Plated Thimble

2009-06-15T13:40:00.000-07:00

Cassell's Family Magazine
Cassell & Company, Limited. 1886.

They laughed when I bought thimbles instead of real estate.

2009-06-09T09:17:00.000-07:00

Antique Sterling Filigree Tape Measure, Thimble, and Perfume Bottle.
English, ca. 1790-1800; excellent condition.
US$946.00; 18 bids, starting at US$56.88.
1 June 2009.
From Elegant Arts Antiques.

Antique French Sterling Silver Fable Thimble
"Three Birds on a Branch" design, ca. 1900, "thought to be the work of designer Firmin-Pierre Lasserre." Mint Condition.
US$363.89; 19 bids, starting at US$9.00.
1 June 2009.
Another item from Elegant Arts Antiques

Silver Souvenir Thimble of the Steamship President Lincoln.
Most likely German, ca. 1901-1917. Damaged enamelling, glass cap.
US$223.50; 12 bids, starting at US$25.00.
8 June 2009.

Silver Souvenirs on eBay

2009-06-02T11:51:00.000-07:00

Sterling Silver Ketcham & McDougall Florida Souvenir Thimble
Size 8, in round, no holes.
US$367.79; 13 bids, starting at US$13.00.
19 May 2009

Sterling Silver Ketcham & McDougall Adirondack Mts. Souvenir Thimble
US$611.01; 12 bids, starting at $25.00.
7 May 2009

Nameless Breakfast Food?

2009-05-31T14:40:00.000-07:00

Advertisement for Liberty Pure Food Co.
Good Housekeeping Magazine
December 1901

The Employments of Women

2009-05-30T16:09:00.000-07:00

From: Penny, Virginia, The Employments of Women: A Cyclopaedia of Woman's Work, (Boston : Walker, Wise and Co. 1863) p. 236:

238. Thimbles. P. was kind enough to make an entire silver thimble, that I might see the process. The whole of the work could bo done by women, but no women in any country are employed at it, so far as he knows. I was told by one or two other thimble makers, that no women are ever employed in that branch of business. It is usual for a boy to serve an apprenticeship of four years. While doing some parts of the labor the workers sit, and while doing other parts they stand. The polishing is done on a lathe, and there is not enough of it to furnish work for a separate person, except in very large establishments, and even then it is so connected with the other processes that it could not be well divided. There are not so many thimbles sold now as formerly, because of the sewing machines that are used. There are not more than from eight to twelve thimble makers in the United States. There are none South or West of Philadelphia.

Thimble Tart

2009-05-28T14:19:00.000-07:00

No. "Thimble Tart" is not my new nom de blog.
I found this recipe for Thimble Tarts on a newly-found, scrumptious blog called Cherry on a Cake. The photo on the site is even more mouth-watering. Yummy.

A Thimble for Mother Lindbergh

2009-05-26T16:54:00.000-07:00

In an appendix to the Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Spirit of St. Louis, by Charles A. Lindbergh, it mentions that one of the gifts bestowed upon Lindbergh after his famous flight was a "Gold thimble, set with diamonds, for Col. Lindbergh's mother, from the children of Patchogue (New York)."

The Place for Chrome®

2009-05-20T09:21:00.000-07:00

At last. IOWA80.com has its own souvenir thimble. Pewter. $5.99, plus S/H.

What is IOWA80.com? Well, the website references itself as both "The World's Largest Truckstop," and "The Place for Chrome®." Also: "the premiere provider of trucking accessories for professional drivers." Sounds good to me. It has all kinds of stuff for trucks. My favorite, besides the thimble of course, is an angry rubber duck hood ornament, shown below. There are several other hood ornaments, including a flying rooster and an illuminated winged pig, but none of them can hold a candle to the angry rubber duck. It is available in silvertone, goldtone, and black (sleek!) chrome ($179.99, $225.99, and $199.99, respectively).

As seen in the movie Convoy.

A Stitch in Time Costs Nine.

2009-05-19T13:49:00.001-07:00

Sterling silver and blue enamel Stitch in Time Saves Nine thimble from Ketcham & McDougall; size 7, in round, no holes.
US $917.79; 23 bids, starting at $10.49.
19 May 2009.

Yikes!
The seller in this case does not usually sell thimbles. I often wonder what eBay sellers who aren't familiar with crazed, voracious thimble collectors must think when they see their auction prices fly out of the park as this one's did. This seller's other auctions have all been for jewelry--Tiffany, David Yurman, et al.--and haven't approached half of what this one little thimble went for.

Thimble Alphabet Soup on eBay

2009-05-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

Sterling DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) thimble from Simons Bros.; size 13, slight wear, in round, no holes.
US$91.51; 11 bids, starting at US$25.00.
3 May 2009.

Sterling FHA (Future Homemakers of America) thimble from Simons Bros.; in round, no holes.
US$43.99; 7 bids, starting at US$12.65.
3 May 2009.

The auction listing has FHA listed as Future Homeowners of America. I don't know that the error affected the price in any way. This was offered by one of my favorite eBay thimble sellers, Smirk6.

Sterling EGA (Embroiderers Guild of America) thimble from Simons Bros.; size 11, in round, no holes.
US $100.01; 8 bids, starting at US$10.49.
30 April 2009.

The seller had initially listed this as from the 1890s but later appended a note that he'd been informed that is was more recent and from the EGA. He noted that if the (then) sole bidder no longer wanted it (as it wasn't the advertised 1890s vintage) for the bid of $9.99, that bidder could simply not pay for it at the end of the auction and he would completely understand. Of course, this particular thimble is desirable not because of its age (or lack thereof), but because it's pretty hard for collectors to find. The EGA no longer sells this thimble, and only allowed its members to purchase it when it was selling it.

At auction at Bonhams

2009-05-13T01:31:00.000-07:00

SILVER & OBJECTS OF VERTU

INCLUDING POST WAR

Sale 16798

Bonhams, London, Knightbridge

3 June 2009

Lot 102: A Victorian gilt bronze, hardstone necessaire, by Schäfer of Piccadilly, the silver gilt fitments by H W Dee, London 1871, the rectangular agate cover with gilt bronze hinge mount engraved with stiff leaves opens to reveal a grey velvet lined tray fitted with gilt metal and silver gilt sewing instruments engraved with paterae and foliage including: a pen knife, two bodkins, a thread pick, a thread holder, thimble, scissors, a patented spring loaded tape measure, a stiletto and a needlecase, the gilt bronze base with bombé sides engraved with matching paterae decoration, on four bun feet, height 4.8cm, length 19.3cm.
Estimate: £500-800 (about US$765-1220).

Update: Sold for £1440 (about US$2371) inclusive of Buyer's Premium.

Vintage thimble from Uruguay

2009-05-12T10:00:00.000-07:00

This is another of my favorite thimbles.
I have no idea what "vintage" means here. It was sold to me as such, but it depends on how one defines the word. I've seen sellers refer to new, unremarkable thimbles as vintage treasures (see rant). I don't really know enough about South American thimbles to even guess about its age. I do think it's quite beautiful--the picture doesn't do it justice--and love it regardless of its age. (Oh! to be a vintage thimble from Uruguay!)

Fierce bidding for wedding thimble!

2009-05-03T13:34:00.000-07:00

Bridezillas on a rampage?
OK, maybe not fierce bidding, but a lot of last minute bidding for this delicious wedding thimble up for auction from one of my favorite eBay vendors, Trollacht. This thimble supposedly [update: see comment or The 'Wedding' thimble. Thank You! ]would have been given as a token of romantic affectionwith its decorative band still attached, with the intention that the band would eventually be detached to become the recipient's wedding band.
Anyway, the opening bid for this thimble was US$9.00 at 4:34 pm on April 23rd. From there the bids crept up to about US$30.00 by May 1st. There it lolled around until early May 3rd when it popped up to the mid-$40ish range. At this point the actual high bid was US$65.03, but since the "high" bid on eBay is really the second highest bid plus a fixed amount--here probably a dollar--the on-screen high bid was, again, mid-$40ish. The auction was due to end May 3, 2009 12:25:00 PDT. At 12:19:01, six minutes before the auction's end, a bidder bid US$61.76, which meant that the on-screen high bid was listed at US$62.76 until 12:24:45 PDT, 15 seconds before auction's end, the bids shot up:

12:24:45 - US $95.58
12:24:50 - US $181.00
12:24:53 - US $183.50, winning bid (actual bid surely higher), posted 7 seconds before close of auction

I don't know if the winning bidder used some kind of auction sniper, which places one's bid at the last possible moment before an auction closes, but a review of this bidder's past auction wins shows that the winning bids were all the only bids the person placed on the items and the bids were all in the last hour of the auction. EBay admonishes bidders to bid high early on to ensure eventual victory, but bidders like to hold off to the end to get the best deal. Sometimes one hopes that no one else will find the little gem one has one's heart set on winning, and thus doesn't want to draw attention to it by bidding. This works an incredibly small amount of the time. Usually eagle-eyed collectors all spot the good stuff and hold off until the last moment when they pile in with high bids. Like in this case.
I don't use auction snipers on eBay. If I need to I can get the bid in really close to the auction's end time (I've gotten it as close as 3 seconds--it's part of the fun to try), but sometimes I'm just not going to be the highest bidder, period. I saw it would be that way with this item, so I didn't bid at all.

At auction at Christie's

2009-05-02T14:45:00.000-07:00

SILVER, PORTRAIT MINIATURES,
GOLD BOXES AND CERAMICS
Sale 7731
Christies, London, King Street
2 June 2009

Lot 163: Two George II Pinchbeck-mounted enamel and hardstone châtelaines with nécessaires
English, circa 1750
Shaped triangular suspension hook faced with hinged cartouche of gilt-metal chased with pastoral vignettes, c-scrolls and rocaille against sablé ground bordered with polished c-scrolls and rocaille, with a clip back, suspending two thimble cases, cast and chased on matted ground, and nécessaire with central cartouche enamelled en champlevé with chinoiserie against opaque blue ground on base and transparent guilloché ground on hinged lid, the sides cast and chased in frosted gold, containing scissors, tweezers, pencil holder, ivory tablet, folding knife and toothpick; together with a châtelaine of similar form, the cagework clip chased with foliage and rocaille and inset with bloodstone plaques, suspending two cast and chased thimble cases and nécessaire with bloodstone-set central cartouches on hinged lid and base, containing scissors, toothpick, pencil holder, ivory tablet, spoon, folding-knife and tweezers
7½ in. (190 mm.) long (2)

Estimate: £2,000-3,000 (US$2,956-4,434)

Update: Sold for £7,500 (about US$12,293) plus Premium and tax.

Miniature Knitter

2009-04-26T11:23:00.000-07:00

If not thimble-related, then certainly thimble-sized.

An interview with Althea Crome, who hand knit the itty bitty sweaters, etc., for the movie "Coraline."

Beautiful thimbles at Steppes Hill Farm Antiques

2009-04-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

These lovely thimbles are available through Steppes Hill Farm Antiques, dealers in early English porcelain and collectible silver. Yummy!

VICTORIAN GOLD TURQUOISE AND ENAMEL THIMBLE
A very fine Victorian gold Thimble, set with alternating turquoise and white enamel beads, c1860. In fine condition with no damage or repair. 24mm high. 6 grams. £575.

VICTORIAN SOUTH KENSINGTON INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION THIMBLE 1862
A very fine Victorian silver Thimble, with raised scene depicting the South Kensington International Exhibition 1862. With Diamond Registration mark. In good condition with no damage or repair. 23mm high. 4 grams. £585.

GOLD & GEM SET THIMBLE
A 19th century gold Thimble, the top set with a Carnelian, the raised wavy edged base set with small garnets, pearl’s and one amethyst, between oak leaves, a vacant shaped cartouche. Unmarked, probably French c1880. In good condition although there are some minute stress cracks to the base. 25 mm high. 5 grams. £420.

Norwegian enamelled thimbles on eBay

2009-04-22T00:48:00.000-07:00

Early 20th century David-Andersen silver enamelled thimble with hard stone top.
US $735.89; 11 bids, starting at US $55.00.
8 March 2009.

20th century Norwegian sterling silver thimble with guilloché enamelling.
US $192.50; 12 bids, starting at US $20.00.
14 April 2009.

Norwegian sterling silver thimble with applied wire cloisonné turquoise-colored enamelling (five small chips) and moonstone top (cracked).
US $107.08; 17 bids, starting at US $20.00.
24 March 2009.

This is a beautiful thimble. I'm sure it would have brought in much more except for the damaged enamel and top.

Tartanware thimble box auction at Bonhams

2009-04-07T15:11:00.000-07:00

PICTURES, INCLUDING WORKS BY 'SNAFFLES',

FURNITURE AND WORKS OF ART

Sale 171856
Bonhams, Knowle

6 May 2009

Lot 164 : A Clark & Co. McLean Tartanware circular reel and thimble box
The domed lid with two printed oval portraits, inscribed edge and printed label to the underside, the base fitted with six reels each with corresponding aperture, 10.5cm diameter.
Estimate: £80-120

Update: Sold for £66 inclusive of Buyer's Premium.

The Silver Thimble No 3

2009-03-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

I believe this is one of the ambulances donated by the Silver Thimble Fund, an organization founded by Hope Elizabeth Hope-Clarke.

Giada making Thimble Pasta With Sauce

2009-03-13T13:50:00.000-07:00

Thimbles with Mushrooms and Artichokes

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 pound mushrooms, trimmed, cleaned and finely chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 3/4 teaspoon
1 cup dry Marsala wine
1 pound thimble pasta
1/2 pound frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Saute, stirring occasionally, until all the moisture has evaporated and the mushrooms have cooked down, about 10 minutes. Add the Marsala and continue cooking until almost all the wine has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Stir in remaining salt. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta and add it into the mushrooms, Marsala and onions Add the artichoke hearts, Parmesan and cream and cook until the artichokes are heated through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve.

Recipe and video from : Everyday Italian (Episode: Entertaining the In-Laws Italian Style!), Giada De Laurentiis, Food Network.

Imperial India thimble on eBay.

2009-03-03T09:26:00.000-08:00

19th century sterling thimble, made in India "for export to British market." No holes, excellent condition.
US $130.00; 8 bids, starting at US $20.00.
2 March 2009.

Another beautiful thimble sold by one of my favorite eBay sellers, Elegant Arts Antiques.

Lovely but lethal?

2009-02-27T22:30:00.000-08:00

"Poison" (lidded) ring and thimble

Silver with gold wash and turquoise.

Turkmenistan, 20th c.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T16:02:00.000-08:00

Enamel on copper

Steinböck Email Studio, Austria

How thimbles get out of round.

2009-01-24T01:18:00.000-08:00

(Click on image to enlarge. )

The fastest way to send money?

2009-01-07T16:56:00.000-08:00

Used on tape printer positions to cut off tape when gumming it down. A round thimble-shaped piece of nickel silver set on a flat polished plate, the edge of which is used as the cutter. Furnished in sizes #5 to 12 inclusive, thimbles being of different diameters and lengths. Plate 3/4" x 1 1/2", Ht overall -- 1".
[Excerpt from: The Western Union Telegraph Company Inside Plant Catalog of Apparatus, Material and Tools, July 1, 1929]

Finger Food

2008-11-26T19:18:00.000-08:00

Now I know what to carve the turkey with!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Madoula's thimble

2008-10-26T13:03:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite thimbles. It is silver with niello enamelling. I am told that the thimble says, in Arabic, Madoula on one side, and lady of the house on the other. I don't know when it was made; it had belonged to the previous owner's grandmother. I know, every "antique" thimble always belonged to the owner's grandmother, but I really believe this particular person, who was just happy to pass it along to someone who would love it. And I do. I just wish I could get a better photo of it.

I have seen many other niello-enamelled thimbles, but none like this. There are lovely Marsh Arab thimbles made as souvenirs around the time of the first world war depicting scenes from the marsh areas along the Tigris in what is now Iraq. There also silver niello souvenir thimbles from the Caucasus (Kavkaz) region in Russia/Central Asia. These usually have "Kavkaz" written in Cyrillic and various stylized motifs in black enamel, as shown below. There are more recent examples coming out of Greece and Turkey but they do not have the detail that the older ones have. And none are so lovely as Madoula's.

Blindspotjewelry Thimble

2008-10-07T17:45:00.000-07:00

I found this extremely cool sterling thimble from blindspot jewelry at Etsy.
It's $180.00. Ouch!
Cool, but ouch!

I don't know who the actual artisan who created the thimble is, but I will update when I find out.

What the. . .? Fortune Cookie Thimbles??

2008-09-26T06:33:00.000-07:00

OK. Apparently these are little thimble cookies one uses to dip into and taste yummy substances like Nutella (I would personally go for a more chocolatey concoction, but I digress . . .). I don't know what they're called or where one would acquire them. They look as though they would taste like fortune cookies, but, again, I dunno. More investigation is required.

Fit the Eighth (Hunting of the Snark)

2008-09-20T09:16:00.000-07:00

The Vanishing

They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its life with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
They shuddered to think that the chase might fail,
And the Beaver, excited at last,
Went bounding along on the tip of its tail,
For the daylight was nearly past.

"There is Thingumbob shouting!" the Bellman said.
"He is shouting like mad, only hark!
He is waving his hands, he is wagging his head,
He has certainly found a Snark!"

They gazed in delight, while the Butcher exclaimed
"He was always a desperate wag!"
They beheld him--their Baker--their hero unnamed--
On the top of a neighbouring crag,

Erect and sublime, for one moment of time,
In the next, that wild figure they saw
(As if stung by a spasm) plunge into a chasm,
While they waited and listened in awe.

"It's a Snark!" was the sound that first came to their ears,
And seemed almost too good to be true.
Then followed a torrent of laughter and cheers:
Then the ominous words "It's a Boo--"

Then, silence. Some fancied they heard in the air
A weary and wandering sigh
That sounded like "--jum!" but the others declare
It was only a breeze that went by.

They hunted till darkness came on, but they found
Not a button, or feather, or mark,
By which they could tell that they stood on the ground
Where the Baker had met with the Snark.

In the midst of the word he was trying to say
In the midst of his laughter and glee,
He had softly and suddenly vanished away--
For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.

--Lewis Carroll

In Memoriam: Darren Bohan

2008-09-11T12:09:00.000-07:00

Darren Christopher Bohan

29 September 1966 - 11 September 2001

Beautiful Place, Ugly Thimble

2008-09-06T16:59:00.001-07:00

I think Zion National Park is one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
This thimble, however, is kinda ugly.

Dependence and Independence

2008-08-28T13:15:00.000-07:00

Morning Oregonian (Portland, OR),
24 August 1888, page 3, issue 8709, col. G.

If Paris Hilton can have an energy plan. . .

2008-08-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

So can Thimble Psycho!

Tambour Thimble

2008-08-06T16:23:00.000-07:00

Illustrations from: Encyclopedia of Needlework
by Thérèse de Dillmont

Sew in some thoughts of love for me.

2008-06-04T01:11:00.000-07:00

The Daily (Chicago, IL) Inter Ocean,
24 November 1895; Issue 245; col C.

Rigolette trying to distact herself. . .

2008-05-12T16:40:00.000-07:00

Rigolette cherchant à se distraire en l'absence de Germain

(Rigolette trying to distract herself during Germain's absence) Joseph Désiré Court.
Oil on canvas. Musée des Beaux Arts, Rouen, France.

3rd Rock From The Sun: Green Eyed Dick

2008-04-28T11:29:00.000-07:00

This is the episode with the thimble, or '"Turkish nipple armor." It's divided into three clips, which I've embedded here indivually. The thimble is at the beginning of the second part. There must be a more efficient way to put the videos into this blog than to have all three separately, but I'm a thimble geek not a computer geek, so I dunno. Anyway, for the whole episode, watch all three in sequence, top to bottom; for just the thimble part, see the first couple minutes of the second clip.

Tonto Natural Bridge thimble

2008-04-06T16:41:00.000-07:00

This little thimble is available through the Arizona State Parks Gift Catalog website in either gold- or copper-tone for only $4.00 plus S/H. The web-weary can call them at either 1-888-498-0036 (from inside Arizona) or 1-888-498-0037 (from outside Arizona). They also have a similar thimble available for Yuma Territorial Prison. I like the idea of thimbles featuring prisons. It could be a collecting specialty. I already have one from Alcatraz. Are there any for Reading Gaol? Gitmo? Hmmmm. . .

Jane Chantler

2008-02-18T16:16:00.000-08:00

The beautiful thimbles shown at left were all designed and wrought by specialist silversmith Jane Chantler of Jane Chantler Ltd, Clifford House, Brough, Cumbria, UK. They are but four of 25 thimbles featured on her website, all of which are made from heavy, hallmarked Sterling Silver and are priced from £56.50 to £71.00 (about US$111.00 to US$140.00). Each thimble featured on the website is also available in gold or platinum, as are her custom-designed thimbles or jewelry pieces.

Jon!

2008-02-13T16:38:00.000-08:00

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Jon Magazine - Thimble Collection

http://www.thedailyshow.com/

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Health Care Crisis

Nonsense Thimble

2008-02-11T16:41:00.000-08:00

From: Nonsense Songs, Stories, Botany, and Alphabets,
"Nonsense Alphabet No. 3," by Edward Lear.

Hooray, José!

2008-02-03T15:28:00.000-08:00

From: The People (London), 20 Jan 2008:
STAR HOARDS: Which celebrities collect old tennis balls, typewriters, butterflies, pigs, thimbles, comics, coat hangers... and pigeon skeletons? A ROUND-UP OF THE ODD ITEMS IN A-LIST LOFTS. . .
YOU wouldn't guess he has a weird hobby, but Hollywood superstar Tom Hanks is an obsessive collector of vintage TYPEWRITERS. The Forest Gump star revealed his secret passion on the Jonathan Ross show last week. He scours the internet for rare examples and chats to other collectors on typewriter web sites. But he's not the only star who hoards odd items. RACHAEL BLETCHLY unearthed some strange celebrity passions...

JOSE CARRERAS: Thimbles
SPANISH opera giant Jose has a huge collection of rare thimbles - which cost a lot more than three tenners.

Recipe: Hot Ditalini Salad

2008-01-31T16:27:00.000-08:00

1 c. ditalini pasta (thimble-sized tubes)
1 15-oz. can white kidney beans, rinse and drain.
½ c. chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 Tblsp. olive oil
2 c. tomatoes, chopped up in chunks
12 oz. cooked chicken, pulled into bite-size chunks
¼ c. fresh flat-leaf parsley, torn or snipped
Salt and pepper to taste
Don't go nuts about exact measurements.

Cook pasta (follow directions on package); drain; set aside.
In blender, purée 3/4 cup of the white kidney beans with the chicken broth. Put purée into pan and bring to boiling. Add set-aside pasta.
In a large skillet, sauté garlic in olive oil for 1 minute. Add tomatoes; cook an additional minute. Add rest of beans , chicken, parsley, salt and pepper. Heat through, but don't mash up.
Add the garlic/tomato mixture to hot pasta; toss to coat. Makes about four servings.

Steal this Book!

2008-01-15T13:22:00.000-08:00

The Thimble: An Heroi-comical Poem, in Four Cantos
by William Hawkins

I found this while noodling around in Google Books on another project and thought I'd try the little link-jobby-thingy to see how it works. I guess the link works OK, but I had to shrink down the image a little (twice!): at first it took up so much space that it knocked my sidebar stuff to the bottom of the page.

Why thimble sellers should learn about thimbles.

2008-01-11T12:08:00.000-08:00

OK. I'm not writing about the eBay thimble sellers who specialize in thimbles and other sewing collectibles. They know what's up. I am referring to the regular Joe Schmoes selling their grandma's 80,000 treasured knickknacks, and to the irregular "Antique" dealers trying to unload somebody-else's grandma's assorted junk as "Estate" pieces.
My petulant little points:

1. This is not "vintage." Nor unmarked silver. Nor tarnished from age. It's a current, modern, buy-it-at-today-at-WalMart silver-tone metal thimble. With a smidge of rust. So, actually, not even as valuable as any thimble one can buy in any fabric/craft/notions/drug store on Main Street, USA, for 99 cents. Not worth $85.00. Sorry.

2. This is not "antique." It is not Victorian. Not European. Not a rare archaeological find from some unspecified Middle Eastern nomadic people. It is from Mexico, almost certainly from Taxco, which is an honorable enough lineage, but they are not rare in the United States and are readily and reasonably available internationally through eBay. A fair price would be $8.00-15.oo. Not $49.95.

3. Thimbles do not come with holes in them. Thimbles are not designed with holes to ventillate thimbles. A thimble has a hole because the owner pushed a needle all the way through the thimble and made a hole. Do not feed me any other story about it. DO NOT. And if you're selling me this thimble through eBay or any other online website: tell me if there are any holes. A hole de-values a thimble more than any other type of damage. I may still want the thimble with the hole, but I want to know about the hole. And a thimble with a hole that's been "repaired" (see left, click to enlarge)--even repaired fairly well--is a thimble with a repaired hole, not a thimble without a hole. And while I'm at it (whew!), don't tell me it's just a small hole. Of course it's small: it's on a thimble. But it's still a hole.

What the . . .?

2008-01-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

Pictured above are what are called Pigeon Racing Thimbles.
First: Hooray for anything referencing thimbles. Sincerely. Genuinely. YAY!!
Second: I have been trying to figure out what they do with these thimbles in pigeon racing. I've read the Wikipedia article and apparently they have something to do with timing the dear, little birdies, which have some sort of numbered bands put around their legs from when they're pretty much fresh from the egg. I think that when the pigeon arrives at its little pigeon-home-nest-place, pooped from the long flight, its owner (human pigeon-companion, if you will) removes the band and pops it into the thimble-thingy which goes into the pigeon racing clock. Again, I think that's what happens, but I could be entirely wrong (it's happened before). This must be so intuitively obvious to fans of this. . . uh. . . sport. . . that they feel no need to explain it, but I'm dipped if I'm clear on the concept. Seems like one could cheat.
Oh! There are Pigeon Clock Collectors groups and societies! YAY!
I wonder if they have to hear, "You collect what?," all the time too.

Three thimble lots at Bonhams.

2008-01-08T10:11:00.000-08:00

Art & Antiques
Sale 16278
Knowle, England
15 January 2008

Lot 36: A Royal Worcester porcelain thimbles (2).
The blush ivory ground painted with a robin amid flowers over a gilt rim, 2.6 cm., and another painted with scattered flowers, (cracked and s.d.), 1.9 cm.
Update: Sold for £20 (about US$39.61) plus Premium and tax.

Lot 402: Two eastern ring thimbles (2).
One with decorated thimble, each attached to a finger ring with stone.
Update: Sold for £85 (about US$168.33) plus Premium and tax.

Lot 403: Four Thimbles (4).
Comprising: two Indian ivory examples, a Dutch silver ribbed finger guard, with duty mark, 4 cm., and a thimble on chain to a ring decorated with stones.
The listing title references FIVE thimbles, but the body of the text and the photo indicate 4 thimbles.

Update: Sold for £60 (about US$118.82) plus Premium and tax.

Merry, Merry. . .

2007-12-25T06:59:00.000-08:00

The Thimble shown is "Winter Village" by Joan Dodge, available from Gimbel & Sons Gifts and Collectibles.

Humble thimble, holy work.

2007-12-17T12:34:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of a thimbled finger embroidering a Kiswa--the beautiful, gold-embellished, black-silk cover for the Ka'aba in Mecca. The Ka'aba is covered with a new Kiswa every year on the 9th Dhu al-Hijja, the ninth day of the last month of the Islamic year, on the eve of the annual Hajj--pilgrimmage--to Mecca. The old Kiswa is then cut up and presented to various esteemed Muslim individuals and organizations.
The Kiswa comprises 47 pieces of the finest silk cloth, totaling 28,524 square feet (about 1477 pounds), embroidered with nearly 33 pounds of gold-plated silver wire. The Kiswa is wrapped around the Ka'aba and fastened to the ground with copper rings. The current cost of making the Kiswa is roughly US$4-6 million.

Franz Ruckart Marroquin

2007-12-16T18:19:00.000-08:00

Franz Ruckart Marroquin was born in Guatemala in 1928, to a German father and Guatemalan mother. Mr. Marroquin's thimbles typically depict Guatemalan images. The right-hand thimble, above, has a Guatemalan corn god, corn being the main food staple there (According to the book Omnivore's Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, the United States' main food staple is corn syrup.). The outer two thimbles both show a quetzal, the national symbol of Guatemala. I have one of Mr. Marraquin's thimbles that has the corn god, the quetzal, andTikal, Guatemala's largest Mayan pyramid. It is similar to those shown above, but the silver encases a gun-metal-colored inner core, which is seen through the cut-outs in the silver. It is absolutely one of my most beautiful thimbles, and one of my favorites.
Mr. Marroquin's thimbles are available sometimes on eBay, most frequently through the seller ProSilversmith, which is based in Guatemala and has a number of other items from Mr. Marroquin.

Update: See comment from Luis, AKA "Prosilversmith." It is sad that there has not been more interest in Mr. Marroquin's thimbles. They are absolutely exquisite. I think that collectors tend to flock to what they have heard of or seen in books or whatever, and don't use their own judgment as to what is beautiful and of value. I understand that there is a need to distinguish between, say, genuine antiques and "instant collectible" junk, but I think we also need to appreciate that there are artisans creating beautiful pieces today that are just as worthy of being collected as any "antiques" out there.

This is beautiful.

Patent: No. 1263002: Thimble

2007-12-15T17:12:00.000-08:00

Patent No. 1263002, Leonora Terry, ST. Joseph, MO,
April 1918.

Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat

2007-12-10T09:18:00.000-08:00

There's a whisper down the line at 11.39
When the Night Mail's ready to depart,
Saying "Skimble where is Skimble has he gone to hunt the thimble?
We must find him or the train can't start."
All the guards and all the porters and the stationmaster's daughters
They are searching high and low,
Saying "Skimble where is Skimble for unless he's very nimble
Then the Night Mail just can't go."
At 11.42 then the signal's nearly due
And the passengers are frantic to a man—
Then Skimble will appear and he'll saunter to the rear:
He's been busy in the luggage van!

He gives one flash of his glass-green eyes
And the signal goes "All Clear!"
And we're off at last for the northern part
Of the Northern Hemisphere!

You may say that by and large it is Skimble who's in charge
Of the Sleeping Car Express.
From the driver and the guards to the bagmen playing cards
He will supervise them all, more or less.
Down the corridor he paces and examines all the faces
Of the travellers in the First and the Third;
He establishes control by a regular patrol
And he'd know at once if anything occurred.
He will watch you without winking and he sees what you are thinking
And it's certain that he doesn't approve
Of hilarity and riot, so the folk are very quiet
When Skimble is about and on the move.
You can play no pranks with Skimbleshanks!
He's a Cat that cannot be ignored;
So nothing goes wrong on the Northern Mail
When Skimbleshanks is aboard.
Oh, it's very pleasant when you have found your little den
With your name written up on the door.
And the berth is very neat with a newly folded sheet
And there's not a speck of dust on the floor.
There is every sort of light-you can make it dark or bright;
There's a handle that you turn to make a breeze.
There's a funny little basin you're supposed to wash your face in
And a crank to shut the window if you sneeze.
Then the guard looks in politely and will ask you very brightly
"Do you like your morning tea weak or strong?"
But Skimble's just behind him and was ready to remind him,
For Skimble won't let anything go wrong.
And when you creep into your cosy berth
And pull up the counterpane,
You ought to reflect that it's very nice
To know that you won't be bothered by mice—
You can leave all that to the Railway Cat,
The Cat of the Railway Train!

In the watches of the night he is always fresh and bright;
Every now and then he has a cup of tea
With perhaps a drop of Scotch while he's keeping on the watch,
Only stopping here and there to catch a flea.
You were fast asleep at Crewe and so you never knew
That he was walking up and down the station;
You were sleeping all the while he was busy at Carlisle,
Where he greets the stationmaster with elation.
But you saw him at Dumfries, where he speaks to the police
If there's anything they ought to know about:
When you get to Gallowgate there you do not have to wait—
For Skimbleshanks will help you to get out!
He gives you a wave of his long brown tail
Which says: "I'll see you again!
You'll meet without fail on the Midnight Mail
The Cat of the Railway Train."

--T.S. Eliot

So, I know that I should have a little picture of a thimble with the poster of the musical Cats here. The thing is. . . dare I confess it?. . . I hate that musical. Hate it. I'm not so very fond of any Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals, period.
Duhhhm-dum . . .dum-dum-dum-dum-dum-duhhhm-dum.
Dumb.

Madonna of the Evening Flowers

2007-12-09T09:03:00.000-08:00

All day long I have been working,
Now I am tired
I call: "Where are you?"
But there is only the oak-tree rustling in the wind.
The house is very quiet,
The sun shines in on your books,
On your scissors and thimble just put down,
But you are not there.
Suddenly I am lonely:
Where are you? I go about searching.

Then I see you,
Standing under a spire of pale blue larkspur,
With a basket of roses on your arm.
You are cool, like silver,
And you smile.
I think the Canterbury bells are playing little tunes.

You tell me that the peonies need spraying,
That the columbines have overrun all bounds,
That the pyrus japonica should be cut back and rounded.
You tell me all these things.
But I look at you, heart of silver,
White heart-flame of polished silver,
Burning beneath the blue steeples of the larkspur,
And I long to kneel instantly at your feet,
While all about us peal the loud, sweet, Te Deums of the Canterbury bells.

--Amy Lowell

Anouk Johanna

2007-12-07T16:20:00.000-08:00

This little Peter Rabbit thimble is made from genuine fossilized mammoth by Anouk Johanna, a native Dutch woman currently residing in Santa Cruz, CA. She creates many lovely scrimshaw items. Her thimbles are about 1 1/4 inches high and about 1 inch in diameter at the base. Her website features several more examples of her thimbles, including thimbles featuring Jemima Puddleduck; Pig Robinson; Pooh, Piglet and the Honey Jars; The Three Bears; The Tailor of Gloucester; Tommy Kitten; Pooh, Owl & Piglet; and Christopher Robin and Friends. The color thimbles are about $425.00 (it varies) plus S/H, with the monochrome (dark brown) thimbles priced at about $325.00.
You can also get a matching itty-bitty thimble stand for $15.00. The items on the site have already been sold, but Anouk can replicate any of the designs or create a custom design (more expensive). She also does custom watercolors.

Sister, can you spare a dime?

2007-11-28T13:33:00.000-08:00

(Little Rock) Arkansas Democrat,
31 August 1899; Issue 293; col C.

Until later.

2007-09-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

Hi!
I need to take a little time off from thimble-blogging.
The rest of my life needs more attention right now.
I shall return.
Until later. . .
Mí.

"New" thimble discovered at Jamestown.

2007-09-13T15:15:00.000-07:00

They have found this copper-alloy Nuremberg thimble at the Jamestown dig. Of course it was corroded with that green stuff that builds up on copper. A lot builds up in 400 years. But they removed that with some acid and little. . . well. . . not elbow grease. . . knuckle grease?
"It's definitely the best thimble we've found at Jamestown." YAY! Check out the cool video (partly thimble-related) at Dailypress.com.

In Memoriam: Darren Bohan

2007-09-11T13:56:00.000-07:00

Darren Christopher Bohan
29 September 1966 - 11 September 2001

Once again I missed a sale!

2007-09-10T00:54:00.000-07:00

St. Paul (MN) Daily News,
3 December 1892, page 4, col. A.

Just a thimble full.

2007-09-08T18:27:00.000-07:00

This needlepoint canvas was designed by Sharon G. She has this absolutely yummy collection of handpainted needlepoint canvases, among which are a series of bras/tap pants. This canvas is called "Thimble Full." There are several pun-themed bras in the series--"Bee Cup " with bees, "Hooter" with owl eyes, and "Headlights " with, well, car headlights--along with just plain fun designs like the "Old Bat" bra and pants for Halloween.
Her designs are not for sale on her website, though one can purchase Sharon's designs from a number of online retailers, like Needle Nook of La Jolla (CA), and RichSister Company. I got my "Thimble Full" canvas through one of the eBay vendors of fine needlepoint canvases.

My World Is Pyramid

2007-09-06T09:13:00.000-07:00

I

Half of the fellow father as he doubles
His sea-sucked Adam in the hollow hulk,
Half of the fellow mother as she dabbles
To-morrow's diver in her horny milk,
Bisected shadows on the thunder's bone
Bolt for the salt unborn.

The fellow half was frozen as it bubbled
Corrosive spring out of the iceberg's crop,
The fellow seed and shadow as it babbled
The swing of milk was tufted in the pap,
For half of love was planted in the lost,
And the unplanted ghost.

The broken halves are fellowed in a cripple,
The crutch that marrow taps upon their sleep,
Limp in the street of sea, among the rabble
Of tide-tongued heads and bladders in the deep,
And stake the sleepers in the savage grave
That the vampire laugh.

The patchwork halves were cloven as they scudded
The wild pigs' wood, and slime upon the trees,
Sucking the dark, kissed on the cyanide,
And loosed the braiding adders from their hairs,
Rotating halves are horning as they drill
The arterial angel.

What colour is glory? death's feather? tremble
The halves that pierce the pin's point in the air,
And prick the thumb-stained heaven through the thimble.
The ghost is dumb that stammered in the straw,
The ghost that hatched his havoc as he flew
Blinds their cloud-tracking eye.

II

My world is pyramid. The padded mummer
Weeps on the desert ochre and the salt
Incising summer.
My Egypt's armour buckling in its sheet,
I scrape through resin to a starry bone
And a blood parhelion.

My world is cypress, and an English valley.
I piece my flesh that rattled on the yards
Red in an Austrian volley.
I hear, through dead men's drums, the riddled lads,
Screwing their bowels from a hill of bones,
Cry Eloi to the guns.

My grave is watered by the crossing Jordan.
The Arctic scut, and basin of the South,
Drip on my dead house garden.
Who seek me landward, marking in my mouth
The straws of Asia, lose me as I turn
Through the Atlantic corn.

The fellow halves that, cloven as they swivel
On casting tides, are tangled in the shells,
Bearding the unborn devil,
Bleed from my burning fork and smell my heels.
The tongue's of heaven gossip as I glide
Binding my angel's hood.

Who blows death's feather? What glory is colour?
I blow the stammel feather in the vein.
The loin is glory in a working pallor.
My clay unsuckled and my salt unborn,
The secret child, I sift about the sea
Dry in the half-tracked thigh.

--Dylan Thomas

Beautiful thimble at Zeeland Museum.

2007-09-04T13:24:00.000-07:00

This insanely beautiful silver thimble is on display at the Zeeland Museum (Zeeuws Museum) Middelburg, Zeeland, Netherlands. The museum itself is located in an old Abbey and was recently (June 2007) re-opened after eight years of extensive renovations. The museum houses an extensive collection of local art and artifacts.
This particular thimble belonged to Sara van Reigersberg, given to her on her wedding day, 20 November 1594, by her new husband, Ingel Leunissen. Reproductions have been made with permission of the museum, in sterling silver, with and without the gold overlay, and are themselves considered worthy additions to any collection.

Happy Labor Day!

2007-09-03T14:24:00.000-07:00

Patent: No. 222572: Thimble

2007-09-01T05:03:00.000-07:00

Patent No. 222572, Marshal D. Chipley, New York, NY,
December 1879.

Thimble finally set free.

2007-08-31T16:55:00.000-07:00

I happened upon this article about a 17th century thimble, among other things, found in an old safe in Lower Brailes, Warwickshire, England. The webpage has this (left) photograph of Fr. Brian Doolan holding some other silver stuff found in the safe, but not the thimble.

With all due respect to the good father, I wanna see the thimble.

If they'd found a spoon I bet they'd darned well show that.

Hmm. . .

Foxglove.

2007-08-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

(A poem using the common names of the plant)

Let her slide on her witches gloves,
Let her shake and peel
her dead man's bells,
But little folk, stay and mark
the tale this pixy tells.

Save your zeal and never wear
the faeries gloves of our Lady,
for she is trying to trap you
by her deeds, so many shady.

She may temp from above,
The wistful traveller,
with her bloody fingers
masked by the virgins glove.

But no more shall she trap
Our friends the sprite so nimble
By the wearing of the a fairy cap
Nor to wear the fairy thimble

Don’t be tempted by the folk’s glove
Let it nestle by the way,
Pay homage to the Lady,
pass on by, and let her stay.

--Philip Edmondson

Beautiful porcelain thimbles sold on eBay.

2007-08-25T12:31:00.000-07:00

Four modern Limoges hand-painted thimbles: marked "LIMOGES FRANCE peint main."
US$107.50; 23 bids, starting at US$0.99.
31 July 2007.

I think these were produced by Carenton Porcelaine. I believe the folks at Carenton do the handpainting on thimble blanks (undecorated, unglazed porcelain thimbles) made in Limoges, France. I don't think they do the fussing with the clay and all that. There are some lovely thimbles from Carenton Porcelaine similar to these ones available though The Thimble Guild. They're not all together on one page, so they're tricky to find. The easiest way seems to be clicking on the "From Around the World" link and then scrolling through the six pages in that category. They're not cheap.

"Thimble Farm" for sale.

2007-08-23T16:27:00.000-07:00

OK, OK. . . so I thought it was a farm where they grow thimbles. I bet a lot of people did. . .
Instead it's just this house somewhere in England.
£1,650,000 (abt. US$3,308,415.00).
That's a lot of thimbles.

Patent Silver Thimbles (for fale from filver fmith).

2007-08-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

Connecticut Gazette, 18 July 1804,
Volume XLI, Issue 2123, Page 1.

Things go better with Coke®.

2007-08-17T17:06:00.000-07:00

1930s Coca-Cola® Aluminum Whistle Thimble.
US$75.00; 6 bids, starting at US$10.00.
16 August 2007.

Another example of U.S. Patent No. 2092942. The first example sold for US$42.00. Usually collectibles with appeal to more than one kind of collector--say Coca-Cola® collectors and thimble collectors--will go a little higher than usual because of the increased competition among bidders.

A Thimble Tribute to the King.

2007-08-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

Elvis Presley's Hot Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich*
2 Tblsp. peanut butter (preferably smooth)
2 slices white sandwich bread, lightly toasted.
1 small ripe banana, mashed with a fork (about ¼ cup)
2 Tblsp. butter, melted

Spread peanut butter evenly on 1 slice of toast, then spread mashed banana on other slice, leaving a ¼-inch border around edge.
Close sandwich, gently pressing bread slices together.
Fry sandwich in melted butter, turning over once, until golden brown, about 2 minutes total.
Eat while still warm.

This sounds pretty awful to me, but the comments from people who've tried it on the various recipe websites that feature this recipe all highly recommend it.
*Recipe adapted from Are You Hungry Tonight?: Elvis' Favorite Recipes,by Brenda Butler.

Lovely, colorful enamelled thimble sold on eBay.

2007-08-15T17:08:00.000-07:00

Sterling silver enamel landscape thimble. Germany, size 7.
US$86.00; 26 bids (whew!), starting at US$9.99.
10 August 2007.

I like this thimble a lot. I have a few silver enamelled thimbles; mostly with flowers on a pastel background or variations on a blue windmill scene. This one so colorful!

Catching up.

2007-08-14T16:37:00.000-07:00

A few follow-ups to previous posts. . .
I have gone on at some length about the influx of fakes and reproductions of the "Cherubs and Garlands" thimble into the various venues for selling thimbles. Within the last couple of weeks two auctions of what look to me from the photographs to genuine "Cherubs and Garlands" thimbles have been up for auction on eBay. Both thimbles have no holes, are in-round, and have (as shown in photos) authentic Simons Bros. marks. The auctions brought the following results:
9 August 2007: Size 9: US $34.68; 3 bids, starting at US$25.82.
10 August 2007: Size 11: US$44.95; 13 bids, starting at US$1.08.
A third auction of what was purported to be a "Cherubs and Garlands" thimble with a seller-set starting bid of $35.00 went un-bid upon. This third thimble looked a little sketchy to me. But why are the prices of genuine ones so low? Bidder skepticism as to their authenticity or is there a glut on the "Cherubs and Garlands" thimble market? Hmm. . .

On the other hand, a sterling Simons Bros. "Stitch in Time" thimble had a respectable showing at US $229.30 (8 bids starting at US$33.33). Maybe a little lower than I've seen, but still pretty good for about one-fifth of an ounce of .925 silver.

But back to dubious thimbles and purveyors thereof:
I also posted about some thimbles that were supposed to be either (1) Fabergé from the Bulgarian royal court, or (2) 19th c. generic European (no marks), but I thought most likely neither. Now I find this ghastly cat thimble much in the same style, with what look at a distance like British silver marks. Who knows where they're really coming from?
A kind correspondant informs me that a series like this was sold as "modern" by the Thimble Society of London in the early 1990s. Thank you.

Carrie Adell

2007-08-13T13:21:00.000-07:00

These sterling silver "fingernail" thimbles were made by the late jewelry-artist, Carrie Adell (14 Nov 1931-15 July 2001). These particular ones are not my favorites of her thimbles, but it was the only photo I could find, so here it is, tarnish and everything. On my favorite of her thimbles, the fingernail part has a design that looks sort of like sand thats had water wash little ridges through it. Ms. Adell became renowned for her beautiful multi-precious-metal jewelry and small handmade beads she called "Touchstones." She had (at least) two registered U.S. Patents (that I could find) : 5515584 and 6108878, both for wire connection systems used in jewelry. Her hallmark is shown below at right. Her thimbles that I've seen are usually hand-signed, either C. Adell or Carrie Adell.
More information about her life and work can be found at the Patina Gallery (Santa Fe, NM) website and at her daughter, Jo Adell's website, knot-working.com. Jo is also an accomplished jewelry-artist.

Found the thimble.

2007-08-12T16:37:00.000-07:00

The Denver Evening Post
30 April 1897, col. E.

Death sets a Thing significant.

2007-08-10T09:31:00.000-07:00

Death sets a Thing significant
The Eye had hurried by
Except a perished Creature
Entreat us tenderly

To ponder little Workmanships
In Crayon, or in Wool,
With "This was last Her fingers did" --
Industrious until --

The Thimble weighed too heavy --
The stitches stopped -- by themselves --
And then 'twas put among the Dust
Upon the Closet shelves --

A Book I have -- a friend gave --
Whose Pencil -- here and there --
Had notched the place that pleased Him --
At Rest -- His fingers are --

Now -- when I read -- I read not --
For interrupting Tears --
Obliterate the Etchings
Too Costly for Repairs.

--Emily Dickinson

Beautiful gold-with-turquoise thimbles sold on eBay.

2007-08-09T08:46:00.000-07:00

19th century gold and turquoise thimble.
US$495.00; 7 bids, starting at US$50.00.
11 June 2007.

19th century gold thimble with pearls and turquoise cabochons and dimpled carnelian top.
GBP245.88 (approx. US$500.81); 18 bids, starting at GBP 0.99.
31 July 2007.

19th century gold thimble with many turquoise cabochons.
Reserve not met: Highest Bid*: US $536.00; 2 bids.
17 June 2007.

Of course, on eBay, it's really the second highest bid plus whatever roundish increment they add on, up to the highest bidder's bid.

Why She Wore a Thimble.

2007-08-06T13:31:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)
Jeanne Murray Walker.
The Midwest Quarterly 38.4 (Summer 1997): p. 392 (1).

Ris-tu?

2007-08-05T13:32:00.000-07:00

In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it shall be as if all of the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night.
--Antoine de St. Exupéry
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now: put out every one;
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood;
For nothing now can come to any good.

--W.H.Auden

The most I ever did for you, was to outlive you,
But that is much.
-- Edna St. Vincent Millay