The last laugh

There are endless quotes about the satisfaction having the last laugh but I think it is far more important just to laugh.  One of my favorite sayings is right by my computer.  "She who laughs lasts"  Well yesterday I did get a very good laugh AND a bit of the satisfaction of the "last laugh" 

Many  years ago at our very first CQI retreat a few if us gathered at the house of the late Leslie Ehrlich in Windsor, Colorado for several days of stitching and fun.  As   hostess Leslie spent one of the days taking us around to various thread, fabric and bead shops. When we stopped at one bead shop I was taken by the little off beat shop next door.  It was an upscale consignment shop with a lot of unique items.  I opted out of going to the bead shop. 

I immediately fell in love with this large handcrafted belt buckle which had a spider...the universal good luck symbol of crazy quilters. It is about 3" across and heavy I bought it for $10 and charged next door to share my find only to be met with less than enthusiasm.  I could see this buckle as the clasp on the bag embellished with spiders and webs.  No one else shared my vision.

The buckle has languished in my drawer all these years but not far from the top of my "to do" lists.  Yesterday I was dressing for a Halloween party and put the buckle on a chain as an accessory to my witch costume.  One women was admiring it (she obviously had good taste) and asked if it were "signed".  I had never thought to check.  It was indeed signed... C. Tasha and was part of a limited edition.

 Upon checking once I got home I found that Carl Tasha was a sculptor and painter who lived much of his life on Cape Cod. He is most widely known for his sculpture and his  jewelry and belt buckles and worked mostly in brass and sterling silver.. He passed away in 2006 and his work has become highly collectible.  Many people have collected his work since the 1960s and the price range of his limited edition buckles runs from $125 to $250. Many are insects and animals and   flowers 
 as well.

The spider is one of the most popular animal symbols that are considered to be a sign of good luck by many cultures.

Throughout the history of crazy quilting spider webs have been used as embellishments on crazy quilts. During the Victorian era they were thought to bring good luck to the quilter; therefore, they became a necessary part of each crazy quilt. Although modern crazy quilters may not hold this same belief, spiders and spider webs are still a popular embellishment. (This is part of a RR piece I did for Janet Popish)

I rarely do a piece that does not contain a spider web somewhere in it.  And for more examples of spider webs in needle work check here. https://www.pinterest.com/cindy872/crazy-quilt-spider-webs/?lp=true

I even blogged about it in 2015 and bought some dyed laces to use with cats, spiders and flowers... Then my eyes took a turn for the worse and it sat shelved.  But how knowing about the history and value of the buckle has renewed my enthusiasm for doing this project.  If Cathy Kizarian still reads my blog she probably even remembers the shop and the purchase.