My quilt "Jewelbox Memories" has a very special block I made in honour of my Dad, George Andrew John Armstrong. This blog post describes the story and inspiration behind it! Enjoy!
When I was a little girl my Dad, George Andrew John Armstrong, played in a fiddle band at local weddings around Beamsville, Ontario. he was born in 1925, and took violin lessons as a boy. I have heard stories that he hated violin lessons, but once they stopped, he discovered his love for music and continued playing. I believe his violin was bought new for him - advertisements from 1939 state that this specific violin was for sale when he was around 14 years old.
One distinct memory I have is the fiddle band rehearsing at our house. Before we went to bed, the band would play one song for us - "The Orange Blossom Special". I loved that and remember it very distinctly! In fact, the beautiful fiddle part is playing in my head right now!
Here is a great picture of me on the left, and my sister Susan on the right, around the time we would rush downstairs to hear them play!
My dad died when I was around 11 years old, and my memory of him has faded a bit. His violin, bow and violin case are cherished possessions of mine. I have a play list of the songs the band played, a few lines of a composition, and his pitch pipe.
When it came time to design a quilt block in memory of my Dad, his violin sprang to mind immediately. The violin in this block is made out of a brown silk tie, black tie, and thread embellishments. The inking is made using Pigma marker, and honours him and our time listening to that wonderful song. Enduring memories forever captured.
While sadly I do not have a picture of my father playing the fiddle, I do have some others to share in this blog post! I don’t know how to play the violin - I tried to have his violin repaired, but there is a crack where the key goes in. It would be more difficult and costly than it’s worth.
I found a bit of information on the internet about this particular violin. It is a Gibson – relatively rare now, as Gibson only made violins for a couple of years. Wow, the case is a V-25 and cost $2.50 and the violin was either $20 or $25!
