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Allie Marguccio of East Wheatfield Township is bent on preserving an old-world traditional art form.
Marguccio was awarded a nearly $4,000 apprenticeship through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts to attend workshops in Slovenia.
Her specialty is Idrija lace, a heritage of the small mining town in westcentral Slovenia for which it is named.
Marguccio, an elementary librarian in the United School District, Armagh, and her husband, Tom, traveled to Idrija in June.
Before starting her apprenticeship, Marguccio and her husband attended a three-day festival that showcased the art form.
The principal exhibit was titled “Shoes With Idrija Lace/Modernity, Hooked into Tradition,” featuring the craftsmanship of Alja Novak, a
shoemaker.
Novak’s handcrafted shoes were adorned with Idrija lace and had been part of a traveling exhibition that had toured the world.
“Many of her shoes had been purchased by celebrities, among them American movie star Ben Affleck,” Marguccio said.
“I also had an opportunity to meet a former director of the lace school who had been instrumental in gathering the traditional lace
supplies that were sent to me when I first began to make lace.”
While in Slovenia, Marguccio worked with master teachers Metka Fortuna and Stana Frelih, who developed a personalized curriculum
of intermediate lace study specifically for her.
“I have been making Idrija lace for many years, so the goal of this apprenticeship was to tweak my skills and to learn how to properly
use the traditional bolster pillow,” she said.
“In this study, I worked on the Idrija narrow tape lace using the traditional pillow, bobbins and thread.”
The apprenticeship offered many challenges in mastering the techniques as well as instructions in some new skills and ways of
tensioning.
The trip had additional significance for Marguccio because Idrija is near the town of Cerkno, the birthplace of her grandmother and the
home of Frelih, who was her primary instructor.
Frelih is employed by the Idrija Lace School but lives in Cerkno and teaches lace making at the primary school there.
Frelih’s students begin their studies by learning basic bobbin winding. They use an electric winder to wind each bobbin.
“They start by making a long tape of cloth stitch,” Marguccio said. “Tensioning is one of the most important aspects of their early
learning, because its importance cannot be overemphasized.”
Marguccio’s apprenticeship began with a review of the color coding system, a method with which she was familiar but had not
mastered.
She proceeded to practice with a variety of corners and turns, mastery of the braided flower with picots and little holes in the center (a
typical flower seen in Idrija narrow tape lace), the twisted tape, understanding various pattern markings and starting and finishing.
“One of the most challenging things for me was learning to plait while holding the bobbins in the palms of my hands and then tensioning
using both arms,” she said. “It is much easier to do on a cookie pillow.
In 2000, Marguccio began her quest to devote more time to her craft. She started taking lessons every Saturday from Diana Danko of
New Stanton, Westmoreland County.
“I was so excited about what I was learning that I shared my accomplishments and pictures of my work with my two cousins in
Slovenia,” Marguccio said.
One of the biggest challenges she faced during the beginning process was trying to find someone who could instruct her in the use of the traditional pillow (punjkl).
“The lace pillow I was learning on was the traditional Belgian cookie pillow, which is flat,” she said. “In bobbin lace, the bobbins are
crossed and twisted, weaving the threads through each other to make the design.”
In using the Slovenian punjkl, a tubular bolster pillow, the bobbins are held in the palms of the hands and passed through the fingers in
order to cross and twist the threads.
Marguccio began teaching Slovenian bobbin lace for beginners at the Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center in Cambria City three years ago
as part of UPJ’s Outreach Program.
The apprenticeship and her certification has helped attain the goals she wanted to accomplish: To learn proper technique in the use of
the pillow and to use the method to work traditional patterns at the intermediate level.
“By gaining this knowledge, I can expand my own teaching to a level beyond beginners,” she said. |
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| January 14, 2008 |
Monsignor Anton Jamnik,
Auxiliary Bishop in the
Metropolitan Archdiocese of
Ljubljana and the Director of the
Catholic Institute of Slovenia,
visited the Embassy of Slovenia
during his trip in the United
States. |
| Click here to read more |
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| December 19, 2008 |
Monsignor Anton Jamnik,
Auxiliary Bishop in the
Metropolitan Archdiocese of
Ljubljana and the Director of the
Catholic Institute of Slovenia,
visited the Embassy of Slovenia
during his trip in the United
States. |
| Click here to read more |
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| November 16, 2008 |
As the new President of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada (RHSC)
as of October 4, 2008 (http://www.heraldry.ca), I thought that it was time
to create a Branch of the Society in Canada, namely, the Slovenija
Branch. I have started to "bother" people about this idea, and am
attempting to solicit Slovenians (Canadian and Americans) to participate
in the forming of this Branch. The branch is "Slovenija Branch". I cannot
be its President, but certainly can be one of its founding members. It
would be a conflict of interest if I was anything else due to my position
as President of the Society. |
| Click here to read more |
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On Saturday, November 29 2008, members of the Slovenian Cultural Center will take part in Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry's Christmas Around the World event. The Slovenian performance will be held at 2:45 p.m. A bus will depart from the Center on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Please contact the Center to reserve a seat on the bus. The SCC is located at 14252 Main Street Lemont, Illinois 60439 Telephone 630-243-0670. secreatry@slovenian-center.org |
| Click here to read more |
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| November 5, 2008 |
President Danilo Türk and Prime Minister Janez Janša congratulated the US president-Elect Barack Obama immediately after the announcement of the results. On behalf of Slovenia President Türk wished Obama a great dea lof success in his work. Common values, striving for understanding between nations and cultures, and advocacy of fundamental freedoms and human rights represent for Türk a firm foundation for further cooperation. |
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| Click here to read more |
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| October 28, 2008 |
We encourage everyone to go to Slovenia to discover, rediscover, and enjoy its
culture and heritage. But it’s easiest to remember and share Slovenia in the US
through beautiful handcrafts and gifts brought back for you by Home From
Slovenia®. Simply go to the website www.HomeFromSlovenia.com to take the
opportunity of holding a bit of Slovenia in your hand, and share it with pride in
knowing that your gift authentically expresses and supports Slovenian heritage. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 28, 2008 |
Every year, members of the Society for Slovene Studies – an academic organization for scholars whose work
focuses on Slovene issues – present their recent scholarly work at national conferences. The national meeting of
the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies (AAASS) is perhaps the most important
venue for academic exchange of scholars working on East and Central Europe, and annually attracts several
thousand scholars. This year’s AAASS meeting will be held November 20 to November 23 in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. Members from the Society for Slovene Studies will be presenting their work on Slovene-related
topics in 19 panels... |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 20, 2008 |
Howdy Phil ;
Enjoyed checking out your news letter and viewing all the photos. Thank you for
sending me all the happenings your way. Talked to Fr. Perkovich a couple hours ago and he was
telling me about doing the Mass at SNPJ. And here I got to view the photos you sent from that day. I
am hanging in there , been Blessed with good Health and was 79 July 4th. Still get a lot of visitors
and things happening here. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 20, 2008 |
Spostovani gospod Philip,
sem Rajko Rudez iz Kranja in montiram reportazo o turneji Veselih Begunjcanov po Ameriki in
Kanadi.
Slike mi lahko posljene po mailu ali pa mi prelozize na kaksen server in mi posljete samo link. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 19, 2008 |
| GILFORD — Erika Johnson of Gilford went home
again last month. As part of her 40th anniversary
with her husband, Bill, she was able to visit her
place of birth, Maribor, Slovenia, for the first time in
52 years. She reunited with her sister, her aunt and
uncle, and a number of cousins — some whom she
had never met before. In one case, she found a
cousin that she never knew she had. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 10, 2008 |
Allie Marguccio of East Wheatfield Township is bent on preserving an old-world traditional art form. Marguccio was awarded a nearly $4,000 apprenticeship through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts to attend workshops in Slovenia. Her specialty is Idrija lace, a heritage of the small mining town in westcentral Slovenia for which it is named. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 8, 2008 |
| The Slovenian Parish of Saint-Vladimir–Mission Slovene, in Montreal, is served by the
members of the Congregation of the Mission of St. Vincent de Paul - C.M. (the
Vincentian Fathers or Lazarists) of the province of Slovenia. They also serve in two
Slovenian Parishes in Toronto. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 8, 2008 |
| St. Mary Genealogy Center and Gornick Library and Museum are located at 211 East Mesa
Avenue, Pueblo, Co 81006. The Library and Museum are available for public tours or private
visiting and the Genealogy Center offers assistance in searching for information for legal
records and creating family trees. Both are open to the public during office hours or by
appointment. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 5, 2008 |
| Cardinal Franc Rode, C.M., Prefect of the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated
Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, received an honorary doctorate degree in Law from the
University on September 24. |
| Click here to read more |
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| October 4, 2008 |
| Not sure if you are aware of the tornado which hit Slovenia on Sunday July 13th and Monday
July 14th. We started a campaign to raise funds for those affected and hope to distribute them
through the Slovenian Catholic charity Karitas... |
| Click here to read more |
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| September 13, 2008 |
| To some the Ljubljanica River is sacred, while to others it is a trove of treasures waiting to be discovered. The river's gifts span the centuries-from a prehistoric ax made from deer antlers, to an iron
spearhead forged in the Middle Ages, to a 16th century clay furnace tile from the Renaissance. While some divers have sold the artifacts to museums, most went to private collectors. Arne Hodalič’s interest has been to capture the story of the underwater treasure hunt in pictures. |
| Click here to read more |
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| September 13, 2008 |
| This weekend getaway at the Mohican Outdoor
Center* in Blairstown, NJ features a folk dance
workshop, fun with proverbs, a kifli demonstration (nut
butterhorn cookies), hiking and more. The fee is $115
for AMC (Appalachian Mountain Club) members and
$122 for non-members. Fee includes activities, two
nights lodging, two light breakfasts, and a Slovenian
wine tasting and dinner on Saturday evening. |
| Click here to read more |
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| September 13, 2008 |
| St. Anne’s Society
( KSKJ ) based at the
Slovenian Catholic Mission
in Lemont, IL will hold a
fund raising dinner for
Holy Cross Church in
Črenšovci, Slovenia. The
fundraiser will be held in
the Slovenian Catholic
Center after 11:00am
Mass on Sunday
September 14, 2008. |
| Click here to read more |
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| September 13, 2008 |
| Nearly 150 travelers from across America arrived in Slovenia the second week of
September prepared to enjoy the beauty of Slovenia in early fall. In addition to family
groups and individual travelers touring the country on Kollander World Travel trips,
several larger groups landed at Brnik Airport to begin their two week trips. |
| Click here to read more |
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| August 24, 2008 |
| Maj. Gen. Frank Gorenc is Director of Air and Space Operations, Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley Air Force Base, Va. He is responsible to the Commander, Air Combat Command, on all matters pertaining to the direct operational planning, training, command and controlling functions to deploy and employ regular and Reserve component combat air forces, including more than 1,900 aircraft, in support of U.S. security objectives. |
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| Click here to read more |
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| August 16, 2008 |
| For those of you who are interested in buying Slovenian food products in the United States we are providing you with a link to an online shop igourmet.com... |
| Click here to read more |
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| August 16, 2008 |
| The Empire State Building is shining with Olympic spirit: Each of its top four sides are being lit with the different colors of 66 competing countries... |
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| Click here to read more |
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| August 16, 2008 |
| Whose Slovenian sausages are the tastiest in all the land? You be the judge. Cast your vote for top klobasa at the 5th annual Slovenian Sausage Festival, hosted by the National Cleveland Style Polka Hall of Fame, Saturday, September 27, at... |
| Click here to read more |
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| August 16, 2008 |
| Singing is key to the continuation of Slovenian music in America. Now Slovenian students of voice can apply for a special scholarship to pursue their musical calling. The Cleveland Institute of Music is accepting applications for the Josephine Valencic Scholarship in Voice. |
| Click here to read more |
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| August 2008 |
| About ClevelandSlovenian.com It is well known throughout the Slovenian community that there are a great number of Slovenians living, traveling and working in North America. The goal of this web site is to establish a common ground for these Slovenians, and those interested in its culture, to promote their heritage, celebrate their ancestry and socialize with other Slovenians-- especially in the Cleveland, Ohio area... |
| Click here to read more |
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| Washington DC, June 27, 2008 |
The Slovenian Embassy in Washington hosted a ceremony to mark Slovenia's National Day on Wednesday. The event was attended by some 400 people from all walks of life, including U.S. politicians and diplomats....
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| Slovenia, July 26, 2008 |
| On Saturday, July 26, Ambassador Ghafari successfully climbed Mt. Triglav, the highest mountain in Slovenia at 9,396 ft. Accompanying him were three local guides and four members of the Embassy community. The group began climbing from the Krma Valley and made a speedy ascent following the Planika route. Just below the summit they met Janez Janša, the Prime Minister of Slovenia, and then continued on... |
| Click here to read more |
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| SNPJ Recreation Center, July 11 - 13, 2008 |
| Every Thursday morning when the Senate is in session, Minnesotans are invited to join Senator Klobuchar for coffee and potica during our “Minnesota Morning.” “Minnesota Morning” is an opportunity for all Minnesotans who are visiting our nation’s capital to meet with Senator Klobuchar and hear a first-hand account of her work in the U.S. Senate on behalf of the great state of Minnesota.... |
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| Click here to read more |
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| SNPJ Recreation Center, July 11 - 13, 2008 |
| The Slovene National Benefit Society invites to celebrate Slovenefest XXVII from July 11 to July 13 at the SNPJ Recreation Center, 270 Martin Road, Borough of SNPJ, PA 16120... |
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| The new website http://www.slotraveler.com bills itself as
THE NUMBER ONE TRAVELER SITE FOR SLOVENIA.
This interactive site features Cultural Heritage, Natural Heritage, Culture, Favors of Slovenia, Spa &
Wellness, Entertainment & Sport and Accommodation sections. Currently slotraveler.com is available
in Slovenian and English. |
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SLOVENIA: Strategically placed at the intersection of two key
international corridors, Slovenian Railways is well placed to act as
a hub linking east and west, but it must face up to emerging
competition in the lucrative freight market. Chris Jackson asked
SZ Director-General Tomaz Schara about the challenges and
opportunities that lie ahead.
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| Join us Saturday Feb. 7, 2009 as Cleveland Slovenian Ski Club takes a day trip to Holiday Valley Ski Resort in Ellicottville, N.Y. |
| Click here to read more |
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| Marko Nabersnik's Petelinji Zajtrk (Rooster's Breakfast), centering
on forbidden love in a sleepy
town, is Slovenia's entry for
foreign-language film in the
Academy Awards... |
| Click to read more |
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Take a walk down memory lane.
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