Last Chance Blankets for January, 2023

Now is the time!

Our USA mills in Oregon and Washington run three shifts a day to keep up with the demand for our wool blankets. Each year, we have to retire blankets to make room on the loom for our newest designs. Stock is low on the following blankets, so if you have been considering one, now is the time!

Child-sized Blankets

Pendleton Moon Dance child-size blanket

Moon Dance

The Menominee tribe of the Great Lakes region tells a tale of Brother Sun and Sister Moon. Brother Sun set out on a long hunt and did not return, causing Sister Moon to worry. She searched far and wide for her brother, waxing and waning for twenty days until she, too, disappeared. But Sister Moon always returns after four nights of darkness to light the night with her soft beams. Sister Moon’s search for Brother Sun is portrayed in this pattern of a cloud-obscured moon dancing gently over water.

This peaceful child-sized blanket was introduced in Fall 2020. It is 32″ x 44″, and napped for cozy story times. It also looks beautiful draped over the back of a chair. See it here: Moon Dance

Star Guardian

Pendleton Star Guardian child-sized blanket.

Crossed arrows stand for brotherhood and the setting aside of conflicts. A peaceful evening has come to the prairie. It is time to light the fires and draw together in the warmth of the fire circle. As logs crackle and flames flicker, stories rise on the night air. Stories of bravery and victory in battle. Stories of stealth and bounty in the hunt. Stories of tricksters and their clever magic. As they share their legends, the People are safe and warm in their tepees. Above it all shines Bear, the great guardian of the night skies.

This charming child-sized blanket was introduced in Fall of 2017. It is 32″ x 44″, and softly napped for soft snuggles, cuddles, and naps. It also makes a fine wall-hanging. See it here: Star Guardian

Robe-sized Blankets

Alamosa

The Alamosa blanket by Pendleton - red, beige, blue

“Of a time long ago, these things are said.” The Navajo language is spoken like a poem, and tells of the first beings, the Air-Spirit People, who emerged in the First World. There, a red island held the Insect People; ants, dragonflies, beetles, and a dwelling called House of Red Rock. To the east, a stepped pattern shows the Place Where the Waters Crossed, home to the sunrise. In the center, blue streams converge, then flow toward each of the sacred Four Directions. 

This spectacular robe-sized blanket (twin) was introduced in Fall of 2020. It is unnapped, so the smooth beauty of the pattern shines through, and is finished with a whipstitch binding. See it here: Alamosa

Crescent Bay

Pendleton Crescent Bay blanket

Crescent Bay, near Laguna Beach in southern California, is part of the California’s 810 miles of ocean coastline. Waves of diamonds represent the waters of the bay, where divers can see an array of sea life; kelp gardens, fish, seals, sea lions–even sharks. Above the bay floats the marine layer, an inversion created when the cool ocean meets warm air. Sometimes clear, sometimes foggy, the marine layer lingers along the coast, gently dispelling inland heat with the cooling power of the Pacific Ocean.

This California-themed robe-sized blanket was introduced in the Spring of 2020. It is unnapped, so the pattern definition is excellent, and it’s finished with a wool binding. See it here: Crescent Bay

Bedding Collection (multiple sizes)

Alta Lakes

Pendleton Alta lakes blanket, shown in Queen size

In the high, clear air of the San Juan Mountains, three alpine lakes nestle against Palmyra Peak. This is Southwestern Colorado’s Alta Lakes recreation area, home to hiking, fishing, boating and paddle boarding. Nearby is a tiny ghost town named Alta, a mining center in the 1800s and early 1900s. The evening sky is lit by glowing bands of sunset colors that touch the peaks of the San Juan Mountains, surrounding the three glowing Alta Lakes.

This vibrant blanket design was introduced as a bedding collection in Fall of 2021. The photo above shows the Queen size. It is unnapped for vibrant pattern definition, and is finished with a whipstitch binding. See the collection here: Alta Lakes

Pendleton Mill Tours are Back

We’re back, and ready to show you around.

Pendleton is excited to announce that tours of our Washougal, Washington and Pendleton, Oregon mills are now open! These tours showcase the vertical operation that brings Pendleton’s iconic wool blankets and fabrics to life. “We are excited to be able to welcome guests into both of Pendleton’s mills again,” said Rolan Snider, vice president of textile manufacturing at Pendleton. “The mills offer an experience into the commitment, experience, quality and investment in technology that has given the brand its ‘Warranted to Be’ legacy.”

A Little PWM History

The Pendleton mill was originally built in 1893, and has been operating as Pendleton Woolen Mills since 1909. That is the year when Fanny Kay Bishop realized what an opportunity the idled facility held, and urged her three sons to buy and revive it. The Bishop Brothers restored and improved operations with the support of the Pendleton community.

The Pendleton mill has always specialized in traditional wool bed blankets. These are woven on jacquard looms to give our blankets curvilinear designs that are often different on front and back, for a reversible option. The company acquired the Washougal mill in 1912 to expand its range of fabrics, with specialized looms for plaids, herringbones, stripes, tweeds…all the weaves found in clothing textiles and plaid blankets.

Today’s Mills

In the early 1900s, the Pendleton mills were two of over 1,000 woolen mills operating in America’s 46 states. Today, they are two of the remaining four woolen mills in the United States. Both mills are continually updated for sustainability and innovation. Said VP Rolan Snyder, “Within each mill, the looms present a unique view into the craftsmanship behind how Pendleton fabrics are created.” The mill tour in Washougal, Washington walks guests through every step in the making of Pendleton wool blankets and fabric. This includes:

 –            Raw wool: sourced from local and global wool ranchers

–             Dyeing: state-of-the-art dye color lab to ensure color control and matching

–             Wool carding and spinning: turning wool into yarn

–             Weaving on dobby looms: creates Pendleton’s famous plaids, stripes and solids

–             Finishing touches: washing, hand inspection and boxing

The mill tour in Pendleton, Oregon offers guests an inside look into:

–             Jacquard looms: state-of-the-art two-story looms weaving graphic and pictorial designs

–             Wool spinning: turning wool into yarn

Come see us soon!

The Washougal Mill is located at 2 Pendleton Way, Washougal, Washington 98671. Tours are offered at the Washougal Mill on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 11a.m. and 1p.m.

The Pendleton Mill is located at 1307 SE Court Place, Pendleton, Oregon 97801. Tours are offered at the Pendleton Mill Monday through Friday at 11a.m. and 3p.m.

And if you can’t join us in person, here is a little mill tour for you: A Morning at the Washougal Mill.

Logo for Pendleton Woolen Mills, "Born in Oregon"

“Hear Me My Chiefs” honoring Chief Joseph

Hear Me My Chiefs

From time to time, we offer custom blankets on our website that were woven by Pendleton, but designed and commissioned by organizations or private individuals. The Chihuly series blankets are an excellent example of this. “Hear Me My Chiefs” is another example; a moving blanket designed by one of our former sales representatives, Terry Ball. Terry is spending his retirement in the place he loves, Montana.

Pendleton’s Chief Joseph blanket is a time-honored design that pays tribute to the great leader, but Terry had long dreamt of creating a more pictorial blanket that respectfully honored the history of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce tribe. The result was “Hear Me My Chiefs.”

Hear Me My Chiefs blanket by Pendleton WOolen Mills

The Design

Terry worked with members of the Nez Perce tribe to include meaningful symbols in this evocative blanket, which was woven in the USA by Pendleton Woolen Mills. You can read more about the deeply considered design here:

“Hear Me, My Chiefs” – The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion

And here:

Pendleton blanket tells of Nez Perce flight through Montana (greatfallstribune.com)

A photo shows a large bronze sculpture of Chief Joseph with a rifle and blanket. Behind the sculpture is the Hear Me My Chiefs blanket, hung on the wall.

Above is a photo of the blanket on display with a bronze statue of Chief Joseph crafted by sculptor Doug Hyde (Nez Perce). You can read about this statue here:

https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/nez-perce-unveil-chief-joseph-statue

Where to Find the Blanket

We carried this gorgeous blanket for a short time, but our stock sold through. We’ve been contacted by people who would love to have it. A limited quantity is still available through this website:

HEAR ME MY CHIEFS – Hear Me My Chiefs – HOME

Introducing Rock Point, a new collection for 2022

Rock Point

We’re excited to unveil our Rock Point blanket, and the beautiful accessories and apparel it inspired.

Pendleton Rock Point blanket

Rock Point –

Rock Point is a community in Arizona, part of the Diné/Navajo Nation that covers more than 17 million acres in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Rock Point is surrounded by rugged red rock formations, including Red Mesa, Two Sisters, North Arch, and Whale Rock, or Tsé Biná’ookaahí. Sandstone formations rise on a plain background that represents the desert floor, alternating with Los Ojos motifs joined together with arrows that point to the past and the future.

Everything else!

At Pendleton-usa.com, you can find the nine-element Rock Point pattern used in sweaters, scarves, an array of beautiful bags…even a cotton comforter. Our favorite examples are these coats.

This is the women’s 1930s Archive Coat. And yes, this is a design adapted from one of the coats in our archives, worn by actresses like Anita Page and Mary Pickford in the 1920s.

A woman with long dark hair wears the Pendleton Archive Coat.
The Archive Coat by Pendleton

See it here: Archive Coat

And read more about our archives here: The Pendleton Archives

Then, we have the Men’s Brownsville Coat, named for one of our early mills in the Pacific Northwest.

A man wearing a Pendleton Brownsville Coat.
The Brownsville Coat by Pendleton

You can see it here, with more photos that show off the exquisite pattern matching: Brownsville Coat

We’re in love with the modern possibilities of this very traditional pattern.

Washable Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool in New Cabin Stripes

Good for the Earth

We’re always excited about our Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool offerings; throws and bed blankets that pass strict standards of sustainability and environmental stewardship. We’re especially excited about our newest striped Eco-Wise Wool throws in four new Cabin Stripes.

These throws combine the simple, enduring appeal of stripes with the heathered yarns that make our Yakima Camp blankets so popular. Our goal with the Cabin Stripes was to create a palette that ranged from cool neutrals to warm earth tones that will work in sophisticated living rooms, comfy lounges, cabins, lofts, and campers. We want this throw to go anywhere!

Which one is your favorite?

Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool throw in Oxford

Oxford

Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool throw in Shale

Shale

Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool throw in Grey

Grey

Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool throw in Faun

Faun

A Little History

Striped blankets in heathered wool have a long history that stretches back to the ombre-striped bedrolls use by cattle hands and shepherds in the American West. During the day, they were tightly rolled and tied to the saddle, and at night they were unrolled for a night’s rest under the stars.

Made in American with naturally renewable wool, each Eco-Wise throw is machine washable, and will hold its color through every wash. You might not be unrolling yours by the campfire at night after a long day on the trail. But maybe you’ll drape one over your shoulders on a summer night when the temperature drops.

See them here: Pendleton Eco-Wise Wool Throws

Made in USA label with eagle for Pendleton

Serapes for Spring & Summer

 

Serape on Film

Lily Gladstone and Leonardo DiCaprio in a promotional shot from "Killers of the Flower Moon." Photo used bypermission of Apple Original Films.

Ah, the serape. This bold striped blanket reads modern, but it has been around a long time. In fact, a (very) vintage Pendleton Serape will be featured in Martin Scorcese’s upcoming Apple Original film, Killers of the Flower Moon. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Ernest Burkhart and Lily Gladstone plays Mollie Burkhart in the film depicting the true story of the Osage tribe murders in the 1920s. In this promo shot (courtesy Apple Original Filsms), Lily Gladstone is wrapped in a vintage Pendleton fringed shawl serape, provided to the film by our friend and vintage blanket expert Barry Friedman. 

Serape History

The serape’s roots are in the Mexican weaving tradition, but it is now common to both Spanish and Native American textiles. Here’s a photo of a Native family in a historic Babbitt Brothers wagon with a serape peeking over the edge. This was taken in the Southwest, where the Babbitts plied (and still ply) their trade.

HistoricBabbitWagonEdit2

Colorful, sturdy and functional, this blanket shawl was part of life in the traditional Mexican home. It could serve as clothing, bedding, and shelter. The serape is known by many names throughout Mexico, including chamarro, cobiga, and gaban. It can be woven of a variety of materials and patterns but is generally lighter in weight. Different regions use different palettes, from the elegant neutrals of the Mexican highlands to the bold gradients of Coahuila.

Serapes Today

Pendleton serapes hang on pegs in front of a white wall, with more folded on a crate.

Pendleton’s serapes are woven of 82% wool/18% cotton in bands of gradient colors to achieve that beautiful eye-popping dimensional effect. This is your perfect spring and summer blanket, just waiting to be invited along wherever you go. And this year we have a new design in Aqua.

Pendleton Aqua Serape

All made in the USA and available at www.pendleton-usa.com .

Made in USA label with eagle for Pendleton

Bridge City, a new blanket for 2021

Celebrating Portland

Portland is a city divided by a river, and united by bridges. Because the Willamette River divides our city neatly into East and West, and because there are wonderful places to visit on each side, a Portlander spends a lot of time traveling these bridges by foot, by bicycle, and by car. You learn each bridge by heart; how to get on it, how not to get on it, where it will take you, and the particular challenges of crossing it.

If you’re driving, the grids of the Hawthorne pull your car from side to side until you learn the trick of speeding up, rather than slowing down. The soaring upper deck of the Marquam, with its spectacular views of downtown, isn’t a place to sightsee, thanks to its hectic lane merges. The lower deck offers the most beautiful views of Waterfront Park in the city, especially during the Rose Festival. Whether or not you like to go to the Fun Center, you can’t help but be charmed by the lights of this huge carnival as you head west.

The Gothic splendor of the St. John’s Bridge, designed by famed engineer and polymath David B. Steinman, is the most majestic of Portland’s bridges. But the dramatic arches of the Fremont Bridge certainly give it a run, as far as dramatic beauty. At the other end of the Willamette River’s path through Portland, the Sellwood Bridge, rebuilt in 2016, was always Portland’s most controversial bridge. It was built in a hurry in 1925, and eventually deemed unsafe for bus and truck traffic. The new Sellwood bridge is broader, safer, and friendlier for pedestrians and cyclists.

Fun fact: The twelve bridges that span the Willamette are all different types of bridge. You can read the full list–and learn about their construction–on Wikipedia: Portland Bridges

The Blanket

2021 is a perfect year to celebrate building bridges, isn’t it? Here is Pendleton’s beautiful new “Bridge City” blanket, available now at pendleton-usa.com.

Bridge City, a new blanket by Pendleton, shows bridges spanning the Willamette River

Bridge City

A dozen bridges span the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. Each bridge is a different type of bridge. The oldest, the Hawthorne Bridge, is the oldest vertical-lift bridge operating in the USA. The newest, Tilikum Crossing, is named for Native Americans who have always lived along the Willamette. In this breathtaking new blanket, a sunrise behind Mt. Hood lights the St. Johns Bridge (suspension), the Fremont Bridge (tied-arch), and the Steel Bridge (lift-span) as they work with nine others to join the Portland’s east and west sides.Above them rises Mt. Hood, a silent, sleeping volcano that keeps watch over “Bridge City.” 

See more information: Bridge City

Read more about Tilikum Crossing: Portland’s Newest Bridge

Made in USA label with eagle for Pendleton

Warriors Circle of Honor, by Harvey Pratt

Veterans’ Day 2020

For Veterans’ Day, we’d like to feature the Warriors Circle of Honor blanket, designed by artist Harvey Pratt.

The Warriors Circle of Honor blanket by Harvey Pratt.

The Artist & Memorial

Harvey Pratt (Cheyenne/Arapaho) is an Oklahoma artist who works in painting, sculpting, wood carving, bronze, and graphic design. He served with the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion in Vietnam. He has worked in law enforcement for fifty years and is one of the foremost forensic artists in America. He currently serves as the chairperson of the Interior Indian Arts and Crafts Board, and as a traditional Southern Cheyenne Peace Chief.

Mr. Pratt designed the National Native American Veterans Memorial, at Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC. This memorial commemorates the service and sacrifice of Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native Veterans—past, current, and future. The memorial is a place of honor, recognition, reflection and healing for all Native veterans and their families.

For a deeper look at Mr. Pratt and his work on the memorial, please enjoy this film.

The Blanket

Pendleton is proud to present Mr. Pratt’s “Warriors’ Circle of Honor” blanket design, based on the memorial.

Warriors Circle of Honor blanket, front.

The Sacred Fire burns at the center of bands of color representing Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. A border of stars and stripes has openings to allow spirits to enter. Four hands wearing feathers of bravery and triumph mark the cardinal directions. Oval shapes echo the museum’s Grandfather Rocks.

Warriors Circle of Honor, reverse view.

More Information

For more information on Mr. Pratt’s work, please visit his website:  harveypratt.com.

To learn more about the blanket, visit our website: Warriors’ Circle of Honor

Pendleton label with bald eagle

A Horse Called Paint by Judd Thompson

A Horse Called Paint

The Horse Called Paint blanket comes off the loom.

As beautiful as this blanket looks coming off the loom, you’ll love it even more in finished form.

Judd Thompson

Born in 1983, Thompson grew up on the Crow Indian Reservation, surrounded by art in his family’s business, The Custer Battlefield Trading Post. After graduating from the University of Wyoming with a degree in Art & Art History, he moved to Billings, Montana, where he uses his passion for color theory in a variety of media, including painting and sculpture.

The Blanket

A Horse Called Paint, a blanket for Pendleton Woolen Mills designed by artist Judd Thompson.

A dark horse gallops, silhouetted against a snowy night in “A Horse Named Paint,” by Montana artist Judd Thompson. The reverse is beautiful in a dramatic photo-negative way, too (does anyone remember photo negatives? we have to wonder…).

The reverse side of A Horse Called Paint.

Made in the USA

Photo technology has changed, but Pendleton blankets are timeless. This blanket, like all of our traditional wool blankets and throws, is woven, finished, and packed by hand in the USA in our Pacific Northwest mills. See it here: A Horse Called Paint

Made in USA label with eagle for Pendleton

2020 Blankets with Stories to Tell

New Blankets Have Arrived

This year will be one that generates many stories, and 2020 is not over yet. In this very unusual year, we will keep bringing you beautiful wool blankets that have their own stories to tell. Here are some of our favorites, along with their legends.

The Alamosa blanket by Pendleton - red, beige, blue

Alamosa

“Of a time long ago, these things are said.” The Navajo language is spoken like a poem, and tells of the first beings, the Air-Spirit People, who emerged in the First World. There, a red island held the Insect People; ants, dragonflies, beetles, and a dwelling called House of Red Rock. To the east, a stepped pattern shows the Place Where the Waters Crossed, home to the sunrise. In the center, blue streams converge, then flow toward each of the sacred Four Directions. 

This is one of our most popular introductions this year. See it here: Alamosa

Juniper Mesa blanket by Pendleton - beige diamond designs

Juniper Mesa

Thanks to deep taproots, western junipers thrive where other trees fail, scattered across mesa tops in the deserts of the Southwest. Known for their twisting, mystical shapes and long life—some live over a thousand years—junipers produce aromatic berries used by Puebloans since ancient times as an herbal remedy. In this design, western junipers offer shade, sustenance and habitat to desert wildlife, shown as arrows that pass below, through and over branches.

This Nine Element blanket is a favorite among our design teams. See it here: Juniper Mesa

Saddle Mountain blanket by Pendleton - gold, purple, blue and

Saddle Mountain

Saddle Mountain is a scenic peak in the Oregon Coast Range, and the tallest mountain in Oregon’s Clatsop County. It is also one of the most beautiful places in Oregon to watch the sunrise. Bold blocks of warm colors evoke the rising sun in a design derived from early strip quilt patterns. In the center, a row of stylized stars evoke the planets Mercury and Venus, sometimes called Morning Stars, as they rise on a new day.

With its bold colors and quilt-inspired design, this blanket makes a strong statement. See it here: Saddle Mountain

Thunderbird-mountain-front

Thunderbird Mountain

The Menominee of Northern Wisconsin tell of a great mountain that floats in the western sky. Here dwell the Thunderbirds, messengers of the Sun and controllers of the weather. These magnificent flying creatures delight in battles, and compete to accomplish deeds of greatness and heroism. They cause the rain and hail storms that can save crops, or ruin them. Their valor holds back the Misikinubik, giant horned snakes that might overrun the earth if not for the Thunderbirds.

See it here: Thunderbird Mountain

This blanket celebrates ancient legends with striking geometry. And because this one has such a striking reverse, here is the other side of Thunderbird Mountain. Which side do you like more? Reversibility is one of the benefits of blankets woven on jacquard looms; one blanket, two looks.

Thunderbird-mountain-back

You can get more information and see the reverses of all these blankets at http://www.pendleton-usa.com.

Made in USA label with eagle for Pendleton