San Francisco Center for the Book

The term “Hussif” is short for “huswif” or “housewife”, and is a word used to describe these historical travel sewing kits. In the 18th and 19th centuries, sewists, sailors, and soldiers alike carried a hussif.

In this workshop, students will create their own hand stitched hussif that contains three pockets for stashing threads, small scissors or snips, thimble, fabric scraps, etc. There is also an area at the bottom for pins, needles and safety pins. The huswif is designed to be rolled up, tied, and easily carried in a pocket, bag, or luggage, and keeps your supplies neat and tidy during your travels, while attending a workshop, or around the house.

This is a perfect project to use up fabric scraps since the pocket sizes are relatively small and the backing can be pieced together. Finished product is 4 ½ x 15" unrolled.

Prerequisite: None

Materials to bring:

Students will supply their own materials and some tools. Please bring:

- the equivalent of about 1/2 yard of fabric. Historically, the Hussif was made out of scraps of fabric pieced together. The largest piece is the backing which will be 5 x 16", but it can be pieced together. The other pieces range from 5 x 7" to5 x 3.5". Reuse is encouraged!

- 1 piece of fabric (20 x 2.5") or ribbon or twill tape (20") - this is for the tie.

- 1 or 2 pieces of felt or wool (about 3 x 3") for needles. It can also be a piece of regular woven fabric

- thread (sashiko, machine thread, purl cotton, embroidery thread, etc., bring a variety

Tools: sharp scissors or rotary cutter, needles to fit your threads, pins, thread snips. SFCB has cutting mats for your use.

About the Instructor: Jody Alexander (she/her) is a mixed media artist who lives and works in Santa Cruz and Penn Valley, California. She combines textiles, paper, found items and imagery to create books, objects, wall pieces, garments, and installations. Her current work is inspired by the art of repair, reuse, and imagery and stories encountered in her travels and everyday.

Her work appears in a number of publications including Masters: Book Arts: Major Works by Leading Artist, 500 Handmade Books, and 1000 Artists' Books: Exploring the Book as Art. Jody was an artist in residence at the Santa Cruz Resource Recovery Facility in 2019, and is the 2015 recipient of the Rydell Visual Arts Fellowship. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Art History from U.C.L.A., and a Master’s degree in Library Science from Simmons College, Boston, MA.

Jody teaches and exhibits nationally and internationally.