Expo Boutis at Calvisson

On Friday October 8th, Lou and I went to the exhibition at the Foyer Communal in Calvisson, which is on the subject of boutis every two years. Alternate years there is a different topic.

We wanted to listen to the lectures, which were given by Francine Nicolle, Mme Alphand on the subject of Jupons Jardiniers, and M. Combe on the subject of his armoires-creches. The pictures here of the jupons jardiniers were taken with the express permission of the owner - an announcement was made during the conference that an exceptional permission was given by Mme Alphand to photograph the exhibited two jupons.

There were a number of boutis exhibited, traditional designs and mostly reproductions of antiques shown in Mme Nicolle's books. There was no permission given for photos. The Tristan quilt was exhibited in the middle of the room, showing a true-to-original reroduction in linen and ecru thread.

We met up with Nini http://ninipetitsboutis.blogspot.com for lunch at the Crepe Savante, and spent a pleasant afternoon together talking about (what else !) boutis and stitching ..... reading books about (you guessed it !) boutis and discussing the regional differences in presentation and stitching. Nini commented that the stitching, stuffing and overall appearance of boutis in this area is finer than that further south, where it is sturdier and stitches are bigger. She made me a lovely gift of a little "cigale" and a beautiful lavender sachet which you can see on the top photo. I bought a couple of patterns and a lovely book on local costume.

We spent some time in the Maison du Boutis as well, which I actually enjoyed more than the expo. The pieces are simply exquisite, and it is a real pleasure to look at them and marvel at the detail, workmanship, and the fact that they have survived so much in such wonderful condition. There were many people there that day, and it was such a pleasure to listen to everyone's comments and see what they enjoyed about each piece.