Adele Paturel created this fascinating example of crazy patchwork before her marriage to Emile Soher in 1895. The unlined pillow sham has a dark red plush border with an embroidered fan in one corner. Delightful embroidered motifs (many three-dimensional) include a hand with a bead ring; a hot air balloon and basket; an embroidered mailbox (“USM”) surrounded by birds with letters in their beaks; a harp with strings; a bird and nest with eggs; “Flor Cuba Havana” on a box of cigars; a spider on a web inscribed with “climbing up”; a pocket watch and many other designs. Several patches have animal motifs such as a cat inscribed with “who says mice,” a deer, a retriever dog and ducks, a squirrel, a bear (California State Flag motif), and an eagle. Elaborate stitches anchor the various patches.
Adele Paturel crafted this pillow sham dated “1893” to accompany a larger crazy-patch parlor throw also in the Collection (TE.T16996). Her two daughters donated the parlor throw in 1973, and twenty years later this smaller (33” x 33”) companion piece that had been in a frame.
Adele Paturel was born in Santiago, Chile, in 1865. She was brought to San Francisco, California as an infant and lived there until her death in 1954. She married Emile Soher (1863-1910) in 1895. The whimsical motifs and multiple examples of fancy stitching are very typical of the crazy-patch fashion of the late 19th century.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.