Spool with thread

Description

This spool of white, heavyweight crochet cotton was used by New York-based artist Irene DeFoy Gregor for needlework projects between 1950 and 1975. Gregor was trained in textile arts from a young age and was proficient in a variety of needlework, but had a particular interest in tatting, a type of craft done by tying thread into an intricate pattern of knots. Tatting is performed using a shuttle which holds thread wound around a bobbin in its center. The tatter holds a large loop of the thread in one hand and moves the shuttle back and forth through the loop with their other hand, making and tightening knots as they go. Winterthur’s collection includes a group of objects made by Gregor (2017.0019.107.001-.033), most of which are tatted. This object is one of a large group transferred to Winterthur from the American Textile History Museum when it closed in 2017.