Barbie Eriksdottir

Barbie Eriksdottir

Spindle whorls

Sagas tell of  Erik the Red and his son, Leif Ericson, who a thousand years ago traveled to Vinland in northern Newfoundland.   In 1960, an archaeologist, Anne Stine Ingstad, went with her husband to northern Newfoundland and asked the people living in the area if they knew of any possible sites.   George Decker showed them a place the local people called the 'old Indian village'.  It proved to be a Norse settlement and proof that the Norse had come to North America.

The excavation of the site must have been big news in the Maritimes. At about the same time, my class was studying from a textbook called  A History of Nova Scotia.  It began with the travels of Eric the Red and his son Leif Ericson to Vinland and Markland.  Markland has not been found but I really wanted to see the site in Newfoundland.  This summer, I did.  L'Anse aux Meadows, the National Park site and Norstead Village, (a reconstruction) were everything I had imagined and more.

Interestingly, the sagas mention Eric the Red's children Leif, Freydis, Thorvald and Thorstein but not Barbie.  Barbie is dressed in a homespun white wool shift with an earth-coloured apron.   The blue trim is typical as are the metal medallions. Barbie is spinning wool using a spindle whorl just like the one found at L'Anse aux Meadows. 

Mummer Barbie and her ugly stick

Mummer Barbie

Any Mummers allowed in?  There is a Christmas tradition in Newfoundland of visiting neighbours' homes in disguise.  The neighbours may poke and prod the mummers and question them closely.  Once their identity is guessed, the mummers remove their masks (or pillowcases), food and drink are offered and then perhaps there is music before the mummers move on to the next house.

The mummers may carry small instruments with them.  If you can't play the fiddle or harmonica then maybe you can play the spoons or other percussive instrument.

Barbie has an ugly stick.  It is a dowel (real people use broomsticks) stuck in an old boot.  The dowel is topped with a stuffed pillow head wearing a headscarf.  I nailed sequins to the dowel but a broomstick would have flattened metal bottle tops.  The ugly stick can be banged on the floor or hit with a small stick producing a satisfying amount of noise to accompany the singing.

I love singing at kitchen parties.  Everybody sings, nobody listens.  Let's have one more verse of Michael Row the Boat Ashore and then we'll go home.

Barbie Jetson

Barbie Jetson

                      









 Another woman from ancient pop culture was the futuristic housewife, Jane Jetson , shown here with her daughter Judy. Jane was nobody's role model although she was a good mother.

Her sister, Barbie Jetson, resembles Judy Jetson.  She wears her hair in a curly up-swirl ponytail.  She is wearing a pink underdress with a pale pink overdress.  The shoulders  of her dress form a triangle.  This will be very stylish in  2062.  By then we will have flying cars (finally!) and robot house cleaners (again, finally!).         

Barbie Richards

Barbie Richards

The Emmy award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series went to Julianna Margulies this year.  She made a speech that the media played up in its coverage of the awards ceremony. 
"What a wonderful time for women on television!" she said.  There have been other wonderful times.  In the past, television has presented strong women like Carla and Diane in Cheers;  Laverne and Shirley in their eponymous sitcom and Laura Holt in Remington Steele to name a few of my favourites.  Okay, I didn't like the show, Laverne and Shirley, but they were doing their best to survive and thrive and I liked that.  Mary Tyler Moore played a character named Mary Richards in a show that was another example of a program about an independent woman.  The theme song ended with the refrain "You're gonna make it after all".

Mary Richards' sister, Barbie Richards, has an independent streak too.  Here she is dressed for success in an outfit made from a pattern, Simplicity 5807.  The cotton wrap dress has a fabric flower in the same fabric and the short, red jacket is trimmed in the same black braid as the dress.

Sweater Suit Barbie

Sweater Suit Barbie

Not everything I touch turns out the way I envisioned it.  This is a prime example.  My friend and neighbour, Mary, bought me a brand new Barbie.  She liked it because it had long brown hair with a purple streak.  My friend and old neighbour, Katrine, contributed a cashmere sweater that had shrunk.  I found a scrap of gold lining and a matching bit of trim.  I had the doll, I had the materials, I had the concept and this was the result.  Sigh.

There was a Peanuts cartoon in the Saturday paper years ago.  Sally Brown had made a coat hanger sculpture and the teacher had given her a C for it.  Sally wondered how the teacher had decided a C was an appropriate mark.  Was the problem the quality of the coat hanger?  Was Sally to be penalized because her parents patronized a dry cleaner who used inferior hangers?  Was it the effort she had put into the work?  In that case the mark was unfair for Sally had tried as hard as she could.  Was it that Sally had in some way not fulfilled all the requirements of the assignment?  In that case should the fault not be shared with the teacher who had failed to communicate clearly?  Perhaps the teacher did not understand the art work itself.  Many artists are undervalued during their lifetimes.  In the face of Sally's arguments the teacher conceded and gave Sally an A.

In this instance, I deserve the C.

I Dream of Barbie

I Dream of Barbie

I mentioned that I had huge quantities of fabric scraps.  Did I mention the scraps are not always huge?  The gold-threaded mesh for Barbie's harem pants was a tiny square.  I used all of it.  The other fabric is stretchy and very heavy.  It is a very good illustration of the mathematical formula for the cost of a new bikini.  The area of the fabric is inversely proportional to the retail price.  And now you know.

Hostess Gown Barbie

Hostess Gown Barbie

One year for Christmas my mother asked for hostess pyjamas.  In a recently seen movie, Joan Crawford (I think) had worn a dramatic hostess outfit with a pair of mules (high-heeled slippers).  She had swanned into a very elegant living room, arranged herself against the fireplace and taken a long drag from her cigarette.  That's how I see the scene in my mind's eye.  Mom must have seen the same movie and I am sure that was the picture she had in her mind when she made her request.  Dad obviously hadn't seen the same film  because on Christmas morning, he presented her with a pair of green flannelette pyjamas, a fuzzy blue housecoat and a huge pair of bunny slippers.  It wasn't the happiest choice.

So, Hostess Gown Barbie is wearing a one-piece strapless garment with a pair of high-heeled black shoes.  The skirt is a separate piece with three tiers and a huge bow at the back.  It may not be clear from the photo, but the second tier is upside-down.  Nobody is perfect.