An Inspiration: Alabama Chanin

Most mornings go like every other morning but recently there was a morning that went differently. When checking my email, there was a Tweet from Rosanne Cash (whom I admire and respect tremendously) about a video featuring a woman, Natalie Chanin, creator of Alabama Chanin. Chanin was one of Cash's inspirations for her most recent CD release, The River and the Thread. Once I watched the video, Chanin was an immediate inspiration for me as well.

The video, Alabama Chanin, originally shared by Cash (in which she also appears), is at the filmmaker's site, www.gaeltowey.com and I found myself so inspired that I was tearing up halfway through it. I might be a little behind the times, out of the loop, because I do not follow mainstream media, so when something makes its way to me, it is usually because it is something I need to see and this was one such occasion. Her story, coupled with the details of the local Alabama women, their struggles with unemployment by the close of textile manufacturing plants and their immense talent in the almost lost art of hand-stitching and quilting that Chanin has now given preservation to, was indeed a moving portrait. 

This video provided me the inspiration to get on with it. Whether you are toying with the idea of starting something for yourself or you just love women, sewing, fashion design, the south, textiles or the preservation of historical crafts and talents, I know that you will find this an uplifting and possibly emotional feminine piece. In some way, even deeper than I can pinpoint (no pun intended), Chanin's story changed something in the core of my life that morning and I am prompted to follow my dreams and to encourage others to as well.

This is a different video produced by Etsy, but I want to go ahead and share it here. Please watch the other video above at the filmmaker's site for a longer story with an appearance by Rosanne Cash.
Find out more about Alabama Chanin and the designs at www.alabamachanin.com  Find out more about Rosanne Cash's CD, The River and the Thread, at http://rosannecash.com

Sharing the beauty,


Cheryl B.