tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art

Style Imitating Art: “Taking in the Laundry” by Grandma Moses

tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art

About Style Imitating Art

Style Imitating Art is hosted by Salazar of 14 Shades of Grey, Terri of Meadow Tree Style, and Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge. Style Imitating Art challenges us to draw style inspiration from pieces of art. Every other Monday, one of the hosts, acting as presenter, selects an inspiration image that they will each post on their blogs. The following Monday, each host shares her art inspired outfit. Participants are invited to submit their art inspired outfits to the presenter by 10:00 p.m. EST on the Tuesday following the hosts’ art inspired outfit posts. The following day, Wednesday, the presenter will share all of the submissions on her blog.

You don’t have to be a blogger to join either! In fact, you don’t even have to join but you can still use the art to inspire an outfit just for the sake of trying something different. If you want to share your inspired outfit, we invite you do so on Instagram or any other social media platform that you prefer. Just be sure to tag SalazarTerri, and Shelbee or use #TeamLOTSStyle and #StyleImitatingArt so the hosts know you have joined. Go have some fun in your closets and join the SIA challenge next week!

This Week’s Presenter

The inspiration artwork was chosen by me because hanging laundry is my favorite household chore!

The Artwork
“Taking in the Laundry” by Grandma Moses
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art, “Taking in the Laundry” by Grandma Moses
About the Artist: Grandma Moses

Anna Mary Robertson Moses was a self taught American folk artist born in Greenwich, New York, on September 7, 1860. She was the third of ten children born to Margaret Shanahan Robertson and Russell King Robertson. Her father was a farmer and ran a flax mill which allowed Anna to briefly attend a one-room schoolhouse, which is now the Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont, home of the largest collection of Grandma Moses’s works.

Anna took art lessons as a young child which inspired her passion for painting. During her youth, she used lemon and grape juice to produce the colors for her “landscapes” and also incorporated ground ocher, grass, flour paste, slacked lime, and sawdust into her juvenile works. When she was 12 years old, she left home to work for a wealthy neighboring family. For the next 15 years, she performed various farm and household chores for prosperous families in her area. One family who employed Anna, the Whitesides, noticed her interest in their Currier and Ives prints and gifted her chalks and wax crayons.

At the age of 27, Anna met Thomas Salmon Moses, a “hired man” on the farm where she was employed. After they were married, the Moses family moved to Staunton, Virginia, where they would live for the next 20 years working on a total of 5 different farms. To supplement the family income, Anna purchased a cow with her savings and then made and sold churned butter and potato chips.

In January 1901, the couple purchased their own farm near Verona, Virginia, called Mount Airy. They lived in this first home until September 1902 and eventually moved to Eagle Bridge, New York, in 1905. Anna and Thomas had ten children together but only five survived infancy. In 1927, at the age of 67, Thomas Moses died from a heart attack, leaving Anna a widow at the age of 60. Her son Forrest stepped in to help with the farm until Anna retired in 1936 and moved in with one of her daughters. She never again married.

Anna’s creativity blossomed early and continued into her young married life where she used various decorative arts, or hobby arts, in her home decor. In fact, these hobby arts, such as embroidery and quilting, were her preferred creative mediums until she developed severe arthritis at the age of 76. Her sister Celestia suggested painting as a creative outlet that would be less painful for her hands. This gentle prompting launched Anna’s painting career in her late 70s at which point she became known as “Mother Moses”. The press later nicknamed her “Grandma Moses” which stuck for the next quarter of a century until her death on December 13, 1961, at the age of 101. During her years as a painter, she created over 1,500 works.

Grandma Moses has been awarded various honors including the Women’s National Press Club Award from President Harry S. Truman in 1949. And in 1960, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller declared her 100th birthday “Grandma Moses Day.”

In her autobiography, My Life’s History, published in 1952, Grandma Moses wrote,

“I look back on my life like a good day’s work, it was done and I feel satisfied with it. I was happy and contented, I knew nothing better and made the best out of what life offered. And life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.”

tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
A note about the picture pillow case. That was Jeff’s Father’s Day gift when he was in Aghanistan in 2015. I had no idea what to send him on a deployment so we made him a pillow case with our faces. It cracks me up still!
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
About the Art: “Taking in the Laundry”

Taking in the Laundry is a 1951 oil painting on wood that measures 43.2 x 55.2 cm (17 x 21.6 in). It is currently part of an unknown private collection. The work is done in her trademark primitive style illustrating a traditional scene from rural New York life. She shows us two neighboring farm houses on laundry day. You can see the wind blowing the laundry and creating a rustic feeling of nostalgia that makes me yearn for simpler times.

I cannot find any other information about this painting, probably because it is in someone’s private collection. But I love this painting nonetheless! And I do love laundry day.

References/Resource:
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
About My Outfit

I am so excited to share about my outfit today! Not only did I forget about this amazingly cute tie dye dress that I purchased last year and never wore but I made a really super special ruana/wrap to wear with my newly rediscovered dress. And since the wrap very much resembles sheets blowing in the wind on laundry day, it was the perfect thing to showcase for this Style Imitating Art challenge.

The blue tie dye of the dress makes me think of partly cloudy skies, the best weather for laundry day, in my opinion. When it is too sunny, I need to wear a brimmed hat to hang the laundry or else I risk sun blindness. So I wore a brimmed hat with this outfit for that reason and because y’all know how I love my hats!

But let me waste no more time talking about the things you can clearly just see in the photos. I want to tell you about my wrap. It is really special to me. Many, many years ago, in the late 1990s, one of my dear college roommates, Meg, joined the Peace Corps and headed off to Tanzania for the next few years. She sent me these two separate cotton sarongs with Swahili sayings on them.

I loved these pieces from the moment I received them but I never really wore them because I don’t really wear sarongs and they are an inadequate length to wear as scarves. But I always kept them because they were special to me.

They became even more special to me in 2013 when Meg tragically died in a paragliding accident in Colorado. While we had grown apart in our adult years, we were still close enough that her death effected me more profoundly than I anticipated, and I continue to miss her beautiful presence in this world. She was one of the really, really good ones.

When I got my new sewing machine a few weeks ago and started sewing things together, I figured I could turn my unworn sentimental sarongs into something that I would actually wear and love. And so I stitched the two large pieces of fabric together in the back and then I sewed in some arm holes and wrapped myself up in a giant Meg hug.

I love my new “Meg” wrap so much for so many reasons! I can feel her spirit around me when I put it on and it brings me so much joy. And joy is the very thing I chase every day when I get dressed…as we all should…because life can be so very short sometimes.

tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art

Meg had translated these Swahili sayings for me when she sent me the sarongs, but I cannot remember what they meant. So I used Google translate and this is what I got…

tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
Ihsani sina hata ahsante sipati
Translation:
I don’t even have a thank you, I don’t get it.
(Um. Yeah. I really don’t get it.)
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
Mali sina lakini subira nnayo
Translation:
I don’t have wealth but I have patience.
(This one I really like.)
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art
tie dye midi dress, upcycled ruana, boho style, cowgirl boots, Shelbee on the Edge, Style Imitating Art

So how did I do with this challenge? Have you created an outfit inspired by laundry day? If you want to join us and be featured in my gallery post on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, please send your photos to me at shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com by Tuesday, June 6, 2023, at 10:00 p.m. EST and then check back for the group gallery of art inspired looks. In the meantime, be sure to check out Salazar’s interpretation as well as Terri’s take on it.

Happy styling! 

Keeping it on the edge,

Shelbee

Linking up with these Fabulous Link Parties.

Outfit Details: Dress and Belt-Torrid / Boots-Durango / Necklace-Michal Golan / Earrings-Thrifted / Hat-Wona Trading / Meg Wrap-Upcycled by me from two sarongs

I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.

16 Comments

  • Elizabeth

    Thank you for highlighting the painting by Grandma Moses, and providing the information about her.
    I really like the wrap you made from your friend’s gifts. A wonderful way to remember her.

  • Marsha Banks

    Shelbee, I just don’t know how you do it! Your closet must be a magical wardrobe like something from The Magicians! I love everything about this outfit! Your sarong wrap is both gorgeous, creative, and so wonderfully you. Your friend is smiling, I am sure!

    I love that pillowcase! Every year, for the last several years, my youngest son has bought his nieces and nephew (my grands) something with his face on it. The first year, he bought them pillows which were scarily accurate! He wanted to get them shower curtains this past year, but both moms said nope!!

    I do miss my clothes line. I hate that people ruin things so that everyone pays the price which is, I’m assuming, why they are outlawed in our neighborhood. I miss having one because everything is just so much crisper and feels so much cleaner, too…though our pollution is definitely a problem here so maybe they wouldn’t be cleaner! Have a fabulous week, my friend!

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      Marsha, thanks so much! I really do think there might be some magic in my closet room. Ha. I have so much fun playing dress up in there! I kind of wish I had more time to keep playing dress up. Hehe. Your son’s gift ideas made me laugh. That is so funny and I bet some of the face things can be pretty creepy looking! We have this face pillow case on our bed right now and it has definitely startled me a few times when I have walked into my bedroom and for a second thought someone was lying in my bed! I am very sad that you can’t enjoy the smell of crisp clean air dried laundry. Boo on those people who ruin stuff for others!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Michelle

    I am so sorry about Meg. What an adventurous spirit! It’s even telling in the nature of her death. I love that you made Meg’s gifts into this beautiful wrap. Gorgeous! And I’m glad you found your blue tie-dye dress. I love it! This is an amazing outfit.

    xoxo
    Michelle
    https://followingmymuse.space

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      Thank you, thank, you, thank you, my sweet friend! Meg was very adventurous. Confident, smart, kind, humble, giving and forgiving, and always authentically and unapologetically true to herself. And she cared for the environment long before environmental consciousness was a trendy thing so I think she would have really gotten a kick out of my upcycling these sarongs! This outfit makes me really super happy!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Terri Gardner

    I love what you did with your two sarongs. The power of sewing! They also go wonderful with your blue sky dress. Thank goodness I live in the country and can do what I want. I think the HOA’s like to weld their power a bit to much for me.

    Lovey look.

    Terri

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      Thanks so much, Terri! This wrap is so special to me now. I have worn it about once a week since I made it. We didn’t hang laundry out at our last house because there was no clothes line and we rented. I was really happy when we first moved into our current house, which we rented for 2 years before buying, when I saw it had a clothes line! Unfortunately, I haven’t been hanging the laundry this week though with all the wildfire smoke. Eek. It’s bad. I agree about HOAs. Their power wielding shenanigans are all a bit too much for me as well!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Nancy

    That pillow case is hilarious! What a unique gift! I love all the stories about the artists you use for these challenges. So many, to me, unknown artists. This is a lovely painting!

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      Hahaha, thanks, Nancy! We thought the pillow case was pretty funny, too! Jeff has a picture of himself holding it up on the top of a really tall mountain in Afghanistan. I will have to dig it up to show you!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Erin @ Cracker Crumb Life

    Shelbee, this post is so special for so many different reasons. I love how you highlighted Grandma Moses and your fashion imitating art was right one, but the story behind your “Meg” wrap is very touching. What a wonderful way to literally wrap yourself in the memories of your friendship.

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