Early on, Pennsylvania Dutch families documented loved ones with fraktur, especially birth- and baptismal certificates, that were often tucked away in drawers and chests, or perhaps folded and safeguarded in the family Bible.

This week on my loom are some placemats in a pattern that I’ve called “Meadow Valley.” Meadow Valley is located just west of Ephrata (Lancaster County) in an idyllic setting around the tiny Meadow Run.

This past March, I returned to Marburg where I did most of my undergraduate college studies. While there, I wanted to head north a bit in the state of Hesse to learn more about the whitework embroidery practiced in the Schwalm.