A Sweet Bodkin Holder

Read Dawn’s accompanying article here to learn more about bodkins, and how they are used to pull ribbons through stitching.

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My collection of needlework tools includes many antique and vintage bodkin holders made from trim pieces. The bits of silk, cotton, and wool skirt braid in a variety of sizes were likely leftovers later stitched into useful needlework companions. You can use a variety of trims to make these bolster pillow–like bodkin holders, which work best for needle bodkins and narrow flat bodkins. The size of the holder can be adjusted by varying the width of trim and the number of widths of trim repeated and by changing the trim length.

In the September 24, 1887, edition of Harper’s Bazar (see note 1), the House-Keeping Made Easy column includes a list of contents for a properly equipped mending basket (see note 2). On the list is skirt braid, sold in rolls in a variety of colors. Skirt braid was a staple in many households from about 1870 onward. It was used in long lengths around the bottom of a long skirt to extend the wear of the skirt edge as it brushed the ground. Scraps of braid as small as 4 inches (10.2 centimeters) were used in this style of bodkin holder.

In the 1907 edition of Moore’s Rural New-Yorker, a column titled Woman and Home includes a similar project (see note 3). It describes a small bolster-like cushion made of ribbon and stuffed to hold bodkins. “Every woman who runs ribbon through her lingerie needs a bodkin holder that will keep that little necessity handy.” The stitches are described as “herring boning” and “cat-stitching.” The writer confirms that the bodkins are easy to slip under the stitching, yet the stitching holds them in place.

Using modern floral trim and ribbon, I created a reproduction of an antique bodkin holder in my collection. Just like the makers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, I believe bodkin holders make beautiful and practical gifts! Gather some decorative 3/8-inch (1-centimeter) ribbon or trim and have fun!

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Stitch an adorable pillow to keep your bodkin safe.

Notes

1. The early spelling of Harper’s was Bazar, which was later changed to Bazaar.

2. Christine Terhune Herrick, House-Keeping Made Easy, “XVI: Shreds and Patches,” Harper’s Bazar, 20, no. 39, September 24, 1887, 663.

3. Woman and Home, Moore’s Rural New-Yorker, 66, no. 3010, October 5, 1907, 744.

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